Mumtaz President earns her MBA!

We are so very excited to announce Mumtaz President, Joella Hopkins, earned her MBA in Marketing this past Fall. It was a wonderful feat of success, managing two businesses whiling attending school. Congrats Joella! You are a Phoenix!

Will we see you at CalSae?

Will we see you at the California Society of Association Executives Annual Elevate Conference? Mumtaz President Joella Hopkins, CSEP, CMP will be participating as a speaker. The Elevate Conference is being held in San Francisco on April 17-19. 

Joella will be presenting alongside some amazing leaders in the industry as part of Ignite! The Ignite format features quick nuggets of knowledge presented in 20 slides that auto-advance every 15 seconds! It's fast! It's exciting! It's educational! Each presentation will be followed by Q&A with the presenter. Joella will be presenting "What Message Are Your Events Sending?" The brief description reads...Tired of the same old monthly member meetings? Make those necessary meetings count towards building member retention by bringing your members one very important message… Their membership dollars are vital to their success. Ensure your brand is developed and distinguished; that you deliver a message in the form of an experience that allows members to remember why they continue to be a part of your organization. This is what they buy – your brand and what is says you can deliver!

Whether you start from the top down or from the down up your overall marketing plan must fall in line with your association’s business goals. This means that as part of each reception, meeting, conference, or special event that your touch points are delivering a carefully and thought out message. Your event departments are constantly in touch with your members – shouldn’t that be strategic department?

We look forward to seeing you there!

Welcome Stephanie to the Mumtaz Team!

We are delighted to introduce you to Stephanie Galvez, the newest addition to the Mumtaz Marketing & Events family.  We are thrilled to to have her with us and can't wait for you to meet her. 

Stephanie Galvez is our new Junior Event Coordinator. She has helped to produce some memorable events with only 4 years of event programming under her belt. She was recruited for an Event/Training and Development Graduate Assistant position while obtaining her Masters degree at Cal State Northridge where she was able to gain a plethora of experience by creating such events as The Big Show, Final Flip, Elections, and Earth Fair for an estimated 15,000 students. She has also freelanced for non-profit organizations, by producing events with over 500 people in attendance from all across the country. Stephanie is excited to be part of the Mumtaz family and looks forward to expanding her knowledge in the Special Event Industry.

Meet Gina! The Newest Mumtaz Family Member!

Hey everybody! It's our pleasure to introduce you to Ms. Gina Alva-Evans. She is our new Marketing & Events Assistant. We are very excited to have her on board and we hope you will join us in welcoming her to our Mumtaz family.

Gina Alva-Evans has over twelve years of experience in the Hospitality Industry focused in Catering, Banquets, and Food & Beverage Management.  Broadening her reach and at the same time bringing the “house” insight to team, she is now also applying her skills by furthering her development as a marketer and planner. She began her career in her home country of Peru producing social gatherings, galas, corporate meetings, and week long city-wide conventions. Along with her native tongue of Spanish, she also speaks English and French.  She is constantly striving to develop her skills including diligently pursuing her Bachelors in Business Administration. 

It's Official... We're Mumtaz Marketing & Events

We are proud to introduce Mumtaz Marketing & Events (MME) as the next installment of Simply Mumtaz Events, Inc. We are thrilled to announce that due to an overwhelming demand, we have expanded our services from our award-winning event and meeting management to include strategic marketing solutions. Our latest development comes to fruition as a result of hard work and dedication to our client's overall success. We have broadened our services to include event marketing, experiential marketing, and small business/association strategic marketing. More specifically some of the new services include acting as our client's online presence via social media, developing blog content, branding, website design, media campaigns, strategic planning, and execution of overall strategic marketing activities. For additional details, please visit our new site www.MumtazMarketing.com.

 We have a unique perspective on Marketing Strategy... we come from the "details" and work towards fulfilling the big picture. We understand that the details and experiences our customers/clients/attendees feel are worth their weight in gold in developing brand loyalty and ultimately long-term relationships.

 

Please visit the first edition of our new website at www.MumtazMarketing.com.

Simply Mumtaz Events' Next Installment!

It is with great excitement that on our Blog's 4th Year Anniversary that we re-brand and re-launch the blog with a new look and feel... Simply Mumtaz Events, Inc. is now Mumtaz Marketing & Events!

We have expanded our services and now offer a wide range of marketing services in addition to our award winning event management. We look forward to many more years of growth both professional for our team and for the business as well. The horizon is ever changing and we will be chasing the sun over it! Please stay tuned for the roll out over the next few weeks! Visit our website at www.MumtazMarketing.com.

SME at BlogWorld Expo 2011

Hi all! SME’s Event Assistant Ely here! I recently had the chance to attend BlogWorld & New Media Expo at the LA Convention Center Nov. 3-5. BlogWorld is the largest expo centered on the blogosphere and all the different social media components involved. It was aTwitter, Facebook and FourSquare mecca!

I was able to attend and learn from some of the industry’s leading bloggers and social media experts but I do have to say I have a favorite presentation. C.C. Chapman’s simple and right to the point approach to social media with a smartly titled “Content Rules, But Common Sense Rocks!” session stole the show for me. 

Here are my favorite tips I picked up from C.C. Chapman: 

Speak in Human: Blogging should be an extension of a brand and shouldn’t be written like a thesis paper! 

We All Make Messes: We’re all human, if a tweet or status post goes bad, deleting isn’t always the answer. It shows integrity when brands own up to PR mistakes and go with the flow. 

Respect: Value what your content says and readers will value it! No one likes a sell out.

Since we're talking about social media, don't forget to Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter: @MumtazMarketing, @SimplyMumtaz and @MumtazEvents!

Happy Halloween & Dia de los Muertos!

Happy Halloween! But, since Simply Mumtaz President is Mexicana - she'd like to wish everyone in addition to pumpkins and ghouls... a happy celebration of Dia de los Muertos! Day of the Dead is a Mexican holiday. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. It is particularly celebrated in Mexico, where it attains the quality of a National Holiday. The celebration takes place on November 1st and 2nd, in connection with the Catholic holidays of All Saints' Day (November 1) and All Souls' Day (November 2). Traditions connected with the holiday include building private altars honoring the deceased using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed and visiting graves with these as gifts. Take care all! Safe holidays...

Highlights from Event Marketer Countdown

Simply Mumtaz President, Joella Hopkins, CSEP, CMP, had a great time this past week at the Event Marketer Countdown. It was a fantastic fast paced download of current experiential marketing trends. So, here are a few of Joella's take homes…


As we all know social media is changing the way we all are starting to plan and invite attendees to events. However, now social media is driving attendance to events. Some are starting to only announce via Twitter major events, especially for those B-to-C focused events. Some organizations are only offering discounts by “Liking” their FaceBook pages. Social media is now becoming a feeder of attendees. We’d love to hear how you use social media at your events?

Consumers are driving the messages we create. We are no longer dictating messages because as we address current trends we are now customizing our messages. We are striving to have longer communications in terms of the time each of our consumers spend on our sites…

Bottom line is we all need to be creative in using our social media outlets to engage our consumers. We need to tailor those communications to convey the right message, interact longer, and inspire action.

I hope this has been helpful… Please comment with your most successful or groundbreaking social media tactics! We’d love to hear about them and share.

Top Ten Take-Homes from the Event Marketer Summit - Chicago

So, last week Simply Mumtaz President, Joella Hopkins, CSEP, CMP had the wonderful fortune of attending the Event Marketer Summit in Chicago. This is the must attend conference for planners wanting to take advantage of how to truly implement events that provide more ROI besides a good time... an experience that lasts, builds brand loyalty, increase sales, gives exposure to event partners, etc. Please see below our Top Ten Take-Homes!

1. Let your consumer dictate how you market your brand and plan your events - the experiences created for the consumer should be what the consumer wants... Listen to your customer!


2. When you are looking to create a long-standing experience, provide an interactive experience - however, do not coerce participation. Create a cool and comfortable environment which will encourage collaboration and active participation.


3. Consumers/Customers will learn the best in their time of need - that is the best and most powerful time to get your message across. Ensure your event/marketing message comes across clear at that time...


4. If you are looking to create a brand that has a constant and strong message - make sure your events produce the same. This comes from having the complete team on board and educated and enthused on the brand message, everyone from the Prez to Receptionist.


5. Think strategically when creating your messages and potential sponsor lists... Find ways to build brand experience across various industries.


6. QR Codes are becoming Major! Learn how to use them! Scan ours below.



7. Video is more effective than print, radio and other visuals. Consider using Video in promoting your events, etc.


8. Social Media - It is much more than just posting... Find ways to use your # (hashtags) to build followers, how to create a lasting effect past just the event... Ensure you have someone to monitor and build additional comments. Each can be used for different groups, ensure you recognize your demographics. #emschi is still running on Twitter! AND, use texting for live interactive Q&A sessions at your conference!
   


9. Technology is not taking away from the face to face meetings, but building on it. Nothing will truly replace face to face communication, but you can build your message by posting on your website, FB, YouTube, etc.


10. Go to next year's conference! Begin to build your new networks and resources.

Hope you enjoyed the post... We hope to see you at our next professional development conference - ISES EventWorld in St. Louis!

Getting Your Messaging Across This Valentine’s Day!

So, we wanted to post an update for you on what we think is a super fantastic idea. As so many of us know there is a trend in marketing your businesses – not to send traditional holiday greetings. Many organizations are starting pick another holiday to spend their time and funds on to stand out from the rest – basically be remembered for something special.

Last year, we sent Halloween greetings! They were so well received that we are excited that this year we are doing, you guessed it – Valentine’s Day! Now tell me who doesn’t love their clients. So, we are going to be them some L.O.V.E. this Valentine’s Day. We are going to be sending each of our clients a dozen roses with a special note simply saying – “We Love Our Clients!” Thank you for your business. Let’s face it – who doesn’t want a dozen red roses on Valentines?

Our first attempt at identifying ourselves at being different was sending special Dia de Los Muertos celebration “Calaveras”. Simply Mumtaz’ President is Mexican and along with our customized Calaveras with “Mumtaz” on them we sent a ghoulish poem explaining why they were getting the gift and what it stood for… It created such a wonderful buzz!
After our wonderful Dia de Los Muertos celebration we decided on Halloween and did a more mass mailing… We wanted to also highlight that we are a Green company as well so we just added it into the cover. Overall it was successful, but did not have as much impact as the specialized short list the year before. In marketing your company – always find a creative and unique way to rise above the rest and send the message you want to send. Stay true to your company’s culture and the rest will fall right into place!
Shine Away Our Friends!

See you at The Special Event Conference!

We hope everyone is packing for the Special Event Conference in Phoenix this coming week. We look forward to visiting with old industry friends and meeting new friends and colleagues. The Special Event is one of the annual conferences that we attend every year and it is wonderful to touch base and be inspired with new ideas, client services, business tips, and much more.

Even our own, Simply Mumtaz President - Joella Hopkins, CSEP, CMP will be presenting on Wednesday. She will be presenting Creating the Foundation of Your Special Events Business Marketing Plan. We'd love to see you there.

We will post our photos and updates when we all get back from Phoenix... but, if you want we will be posting on Twitter & our facebook group page...

Simply Mumtaz presents Guest Blogger: Rhonda Couchigian from Raye C Marketing

Hey everybody! We hope this blog post finds you well. It's been an amazing year and we've had some terrific guest bloggers. Our next guest is no exception... I met Rhonda Couchigian when she was getting me to rent Chameleon Chairs, she literally converted me from Chivairi's to Chameleon's. She has a unique ability to sell and market her products - she knows what you need - all with a very gracious way. It's no wonder she's made headlines with Raye C Marketing. It's my pleasure to introduce her guest blog.

Happy Holidays, everyone! The team at Raye C Marketing is ready to celebrate our second Holiday season. We’re filled with gratitude for all of the successes of 2010. Now that the holiday season is in full swing, we’re hoping you have some quality family time planned and have also set aside some time to plan for 2011! We take the last two weeks of the year to reflect back on the things that really worked for our clients. We like to focus on the tasks that created results! Then we create a wish list for next year. We’re big on planning and thought we’d share some of our favorite tips.

When we sat down and looked at it, strategic social media plans, blogging for profits, and guest speaking appearances (AKA creating experts) were the big hits here!

Take a moment, sit down and do the same. Give it some thought.

Everything that worked in 2010 will get another shot in 2011!

And then: What were the good ideas that didn’t get off the ground this year or the fresh ideas for the new year?

Did you get all of your “Self Promotion Projects” complete? Did you think of any?

Did that Special Events Gala entry just not make it into the mail?

Do you have something to say, some expertise to share with the industry but get too busy with the business of business to submit your presentation to Special Events?

Perhaps the new blog is not published on the web or you haven’t even had the time to write it?

Have you started a Facebook Fan Page but you still only have 50 fans?

Do you have an event that deserves to be published but just don’t have the time or know
how to get in front of the right editor?

Twitter?

Ugh...Powerpoint?

It can be challenging to stay on top of all of these things while running a successful, growing business. Once you’ve taken a look at what worked, what didn’t and what you still want to do, we suggest creating a PR calendar giving yourself specific deadlines for completion of the projects you want to undertake.

One per month. For Example...

January: Update your Bio and head shot so you’re ready when you get that call to speak at ISES or MPI.

February: Update your editorial contacts and check in on their deadlines and leads for the year.

March…

Got it? Get to it! Stumped? Give us a call.

Rhonda Couchigian’s new venture Raye C Marketing is a Boutique Marketing Firm representing products and services in the Special Event Industry. 20 years cumulative experience in design and sales-marketing allows this new venture to produce impressive results for its clients.

Raye C Marketing’s extensive network and personal relationships with the Special Event Industry’s top Social and Corporate planners allow her to provide an in-depth level of service and exposure. We offer introductions, social media, web based outreach and new business development.

We really know who’s who in the industry and keep tabs on all of the up and coming planners and designers. A 20 year career in the industry has allowed us to enjoy relationships with top planners in all of the major metropolitan cities.

Simply Mumtaz proudly presents a very special guest blogger: Brooke Bonder

Simply Mumtaz Events has had the pleasure of knowing Brooke Bonder for many years and we are so proud to see her hard work manifest into the very successful The Event Nut. We all wish her continued success in this industry. Please read her fascinating guest blog!

Everyone has a story. Stories give us the opportunity to get to know someone. Once we feel we know them, we begin to trust them and look forward to our paths crossing more often in the future. My job is to help bring these stories out of people. It’s what I love to do.

THE EVENT NUT is an entertainment news web series and customized video advertorial service. In a nutshell, pun intended, I started this company as a way for venues and vendors in the events industry to promote their products and services. Whether there is an event taking place or not, it is their chance to share their story, to let us know what they’re all about.

Check out this link with their recent Bar210 feature...

Here's another quick sample...

In the midst of the recession, the events industry felt the impact very heavily. In the Los Angeles market, many friends and colleagues of mine were being laid off or in danger of losing their businesses, simply because they could not match low rates from competitors of lesser quality. After being laid off myself, I brought together my two passions: entertainment and events. I created a company serving valuable resource to many, alerting planners who and what was at their disposal and giving vendors and venues the platform to showcase what it is they do best. That is the foundation on which The Event Nut began and within a year we've grown to receiving thousands of hits weekly within the LA area (roughly 82% come from the events industry). But the additional advertising on our site is simply an added bonus of what we offer, with the video “articles”, as the primary focus.

Why is Video so important for the Events Industry?
The events industry is a relationship-based business. If you’re considering buying or renting something in particular, an event space, for example, and you have three venues in the running, all at the same cost, which will you choose? Each one offers a gorgeous facility with the exact amenities you’re looking for. They have a preferred vendor list, but will also allow you to bring in your own lists and contacts if you’d like. The loading docks are spacious and accommodating, the food is exquisite, parking is abundant, and the locales are easy and convenient to those coming from any part of town. What will set these venues apart from each other? Personality. And this comes directly from your personality too! I guarantee you’re going to prefer the venue that allows you to feel comfortable throughout the process with a staff warm and friendly staff.

Video gives the opportunity for a company’s personality to shine through, unlike still photos or the written word. Video shows just how service-oriented, competent and professional your company is, rather than simply tell a prospect this. At the end of the day, this can help convert someone who is on the fence with their decision into a client.

The Proof Is In the Pudding:
The top reasons to use video to market your business live in the statistics. -According to the Wharton School of Business and Vaughn Communications, video boosts comprehension and retention by more than 50 %.
-Video expedites buying decisions by 72 % versus print.
-6 times as many people prefer to watch video as to looking at printed information
-Video marketing helps increase sales of a service or product being promoted by more than 70%. That’s astounding!

How You Can Use It:
Video is instant. You can put it on your website, e-mail to a client, share it via social networking sites, show to prospects in sales presentations and give out as marketing collateral. A well-made video saves clients travel and on-site time. Having a high-quality video about your product or service, means you can reach out to more clients all over the world. You have the opportunity to make a personal connection, before the client ever even meets you. Additionally, video is a great deal more affordable than an entire marketing kit and as a bonus, its green!

Professional vs. Do-It-Yourself:
With technology being more prominent than ever, anyone can use a flip camera and make a video. But is it telling your story in the best way possible? Our main product is the videos themselves, complete with an on-air host allowing interviewees to feel comfortable, thus bringing out their true personalities in front of the camera. Remember, since people do business with people they like, this is important. We also use state-of-the-art camera, lighting, sound and editing equipment, so you're guaranteed a wonderful looking and sounding marketing tool. We like to keep our videos vibrant and upbeat, giving the viewer no reason to turn them off. With an events background, we know what questions to ask and with the entertainment background, we know how to keep the piece engaging.

In today’s incredibly fast-paced, web-based world, when deciding your marketing efforts, this is an easy decision. The benefits are immense and the experience is extremely fun and memorable. You will look back knowing you spent the time creating your story. Now it’s time to share it!

Brooke Bonder, THE EVENT NUT creator and president Brooke Bonder has always had a love for questions and a great desire to get to know people, which led her down the path of entertainment at an early age. The Philadelphia native performed in musical theatre, film, television, improvisation and sketch comedy both nationally and internationally for several years while freelance writing, reporting and hosting as well. In 2010, THE EVENT NUT received the International Special Events Society Award for Best Event Entertainment Concept and Execution.

Special Guest Blogger: Lisa Hurley, Editor at Special Events Magazine

Hey everyone. We're so very proud to have Lisa Hurley from Special Events Magazine as our guest blogger. Lisa and Joella (Simply Mumtaz President) have been friends for some time now and Joella always says that Lisa has been the most gracious and amazing colleague. It's with complete honor that we present her guest blog below... She writes about How to get your special events / meetings covered... Now this is real expert advice!



Since having your own blog means you can publish anything you want, anytime you want, why should you still try to get coverage in the media?


Because media coverage is a lot more powerful than the coverage you give yourself—that's why.

As my PR friends say, when you are quoted in the media, it's an "implied third-party endorsement." The media works to get the best quotes from the best minds. And if you're quoted or your work is covered, that means you are someone worth paying attention to.

A colleague who edits another of my company's magazines has a section on her Web site for new product releases. Some are written by the editors and some are posted by manufacturers. The ones from the editors always get more hits than the ones from the manufacturers because readers think the editors' choices are newsworthy while the manufacturers' posts are self-promotion.

The best way to get the media—Special Events and everyone else—interested in you and your story is to think about the essential elements that reporters are looking for. The more of these you have in your pitch to the media, the more likely you are to grab their attention:

Information and Advice: Sample story ideas might be "Five New Design Trends," "How to Cut Your Floral Bill by 15 Percent" and "How to Please a Demanding Client"


Human Interest: Who could ignore "How I Created a Dream Wedding for a Destitute Widow"?

Celebrity: Parties for the famous are fabulous hooks, both for trade and general media.

Controversy: This is not for the faint of heart, but if you’re willing to talk about controversial issues—kickbacks, sloppy industry ethics, etc.—you are more likely to be quoted.

For event media specifically, having good photos of unique event treatments is a must. And if the publication just covered some pretty pink bat mitzvahs, don't send them more of same. Strive for something new.

And never, never forget: If a reporter ever tells you, "This is interesting—get back to me," then do it. Now. Right now. The No. 1 reason a great idea never turns into a great article is that the contact didn't respond to the reporter in time for the story deadline.

Lisa Hurley has been editor of Special Events Magazine since 1999. She joined the magazine after stints with foodservice publications and as director of publications and communications for the California Restaurant Association. She is a member of ISES, MPI and the International Foodservice Editorial Council.