As promised, I'm turning over control of the blog to Faith from Marketing. She had an "interesting" week setting up and running the Artistry coach (and looking at the Nutrilite one) outside the Bell Centre for the Tina Turner concerts on the 8th and 10th. Oh, and the title? I'm sure a Canadian sang it — that's my story and I'm sticking with it!
So without further ado, Faith:
"The start of the trip left something to be desired — at least in terms of getting there and setting up. I got bumped from my flight — although my luggage arrived without me; it was brutally cold — I have the frostbite to prove it; fire alarms in our hotel that lasted all night long; and we couldn't open the Nutrilite MOBE due to challenges with local ordinances. But other than that, everything was great!
No, honestly, the Artistry coach was extremely well received by everyone who came by to check it out. We had a constant flow of people coming through, despite the cold, and the general consensus was that they all loved the experience. We even had people waiting up to an hour to get their makeup done — or maybe they were just trying to keep warm!
While we had great support from local IBOs who knew about this trip, we also had a few people come in on their own. Sure, some of them thought they were going to get Tina's autograph on the bus, but once we trapped them they were more than impressed with the presentation!
Even though the Nutrilite coach was closed, we scrambled and were able to put together a few hundred bags filled with samples, which we distributed to people entering the concert.
While we didn't get a chance to see Tina, Duke — the Artistry coach driver — charmed his way into Tina's 69th birthday party celebration. He was even standing next to her while she blew out the candles.
I want to show special appreciation for the phenomenal staff who had been travelling with the MOBEs for over two full months: Luba, Duke, Bob, Cody, and John. It was great meeting them all and they certainly didn't show the effects of countless makeovers, tour stops, and nights in strange hotel rooms.
Thanks to everyone who attended and we're looking forward to future MOBE appearances in Canada. Keep checking this blog and the What's New section on amwayglobal.ca for details once they're confirmed.
Et aux nos PCI Quebecois — merci d'être venus, et c'était un plaisir de vous voir encore!"
And here are some photos from the aforementioned Cody taken during the event.
Speaking of photos — I've decided to extend the Canadiana Photo contest until the New Year (since I'll be on vacation and not checking the e-mail anyways!) So take the holidays to set up your finest photographic facades or perfect pictorial presentations of what it means to be a Canadian. And thank you to all who have already submitted — keep 'em coming!
We're also gearing up for the second Tina Turner concert in Montreal tonight! The lovely, talented, and slightly frost-bitten Faith was kind enough to send us a shot from the Artistry coach parked outside the Bell Centre. She'll be taking more tonight and will share her experiences with Tina and the MOBEs (what a great band name, eh?) early next week — once she thaws out.
So why only one shot from the inside? Well, how does -15 with a windchill touching the high -20s sound? That's Celcius. I'd stay indoors too. More shots and more stories on the way! I just spoke with Faith and it's been an eventful trip already, so make sure you check back for more updates.
Oh, and if you happen to be able to stop by the Bell Centre area tonight (or did so on Monday) feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. And if you aren't in Montreal, let us know what the Tina Turner sponsorship means to you.
Remember — send those photos in for the Canadiana photo contest. A free Ribbon gift card is at stake. Send your photos to northofthe49th@opportunityzone.com!
I know. I know… it’s not a Canadian song title. But Tina was in Canada last night, so it’s appropriate. They’re my rules – I can bend them!
The crowd’s starting to fill in at the Pathways to Success Product Expo, but I was able to pull Marketing Supervisor Joan Julian away from the throng of Artistry admirers to get her to share a couple of thoughts from her experience last night.
Without further ado – Joan.
“We had a booth with two banners, two display cases featuring Artistry and Nutrilite, and we were showcasing our key products – Double X, Time Defiance, Artistry essentials, and Concentrated Fruits and Vegetables.
We were set up in the main concourse area, along with the other vendors and concessions, so there was lots of great traffic coming by. We handed out a lovely organza bag filled with samples of Artistry soothing crème, CF&V samplers, and Artistry & Nutrilite brand brochures.
It was so busy that we handed out 1,000 samples before the concert in under an hour. People were very receptive in learning about the brand and they were happy to receive samples. Everyone that came by was very excited about receiving these samples. It was a great way to get some awareness for Artistry and Nutrilite and people seemed to be really receptive to the products and the opportunity.
Before the show select IBOs participated in a meet and greet with Tina herself and they were obviously thrilled with the experience. After all it’s exciting to be that close to such a major celebrity and to be able to take a picture with a rock ‘n roll legend.
Our video was featured at the concert both before the show and during intermission. It provided an introduction to the brand and opportunity that was seen by thousands of people. It was great to have such a receptive audience to build awareness.
This is just the start of the Tina experience in Canada. We’ve got two concerts coming up in Montreal on December 8th and 10th. Then we’re back in Toronto on December 12th and 13th for the final two tour dates in Canada. We’ll be back on the concourse for the Toronto dates and we’ll be able to bring up the Mobile Brand Experiences for the shows in Quebec!”
It was a whirlwind experience for both Joan and Marketing Manager Lydia Ayora – and they still haven’t stopped, now greeting thousands more IBOs at Pathways. The hardworking duo only got to see about a minute-and-a-half’s worth of Tina as they were so occupied handing out samples and showcasing the brands. We’ll keep you updated on the future Tina concert experiences and we’d love to hear from any of you who attended the concert!
Back to Pathways. Photos and audio will be up later in the night as we continue with Day 1 of the event. And in just a few minutes the IBOAI’s Jim Janz will take to the stage for the first of many presentations.