Thanks again to all who came out to show their support and of course a huge thank you to all my suppliers and sponsors. Lonsdale Rentals Mobiry Seven 25 Design & Typography House of Q Michi Sushi Road 13 Mozart Bakery & Cafe Hot Wax Mobile Music & Tattoos For Now

The rest of the great photos taken by Cole & Jakob from Nordica Photography can be found here http://www.flickr.com/photos/amuseconsulting/

Now you may wonder why I’m getting nervous after all I’ve planned over 100+ events since starting Amuse Consulting in 2005 and 6 years of events I planned at all Vancouver Capers Community Market stores. Well the answer is simple, this is a huge milestone both for me personally and for my company and so I’ve really put it all out there.

I’ve lined up a fantastic array of suppliers doing their best work and some neat and nifty surprises that are sure to please and get people talking. It’s an event with a Marc/Amuse twist. To find out some of the special treats in store for you check out an earlier blog from last week.

Something I have not shared yet with  most folks is how truly thankful I am for the amazing support I have received from clients, friends, colleagues, and the fantastic social media world that I dipped my toes into last year. So here is my public thank you in the largest voice I can muster THANK YOU for an amazing 5 years. I really look forward to the next 5 years and beyond.

For those sitting on the fence yes there are a few tickets left. $20 gets you a great evening of fun, of course my thanks, and the knowledge that the money is going to charity. Two in fact Kids Up Front Vancouver & A Loving Spoonful. Buy your ticket here http://amuse5year.eventbrite.com/

So here’s to seeing you on Wednesday May 19th at the Harrison Galleries, at 6pm. I’ll be the one smiling from ear to ear.

I’m super stoked about the event and want to share with you some of the cool sponsors and services that will be on display for your enjoyment. Oh there are still a few tickets left so click on the poster and register yourself.

1. To start with I’m showcasing some cool neat technology courtesy of Mobiry. I’m not going give too much of that away as it’s kind of cool and I like the surprise factor.
2. For food well have we a treat for you. To start with we have the award winning House of Q serving up real southern BBQ Pulled Pork Sliders with Southern coleslaw! Then we have the unique and super tasty Michi Sushi serving up their innovative and easy to eat sushi rolls. To further delight your taste buds and to be honest a meal isn’t over till you’ve had dessert we have… Mozart Bakery & Cafe doing up Sweet Potato Pie & Lemon Tartlets. Yummy Yummy Yummy!
3. Now that we’ve taken care of your taste buds how about your other senses? Spinning some tunes that will have all our toes tapping will be DJ’s courtesy of Hot Wax Mobile Music.
4. For you sight we’ve even got that covered! Tattoos For Now will be creating a special piece of body art that will be on display plus they will be offering airbrush tattoos for all in attendance. Maybe you’ve been wanting one on a certain spot bust just didn’t know how it would look well now you’ve no excuse Ted Couling will also be on had as a crowd favourite to create some lasting memories with his caricatures.
5. Did you think I’d forgotten about what you are drinking? Not to worry this is going to blow you away. Irene will be sampling some beautifully aged rum and Lambic beers that I’m sure you’ll enjoy + the surprise guest is Michael Bartier the winemaker of Road 13 will be pouring wines all night and will be hosting a very special and exclusive mini event in our party at approx 7:30ish.
6. Think I’m done? nope but you’ll just have to be there to find out what else I have in store for you. Plus you have to be there to win 1of the 8 door prizes valued at over $3500!

So I really hope to see you on the 19th. It’ll be a great event and the crowd is looking fabulous. Don’t leave your ticket purchase till the end they are selling fast and I have put a cap on number of tickets available.

Thanks again to sponsors that have come on board at the last minute and didn’t make the poster designed by Isabelle and the team at Seven25 Design & Typography.

To celebrate our “birthday” we are throwing an exclusive event and you are invited. Please see below for more details and click on the poster to be taken to the registration page. Proceeds from the event are being donated to A Loving Spoonful and Kids Up Front. Both are new Amuse Clients.

Thanks to the fantastic sponsors I’ve got quite the line up of events happening + over $3500.00 in door prizes. Thanks to Road 13, House of Q, Michi Sushi, Mobiry, Seven25 Design & Typography & Mozart Bakery & Cafe

Only 125 tickets are available and they are selling fast so please make sure to get yours right away   Click on the poster below to be directed to the registration page with all the details.

click here for party registration

Thanks to a couple of great websites (www.miss604.com 04 and www.citycaucus.ca) I’ve been able to scout some of the best and FREE events that will be happening around the city.

Here are my top three pics

1. LiveCity Yaletown – I think this is going to be the hot spot downtown for live events. Running from 11am to 11pm Feb 13th to Feb 28th. To find out the full listing of scheduled performances click here

2. Casa Italia – We all know how much I love good food….. Well I am sure that Casa Italia will not disappoint. Located at the Roundhouse Community Centre in Yaletown it will be open daily to the public between Feb 6 – 28th from noon until 6pm daily.

3. Heineken House (Holland) – the must Go See pavilion of the 2010 Games. Located near the Richmond O-Zone it is expected this “party” palace will serve in excess of 90,000 people. Open from 9 a.m. to 2 a.m daily they will serve up equal portions of Heineken and performances by Dutch Artists. A must see!

So now you know some of the places I’ll be. Where will you be?

Contest Giveaway

Thanks to Translink I’m having the first ever contest on my Blog. The prize is a 2 Zone 2010 Games Transit Pass good from Feb 8th 2010 to March 21st 2010. This is your all access pass to transit during the 2010 Olympics and it’s value is $149.00!

Here’s how to win.

1. Post a comment on this blog about what Olympic event you plan to see and what form of transit you will use to get there. = one entry

2. Follow me on twitter (user name is Amuseconsulting) and ReTweet the following post “I entered to win a 2 Zone 2010 Games Transit pass from @amuseconsulting. Click here for details http://ow.ly/11Fod“ = one entry

3. Contest closes on Feb 3rd 2010 at Midnight pst. The prize will be mailed out so you must have a valid BC address to win.

And the winner is Josh Rimer! Thanks to all those that entered.

Vancouver Cultural Olympiad 2010

Posted: January 14th, 2010 @ 10:30 am
Posted by: Miss604
5 Comments

Vancouver’s Cultural Olympiad has been taking place over the last two years, gearing up for the main event in February 2010, it features performances, art installations, concerts and more.

From January 22nd until March 21st sub-festivals such as CODE and Juste pour rire, will make sure the Cultural Olympiad is jammed-packed with action.

They have hundreds of events taking place in dozens of venues around Vancouver, including outdoor expositions. If you’re not sure what to search for yet in the event listings, here are just a few highlights.

The contemporary concert series in Vancouver:

January 22nd Phoenix with You Say Party! We Say Die! at the Orpheum. Tickets start at $32.50.

February 15th City and Colour & The Rural Alberta Advantage at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Tickets start st $32.50.

February 16th New Songs, New Voices with Jason Plumb, Meaghan Blanchard, Romi Mayes, Dan Mangan at the Roundhouse Community Arts and Recreation Centre. Tickets $12.

February 17th Feist & Gonzales “Piano Talk Show” at the Orpheum. Tickets start at $37.50.

February 19th Stars with Hey Rosetta! at the Orpheum. Tickets start at $37.50.

March 12th Gomez & Chad Van Gaalen at the Orpheum. Tickets start at $32.50.

March 18th Martha Wainwright & Jorane: Chanteuses modernes at the Commodore Ballroom. Tickets $32.50.

March 20th Raphael Saadiq & India.Arie at the Orpheum. Tickets start at $42.5

For the complete blog post by Miss604 please click here.

These are the 8 Tips and Tricks I recommend.

1. Check out the http://travelsmart2010.ca/ website for all the up to date Transit information, maps, trip planners, travel alerts, & business preparedness tips + road closures.

2. Did you know that if you have an Olympic event ticket this is also good as your transit pass for the day! That’s free unlimited transit for the entire day of the event you are going to! Includes everything but the West Coast Express.

3. For non Olympic related activities/errands/work consider travelling into the downtown core before noon. Most Olympic events taking place in Vancouver and Richmond are scheduled to start after 12 noon.

4. Translink is also offering 6 week Limited Edition transit passes. These are available now and are valid from Feb 8, 2010 to March 21, 2010.

5. If you have a smart phone and are on Twitter follow them. Translink will be real time monitoring these sites and information gathered will be fed to the dispatch center. Jhenifer Pabillano, Online Communications Advisor for Translink is also a great resource and is responsible for the http://buzzer.translink.ca/ Blog.

6. If you have an IPHONE download the free Translink APP. It is a bit clumsy but all the schedules are updated and it utilizes the GPS in the phone to help you find stops near you. You can find the APP by entering TRANSLINK in the APP Store search. Best of all it’s FREE!

7. Depending on your departure to final destination points give yourself some extra time. This way you are not adding any additional stress on yourself and it will ensure less “transit” rage.

8. Smile and be helpful to locals and tourists alike. A smile is infectious and will help in lowering transit tension.

What are your thoughts and ideas about getting around Vancouver during the Olympics? Please let me know what you think. Look forward to your comments.

Regardless of my initial position it is now a done deal and I feel we should embrace it and take advantage in whatever way makes the best sense. So that means let’s stop our griping and let’s have some fun! With so much happening in the city it’s a once in a life time opportunity.

Here are some tips and tricks to make the most of what’s happening.

1. Working and traveling into DT – this is a big one. If you commute to DT for work you may want to ask for some options. Would your company allow you to telework? Can I adjust my work hours to void the commute crush (did you know most Olympic sports start at noon or later? This means if you work from 7-2pm you’ll avoid most of the traffic mess)? Are you able to carpool or take public transit (Translink has worked hard to make this information available on one site. All you need to know about car pooling, trip planning, schedules etc it is there. Also if you have an IPHONE check out the APP store for the free Translink App. I use it all the time!)?

2. Take in the sights sounds and energy that is going to be happening all over the Lower Mainland. There will be lots of great events and pavilions happening all over the Lower Mainland and up to Whistler. When I searched there are at least 34 events that are free during the month of February in the Vancouver area alone. Also don’t forget the live site at David Lam Park, Georgia and Beatty and of course the Richmond O Zone which will have Holland House (better known as Heineken House).

3. Party it up. the City of Vancouver has extended patio hours for restaurants to 1am. Just imagine the amazing people you will be able to meet all without having to get on a plane. the world is coming to us so let’s get out there and meet them. Support our local businesses and get out there and enjoy!

I welcome your feedback and I’ve attended quite a few 2010 preparedness events. So if you have any questions about getting around don’t be shy, ask.

Sometimes there are great reasons for not showing up. Family emergency, work emergencies or being placed in jail by the police are just a few. For the rest of the no showers it boils down to one of three reasons. 1. They got a better offer 2. They only said yes in the first place to avoid explaining why they weren’t interested in attending and 3. They forgot to enter it in their calendar so they forgot &/or double booked themselves.

I can’t help with the first two reasons, that’s a case of manners and etiquette, but I do have some solutions for reason #3.

Solution #1 Use an online registration tool like Eply, Eventbrite or Karelo (these are just a few). These online registration systems allow you to capture all their information plus the added bonus of a click button that allows the registrant to export the event details to their calendar program! Done. Date, time and location all entered!

Solution #2 Send out an email blast the morning of the event reminding your guests of the start time and location. The only draw back here is that they still might have double booked themselves already and emails only have a 20% open ratio.

Solution #3 A brand new text alert service available through Quick Mobile that allows you to text your registered guests at the time of your choosing with the script of your choosing. At a recent event I hosted we sent out the message reminding guests of the time, place and a reminder link to the host’s website. How many calls have you missed at the event from guests calling to ask the address? Well no more! This service is “user opt in” targeted and most importantly very cost effective + text messages have a 98% open rate.

There are no excuses for not showing up to an event once you’ve RSVP’d anymore. For more information on online registration services or text alerts please contact me for more details.

The first questions I asked were: 1. How many people are you expecting? 2. What is the demographic profile of your guests? and 3. What’s your budget?

The answer was the new Earls in Yaletown’s V . V can accommodate stand-up reception parties of 300 people, is located in the heart of Vancouver’s hip upscale heritage district of Yaletown and based on the date and time of the event they were willing to negotiate an acceptable minimum that met both my clients’ needs and the needs of the venue.

V boasts the reliability of the Earls brand but with a twist. Designed with a more modern feel V boasts a full service designer bar (can we say flights of Vodka!) a dedicated kitchen just for V, complete multimedia access with 8 36-inch LCD screens, prewired for AV presentations, wireless mics and headsets + PC and Mac hook ups for presentations Plus a whole lot more.

So keep your eyes and ears peeled for details on the upcoming launch of Sociable at V. you’ll be able to keep up on the latest in social media and dining experiences all at the same time.

To find out more about V contact Amuse and we’ll gladly take you on a tour.