Tight ‘n Bright might still be 186 days away, but now is the perfect time to start shopping for your tight and bright clothing. Why you ask? Well Halloween is really just a couple of weeks away and all of the thrift stores and costume shops are in full swing. Guaranteed with a little bit of time and determination you can find exactly what you need now. Put it in your closet and relax. The best part is that when Tight ‘n Bright comes around on March 21, you’ll have your clothing already and it won’t even matter if you haven’t lost the holiday pounds…it’ll just make the clothing tighter! So, happy shopping.
A perfect spot & great ideas
I had the opportunity to head down to The Whiskey this afternoon to check out the venue for Tight ‘n Bright and was extremely impressed by the layout of it and the willingness of The Whiskey to work with us to help find a cure. We’re working on some great ideas for a silent auction/raffle to be held the night of the event and additional ways to raise funds.
More information on tickets is also now available, though are not quite ready for sale yet. We’re going to set the price at $10 per ticket, only available in advance. The ticket ensures you entry to The Whiskey before 10:00 without paying a cover charge which is regularly $7. In addition to that it also includes your first drink for FREE which ranges from $5.50-$6.50. So worst case scenario we’re giving you $12.50 value for $10 and that entire $10 goes direct to the charity! We’re hoping to have ticket sales up online in the next few weeks so you can use your credit card to purchase them at your convenience.
Other ideas for raising funds include:
- Prepaid Table Service – That’s right we’ll set up a table for you complete with a bottle, server and chairs. Be warned though there are only 4 spots in the venue that we’re setting up so once they’re on sale, you’ll want to snag one quickly!
- Bottle Service – We mentioned the Prepaid Table Service above and the exclusivity of it. We’ve saved one other spot for an hourly draw for a lucky winner to receive bottle service for them and their friends. Tickets for entry will be of nominal value and you’ll have an entire hour to sit back, relax and enjoy drinks with your friends.
- Raffle (live event) – We’re working on vacation packages and more. You’ll definitely want to stay tuned to the website to see who pops up on the sponsor list.
- Raffle (online only event) – We know that there are lots of people out there that want to support the cause but don’t necessarily want to go to the event. So what are we going to do? We’ll hold an online raffle for one of our prizes so that you can still benefit from the fun times and support the cause.
- And more… – Of course there’s more. We’ve got other ideas but feel free to send us yours. Just comment below.
The only thing to keep in mind is that all of these things are in the early phases of planning and based on legislation, laws, logistics and timing we may not be able to deliver on all of them. As all details of the event are confirmed, we’ll confirm them online as well so that you know! We look forward to seeing you at Tight ‘n Bright!
Vegas a smashing success
We didn’t actually smash anything but we sure attended a great bash that gave us ideas. We met a few promoters while in Vegas and garnered a couple of ideas from them. The Tuesday night found us heading to PURE at Caesars Palace where Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon were partying. We saw them just as they were coming in…unfortunately we were on our way out. That said we still had a great time and managed to get a couple of ideas from being at the club and chatting with the staff. We’re set to meet with The Whiskey this week to bounce some ideas off of them for the event and are beginning to schedule some meetings with our hopeful donors. Stay tuned, the next two weeks are going to be very exciting!
Confirmed!
Well it’s official. As of this afternoon we have a signed, written agreement in place with The Whiskey NightClub to host Tight ‘n Bright 2009 on March 21, 2009. It’s getting closer and the first big thing has been taken care of.
Additionally today we received the official letter from the Alberta Cancer Foundation recognizing our event on behalf of them. This means we can now really start pounding the pavement to get those donations and sponsors for the event. If you know one, or even are one, please don’t hesitate to contact us. We’ll be going through our contact list hard once Thanksgiving has happened. So, expect your phone to ring the week of October 13.
An amazing day
Well it was another amazing day in the future of Tight ‘n Bright 2009. I received a soft copy indicating approval of the event from the Alberta Cancer Foundation. Building on the conversation on the phone from yesterday I guess a bit of the excitement is already beginning around there.
Today I missed a call from the promotions director at the radio station we’re trying to work with. A real shame since she seems to be very busy and we play tag a lot (OK, it’s only been a couple of times it just seems like more). I’m certain that tomorrow we’ll be able to connect and get the ball rolling before I’m off to Vegas where I most likely won’t be answering my cell phone. I’ll be doing some research while down there for the event and hopefully getting a chance to chat with a couple of other promoters. Wouldn’t you love a DJ in high-demand to come play the event? Just one idea we’re working with, of course we need a lot more logistics figured out before we can even consider promising you that. I also had a great call today with one of the sponsorship directors at a local weekly and talked about the event. She’s pumped and has it marked on her calendar already. Not only that, but she’s going to be inviting her Facebook group of friends too! That brings me to another point. Invite your friends on Facebook to our event (just search for Tight ‘n Bright 2009 in the events). The more people that know, the better. Not only that, but then once tickets go on sale we have an easier time to let people know.
I also had a great conversation with a potential supplier at an airline here in town that has indicated they’ll provide us with some free flights to give away as part of the silent auction. It was also the first time that anyone has also inquired if we were going to do an online auction for some items as well. This is definitely something that we’ve been exploring as we know there are plenty of people that would like to support us, the event and the charity however won’t attend the event for any number of reasons. Honestly, we want your money and we’ll take it however we can. I won’t hide that fact. Since this is a fundraiser I would naturally assume you would already know that.
That’s all to report for today (so far) but conversations continue with media partners and suppliers. We’re still shooting to have everything locked up for the last week of November so we can have a solid marketing launch on January 5!
Approval pending
I just had a great call with the Alberta Cancer Foundation about supporting Tight ‘n Bright. There’s just a final review process to go through but then they send me a letter authorizing me to use their name in the fundraising effort. I’m then able to take that letter to our sponsors & donors to secure prizing. We’re looking for a couple of key prizes along with other smaller prizes. We have ideas and are just awaiting the ACF authorization letter before targeting, and then announcing them.
On another note, I’ve also made contact with one of the local weekly’s here that we’re looking to partner with. Additional coverage is a great thing and the opportunity to get our message out and our donors some extra advertising is a great opportunity too! Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.
Momentum continues
Over the weekend the momentum has continued with the planning for Tight ‘n Bright 2009. We’ve been slowly working on the marketing plan, targeting the partners we feel fit with our values and offer a great opportunity to our sponsors and donors.
We’re eagerly awaiting word from “the station” about getting the go ahead to run with their name and support. It would allow us an outlet to let the city know about the event. 204 days and counting.
Marketing launch
There’s still 5 months and 25 days until Tight ‘n Bright on March 21, 2009 but there’s only 3 months and 9 days until we launch the advertising campaign. The plan is to have the majority of sponsors and donors all confirmed before that to do a solid press launch on Monday, January 5, 2009. We also plan a soft launch around beginning to mid-December 2008 so that we get some exposure over the holiday season, however don’t want to simply blend in with all the Christmas ‘noise’ that’s already started. It’s not even Halloween yet, however I can still find holiday items in stores…now that’s going a little crazy!
Donations & sponsorship requested
In order to make Tight ‘n Bright 2009 an overwhelming success we need partners. We have several that we’re targeting however are always looking for donations of prize items to be drawn at random throughout the evening. In our Marketing Document you will find some of our ideas and concepts on how we will be raising funds. If you feel you may be able to contribute, please don’t hesitate to contact us. The more donors and sponsors we have, the easier it will be to exceed our target of $20,000 to help aid in research and finding a cure for cancer.
What a great day
What a great today is turning out to be. I’m extremely happy and pumped about being able to get this thing running. I had called The Whiskey yesterday to find out about the possibility of holding the event there however the Corry, the General Manager, was the one who I needed to speak to but was out of the office. I found out what capacity was and called her back today. We had a great conversation, the date is free and it sounds as though The Whiskey will only help to further promote our event as well. I did find out that I have to knock some of the capacity numbers off because that includes their staff too. I want to ensure that the event is safe for all who attend so losing out a little on ticket sales is acceptable.
Speaking of ticket sales I did some quick number crunching and honestly feel that our goal of raising $20,000 may in fact be too low. Once our sponsors & donors come on board we should be able to further increase the fundraising opportunities at the event. Using the age-old standard 80/20 marketing rule which dictates that 80% of sales will come from 20% of the clients, we should be able to hit $20,000 right there! The best part is that not only will your cash be supporting cancer research in Calgary but you’ll also have the opportunity to walk away with some amazing prizes! That being said, be sure to check back regularly as we begin adding prize information to our website.
