DESTINATION

IDEAL LAKESIDE LOCATION

Boyne Country sports it, and it’s ready to show off. BY BILL SEMION

The Inn at Bay Harbor recently completed the final phase of its room and suite renovations.

YOU KNOW THE OLD SAYING: It’s all about location, location, location. This gorgeous Petoskey region, collectively called Boyne Country after its premier resort facilities, is perfectly situated to make a great northern Michigan location for gatherings. It also offers guaranteed fun postconference activities, paired with great meeting facilities, small and large.

The region stretches from Boyne City in the south through Harbor Springs and the famed Tunnel of Trees along M-119, to Good Hart and Cross Village in the north, to the lakes near Alanson in the east, to that blue horizon of Lake Michigan on its sunset shoulder. It’s one of Pure Michigan’s best locations.

But don’t think that even with all we’re about to detail, that the Petoskey Area Visitors Bureau is sitting on its laurels—or its golf courses, its huge meeting spaces, its renowned restaurants, shopping and waterfront views, and that genteel, country elegance that the entire area exudes.

“Not no way, not no how,” says the bureau’s longtime Executive Director Peter Fitzsimons. “We’re one of the largest convention and visitors bureau regions in the state geographically,” explains the Michigan CVB sage. “We like to think of ourselves as a natural resourcebased, outdoor recreation area where we set the stage for people to enjoy themselves. We have hiking, biking, skiing, kayaking, canoeing, rafting, golfing, performing arts …” and he went on to describe loads of other activities that lure legions of visitors there year around.

City Charms

“If you’re sitting in downtown Petoskey, you’re within 20 miles of 18 championship golf courses,” he says. Then there’s the city’s historic Gaslight District, home to dozens of fashionable shops, many with twin locations in places such as Palm Beach, Florida.

Chic Bay Harbor, and its summery Inn at Bay Harbor nearby on Lake Michigan, is the latest iteration, he continues.

“Our area has historically been defined by summer resort communities that have been home to ‘old money’ since 1875. What that means is a lot of services have grown up to support the lifestyle, so we have very fine shops, restaurants and one of the best regional referral hospitals in the north. Those types of things aren’t readily seen in a small town,” Fitzsimons says. “You get a sense here that there’s something different about the area.”

Let’s begin with an elegantly compact venue that’s been here for more than a century, and now owned by Stafford’s Hospitality. Stafford’s Bay View Inn, which was built in 1886, in the historic Bay View Community, is just down

Rides through the M-119 Tunnel of Trees are a "must do."

WHAT TO DO? TRY A FEW OF THESE BOYNE COUNTRY ADVENTURES.

1Start with the famed Tunnel of Trees, along M-119. Slow your pace here, not only because the speed limit through the curves and dips is reduced, but because you simply should, to take in the reverie of light, leaves—especially in fall—and Lake Michigan views, running from the Harbor Springs area north to Cross Village.

2Little Traverse Wheelway encompasses 26 more miles of fun, running along Little Traverse Bay. It links Harbor Springs, Petoskey and Charlevoix.

3Take an easy, team-building yearround raft trip down a portion of the nearby Sturgeon River offered by Big Bear Adventures. Trips are beautiful year-round and offer great wildlife viewing. It’s simply amazing in the winter.

4Reserve seats at the new Great Lakes Center For The Arts and Red Sky Stage, at Bay Harbor, or the Young Americans Dinner Theatre at Boyne Highlands.

5Take your group on a nighttime adventure to the Headlands International Dark Sky Park for an experience like no other. It became one of the first 10 international sky parks in the world in 2011 and includes a rentable event center and observatory. 6 Book a group drive-by tour of architect Earl Young’s 26 “mushroom houses” in Charlevoix. You’ve never seen anything like these homes, with their wavy, sculpted roofs and fieldstone walls. It’s like having a group of hobbits from Lord of the Rings in town.

7Charter a trip on Little Traverse Bay through companies such as Sunshine Charters in Charlevoix, Pointer Boat in Harbor Springs (private charters, catered by Stafford’s, are available), or the others listed on the Petoskey visitors website.

8Plan your group to be here in May for the National Morel Mushroom Festival in Boyne City, and book a group outing in the woods to find these tasty little treasures.

9Climb aboard the Emerald Isle in Charlevoix for a trip to historic Beaver Island. Group tours are available, as well as overnight lodging on the island. 10 Book seats at Bay View’s Hall Auditorium for everything from opera and Broadway musicals to rock concerts during the Bay View Music Festival.

11 Tour the Petoskey area’s 12 wineries and three breweries.

FAST FACTS

Petoskey, in the Odawa language, is said to mean “rays of light.” But, it’s also likely named for the Petoskey family. Still, Odawa Chief Petosega (Bidasiga) figures in the area’s history.

Charlevoix was named after French explorer Pierre de Charlevoix.

The region also figures in a dubious historical moment. It was the site of the last great nesting of the passenger pigeon, once the most abundant bird in North America, which was hunted to extinction by 1901. A state historical marker on the shore of Crooked Lake tells the sad story. The man-made extinction helped drive the 20th-century conservation movement.

The greater Petoskey area features four state parks—Petoskey, Young, Burt Lake and Wilderness—and Fisherman’s Island.

Ernest Hemingway spent his first 22 summers in the Petoskey area, and the family still has a home, Windemere, on Walloon Lake. It’s rarely open to the public. The region is the setting for several of his Nick Adams short stories.

Harbor Springs was originally home to a permanent Odawa village. It is now the summer home to some of the nation’s richest families.

Beaver Island was once a kingdom, founded by Mormons.

The “crooked tree” name used by several businesses refers to the trees used as a landmark by the Odawa Native Americans.

The Petoskey stone, made of 350-million-year-old fossilized coral, was designated Michigan’s state stone in 1965. Find them anywhere along stone-strewn beaches, but one of the best is the Petoskey city break wall, if the current Lake Michigan highwater permits.

the hill from Petoskey proper.

Bay View grew out of the 19th-century Chautauqua movement. Clustered around it are the Victorian gingerbread houses that are occupied only in warm weather months. That gives Bay View its allure, and a neverending charm that wows first-time visitors and returnees alike.

That rubs off on the Bay View Inn, which is open all year for both lodging and dining, including its famous Sunday brunch offered May-October. Its architecture fits right in to offer that Victorian-style elegance, as well as gorgeous views overlooking Little Traverse Bay.

“Our group sales team can provide an allinclusive event for meetings and groups,” says Becky Babcock, marketing director for Stafford’s Hospitality. “This includes lodging and dining reservations at any of our locations. We also offer their years of expertise and gracious hospitality.”

The facility won Best Small Inn with Meeting/Event Space in the Michigan Meetings + Events Best of 2019 readers’ choice awards.

It offers all the amenities planners need. Its largest private space includes a dance floor, an outdoor meeting space in its garden, with room for up to 250 theater-style, as well as an indoor room for up to 130.

Stafford’s Perry Hotel downtown was built in 1889 and is the only one of 20 luxury resort hotels left that once occupied the town and that didn’t burn in an early 20th-century fire. The Perry offers 75 uniquely decorated rooms.

“It’s not your traditional hotel,” Babcock says. “It’s unique and historic, and we’ve taken a lot of time to preserve its history. If you walk into the lobby, you walk into a grand, maroon place with a fireplace and sitting area, almost like a parlor. You feel like you’re walking into someone’s cottage.”

Stafford’s Hospitality also operates the Weathervane Restaurant in Charlevoix, and The Pier, in Harbor Springs, which locals refer to simply as “Harbor.” Its Crooked River Lodge is in nearby Alanson.

If you want it all, head to Boyne Resorts for any season. There are more than 400 guest rooms and the ability to handle groups up to 600 for starters, says Trisha Olach, director of sales for Boyne Resorts in Michigan.

Locally, that means Boyne Mountain, (called The Mountain for short) in Boyne Falls, Boyne Highlands (The Highlands) in the hills in Harbor Springs, and The Inn at Bay Harbor (The Inn).

The Headlands International Dark Sky Park includes a rentable event center and observatory, which can provide a unique group outing.

The Boynes and Nubs

“One of Boyne’s biggest focuses overall is doing team-building or activity components for your programs. We’re the best in the state for things to do outside of your actual meeting,” Olach says. “Each resort has its own personality.

“The Mountain is more of our sports center, with paintball, hiking and biking trails, seven lacrosse fields, and it’s popular with fly-in groups because we have our own airport,” Olach continues. There’s also kayaking on Deer Lake, and the only red clay tennis court in the United States. Boyne also offers its huge full-service spa.

“The Inn at Bay Harbor is our luxury property on Lake Michigan. We like to keep groups there at around 100. There’s a full-service spa, waterfront dining, and we always talk about our million-dollar view of sunsets over Lake Michigan,” she says.

“Our Young Americans Dinner Theater at The Highlands is a huge sellout throughout the summer.”

When it comes to golf, there are three courses at The Inn on Little Traverse Bay. Two at Boyne Mountain, in the shadow of that property’s great ski runs. Plus, there are five courses at Boyne Highlands, in and around the hills above Harbor Springs.

If you’re a downhill maven, you’re already familiar with the Boynes, and Boyne Highlands across-the-street neighbor, Nubs Nob.

There also are miles of cross-country ski opportunities in the region that include trails at the Boynes, state forest trails, and preserves managed by the Little Traverse Conservancy,

There are 18 championship golf courses within 20 miles of Petoskey.

Boyne Mountain offers 60 runs and 415 skiable acres of terrain.

which groups can book.

At Boyne Highlands, planners can schedule a wintertime Aonach Mor moonlight dinner—a sleigh ride and meal at the ski area’s North Peak warming house.

A similar activity at Boyne Mountain whisks participants up a chairlift at night, where they don snowshoes for the hike back to the lodge and dinner at Stein Eriksen’s restaurant. While event attendees are reviewing the latest PowerPoint presentation, the rest of the family can relax at Boyne Mountain’s Avalanche Bay, Michigan’s largest indoor water park.

At the Inn at Bay Harbor, arrange for a private wine tasting or cocktail-making event, or even a chef-led cooking class on the sous vide method. Its 116 guest rooms have undergone major improvements and now are ready for groups. The changes complement the resort’s two renovated restaurants as well as the spa, café and lobby.

Summer team-building adventures include kayak trips on the Boyne River from Boyne Mountain, Segway tours, and horseback treks.

Among the amenities at Boyne Highlands are the Country Club of Boyne and night skiing. And if you’ve never experienced a swim in a heated outdoor pool on a winter’s night, this is the place to do it. Groups of up to 10 also can book a chef’s table experience at the country club to sit in the kitchen and watch their food being prepared while chatting with the chefs.

Kayaking the rivers and lakes around the Petoskey area is just one of the many outdoor adventures available year-round that attract repeat visitors.

Gaming Fun

Petoskey’s Odawa Casino offers a hotel, gaming, and lots of meeting and group lodging options, says Suzanne Sipe, CMP, Odawa’s assistant director of hospitality. The hotel features 137 guest rooms, 10 of which are suites.

“Our hotel and casino are two different buildings. We have four meeting rooms at the hotel, from our board room for up to 14, up to our larger space, which is two rooms with an air wall that accommodates up to 150 depending on the setup,” Sipe says. There is free parking for events, and free shuttles to the casino.

“At the casino, we have a large space that can accommodate up to 500 at rounds for dinner. The room has 18-foot ceilings and a stage that’s nice for productions. We also can use a couple of other locations. We do private events at Sage, which is our fine dining restaurant, and the Ozone night club."

With so much to offer, you’re now beginning to get the picture why the Petoskey area welcomes so many, and why they keep coming back.

The visitors bureau's Fitzsimons likes to say that his job is to remind past visitors here of all the area’s assets. “There’s a lot of competition out there from other communities,” he says. “But once people get here, it’s a memorable experience. Our history with the number of repeat visitors floors me. Once we get ’em, we tend to have ’em back.”

Get Connected

BOYNE RESORTS boyne.com | 800.462.6963

ODAWA CASINO odawacasino.com | 877.442.6464

PETOSKEY AREA VISITORS BUREAU petoskeyarea.com | 800.845.2828

STAFFORD’S HOSPITALITY staffords.com | 800.737.1899

Marketing, Promotion and More

PLANNERS BEHIND FIVE POPULAR MAJOR EVENTS OFFER INSIDER TIPS ON HOW THEY DRIVE AWARENESS FOR THEIR ANNUAL CELEBRATIONS.

BY ROGER GORDON

As planners, we’re constantly hearing about the time, energy and resources that go into the marketing and promotion of successful major public events. Radio, television and magazine advertising are huge, of course. In today’s marketplace, even bigger may be advertising on social media. The tried-and-true tradition of mailing brochures also helps. Word of mouth certainly doesn’t hurt. Collaborating with partners is a creative way to gain broader market coverage. To see how these five events do it, we asked those running the show to share an insider’s look at how these annual biggies are marketed and promoted. Two tactics, the presenters say, rank at the top: good old-fashioned communications and championing the social channels.

QUICKEN LOANS WINTER BLAST ADDS SUNSHINE TO DETROIT’S CHILLY WEATHER

During the summertime in Detroit, festivals abound. But in the cold months, the Quicken Loans Winter Blast stands alone.

“The Winter Blast is the only signature event in the city of Detroit, and one of the few in the region, that’s a winter festival,” says producer Jon Witz. “So not only are we a reason to get out of the house in the wintertime, but Detroit is coming back, and we get more media coverage because we’re not competing with multiple festivals.”

The 2019 Winter Blast was presented on four weekends in January and February at downtown venues around Campus Martius Park along Woodward Avenue just up from the Detroit River.

“We had a lot of cold weather and 35,000 visitors over the four weekends,” says Witz. “The year before, when the weather was warmer, we had 90,000 visitors over just one weekend. We’ve approximated that 40 percent of the attendees are from Detroit and 60 percent are from within a 60-mile radius of the city.”

The blast celebrates winter in Detroit and brings winter-themed festival activities into a downtown backdrop. Activities include free ice skating, snowboarding and skiing with the help of Boyne Resorts, a state leader in outdoor sporting equipment, ski slopes and more.

“We also have marshmallow roasting and ice sculptures,” Witz says. “There are heated tents with live bands and food trucks. There’s arts and crafts and a stage that plays family entertainment, too.”

The marketing team’s plan begins with developing the use of major media. “We’ll use TV advertising on two television stations. We’ll use radio advertising and we’ll collaborate with our partners on social media,” he says.

“Word of mouth takes us home from there. That’s always been enough to generate activity. In addition, there’s a public relations team that’s out generating media stories and sending out press releases. The Winter Blast is probably one of the top festivals year-round for media reporting. We’ll have six million impressions from the festival alone and probably about 100 television stories about the event featuring it over the time that we’re operating and before. So we really do rely on editorial coverage as a big driver for attendance.

“Our secret marketing sauce is how we attract all the media coverage and having creative activations. Instead of having someone just talking about how great the event is, we

From left: Ice skating in Campus Martius Park, snowboarding demonstrations, and arts and crafts are all part of the outdoor fun.

get our participants out early in the morning during news cycles and we create excitement for reporters,” Witz explains.

“For example, we’ve been told by our supplier that we have the world’s largest mobile zip line, and we get kids to come out at six, seven, eight in the morning to show everybody who’s watching TV and getting up how fun it is. And the media comes and captures it. We keep it very creative and fun. When a reporter comes, they know they’re going to have a lot of unique, fun things to do, not just standing in front of the camera. I think that separates us out for coverage.”

Witz and his team take full advantage of a social media blitzkrieg. “The festival is on Instagram, we’re on Twitter and we have a Facebook page, so we’re generating a lot of feedback there,” he says. “A big thing for us is the use of the social channels of our media partners. We have seven radio stations that participate in the event, and their social followings are even bigger than ours. They’re out posting and talking about the festival.

“In addition to that, each one of the bands that are booked for the weekend is putting it out on their social channels. It’s all about collaborative marketing. With all the partnerships and collaborations, there are probably 50-60 entities and organizations—all with substantial followings—that are pushing out the festival socially.

“The whole social media phenomenon has been ongoing,” he adds. “You have to stay with it. What we continue to learn is how people get their news, how they’re finding out about things and making sure that we’re creating experiences that people want to talk about. The best advertising we have is a mother taking a picture of her kid going down our winter slide, posting it to other people and having those people repost and retweet it. That blows away any other advertising we have, having thousands of people sending out images.”

The 2020 Winter Blast begins in January.

Get Connected

winterblast.com 248.541.7550

The Mackinac Island Lilac Festival horse hitch parade is the largest of its kind in the United States.

MACKINAC ISLAND LILAC FESTIVAL LURES VISITORS TO A DELIGHTFUL DESTINATION

The Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau is already a step ahead when they begin planning the marketing campaign for the Mackinac Island Lilac Festival, which was held July 7-16.

Why?

“People absolutely love lilacs,” says Executive Director Tim Hygh, who oversees the Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau. “This event attracts large numbers of attendees for that reason. There’s something about lilacs that people love. They love to look at them, they love the smell of them.

“And for most of the people that come to visit us during our Lilac Festival, it’s their second opportunity to see the lilacs in bloom. For them, their lilacs will have already bloomed and been off the trees by the time they come up here to see our lilacs in bloom. What’s nice about it is that, with more than 300 varieties, they don’t all bloom at the same time. So our bloom is longer and they have more varieties and different things to look at. The lilacs just mature later because of how cold it is up here in Northern Michigan.”

Hygh and his team develop their marketing plans in a number of ways. “First,” he says, “we’ve really beefed up content on our web page so that we can hopefully answer peoples’ questions before they have them. As a result, they’ll know about the scheduling of the Lilac Festival, why we have the festival and they’ll know some of the neat things that they can do. We also email newsletters to the following that we have. We’ll do some display advertising, too.

“We also rely very heavily on social channels to promote this event. The first thing that we’re able to do is, without any kind of display advertising, through our social channels announce the date when the tickets go on sale for A Taste of Mackinac, one of the festival’s many events. We only have a limited number of tickets that we sell for that event. It sells out every year. We have a number of other things going on, and I just used that one event as an example of how strong social media plays.”

The Mackinac Island Tourism Bureau also relies on partners in promoting the event. “Some are the horse acts, the face-painting vendors, the clowns, the different entertainers, the dance groups and those kinds of things,” says Hygh. “And then we have all of the members of the tourism bureau who participate in one way or another—either building a float or participating in A Taste of Mackinac. So it’s like a cast of thousands.”

This year’s Grand Parade—America’s largest horse-hitch parade—on the final day had live coverage on the Facebook pages of the festival and the local CBS affiliate, TV 9 and 10. “Two of the affiliate’s anchors and a couple of its reporters were there covering it like it was the Rose Bowl Parade,” Hygh says. “They condensed all of that footage into a half-hour program, which aired a week later.”

Hygh and his team have authenticity and longevity on their side. “If we just don’t make it too tricky, try to get the word out, try to remind people, entice them with our beautiful flowers and don’t make the message complicated, people will come.”

The 2020 Mackinac Island Lilac Festival is June 5-14.

Get Connected

mackinacisland.org/mackinac-island-lilac-festival 906.847.3783

ANN ARBOR ART FAIR COMBINES FOUR EVENTS INTO ONE BIG SUMMERTIME SPLASH

As far as name recognition goes in Ann Arbor, the city’s annual summer art fairs are second only to the famed University of Michigan.

“So when people think of Ann Arbor, they think of either the University of Michigan or the Ann Arbor Art Fair. There’s also a huge cultural scene in town between not just the visual arts but the performing arts, so it’s a great destination for culture,” says Karen Delhey, executive of the Guild of Artists & Artisans. “More than 1,000 artists come from all over the world.”

The 2019 art fair was July 18-21. Last year’s event attracted more than 400,000 visitors, or just under the attendance of four packed home games for the UM football team at The Big House, which holds about 108,000 fans.

“While fairgoers come from all over the United States, especially the Midwest, the majority of art fans come from southeast Michigan. We do get a large audience from the Midwest,” says Delhey. “We get a lot of alumni from the U of M, and they’re based all over the country. A lot of them use this week as a chance to come back for a reunion and things like that.”

The fair is comprised of four independently juried, nonprofit art fairs that run consecutively—the Ann Arbor Street Art Fair, the Original; the Ann Arbor Summer Art Fair; the Ann Arbor South University Art Fair; and the Ann Arbor State Street Art Fair.

The fair features a footprint spanning 30 city blocks, wrapping around downtown Ann Arbor and the main UM campus. In addition to art, the fair features a robust schedule, including stages with live music performances, artist demonstrations, family-friendly art activities for all ages, an array of food and beverage offerings and boutique retailers.

It is a huge task for Delhey and her staff to plan the events. “We’ll sit down with (the marketing and PR firm) Marx Layne & Co., which promotes the event, and come up with what the important messages are for that particular year,” she says.

“Then we have several partners we work with, including Destination Ann Arbor (the local CVB) and the Downtown Development Authority. We’ll meet with them and make sure we’re all sending out the same message. It just depends year to year what the big topics are. Collaboration is key when you’re marketing.

“We do extensive social media promotion for the art fair,” she adds. “Each of the four events has its own social media presence, whether it’s on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. And then there’s a joint page and a joint website that covers all four of the fairs, so a lot of times the content gets shared between the four events and the main page. It’s a lot of artist promotion.”

The artists also get involved in the marketing. “It’s crucial for them to reach out to their audience to let them know where they’re going to be,” she explains. “If you look at it, that’s a thousand individual shops or stores that are out there marketing. The sponsors are also out marketing, and we’ll work with them to come up with the message they want sent out.”

The 2020 Ann Arbor Art Fair is scheduled to be held July 16-19.

Get Connected

theannarborartfair.com 734.662.3382

More than 1,000 artists from around the world participate in the Ann Arbor Art Fair.

INTERNATIONAL WINE, BEER & FOOD FESTIVAL IN GRAND RAPIDS RANKS AMONG THE BIGGEST

As the Midwest’s largest annual event of its kind, the Grand Rapids International Wine, Beer & Food Festival typically attracts 20,000 visitors. “Most of our Michigan attendees come from the local Kent and Ottawa counties,” says Festival Manager Dawn Baker. “We also pull from other states.”

This year’s festival will run Nov. 21-23 at the downtown DeVos Place Convention Center. “With more than 1,500 wines from around the world, 300-plus craft and domestic beers and 25-plus participating restaurants,” says Baker, “it’s a great way to sample new food and beverages you may not get the opportunity to try otherwise. While sampling, visitors enjoy live entertainment throughout the festival.”

Baker and her team value communication highly. “Planners are very important to the event’s success,” she says. “There are so many moving pieces to such a large event. There are quite a few key components to the event and many play an important role, including our exhibitors, sponsors and attendees.”

There are many ways that Baker markets the festival. “We use Facebook Live videos with local radio personalities at participating restaurants, breweries, wineries, distilleries and cideries while promoting the event in a fun and exciting way,” she says.

“We collaborate with our advertising agency based on data, research and marketing trends in the food and beverage industry. A surprising fact we found from the data we collected is how much television advertising still works despite how many streaming or recording services are available. Grassroots marketing is successful with our personal delivery of promotional pieces to tasting rooms and restaurants.

“We collect and review data from surveys, and the industry gives us the insight to utilize traditional and digital advertising with appropriate buys and reaches. The secret is really a well-balanced annual marketing campaign.”

Baker’s team cross promotes products and businesses as much as possible. “It’s great to partner with Experience Grand Rapids (the local CVB) and other organizations to promote a very fitting event,” she says. “We also work with Traverse City Tourism to showcase our amazing Michigan wines, while they help advertise to similar target markets. It’s really a win-win for everyone. On top of that, significant relationships with the in-house decorator, electrical, box office and other building services at the convention center help ensure a smooth and efficient experience for exhibitors and patrons.”

Get Connected

grwinefestival.com 616.447.2860

HOLLAND TULIP TIME FESTIVAL MIXES AWESOME COLORS WITH DUTCH HISTORY

Some 500,000 flower lovers made their way to the Holland Tulip Time Festival, this year celebrated May 4-12.

Visitors from all 50 states and 43 countries attended the last festival. “So it’s really an international festival with people from around the world,” says Executive Director Gwen Auwerda.

Holland is known for its tulips. “We have about four and a half to five million tulips,” says Auwerda. “The tulips bloom in the spring, usually in early May. People love flowers first off. It’s really a tie to the Netherlands. Our community was founded by Dutch settlers back in the 1800s, so there’s always been a connection with the Netherlands. Tulips are really popular over there. We do import all of our tulip bulbs directly from the Netherlands. People just want to come and see the beautiful flowers. We have many varieties and colors, so you can see a wide range of beauty.”

Her team develops its marketing plans internally. “We have a communications manager who works on those plans,” she says. “We do a lot of advertising in magazines and to group tours, so it’s multifaceted. The major players who direct how the event becomes successful are the whole team and our board of directors. We pretty much do all of the marketing on our end. Planners are very important to the event’s success because we are the ones who are planning many of the events ourselves directly.”

Marketing the festival by way of social media is huge. “We have 40,000-45,000 Facebook subscribers,” Auwerda says. “We also use Instagram pretty extensively. That’s how we let people know when our events are. We also print 120,000 brochures, so we have a pretty big mailing list. People can get on the mailing list by going to our website and requesting a brochure be sent to them.”

The event’s secret marketing sauce is word of mouth.

“That’s how people learn about us,” she says. “People have always heard about the festival and said, ‘Oh, I’ve always wanted to come. It’s on my bucket list.’ We’ve learned that people are here on the weekends and they come from a three-hour driving radius. As a result, we did add Sunday programming a couple of years ago so we had enough things for people to do on the second weekend of the festival.

“We’ve also learned that people want to participate in things. So this year we had a series where you could see a cooking demonstration. We have Comfort and Crafts, which is a five-course meal of Dutch comfort food paired with different beers. We’re always looking out for one of the latest trends in tourism,” she says.

The 2020 Holland Tulip Time Festival will be May 2-10.

Get Connected

tuliptime.com 616.396.4221

Millions of tulips surround Holland’s famous 250-year-old De Zwaan Windmill.

FOR A GOOD CAUSE

Fundraising experts at Michigan nonprofits share best practices for planning charitable events, maximizing contributions and engaging communities.

BY ANNE NAGRO

The goal of most charity events is to generate as much money and awareness for the cause as possible. Sometimes that’s easier said than done, especially with countless galas, walks and campaigns vying for donor attention.

So how can organizers ensure their fundraisers stand out and stay fresh year after year? What are the best ways to build relationships with donors and maximize their contributions? Fundraising experts from six Michigan nonprofits shared what works for them.

Some of the goodies volunteers receive at the event. The annual Kidney Walk at the Detroit Zoo,

DESIGNATE AN HONORARY CHAIR (OR TWO) TO HEADLINE YOUR EVENT

“That’s where all the magic happens,” says Lisa Schutz Jelic, development director at the National Kidney Foundation of Michigan, on how well-connected business and community leaders can use their networks to extend a foundation’s reach.

“It makes all the difference in the world because it’s not then just who you know, but who they know,” she explains.

Jelic likes to have two honorary chairs per fundraiser. Ideally, they work in different industries and already are familiar with the organization.

Their impact can be huge, assures Jelic, who found herself without an honorary chair leading up to the foundation’s largest event, the annual Kidney Walk at the Detroit Zoo, this past May.

Although 4,500 people participated, raising more than $430,000, this was less than the $630,000 raised with the help of 8,000 walkers last year. That’s partly because the 2017 chairs were CEOs of large organizations and they viewed the walk as a team-building opportunity, encouraging thousands of employees to form teams and compete in raising money.

Honorary chairs also can “open doors” to vendor and venue partnerships, says Jelic. A former chair once influenced a venue to underwrite the costs of drinks for the annual Kidney Ball, a lively black-tie affair attracting up to 800 guests. This let the Ann Arbor-based foundation put more of the funds raised into programs to fight chronic kidney disease.

The ball, which will be held Dec. 7, raises money through ticket sales, silent and live auctions, sponsorships, and by asking guests to “buy” into specific programs. “The biggest money is corporate sponsorship, and that’s where the honorary chair plays a key role,” adds Jelic.

The next Kidney Walk, featuring children’s activities, food and vendors, a raffle and team and patient celebrations, is May 17, 2020.

MAKE IT EASY TO DONATE ONLINE TRUST THE CREATIVITY OF YOUR VENDORS AND VOLUNTEERS

“We get a lot of our donors online. A lot of people communicate with us that way. A lot of applicants come from finding us online,” says Tracey Cholish, who manages major gifts and planned giving for the The Pink Fund. It is a national nonprofit in Bloomfield Hills that provides financial assistance to breast cancer patients who are undergoing treatment and need help covering basic living expenses.

Key to all this is the fund’s website, which pops up quickly in online searches (thanks to savvy search engine optimization) and clearly presents its mission.

“I feel like our site tells our story. Once you get there you have no question of what we do,” says Cholish.

The website likewise makes it easy for people to host third-party fundraisers.

“They contact me with their ideas, and I provide them support. I approve their events and a lot of times, especially if it’s in another state, we then receive a check in the mail when their event is over,” says Deborah Braciszewski, who coordinates these activities.

Social media channels are used to promote these events and also give people more ways to donate. Last year, the Fund generated $18,000 through Facebook birthday fundraisers.

“We were shocked,” says Cholish of the surprise support from Facebook users. “They found us; they liked our mission; they picked us; their friends donated on behalf of their ask,” she explains.

The Pink Fund also hosts its own fundraiser. Dancing with the Survivors, held Oct. 4 at Silver Gardens Events Center in Southfield, provided five breast cancer survivors or co-survivors with ballroom dance lessons.

Dancers raise money to participate and then perform with their professional dance partners at the ticketed event, which also featured food, cocktails, auction and raffle. Last year more than 350 attended the performance, which raised nearly $149,000. On Feb. 29, 2020, the Sparrow Foundation will host its signature event of the year, the Sparrow Gala, to raise money and awareness for programs at Sparrow Hospital in Lansing.

More than 800 people attend the gala, which takes over the entire University Club of Michigan State University with each room dedicated to a different activity, from dancing and auctions to casino-style gaming and desserts.

In 2019, the gala raised more than $250,000 to support patient outreach efforts for the hospital’s orthopedic department.

The key to this event’s success, says Lisa Sack, the foundation’s development and events specialist, is putting the right vendors in place and trusting their abilities. “Give your vendors creative freedom and don’t limit them because they’re the experts in their field; let them do what they do best.”

Sack brings all of her vendors together to discuss the event’s objectives and budget. “We sit at the same table and we talk through the logistics and that’s when we really get the creativity flowing,” she says.

Many vendors donate portions of their services, so Sack is sure to provide referrals and promote them at the gala.

It’s also essential to trust the volunteers who work the event. Sack has a strong core of helpers who are loyal to the foundation and understand how the gala works.

“I train them and I know that they will follow through and really take ownership of it,” says Sack of the high-level tasks she assigns. “I think people enjoy having that responsibility.”

Trusting volunteers and vendors to elevate the guest experience ultimately means less work for her. “The more control you can relinquish, the more effective you can be overall. You have to put the right framework in place to be successful,” she says.

Casino-style gaming is just one of the many activities at the annual gala.

EXCEL AT TELLING YOUR STORY STAY IN TOUCH WITH SPONSORS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR

Greg Taylor was an addict who turned his life around thanks to The Salvation Army of Metro Detroit’s Bed & Bread Program, which provides meals, shelter and counseling to people in need. Now, he drives one of the nonprofit’s soup kitchen trucks, giving others the same assistance he once received.

Stories like his helped The Salvation Army raise more than $1.5 million during its 32nd annual Bed & Bread Program Radiothon in February.

“We had clients who had been helped who could say, ‘I was down and out. This is the problem I had in my life. The Salvation Army provided a meal or provided shelter. This is how your donation is allowing The Salvation Army to be the conduit that had a positive influence on my life,’” says John Hale, who leads development for the organization’s Eastern Michigan Division, based in Southfield.

Stories were audio- and video-taped for use on radio and social media, and also shared in-person during the radiothon’s live broadcast.

Hale credits radio station 760 WJR, which hosted the fundraiser, for easing the tension of some clients (who were uncomfortable doing interviews) through gentle coaching.

In addition, the event’s radio personalities and many program guests and major donors, such as Ford Motor Company Fund staff, spent time on the Bed & Bread trucks so they could share their own experiences on-air.

“They are able to meet clients and hand out sandwiches for a few hours in the afternoon or evening while our trucks are out. Then they are able to share the stories that they see, and that’s been really effective for our fundraising and for sharing what we’re really doing,” says Hale.

To date the Radiothon has raised more than $36 million for the Bed & Bread program. The next event is Feb. 28, 2020. More than 800 people attended the Michigan Shines for Autism Gala at the MotorCity Casino in Detroit in April, raising more than $1 million for the Autism Alliance of Michigan (AAoM).

Corporate sponsorships accounted for three-quarters of the money raised, which funded the nonprofit’s Navigator program. That provides free professional case management service to Michigan families affected by the disorder.

Companies sponsor the gala for different reasons. “Some people are very interested in the marketing piece of it and they want their name out there. Some of our higher levels are doing it because of a relationship with one of our board members,” says Colleen Allen, CEO of the Bingham Farms-based organization.

Different levels of sponsorship come with different benefits, from having names included in marketing, invitations and signage to getting mentioned in radio ads, speaking on-stage and having AAoM-affiliated professionals host “Autism 101” lunch-and-learns for employees.

AAoM customizes sponsorship benefits on request. It also actively stays in touch with sponsors throughout the year.

“We don’t want it to feel like a transaction,” explains Allen of sponsoring the gala. “We want it to feel like a partnership and that they’re involved in something bigger than themselves.”

As such, AAoM regularly calls and emails sponsors to share photos, stories of individuals and the impact their support is having on communities in their part of the state.

“I think that makes a big difference. That way they don’t start dodging your calls because they think every time they see my name I’m asking for money,” says Allen. “Instead, they’re much more likely to support the next year’s event.“

The gala is a favorite of business and legislative leaders and features a formal dinner, live music, program and silent auction. The next one is April 18, 2020 at MotorCity Casino Hotel.

Sponsors are recognized at the celebration.

Each table at the Detroit Aglow picks a carver who’ll put on a chef’s coat and hat to cut the turkey.

RESPECT GUESTS’ LOVE OF TRADITION

People know what to expect at the 36th annual Detroit Aglow, a fundraiser for the Downtown Detroit Partnership being held Nov. 25 at MGM Grand Detroit, and that’s a good thing.

“It’s a traditional event. Tradition is its success,” says Mary Riegle, who oversees development efforts, including membership sponsorship and foundation relations for the nonprofit organization.

The Monday evening affair attracts more than 800 business, civic, philanthropic and community leaders and raises $250,000 for initiatives that include programming for Campus Martius Park, Cadillac Square and other downtown public spaces.

A highlight of the Thanksgiving celebration is when 72 roast turkeys are marched out of the kitchen and set on small carving stands next to each dining table.

“The table appoints a turkey carver and this is something that people either are gunning for and are very excited about or they’re playing chicken with each other,” Riegle says, laughing. (Carvers are provided a chef’s coat and hat.)

And just like a family Thanksgiving where unexpected guests might attend (a new colleague who recently moved here or college student who couldn’t make it home), organizers squeeze in two “surprise” guests at each 10-person table.

“People really enjoy meeting someone new, interacting with others, maybe getting to network in a way that you thought you never would,” says Riegle.

Each year new elements, such as sponsored cocktails or a photo booth, add spice to the event, but overall it stays true to its roots.

“Having done other galas, sometimes you spend a lot of time and energy trying to create something new, which may or may not pan out the way you want it,” admits Riegle.

Sticking with what people want “enables me to focus on what’s important, which is creating a stellar event while meeting the other demands of my job,” she says.

Get Connected

AUTISM ALLIANCE OF MICHIGAN autismallianceofmichigan.org 877.463.2266

DOWNTOWN DETROIT PARTNERSHIP downtowndetroit.org 313.566.8250

NATIONAL KIDNEY FOUNDATION OF MICHIGAN nkfm.org 800.482.1455

THE PINK FUND pinkfund.org 877.234.7465

THE SALVATION ARMY EASTERN MICHIGAN DIVISION Salmich.org 877.725.6424

SPARROW FOUNDATION sparrowfoundation.org 517.364.3620

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For more information, contact: ELEANN ALLEN

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