Digital Goody Bags – Fad or Future?
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
About Virtual Race Bags
 Started in 2010
 Background in branding, digital media, event
management and sponsorship; Athletes
 Traditional means of connecting Sponsors to
Participants was fundamentally broken.
 1,000+ Events and 3.5MM participants
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
What happened to the goody bag?
 Explosion in the size of events
 Rapid increase in the number of events
 Sponsors require more transparency on ROI
 Internet changes the brand-consumer relationship
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
Participant Expectations
What Participants want inside
their goody bags
$47,000 goody bag for the Oscars
What Participants
actually receive
A pile of paper
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
Why is the goody bag broken?
Participants
 Little-to-no value
 Wrong time, wrong place
 Inconvenient to keep for future use
Sponsors
 Expensive – cost to Sponsor (design, print, etc.)
 Difficult to track
 Poor brand experience
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
Are goody bags really free for Events?
NO! Events are simply pushing the cost to Sponsors
Example: Event with 1,000 participants and 8 Sponsors
 Design: Graphic designer, 1 hour at $75/hour
 Printing: 1,000 cards 6x9, 2-sided, $0.20 per card
 Shipping: $15 for UPS / FedEx
Total Cost = $1,795
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
The advantage of digital
Participants
 Get access before and after event
 Access via multiple devices; mobile, tablet, pc
 Instant access to offers; online, mobile, etc.
Sponsors
 Flexible
 Integrate with existing digital marketing
 Ability to monitor performance
WASTE!
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
Going Digital – the options
email
website
software
Advantages
Advantages
Advantages
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Uses existing tools
Inexpensive
Easy to distribute
Basic reporting
Flexible
More traffic
Easy to distribute
Basic reporting
Content management
Simplify reporting
Easy to distribute
Best performance
Issues
Issues
Issues
 Design required
 Low “visit” rates
 Low repeat visits
 Web expertise
 Managing content
 Reporting complex
 Costs (varies)
 Uses templates
 Education
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
Managing digital content
The devil lies within
What You Request
What You Receive
And always at the 11th hour
Image
Text
Link
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
What About the Stuff?
 Physical bags for samples
 Gear check bags
 Expos
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
The value of a software platform
Tools that make it look easy
Turn-Key Platform Helps Manage Entire Process
create
 Invite sponsors
 Build offers
 Manage content
invite
report
 Invite participants
 Schedule and go
 Simplify event week
 Track performance
 Create reports
 Deliver results
Wasatch Race Directors Conference 2014
Learn More
Scalable
Events of all sizes - from 60 to 60,000
Affordable
Flat-fee pricing that starts at only $150 / event
Risk Free
No payment due until 30 days prior to event
www.
VirtualRaceBags.com