Working in the event industry, you always have to get yourself prepared for “heart-pounding” moments. You have no idea whether you will burst with happiness or be weighed down by anxiety. Why does this happen when everything has been scripted? It is because the event comes with a fast rhythm. As each moment passing, the audience will encounter different settings, different lights, different images, different people, and different feelings. We name this phenomenon “a mix of color”. Here are the key tasks of a professional event planner: to produce the best-synchronized mix of highlights that captures the audience’s heart long after the event completion, to design a well-structured event that tells a story, and to decorate an event in harmony with all kinds of environment that make the audience feel like they are in a different world – a world representative of the brand. If the event is a mix, the image will be melody and the content will be lyrics, all brought to the audience by talented producers and a crew of art performers.
As directors, regardless of what kind of event, a small conference, an official seminar, or an art festival with tens of thousands of participants, we are dedicated to what kind of style our mix comes in, or what kind of tune we should play to the audience.
We recently launched a groundbreaking ceremony. Upon hearing the name of the event, a picture of vast land with scorching sun and blazing wind immediately occurs to mind. In this case, we need to keep it short and in line with the principles of feng shui. Although we normally use 8 drumlines for the opening, we decided to cut the first line loose, so that the event could be presented in a stronger beat. A little change like that, less likely to be realized, is enough to set the audience’s pulse racing and deepen the client’s confidence in this land’s prosperity.
Before that, we were asked to organize a company’s anniversary. The program was divided into three parts, including story of childhood, story of youth, and story of adulthood. 5 minutes left before the program began, we still pondered between three scenarios scripted based on the appearance of VIPs. All the VIPs came, but our intuition and experience told us to go with scenario no.3. That was telling the brand journey – before the brand received the State Medal – as thoroughly as possible. Although it was contrary to normal procedure, our intuition was right. The VIPs and participants were completely mesmerized by the program’s coherence. They deeply understood the brand’s 30-year story and weighed words of celebration with more consideration. The part in which regulators conferred the state medal to the brand left a stronger impression and did not come out as rigid or bland.
The year-end party we organized several days before Tet set another example. Normally, key moments will take place right before the party. But how about holding them off to the last. When all the staff and guests were drunk with happiness after a successful year, we brought in spring rhythm performed by lovable and amusing robots. This was our best wish to the audience. We hoped that these wishes would follow our listeners every road and into sleep, and nurture their dreams, expectations, and determination to make the next year even better. If we followed the normal procedure, how could we spark such lingering feelings?
At a customer appreciation party by a famous jewelry and gift brand, the number of participants exceeded our calculation. Given the forestage was crammed with tables, we briefed the dance group that they would go on stage from the auditorium. With that rapid change, the opening performance made a special impression as the light filling the space and projecting from the back of the auditorium to the stage. This revealed the sparkling beauty of the products that our clients want to market.
There are so many stories waiting to be told. Each event stores in itself plenty of lessons worth learning. It is not only about ideas, agendas, methods for a thorough implementation, but also about moments that need refining to ensure a best structured program. We work with enthusiasm, passion, and sensitivity at heart. The bottom line is, we are the main drivers of creative ideas end-to-end, and the decisive voice on which MOMENTS – HAVE – THE – MOST – VALUE – UPON – CHANGE. It is us who deeply understand our clients’ requirements, not some outsourced directors. So we wonder, is that what makes Apex’s events different?
Life always has unplanned moments, so do events. Most importantly, let’s turn them into the most valuable, interesting, meaningful, and impressive moments with the presence of mind and the sensitivity of the heart. Let’s make our lives full of indelible marks.