Moderated by: Jason Alley
Just before my son’s first week of high school, I received and email announcing a special one-time event being put on by Tony Dungy (former head coach of the Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts) designed to prepare players for the upcoming high school football season. It was called “The Red Zone.” As big fans of Coach Dungy (I’m currently reading his book Uncommon which is fabulous), my son and I were all over this. We bought our $15 tickets and were fired up to attend the show.
School began Tuesday, and that evening we drove to our local movie theater to see what we thought was a pre-recorded production. It was totally different than expected, and we were blown away by the experience. Tony Dungy and a very entertaining MC were being broadcast live from a large facility in Texas where hundreds of high school kids were attending in football uniform, joined by their coaches, cheerleaders, parents and other football enthusiasts. Coach Dungy walked the kids through a variety of topics related to football skills and character development using entertaining pre-recorded video content (shown full screen length in theaters), live interviews with NFL players from training camp, and presentations from special guests in Texas. Rather than an ordinary pre-recorded production, we participated in a rich entertainment and educational experience that delivered a huge amount of “pop” and excitement - all from a familiar local movie theater. We really felt like we were a part of something special.
What does this have to do with trade shows? The experience was so cool that my mind started to race thinking of other applications. At some point, I checked my inbox and saw a VoiceCon weekly email inviting me to attend the fall VoiceCon show in San Francisco. I then wondered, could an event like VoiceCon use this approach to broadcast keynotes and other special events taking place at the live event? Why might they want to? What would some of the challenges be?
Some of the reasons a show such as VoiceCon might want to consider this approach include:
- Extending the reach of special events at the show - many of which have a pretty impressive production value already (use of video, live interviews, music, etc.).
- Increasing the entertainment value for those who are not able to attend in person (versus the a general web download or webcast)
- Increasing the perception of thought leadership surrounding the event.
Some of the challenges that would need to be worked through include:
- Creating a social benefit for people to attend. In the case of The Red Zone, kids went with other players on their team or teams went as a whole. Would people see any social value in attending a major trade show segment in a theater setting? Is there a way to create enough a buzz to draw them into the live experience?
- Making the experience interactive. While we experienced The Red Zone live from a local theater and were encouraged to participate along with folks at the primary site (e.g., cheers), we really didn’t feel like we were included in the broadcast. How could tools such as remote cameras, interviews, and polling be incorporated to make the remote experience more interactive?
- Working through the economics. What are the costs involved? Is this an important strategic initiative for theaters and have they been able to find a way to deliver video broadcasting capabilities in an economical way for organizations that can draw enough interest? What is the break even point?
This was the first of its kind, at least in my world, and I think there’s really something here. If not for trade shows, this approach will likely be leveraged by other social entities - corporations for internal events, churches for nationwide services, organizations activating social or political movements, etc. The social element is the key here. What a cool, innovative and fun concept! Have you personally experienced anything like this? How can you see it being utilized? What other reasons are there to consider this approach? What are some other challenges that need to be worked through before it becomes more commonplace?
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