Friday, February 9, 2024

Industrial Strength Broadway: The Secret Music of Corporate Events Still Exists Today.

Last night, part of the Live Spark crew went to see "Industrial Strength Broadway": a musical honoring the musicals written for corporate events in the 1950s-80s by Steve Young--the star of "Bathtubs Over Broadway" (same topic). 

We're not talking about jingles here--nothing that the population at large has seen. We're talking about "here are the benefits of our line of disposable paper medical supplies vs other supplies or competitors."

The conceit--along with highlighting the absurdity and the kitsch of musical numbers set to tractor benefits (paper cups, diesel engines, silicones, bathroom fixtures, etc.) and sales successes--was that this was both a peek into a secret world that was never meant to be seen by the general populous, and that it was a relic of a different era. 

Yes to the first point--who even knew that parody songs (or original compositions) written to be performed at sales meetings even existed? (Well, apart from those of us in the industry. To wit: see point two...)

No to the second point--because "industrial" musical numbers never quite went away. 

As we were watching the show I turned to my colleague during a particularly detail-heavy number about the uses of silicones (not silicone--never SILICONE) and whispered, "This feels...slightly traumatic." 
"Why?"
"Because this is still my life!"

My assertion was a joke, of course, but the days of listening to product managers, sales VPs, marketing luminaries, etc., espouse the details of their product and having to synthesize a song encapsulating all those features and benefits in a very specific (not always fitting the meter of your song) way are not yet past us. 

We've done several "Time Life Music Collection" parodies for companies highlighting their equipment in various ways (features, benefits, purpose, etc.), we just wrote a parody highlighting a three step sales process that a company wanted everyone to learn (and how better to get the order of the steps correct than to set them to a musical reminder?). 

There may not be Ziegfeld-Follies-level dance numbers to accompany the music anymore, but the music still exists. In addition to highlighting product features and benefits, we'll write songs to close an event--encapsulating the attendee experience for the entire meeting in just a few verse highlights. We'll introduce incentive trip destinations or next year's show through song. We'll even open a show and give the high points of what to expect for the next x days with an opening number (an Oscar number on an Oscar Meyer budget). 

All these songs endure because music engages us emotionally. It's a fun way to get information, it helps content stick, and it provides a point of storytelling and interaction that just cannot be matched by spoken presentation. 

There's a reason why people unrelated to any industrial/corporate world packed a theater to see the inner-workings of the corporate industrial musical--these private, funny, weird, secret songs still have the ability to engage and move us. 

Tuesday, June 2, 2020

Social Learning


Like a lot of parents since COVID-19 became a global pandemic, I've been doing "distance learning" with my child. What my peer group and I have noticed, universally, is that a lot of kids who were great in school classrooms...are not doing well when removed from the classroom environment.

This isn't just due to one factor, of course, but significant elements that are missing--that are creating a learning gap for kids--are also creating training and working gaps for businesses and employees. Some of these elements can be looked at to make more robust, effective in-person events (when they happen again).

Learning concierge
In the classroom:
Children need a teacher figure or, at the very least, a non-distracted person who is dedicated to their learning; who is there to answer questions, give support, and who proactively reaches out.

Event application:
Having event organizers and trainers onsite who are not only available for questions, but who actively reach out and network with attendees to ensure that they're grasping key concepts (not just "having a good time").

Peer Groups
In the classroom:
Children learn better in peer groups. Solo learning can be intense and studious, but focus can come from the accountability of being in a group of peers. You owe it to your other students to pay attention, settle down, be active so everyone can hear and learn.

Event application:
Having people together, physically, in the same room creates an environment where success or failure can be won as a team. We often team up attendees for this reason; it's easy for one person to be lost in a crowd, but it's hard to escape accountability in a group of 10 WITHIN a much larger meeting.

Distribution of Responsibility
In the classroom:
Children work together on projects, boosting the collective knowledge of the group by bringing in shared experiences, objections, additions, and brainstorming.

Event application:
Interactive tasks, extra-general session work, etc., can be assigned or completed if given as a team project. Participants are able to do more and interact in a more dynamic way--producing FOR the event--if they're interacting together.

Changing up the Format
In the classroom:
Kids have multimedia, print, lecture, etc.; the typical day is broken up by a variety of sources giving information, connection to the outside world, self-directed research, and different topics that stretch their brains. They can ask questions, guide discussion, etc. It's a vastly different environment than an overburdened Zoom call or infrequently touching base with a teacher.

Event application:
No one is having fun being on 8 hours of Zoom calls a day to talk to their teams. Virtual events are still placing people in one environment; the computer screen. Just like most live events still place their attendees in one format; the PowerPoint presentation. Events would do well to change the physical environment and the variety of ways that information is presented and how people interact with that information.


While kids may or may not go back to school in-person in the fall, and adults may or may not return to in-person events, it's clear that they provide value that contributes to the success and learning of their attendees in ways that virtual environments cannot.

Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Virtual Team Building

Now that lots of offices are working remotely, co-workers are struggling to connect with each other (both because of all the other pressures in the home--kids, pets, stress, etc. but also because it's just not the same to have a water cooler conversation when the water cooler is your kitchen tap and you might not be wearing proper pants).

Strange times lead to a dearth of connection, and team building is a great boost to office morale--but how do you team build when everyone is in a different space? Here are a few ideas:

Online Competition: Many companies have dipped their toes in virtual competitions already. (Intel, for instance, does a widespread competition for retail salespeople.) Divide offices into teams and host online quizzes, competitions, scavenger hunts, etc. with weekly leaderboard results.


Virtual Trivia: Speaking of online quizzes; having a virtual trivia break at the end of a week is a great way to both review what has been happening that week--getting everyone on the same page even if they've been working remotely--and lighten the mood. Prizes may or may not be involved, but everyone plays along using virtual keypads (see www.learningware.com) for a great virtual (and classroom) game show resource.


Show your Talent: Virtual meetings are giving co-workers tiny glimpses into the personal lives of their peers. Capitalize on that by doing a bit of a talent show. Can someone play the guitar? Can they make up a parody song about virtual work? Do they have a cat that can meow on command? Time to find out!


Video Presentations: Co-workers (or management) can prepare short, entertaining videos, showcasing what's going on with their projects. One of our clients is sending out messages from their AniMated mascot--featured at their face-to-face events--to keep everyone updated in a fun, lighthearted way.


Hangout Happy Hour: My husband's company enacted a virtual happy hour--and combined this with a trivia/icebreaker game. It was a designated time to unwind a bit in a high-stress climate. Cocktails are optional, of course.