red carpet

Yesterday, the 85th Academy Awards took place at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles. With over 1 billion viewers worldwide, the Oscars are in a category all by themselves.

As an event organizer, have you ever given any thought to what makes the Oscars so appealing and what you can do to mimic this hype at your next awards or appreciation event

Here are four areas the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences excels at in promoting and hosting their once a year event:

#1: The nominations are made six weeks in advance and are limited in each category. 

The Academy holds a short news conference to announce the nominations and the room is filled with media outlets from all over the world. This process creates a lot of buzz and causes the average movie goer to give further examination to their viewing choices. In addition, the studios re-releases the nominated films so the stay-at-home audience can see the movies prior to the Oscars. 

Why not limit the number of nominations for your appreciation event and let the attendees get to know each nominee better through the use of video, photos, and postings on your website or online community? This does two things; it helps build momentum for your event and builds a connection between your attendees and the nominees. 

#2: Each Academy member has a vote. 

Every one of their 6,000 members, whether they are an actor, director or part of the sound effects team, has an equal vote in deciding who wins the Oscar. But best of all — the voting is shrouded in secrecy — with no one tabulating or knowing the end results other than an outside accounting firm. This leads to a lot of anticipation, buzz and speculation by the media as to who will win. 

Does every paid member of your association or employee of your corporation have the opportunity to vote on who they believe should win? Does an outside organization tally the results? This process will convey to your attendees that their vote matters and the process is very fair. 

#3: Every celebrity receives the "red carpet treatment."

It probably isn't everyone, but there is such a clamor by the media to interview the nominees and other big names in Hollywood. It starts from the moment the limousines roll up and ends when the guests enter the building.  

Do your attendees feel special when they arrive at your meeting? Do you have greeters attending to their every need? And clamoring to get to know them better? 

#4: They save the best awards for last.

The Academy has a couple of good awards in the beginning of the show, but the best ones are always at the end. They keep the audience interested and engaged throughout the evening by hiring an entertaining emcee, integrating musical numbers and providing a fair amount of video clips. 

Do you save the best for last at your appreciation event? 

AV Event Solutions, now part of the SmartSource Rentals family, can make your next meeting or event feel more like the Oscars with their sound and lighting rental packages and creative interactive technology tool rentals. Their expert technicians can deliver, configure and provide on-site technical support for all your star studded events!