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ESSENTIAL PROGRAMS: BEST IN SHOETM
View a Best in Shoe slideshow, click here.
To see a Best in Shoe sample e-Blast, click here.
To view a Best in Shoe video, click here.
To view Red Carpet Commentary, click here.
Celebrate your guests' fabulous footwear by promoting a shoe contest. In pre-event marketing materials, encourage them to wear their favorites, as prizes will be awarded for various categories. Promote the contest in marketing materials (such as an e-blast) leading up to the event informing guests of prizes for different categories.
The contest provides an excellent sponsorship opportunity for a local business that can donate the prizes in exchange for being promoted at the event and in event materials. A podiatrist or chiropractor would be a perfect partner. In Denver, a medi-spa sponsored the Best in Shoe contest, offering four prizes, one for each category. Spa certificates make great prizes. What shoe lover wouldn’t want a pedicure?
Here are a few category ideas:
Wonderful Wedge • Sassy Stiletto • Sexy Stiletto • Fabulous Flat • Bodacious Boot • Playful Platform
Posh Platform • Classy Classic • Sensational Straps • Vixen Vamp • Power Pump • Elegant Exotic
Embellishment Extraordinaire • Fabulous Fringe • Exotic Embellishment
Draw from current fashion trends. If snakeskin, neon or fringe is in, you might add that to a category name. Be sure and keep the contest simple with no more than four categories.
Establish a nomination process to make sure the nominees stand out (for example, a blinking ring or bracelet, or a tiara, bestowed by the fashion judge).
Decide how winners will be chosen; is it at the sole discretion of the judges, or will the audience clap or vote? Getting the audience to applaud their favorites keeps them involved and the energy up.
You may want to bring the nominees on stage to encourage crowd participation by voting on the winner, just keep an eye on the clock so as not to make the speaking program too long.
Judges
We strongly recommend enlisting a local celebrity to be your Judge, someone with style and panache who can make the most of the contest. In Napa and Sonoma, our local style celebrity, Jean-Charles Boisset, acted as shoe judge, but stole the show himself in purple suede kicks! Because he was such a well-known character, guests fluttered to him and Facebook-posted their pictures with him, generating buzz for the event.
The Orlando team had a local fashion blogger. She took pictures of the shoes with her iPad and posted the best on her blog. She then announced the winners from the stage.
If you don't have a prominent fashion blogger, a local magazine or newspaper fashion personality is an ideal candidate to judge Best in Shoe. Ideally, you’d have both: A local fashion personality plus a media partner to capture the contest. You’ll need one shoe judge for each 100 guests at your event (or, one judge per every 200 feet).
Social Media
You can also engage your guests by encouraging them to post pics of shoes that they like on Facebook or Instagram. Ask guests to use hashtags: #bestinshoe, #winewomenshoes to ensure the entire event is getting in on the conversation. This can also be part of your social media strategy in the weeks leading up to the event. Post a picture of a fabulous pair of shoes from your closet with the caption, “This is what I’ll be wearing to the Wine Women & Shoes [event details]. How about you?” Don’t forget the #bestinshoe #winewomenshoes tags!
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