We are excited to announce that events using the Standard Bag service level can now add a custom theme to their bag for only $100! When we rolled out the Premium Bag last year, we had a large number of customers who really liked the ability to customize the theme (colors, background image, etc.) but could not justify the leap from Standard to Premium, so we decided to take this popular feature and make it available as an optional add-on for any event at the Standard level!
Are you producing an event or thinking about starting one? If so, have you thought about the best ways to utilize technology so your event will flourish, not just survive?
Let me give you an example from my professional background of sponsorship sales and management. People say, “you’re that sponsorship guy…can you help me get sponsors?” Most of the time my answer is, “Yes I am! And no I can’t help you. Your event really can’t afford a full-service sponsorship sales agency and the agency needs large events to sell.”
This is why we launched HelpGetSponsors.com, to provide events of all sizes the tools through technology to sell and manage sponsorships faster and easier. This is what technology is all about!
It’s why Virtual Race Bags created a technology to save you and your sponsor time and money, and give you the ability to track results for your sponsors!
Are you seeking sponsorships for your event? It’s a competitive market out there with hundreds of thousands of events seeking this elusive revenue stream. Are you using technologies to power your sponsorship platform? If not, you better get onboard before others pass you by.
That pretty much goes for everything you do. Are you using the latest technology to stoke the flames of your event fire?
We are big fans of Seth Godin, the author of many books and articulator of BIG ideas. What we like most about Seth is that he is able to succinctly and simply get to the heart of everyday business issues that we all face …. like selling sponsorships. Below is a recent post from his blog that we thought those of you organizing events would find helpful. We invite you to share your thoughts in the comments section.
Happy New Year! My name is Gary Schwake, President & Co-Founder of Virtual Race Bags. I am running for the 2014-2015 Board of Directors for Running USA, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the status and experience of distance running and racing in the United States.
If you are a member of Running USA, I would appreciate your support by including me as one of your votes for the 2014-2015 Board of Directors.
"How do participants respond to receiving a digital goody bag instead of a traditional bag full of paper?"
This is a common question received from event organizers looking at including Virtual Race Bags. From the day our first bag launched, our number 1 priority has been to deliver an exceptional experience to event participants. If we do that, the rest of the experience goes great for the events and their sponsors.
But don't ask us if participants like Virtual Race Bags … just ask your participants or keep your eyes on Twitter!
Thanks to our friends at RunSignUp for hosting a webinar covering all the features and benefits of incorporating a digital goody bag from Virtual Race Bags into your event. We had over 50 events participate in the webinar, so there were many great questions.
For those of you looking for answers to specific topics, we've listed below a few points of interest in the video:
If if after watching the replay you still have questions, visit our FAQ page or give us a call!
Today we announced the integration of our platform with RunSignUp. This is another step on our continued quest to keep Virtual Race Bags as The Ultimate Digital Goody Bag Platform for Endurance Events.
The integration allows Event Organizers to automatically connect their event registration on RunSignUp with their Virtual Race Bag, therefore eliminating the need to upload data and effectively put the whole process on "cruise control" during race week.
We are thrilled to announce that USA Triathlon, the National Governing Body for triathlon, duathlon and other multi-sport events in the United States has selected Virtual Race Bags as the Official Digital Goody Bag Supplier for USAT events and conferences. USAT has been thoughtful about producing events that have minimal impact on the environment, and leveraging the industry-leading digital goody bag platform is part of that strategy.
But it is much more about being "green." It is about providing their Sponsors a best-in-class branding opportunity and participants significant value through relevant, high quality offers. We look forward to working with USAT in 2013 and beyond!
Will you be at the Race Director Symposium? We will too, so be sure to stop by and check out our platform!
As the sponsor of an event that uses our platform or as one of our National Brand Partners you have the unique opportunity to have an offer placed in a Virtual Race Bag. While businesses often come prepared with artwork for a display ad, many neglect to think about the actions they want their new endurance sports customers to take once the offer is engaged. Here are some suggestions on elements for a good landing page. Read More
The October 2012 issue of Fast Company included an article on the investments that the Competitor Group is making in digital. Why is CGI making these investments? As the article quickly points out, because that is where the money is! But when you peel it back, these efforts are really focused on the participant experience, because if participants are engaged, sponsors get what they seek, which is access!
Going digital is much more than simply offering online registration, having a website, posting to a facebook page and tweeting to your followers, at least from an economic perspective. For your event to "Go Digital" and provide real value to your Sponsors (which you in turn can monetize), you need to be able to provide an integrated platform that provides your sponsors high quality, efficient access to your participants.