Living in New York City, provides you will all types of options.Everyone is out here on their hustle anyway, so choosing which events to go to can be struggle, but throwing events that bring people out and make sense is even harder. I caught up with Jessica Santana & Evin Robinson of Worldwide Boss, and picked their brains about their recent re-launch and the keys to throwing a great event. They drop jewels here, so pay attention.
There are all types of ways to announce a new venture. What made you want to do an in-person event? We believe all brands need to develop community management strategies offline. Yes, branding via digital platforms has grown to be the “it thing”, but we believe you need to take relationships out of cyberspace. We use technology to communicate across borders, collaborate from coasts to coasts, but there is nothing like an in-person meeting to have people connect with you, what you represent and are trying to achieve. As such, it was natural to want to throw a party to celebrate. Business and socializing always go together. For Worldwide Boss specifically, what was the goal for your re-launch? When Worldwide Boss (WWB) launched in January 2014, it was originally a career-coaching platform. We believe we built a brand among our peers for being master networkers and standout professionals. We had scored multiple internships with big brand organizations and successfully obtained multiple job offers after graduation. In addition, we often speak on professional development topics and career-related panels. As time passed, we noticed our clients were coming back to us for different things: finances, startup coaching, business coaching, etc. WWB had transitioned into a management-consulting platform and we decided that a re-launch would be the best way to spread that awareness. We still do career coaching, but that is not WWB’s primary focus anymore. We are more interested in helping emerging brands, small businesses and non-profits develop strategies that are going to increase and improve their organizational effectiveness and operations. 
How did you pick your venue? Copia NYC is a “go-to” spot for young professionals in NYC. People know them for their happy hour drinks and free open bars. Additionally, the location was perfect. It was near a train station, located in mid-town Manhattan and could host the amount of people we believed would turn out. After doing a lot of research, it seemed like the perfect fit. We were able to work out logistics with the staff members there to set up the time and date, event needs and drink specials. Sponsorship marketing is the wave right now. How did you go about picking and finding sponsors for WWB? We believe in synergy and creating shared spaces. We had the pleasure of meeting all of the co-Founders of the party’s sponsoring organizations through mutual connections. You will notice that all WWB Launch Party sponsors were start-up organizations who have similar visions in empowering communities, whether that is in business, finance, tech or the arts. Another commonality is that they all operate digital brands across the U.S. To throw an event and seek sponsorship marketing, you do not need a “Google”, “Microsoft” or “MTV” kind of brand. You need to identify brands, organizations and individuals that you believe will represent you well pre- and post –event. We believe in the people who are involved in these startups and see them growing their businesses to maximum heights. What was your promotional strategy? We primarily leveraged social media to spread the word about the event. We developed a weekly content calendar with announcements that would entice people to show up. In addition, we reached out to our networks directly and invited them via phone calls, texts and e-mails. Finally, we set up an Eventbrite and that is how we managed our RSVPs. 
A lot of us have tiny budgets, but big dreams. Any insight on how to throw a great event, but not break the bank? Money does not stop you from having a great event. When you’re operating under limited resources, you are required to think creatively and out of the box. For example, if you’re attracting an audience that you know will be interested in food and drinks, look for places that can provide that for you without having an additional cost for catering. Another example is to work out pricing structures with your venues, like coming up with a menu for food or drink specials. Also, think of ways to find people and organizations to sponsor your event. This does not always have to be a monetary contribution, but can come in the form of raffles and giveaways. How did you measure success for the launch party? First, we measured success by the turnout of the event. We were happy to see the space was filled throughout the course of the night. Also, since we are a business, we measured success by the amount of clientele we were able to attract since the launch party. Finally, the feedback we received was positive and a huge contribution to the way we measured success.
Make sure you check WorldwideBoss, and their newest venture, BrooklynOnTech. Get familiar!!
