
Ad Age Custom Content
The Best of Experiential 2019

At a time when brands and businesses are capable of going bigger, better and more elaborate, it’s easy to lose the core tenets of experiential marketing—that guiding principle of interaction that’s less “look at us” and more “let’s do this together.” The most successful branding exercises don’t rely on passive audiences to absorb their messages. Instead, they create experiences and facilitate conversations through hands-on, personal moments that encourage audiences to actively participate with the brand. No longer just one facet of marketing plans, experiential campaigns and activations are big business—driving the strategy of everything from pop-ups to global conferences. And more often, experiential marketing isn’t just consigned to consumer campaigns. Business-to-business events have fully embraced the movement, finding new ways to showcase their products in unique and memorable ways. “A decade ago, a lot of the campaigns and conferences were very structured and familiar,” says Rick Cosgrove, executive creative director at Agency EA, a full-service brand experience agency. “Now, there’s a lot more choice and customization. Companies have moved away from the one-size-fits-all format and begun to focus on creating shareable moments within the context of a larger campaign.” This move toward personalization has fostered an atmosphere of inclusion, as brands attempt to interact with people from a variety of backgrounds. It’s led to more choice for audiences and attendees, who have the opportunity to engage with projects on a personal level and glean their own distinct takeaways. And its results can be felt beyond traditional metrics. Where once success was measured by event attendance or campaign clicks, now brands are finding that the best projects can live on long after their execution date. “Everyone talks about creating content worth sharing and finding that Instagram moment,” says Cosgrove. “The reality is that people want to experience something they can capture in a photo and share with their friends—and it’s up to marketers to create those environments and those moments that are worth sharing.” Here are the top experiential moments of the past year. Nominees were selected by Ad Age Studio 30 in partnership with Agency EA and voted on by a panel of judges. Given the wide variety of activations and events, the winners are not ranked. Click here to download Agency EA's 2019 Experiential Marketing Trend Report. Download Agency EA's Trend Report
Adidas 'Billie Jean King Your Shoes'
Dates: August 27, 2018
Location: U.S. Open, Queens

View Credits
- Associate Creative Director:
- Angelo Maia
- Associate Creative Director:
- Ricardo Franco
- Executive Creative Director:
- Al Merry
- Executive Creative Director:
- Amy Ferguson
- Executive Creative Director:
- Julia Neumann
- Chief Creative Officer:
- Chris Beresford-Hill
- Agency:
- TBWA/Chiat/Day-New York
- Brand:
- Adidas
- Associate Copywriter:
- Hana Ovcina
- Associate Art Director:
- Lukas Bruhn
- Senior Designer:
- Eric Kopicki
- Designer:
- Bonnie Wang
- Account Manager:
- Emily Zale
- Assistant Account Manager:
- Isabella Dahlke
- Senior Project Manager:
- Lauren Smiley
- Chief Strategy Officer:
- Aki Spicer
- Planner:
- Michael Obermeyer
- Community Manager:
- Bodi Karsono
- Head of Production:
- John Doris
- Executive Film Producer:
- Zamile Vilakazi
- Senior Integrated Producer:
- Jessica Fiore
- Senior Integrated Producer:
- Alex Campbell
- Associate Producer:
- Sean Riojas
- Senior Cinematographer/Editor:
- John Lynn
Adobe Summit
Dates: March 26-28, 2019
Location: Las Vegas

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- Conference Producer:
- Mike Stiles
- Conference Producer:
- Julie Parkes
- Conference Producer:
- Jennifer Heaton
- Keynote Producer:
- Nicole Williams
- Creative Director:
- Joe Buchwald
- Creative Director:
- Steve Gustavson
- Creative Director:
- James Kern
- Creative Director:
- Eric Ward
- Art Director:
- Angela Fisher
- Agency:
- PIX Productions
- Agency:
- George P. Johnson
- Agency:
- Freeman
- Agency:
- Cornerstone
AWS re:Invent
Dates: November 26-30, 2018
Location: Las Vegas

Bumble Hive
Dates: March 8-17, 2019
Location: South by Southwest, Austin, Texas

View Credits
- Balloon artist & face paint:
- EPIC Entertainment
- Bar service:
- DrinkSlinger’s
- Beverage partners:
- Waterloo Water, Frankly Vodka, Dulce Vida Tequila,
- Facade Build:
- Ergo Experiential
- Furniture rental:
- 10th Collection
- Music:
- DJ CASS&RA, DJ Nixx, DJ Windows 98, Angel + Dren
- Photographers:
- Laura DelaCruz, Chris Lammert
- Production, Floral, Photobooth:
- Pen+Prue
- Venue / Food:
- Jo’s Coffee Downtown / Bunkhouse
- Vinyl:
- Shorty’s Wraps
programming partners
- Austin Animal Center
- Booksmart
- Nanny Tribe
- Rooster Teeth
- Sanctuary Astrology
- SoulGlow Aura Photography
- Upstairs Circus
Bumble
- Chief Brand Officer :
- Alex Williamson
- Senior Merchandise Manager :
- Anh Dang
- Senior Manager Content Strategy :
- Caitlin Ryan
- Chief of Staff:
- Caroline Roche
- VP Marketing :
- Chelsea Cain Maclin
- Editorial Director :
- Clare O'Connor
- Curator of Vibes :
- Courtney Moreau
- Bumble Fund Manager :
- Cybil Zhang
- College Marketing Coordinator :
- Emily Moravits
- Associate Director Public Relations :
- Emily Wright
- Junior Accountant :
- Gina Little
- Senior Manager Field Marketing Operations :
- Grace Weisiger
- Senior Manager Partnerships :
- Haley Morgan
- Influencer Marketing Manager :
- Justin Balanon
- Marketing designer :
- Kate Emons
- Art Director :
- Katherine Rainey
- Special Projects Coordinator :
- Kyra Seay
- Influencer marketing coordinator :
- Lauren Sarberenyi
- VP People and Culture :
- Leah Heck
- Brand Marketing Manager :
- Lila Abramson
- Legal Counsel :
- Liz Monteleone
- US PR Manager :
- Liz Song
- Creative Project Manager:
- Naema Showery
- Brand Marketing:
- Naseem Scaglione
- Junior designer :
- Patricia Cruz
- Social Strategy Coordinator :
- Paula Pena
- Global Director Strategy :
- Priti Joshi
- Chief Creative Marketing Officer :
- Samantha Fulgham
- Global PR Coordinator :
- Sang Lee
- Chief Operating Officer :
- Sarah Jones Simmer
- Office Coordinator :
- Scott Wyble
- Senior Manager Partnerships :
- Shaden Abboushi
- Data Insights Analyst :
- Tori Coneglio
- Junior merchandise planner :
- Van Phan
- Senior Manager Special Events :
- Veronica Martinez
- Founder and CEO:
- Whitney Wolfe Herd
Google Assistant Ride
Dates: January 8-11, 2019
Location: CES, Las Vegas

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- Event Operations, Production, Design, Engineering + Fabrication
- Sparks
- Creative Technology + Fabrication
- Deep Local
- Creative
- Nexus Studios
- Fabrication
- Wisdom Rides
- Lighting Design
- Radiance Lightworks
- Music Composition
- Michael Russoff
- Music Arrangement
- Leland Music
- Audio Mix + Sound Design
- Barking Owl
- Onboard + LED Graphic Content
- Brand New School
Google Cloud Next
Dates: April 9-11, 2019
Location: San Francisco

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- Chief Marketing Officer, Google Cloud:
- Alison Wagonfeld
- Event Director:
- Matt Kaufman
- VP of Brand, Creative, & Media:
- John Zissimos
- Creative Director:
- Philip McDougall
- VP of Product Marketing:
- Carol Carpenter
- VP of Developer Relations:
- Adam Seligman
- Corporate Communications Senior Director:
- Jane Hynes
- Executive Producer:
- Holly Christopher
- Executive Producer:
- Carl Levin
- VP of Events & Experiences:
- Tara Back
- George P Johnson
- CEO:
- Chris Meyer
- George P Johnson
- Senior Global Account Director:
- Sarah Vitale
- Jack Morton
- President:
- Edward Scott
- Sparks
- Chief Experience Officer
- Robin Lickliter
- Sparks
- VP, Strategic Accounts
- Judy Lentz
Salesforce Dreamforce
Dates: September 25-28, 2018
Location: San Francisco

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- Salesforce
- EVP, Global Marketing
- Julie Liegl
- Salesforce
- VP, Dreamforce Conference Chair
- Brigitte Donner
- Salesforce
- VP, Strategic Event Production and Operations
- Catherine Simmons
- Salesforce
- Sr. Director, Strategic Events
- Stacey Kashubeck
- Salesforce
- Sr. Director, Strategic Events
- Kristin Horstman
- Salesforce
- Sr. Manager, Strategic Events
- Pamela Meskin
- Salesforce
- Sr. Manager, Strategic Events
- Abby Ardis
- Salesforce
- Manager, Strategic Events
- Samantha Rohman
- Salesforce
- Sr. Vice President, Global Brand & Cross-Product Marketing
- Colin Fleming
- Salesforce
- Associate Creative Director
- Pamela Gonzalez
- Salesforce
- Sr. Copywriter
- Anne Lewis
- Salesforce
- Sr. Art Director
- Sue Prue
- Salesforce
- Sr. Art Director
- Katrina Leach
- Salesforce
- Art Director
- Katrina Herman
- Salesforce
- Director of Program Management, Events
- Sarah Busta
- Salesforce
- Project Manager
- Joshua Lanada
- George P. Johnson
- VP, GPJ Project Lead
- Annette Griffin
- George P. Johnson
- VP, Event Operations
- Matt McGinn
- George P. Johnson
- Executive Creative Director
- Jorge Narvaez
- George P. Johnson
- Account Director
- Melissa Davoodi
- George P. Johnson
- Director Operations
- James Smith
- George P. Johnson
- Account Director (Campground Project Lead)
- Johanna Walsh
- George P. Johnson
- Producer (Trailhead Project Lead)
- JP Stephenson
- George P. Johnson
- Creative Director (Trailhead)
- Tim Mohr
- George P. Johnson
- Creative Director
- Casey Cooper
- George P. Johnson
- Creative Director
- Marc Schulte
- George P. Johnson
- Creative Director
- Josh Murray
- George P. Johnson
- Senior Director, Strategy
- Nicole Strada
- Salesforce
- Director, Strategic Events Digital & Demand Generation
- Vivi Forny
- Salesforce
- Manager, Strategic Events Digital & Demand Generation
- Amy Carlson
- Salesforce
- Senior Director, Events Content Strategy
- Kurt Smith
- Salesforce
- Senior Director, Events Technology
- Scott Owens
- Salesforce
- Director, Events Content Strategy
- Annette Vernon
- Salesforce
- Sr Manager, Events Content
- Lori Bowers
- Salesforce
- Sr Manager, Events Content
- Sandra Soto Ramos
- Salesforce
- Associate Manager, Events Technology
- Nicole Teixeira
- Salesforce
- Senior Manager, Product Management
- Dana Greenberg
- Salesforce
- Manager, Product Management
- Nomi Narra
- Salesforce
- Director, Product Management
- Kevin Ota
- Salesforce
- Project Manager
- Deborah Lyon
- Salesforce
- Sr Interactive Designer
- David Popino
- Salesforce
- Graphic Designer
- Albert Chung
- Salesforce
- Manager, Web Experience
- Tammy Stellanova
- Salesforce
- Director, Events Social & Content Marketing
- Marissa Kraines
- Salesforce
- Associate Manager, Events Social & Content Marketing
- Sabrina Barekzai
- Salesforce
- Designer, Events Social & Content Marketing
- Simantha Fox
- Salesforce
- Associate Manager, Events Marketing
- Drew Reed
- Salesforce
- Senior Specialist, Events Marketing
- Danielle Kerendian
'Skittles Commercial: The Broadway Musical'
Date: February 3, 2019
Location: New York

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Client: Mars Wrigley Confectionary US, LLC
- Global Chocolate CBU Lead
- Rankin Carroll
- USA Fruity Confections CBU, Vice President
- Debbie Litow
- Senior Associate Brand Manager, Skittles
- Jamie Rubinstein
- Senior Associate Brand Manager, Skittles
- Mitch Rotenberg
- Senior Media Manager
- Andrew Giusto
- Senior Manager, Brand Public Relations
- Ampy Vasquez
Creative Agency - DDB Worldwide
- Chief Creative Officer, North America
- Ari Weiss
- Chief Creative Officer
- John Maxham
- Executive Creative Director
- Colin Selikow
- Creative Director/Copywriter
- Nathaniel Lawlor
- Copywriter
- Will Eno
- Art Director
- Ruth Bellotti
- Head of Art
- Cristina Rodríguez Reina
- Art Director
- Paulo Junger
- Chief Production Officer
- Diane Jackson
- SVP, Executive Producer
- Matt Blitz
- Senior Producer
- Jason Georgen
- Executive Art Producer
- Suzanne Koller
- Print Producer
- Heather Simon
- Lead Digital Artist
- Martin Austin
- Digital Artist
- Paula Weber
- Digital Artist
- Andre Wells
- Digital Artist
- Jenny Smith
- Retoucher
- Tom Waterloo
- Studio Manager
- Yvette Doud
- Studio Production Manager
- Brian Winterton
- Production Manager
- Scott Terry
- Director of Music
- Alec Stern
- Group Strategy Director
- Josh Drueck
- Senior Strategist
- Jonathan Palmer
- EVP, Global Business Director
- Richard Guest
- Global Brand Lead
- Josh Lenze
- Global Account Director
- Erin Vick
- Global Account Supervisor
- Jacqueline Hines
- Global Account Executive
- Jane Steinhoff
Digital Partner - Tribal Worldwide
- Executive Creative Director
- Kinney Edwards
- Creative Director
- Adrian Dickerson
- Creative Director
- Nikki Albrecht
- UX Director
- Derek Fernandes
- Group Business Director
- Amy Elkins
- Management Supervisor
- Marni Levine
Talent Partner - The Marketing Arm
- Vice President
- Brad Sheehan
- Account Director
- Paul Williams
PR Agency - ICF Next
Mediacom
Social Media Agency - Mars Wrigley Confectionery US, LLC.
Production Company – Smuggler
- Director
- Randy Krallman
- Executive Producer
- Patrick Milling-Smith
- Executive Producer
- Brian Carmody
- Executive Producer
- Allison Kunzman
- Chief Operating Officer
- Andrew Colon
- Line Producer
- Ian Blain
- Director of Photography
- Alwin Küchler
- Production Designer
- Pete Zumba
- Costume Designer
- Heather Lake
Editorial – HutchCo Technologies, Inc.
- Editor
- Jim Hutchins
- Assistant Editor
- Austin Hickman-Fain
- Executive Producer
- Jane Hutchins
VFX – Blacksmith
- VFX Supervisor / 2D Flame Lead
- Daniel Morris
- VFX Supervisor / 2D Flame Lead
- Joey Deady
- Executive Producer
- Charlotte Arnold
- VFX Producer
- Bindy St. Leger
- Compositor
- Tim Regan
- Compositor
- Yebin Ahn
- AE animator
- David Szmit
Telecine - The Mill
- Colorist
- Fergus McCall
- Color Assist
- Andrew Ceen
- Color Assist
- Elias Nousiopoulos
- Color Assist
- Nate Seymour
- Color Producer
- Megan Rumph
Audio/Mix - Heard City
- Mixer
- Phil Loeb
- Executive Producer
- Sasha Awn
- Producer
- Andi Lewis
Cast Album Mix/Mastering
- Mixer
- Frank Filipetti
- The Mastering Palace, NYC
- Dave Kutch
Key Visual Creation – Vault 49
Key Visual Creation & Animation – Giannini Creative
- Imaging
- Keith Handley
- Animation
- Sebastian Szyszka
- Executive Producer
- Kevin O’Connell
Truth Initiative, 'The Truth About Opioids: Treatment Box'
Dates: June, October 2018
Location: New York

View Credits
- Director:
- Tucker Walsh
- Chief Executive Officer:
- Robin Koval
- Chief Marketing Officer:
- Eric Asche
- Chief Communications Officer:
- Tricia Kenney
- SVP, Marketing & Media Investment:
- Nicole Dorrler
- General Counsel:
- Robert Faulk
- Managing Director, Marketing:
- Mary Dominguez
- Creative Director/Designer:
- Garrett Jones
- Creative Director/Writer:
- Nate Virnig
- Creative Director/Writer:
- Peter Albores
- Designer:
- Garrett Combes
- Writer:
- Chase Hilton
- Strategy Director:
- Marc Pardy
- Connections Strategy Director:
- Greg White
- Brand Director:
- Danielle Gard
- Brand Manager:
- Marie Simoni
- Partnerships and Legal Director:
- Amy Jacobsen
- Partnerships and Legal Director:
- Jana Nauman
- Partnerships and Legal Manager:
- Hector Olguin
- Executive Film Producer:
- Carlin Wilson-Webb
- Executive Film Producer:
- Jim Haight
- Film Producer:
- Annie Dietz
- Director:
- Tucker Walsh
- Supervising Producer:
- Kathryn Berk
- Executive Producer:
- Dave Saltzman
- Executive Producer:
- Edward Grann
- Producer:
- Jennifer Duffy
- Producer:
- Jason Reif
- Director of Photography:
- Tristan Nyby
- Casting Director:
- Dina Buglione
- Editorial:
- White House
- Post Production:
- Carbon
- Post Producer:
- Jordan Stricklin
- Editor:
- James Dierx
- Sound Design:
- Michael Anastasi
- Music House:
- Butter
- Music Producer:
- Annick Mayer
- Music Composer:
- Vlad Berkhemer
- Managing Partner:
- Ari Kuschnir
- Managing Partner:
- Brian Latt
- Managing Partner:
- Kate Oppenheim
- Director of Immersive Content:
- Mike Woods
- Head of Production:
- Rebecca Davis
- Head of Post Production:
- Josh Sussman
Twilio Signal
Dates: October 17-18, 2018
Location: San Francisco

View Credits
Twilio
- CMO, Twilio
- Sara Varni
- Sr. Director of WW Field Marketing, Twilio
- Leslie Henthorn
- Head of Signal, Twilio
- Diane Woon
- Sr. Event Marketing, Twilio
- Emily Gaines
- Senior Director of Brand Experience
- Andres Krogh
- Senior Visual Designer in Brand Experience
- Paul Bustamante
- Senior Creative Director of Brand Experience
- Sean McBride
- Director of Production in Brand Experience
- In-Young Chang
- Senior Software Engineer
- JingMing Niu
- Product Manager
- Jennifer Barron
- Sr. Manager Executive Programs
- Marietta Bernstein
- Director of Developer Education
- Andrew Baker
- Sr. Developer Educator
- Kevin Whinnery
- Manager, Developer Evangelism
- Jarod Reyes
- Developer Evangelist
- Domink Kundel
- Sr. Director Developer Network
- Ricky Robinett
- Director of Field Marketing
- Julie Poutre
- Event Marketing Manager
- Natasha Ritz
- Brent Schooley
Creative Partners
- Tencue
- EEG
Judges

Doug Cameron
Co-Founder, DCX Growth Accelerator
Doug founded DCX in 2015. DCX is a growth accelerator that offers a full range of marketing and innovation services that prides itself on its "culture hacking" campaigns, such as the recent Palessi campaign for Payless Shoes. In 2017, DCX won Ad Age's Silver Small Agency of the Year for the Northeast. In 2016, DCX won the Gold for Small Agency of the Year, Campaign of the Year Pro Bono. Doug also the co-author with Douglas Holt of the 2012 book "Cultural Strategy: Using Innovative Technologies to Build Breakthrough Brands."
Rick Cosgrove
Executive Creative Director, Agency EA
As Executive Creative Director, Rick leads a team that brings Agency EA’s creative concepts to life. His nine-year tenure at Agency EA has evolved from serving as the agency’s first in-house designer to structuring and leading its robust 40-plus Creative Department: a team of creative strategists, spatial designers, copywriters, digital project managers, graphic designers and creative technologists. As the ECD, Rick’s passion for purposeful and cohesively designed experiences consistently ensures comprehensive solutions for EA's partners and clients.
Ari Kuschnir
Managing Partner, M ss ng P eces
Since 2005, Ari has been leading, advising and completing creative projects that resonate, seeking to shed light on people, projects, and ideas that matter to him, as well as the community he surrounds himself in. He consistently pushes the boundaries of what’s possible in storytelling, most recently through radical, never-been-done-before projects in emerging technologies and immersive experiences. Ari frequently speaks at conferences as an industry leader. For the past three years, m ss ng p eces has been named to the Ad Age Production Company A-List.
Kate Oppenheim
Managing Partner, M ss ng P eces
Kate joined m ss ng p eces as a partner and executive producer in 2010 to transform m ss ng p eces into a new wave production company designed for the incoming generation of creatives leading integrated campaigns for broadcast and digital platforms. The company’s mission to find and create the what’s next in storytelling has resulted in heralded work for the world’s leading brands and agencies, and accolades including two Emmy Awards, Cannes Lions and Clios, among others. In 2017, Kate was honored to be one of Ad Age’s 40 Under 40.
Erik Basil Spooner
Creative Director, Ad Age
Erik Spooner is the creative director for Ad Age, where he oversees the brand and editorial design for all its platforms. A creative leader with two decades of experience in the media, entertainment and technology industries, his work has included digital start-ups and major media brands like Us Weekly, Discover and Rolling Stone. He also maintains a visiting professorship with Pratt Institute, teaching undergraduate design courses, and is completing his graduate work with the Berlin School of Creative Leadership.
Giacomo Vigliar
Business Director, Unit9
Giacomo has been business director at Unit9, one of the leading multidisciplinary production companies in the world, working in film, digital, experiential and XR, since 2016. In 2019, Unit9 was named Ad Age’s Production Company of the Year.About Ad Age Studio 30
Ad Age Studio 30 is a custom content studio that specializes in the creation of paid content that resonates with the Ad Age audience. To inquire about Ad Age Studio 30, email James Palma at [email protected].
About Agency EA
Agency EA (www.agencyea.com) is a full-service brand experience agency. We unite brands with their target audiences by creating exceptional user events, worldwide event programs, summits, conferences and B2B experiential campaigns. With a strategic approach, visionary ideas, inspired creative and flawless execution, EA brings brand messages to life. Founded in 1999 as Event Architects, Agency EA has worked with esteemed clients such as Hilton, Intuit, Google, Samsung, MillerCoors and the Obama Administration.
Ad Age Studio 30 is a custom content studio that specializes in the creation of paid content that resonates with the Ad Age audience. To inquire about Ad Age Studio 30, email James Palma at [email protected].
About Agency EA
Agency EA (www.agencyea.com) is a full-service brand experience agency. We unite brands with their target audiences by creating exceptional user events, worldwide event programs, summits, conferences and B2B experiential campaigns. With a strategic approach, visionary ideas, inspired creative and flawless execution, EA brings brand messages to life. Founded in 1999 as Event Architects, Agency EA has worked with esteemed clients such as Hilton, Intuit, Google, Samsung, MillerCoors and the Obama Administration.
- Kevin Gray - Writer
- Jennifer Chiu - Senior Art Director
- Corey Holmes - Web Producer
- Kate Papacosma - Copy Editor
- James Palma
General Manager, Revenue and Client Partnerships
[email protected] - John Dioso
Editor, Studio 30
[email protected]