Karianne Michelle—a dynamic brand storyteller and well-being expert—shares insights from her extensive experience in the creative industry and her unique approach to intertwining storytelling and wellness in corporate culture. Also covered: the importance of sustainable and meaningful swag, and how to pivot gracefully when things don’t go as planned.
Resources Mentioned:
- Karianne Michelle: LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Website
- Well-being practices: Lofti
- Album: Dreamscapes: A Sound Bath Journey
- Alysse & Libby: Bios & LinkedIn
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- Website: www.beatsworkingpodcast.com
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BEATS WORKING is a platform on a mission to redeem work—the word, the place, and the way. We believe that work is the most honorable act in the universe, and through inspiring stories and practical insights, we want to transform the way people think about work and help them discover greater fulfillment in their lives. We invite you to join us as we build community through sharing and actively demonstrating what we learn.
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Transcript
The following transcript is not certified. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors. The information contained within this document is for general information purposes only.
Alysse Bryson [00:00:00]:
And I think the other thing about your slow drip, when you put it out on the table, if somebody didn’t want it, they’re not taking it versus exactly being automatically given to them, and then they throw it away and then whatever is left over. You can deal with that however you deal with that. But I think that that is such a really good approach. What was the company. I want to say they were out of Colorado with the little pouch. It was a little pouch that was like. Oh, I love my little pouch.
Libby Sundgren [00:00:26]:
The little, like, mesh kind of one.
Alysse Bryson [00:00:28]:
Yes, it’s.
Libby Sundgren [00:00:30]:
Yes, yes.
Alysse Bryson [00:00:32]:
Oh, so cute. It’s so cute. I use mine all the time. You know what? You can’t go wrong with a little pouch. I just want to be like, pro pouch. Like, you can’t have enough pouches, just like you can’t have enough bags. Right?
Karianne Michelle [00:00:47]:
Yeah, I agree completely.
Alysse Bryson [00:00:49]:
Welcome to Beats Working Winning the game of events, where we share stories and strategies to turn any. Any event or life moment into something unforgettable.
Libby Sundgren [00:00:59]:
Events are wild, and the people who work in them are some of the most resilient humans on earth. If you know, you know.
Alysse Bryson [00:01:07]:
So come with us behind the curtain for a look at their most memorable experiences.
Libby Sundgren [00:01:12]:
As they say, the show must go on. So let’s get on with the show.
Alysse Bryson [00:01:22]:
Carrie Ann, do you want to take us through maybe a little breathing exercise or something? Clear a chakra or something? I don’t know. What should we do?
Karianne Michelle [00:01:30]:
I love it. Yeah, I love it. I’m sorry, my sound bowls are in the other room, but.
Alysse Bryson [00:01:34]:
Oh, I love your sound bowls.
Karianne Michelle [00:01:37]:
Thank you. All right, well, okay. Put both your feet on the ground. If they’re not there, it’s important. All right, so feet are flat. Just rest your hands comfortably maybe in your lap. And perhaps we’ll all close our eyes and take a deep breath in and out. I love to make that sound.
Karianne Michelle [00:01:57]:
And another one. In and out. That’s good. One more like that. And then draw your attention with your eyes closed between your eyebrows, your third eye center. And just feel back behind your eyes. Relax your eyes and then notice the flow of air in and out of your nostrils. Relax your tongue and jaw.
Karianne Michelle [00:02:42]:
Soften your throat. Awareness in your shoulders, releasing any tension. Feeling into the top of your chest and back, letting go of any holding in your abdominals, releasing your pelvis and hips and feeling your arms and hands. Completely relaxed. Legs and feet soft. And then just place your awareness in your feet, sensing into your toes, bottoms of your feet, observing where they touch the surface of the floor beneath you and then just feel beneath that, beneath the floor. Just putting your mind in that space and then just letting that go. Maybe wiggling your fingers and toes a little bit, maybe rolling your shoulders, feeling the body breathe.
Karianne Michelle [00:04:11]:
And then opening your eyes, coming back awake and alert. Hello. Do you feel grounded?
Alysse Bryson [00:04:22]:
I feel grounded. I feel refreshed. I have a little bit of an air buzz, I think.
Libby Sundgren [00:04:31]:
I know. We should do those more often. A bird flew into my window when we were mid practice and so I did interrupt for one moment to look and then I closed my eyes again and got right back underneath the ground. So.
Karianne Michelle [00:04:45]:
Okay, that’s good. Hopefully the bird’s okay.
Libby Sundgren [00:04:48]:
I think it’s okay. It happens all day long around here. They’re always flying into the windows. Not, it’s not because they’re that clean. It’s the reflection of all the trees.
Alysse Bryson [00:04:57]:
Well, let’s introduce our guest today, Libby, shall we?
Libby Sundgren [00:05:01]:
Let’s do it.
Alysse Bryson [00:05:02]:
All right. Well, we are so thrilled to have Carrie Anne Michelle with us today. She is a dynamic brand storyteller. Well being expert and international presenter with over 20 years of leadership experience in the creative industry. That’s a long time. That’s two decades, people. She has collaborated with global companies such as State Farm, G.E. abbott, Hewlett Packard.
Alysse Bryson [00:05:28]:
I can’t get that out. As a brand strategist while guiding teams at Google. I do love to Google, Amazon. Shop there all the time. And of course, our favorite Lululemon. Through transformative wellness programming as a yoga instructor, sound bath artist. You guys, she’s so good at sound bath and meditation guide. Carrie Ann integrates spiritual, emotional and physical well being into her work, paving the way for corporate culture that prioritizes holistic wellness alongside business success.
Alysse Bryson [00:06:01]:
With her innovative approach to storytelling and wellness, Carrie Ann is empowering organizations and individuals to unlock their full potential. Welcome, Carrie Ann.
Karianne Michelle [00:06:13]:
That was like a little ad.
Alysse Bryson [00:06:19]:
Brought to you by Lululemon.
Libby Sundgren [00:06:21]:
We’re gonna run that during the breaks in our other episodes.
Karianne Michelle [00:06:25]:
I love it.
Alysse Bryson [00:06:28]:
I’m just feeling so refreshed and grounded for this conversation. And we’re gonna talk about, we’re gonna talk about events. We all love events. We all do events. And I guess, you know, Libby and I often talk about the fact that events, we like them because they have a very clear beginning, middle and end. Like, you know, the hero’s journey of an event. So we should probably just start at the very beginning. It’s a very good place to start.
Alysse Bryson [00:06:58]:
All right, so how do you at the beginning of an event, in the planning stage, how do you lock in on a client or audience’s vision right from the start? Like, what’s your process? I guess it would really be with the client. What. How do you start the vision process of what you’re hoping to achieve at the event?
Karianne Michelle [00:07:17]:
Ah, just like I do in the marketing world. What does the success look like? Right. So what is our measurement of success going to be? And I think a great example of that is when we met at the Reagan Communications Women’s Business Summit and Retreat last year in California.
Alysse Bryson [00:07:32]:
So fancy, so fun.
Karianne Michelle [00:07:35]:
And that’s a great example of when I was talking with the CEO of Reagan, Diane, at the very beginning of curating that new series of events. It was, what do we. What do we want success to be? And honestly, although there were a lot of metrics, you know, in terms of you’re investing in something new for the business, you want to have a return on it. The. The key success marker was people making friends. We want these women we’re bringing together to feel, you know, the psychological safety so that they can leave with these new contacts and really feel like they’ve connected. And. And it’s can be hard to make friends sometimes in your industry, you know, real friends.
Karianne Michelle [00:08:15]:
And, you know, it’s a great example of. Of course, there are a lot of other important business metrics, but starting with that vision of what does the success look like? And sometimes being really clear when it comes to some sort of shared experience or event, what does actually look like.
Libby Sundgren [00:08:33]:
For the audience, that’s really great because, you know, I think that’s something people don’t always think about with events. You know, like the feeling and the vibe that you want to resonate, you know, afterwards. Like, yes, everybody wants an event to be fun, but you know, what specifically? Like, what kind of actions do you want to come from them? Feeling the things they feel at your event or at your party? I love that.
Alysse Bryson [00:09:03]:
It was a really good vibe. It was a really good vibe. I can sometimes when I walk into a conference, especially one that’s all women, as great as that is, it can also honestly be a little intimidating because it’s like, you know, imposter syndrome kicks in and you’re walking around like, comparing your insides to everybody else’s outsides and being like, oh, there’s so much. Pretty smarter than I am, more accomplished than I am, prettier than I am, more put together than I am. So I feel like the different activities that you put together at that event. Carrie Ann really kind of like broke down all those barriers, you know right from the very start. So I think really well done.
Karianne Michelle [00:09:45]:
We did too.
Libby Sundgren [00:09:46]:
We did too.
Alysse Bryson [00:09:47]:
I also know that you were like the queen of swag curation for that event. And what I loved was your. What I specifically loved. And I. I think I even called Libby from the conference and I really loved your slow drip. You didn’t give out the bag with all the swag, like, all at once. You dripped it out over the three days that we were there. And so every time you, like, you came back to a new, like the big session where everybody was together, there would be new goodies over on this table that you could go and be like, oh, have you seen this? Oh, have you seen.
Alysse Bryson [00:10:25]:
And it really, it gave you something to look forward to. I just. Maybe that’s a very common way to distribute swag, but I haven’t seen it done that way. And I just thought that was really a great way to highlight each of the individual businesses, which I think they were predominantly women owned, to highlight their brands in a special way. Whereas when, you know, you throw everything in a bag, it’s cool to get a really full bag, but sometimes then not everything gets a fair share of attention in the bag. So I thought that was really clever. Do you want to talk any more about your swag curation process?
Karianne Michelle [00:11:02]:
Yeah. Thank you. I would say that drip approach is something that I’ve started to do actually more probably since COVID when, you know, thinking about the in person experience shifted and there were just more things to consider in terms of everybody feeling healthy and comfortable and safe and in different ways. I think there’s just another layer of detail. I hadn’t really thought about that, so you just said that, but I think it was kind of coming out the other side. But one of the things I liked about how we did that was it kind of kept the surprise and delight going, which is, you know, from part of my time in the PR world. That’s like our big go to slogan when you’re doing events, right? What are those? Surprise and delights. So how do we kind of keep that going across the time? I also noticed from my own experience being at, I don’t even know more than I can count events in my life, whether I plan them or went to conferences or big events, small events, cocktails, mocktails, yogas, running, like all the things I do in my free time, plus all this stuff in the business world that I ended up with a lot of the swag bags that I always felt really sad about because I would watch sometimes my colleagues like throw them in a trash can and you know, they’re like, well, it’s just full of like glossy postcards for brands I don’t care about.
Karianne Michelle [00:12:28]:
And the person in me who cares about the environment also would sort of shudder every time that happened. So it’s become more important for me to think about swag in different ways. So one, if I have a brand that, let’s say, is sponsoring in some shape or form of an event, having a conversation with that team to help them think beyond sort of the basic tchotchke and you know, even if their budget is still small, like less than $10 a person because their money is going towards something larger, how can they make a different type of decision with that, knowing who’s attending and maybe something that is a little out of the box for them. So we don’t just have things contributing to the trash. But then also, more importantly, when it comes to the kind of premier different brands or levels that you’re having, a way to have that swag is to think of it much more as a partnership and looking and spending some time curating really interesting smaller businesses that don’t always have the opportunity to get in front of maybe the audience that you have. And sometimes it’s easier for a small business to give one product to, you know, 50 to 100 people than it is for them to pay to be advertising. And so it can be a win win, especially if you can take the time to make sure it’s something that’s meaningful. But one of the things I, you might remember, Elise, that I did is I kind of become the like spokesperson for those brands.
Karianne Michelle [00:13:57]:
So I always promised them.
Alysse Bryson [00:13:58]:
You did a great job.
Karianne Michelle [00:14:00]:
Thank you. I always promised them that. You know, I try to pick things that I have used myself or would use or seem applicable as much as possible to the audience. But then take some of that brand 101 and have a 15 minute call with the founder or the head of their team to get into the details of why this is different and unique and then to do the little one to two minute soft shoe on the stage about what everyone is about to experience, just so that we connect the human dots and you can know about the person who created it, why they created it, why we’re giving it to you, what maybe I think is fantastic about it, just to make it more interesting again, that idea of a shared experience, so that shared experience with that founder they might not have otherwise found, that’s really cool.
Libby Sundgren [00:14:47]:
And you could do that too. I’ve never done this for like a, you know, for like a shorter event, you know, for a four hour time frame or something. But you could do kind of like a little swag scavenger hunt. I mean, you’d have to make like a passport where people get like marked off so they don’t take, you know, 10 water bottles or whatever. But it add another level of engagement. And I like the little pitch that you do for people.
Karianne Michelle [00:15:12]:
Just a little.
Alysse Bryson [00:15:14]:
It was really good. And I also like, I hope, I love that you talked about sustainability because I just. We can’t just keep ordering a bunch of plastic stuff with logos on it that goes into landfills. Like, it doesn’t. It’s not a good look for the brands anymore either. Right. And so it’s like, be really thoughtful with your items. Make sure it’s something that people want, that it’s durable, that it’s usable.
Alysse Bryson [00:15:42]:
And I think the other thing about your slow drip, when you put it out on the table, if somebody didn’t want it, they’re not taking it versus being automatically given to them and then they throw it away and then whatever is left over. You can deal with that however you deal with that. But I think that that is such a really good approach. What was the company, I want to say they were out of Colorado with the little pouch. It was a little pouch that was like, oh, I love my little pouch.
Libby Sundgren [00:16:08]:
The little like mesh kind of one.
Alysse Bryson [00:16:10]:
Yes, it’s.
Libby Sundgren [00:16:12]:
Yes, yes.
Alysse Bryson [00:16:14]:
So cute. It’s so cute. I use mine all the time. You know what? You can’t go wrong with a little pouch. I just want to be like pro pouch. Like, you can’t have enough pouches. Just like you can’t have enough bags. Right?
Karianne Michelle [00:16:28]:
So, yeah, I agree completely.
Alysse Bryson [00:16:30]:
I know. I don’t know if you, how much of your DNA was in this, this part of the event, but at the beginning of the event, the first day or the first afternoon, we were all there. We were sitting at tables. And so each table got the Lego flower kit and they. We were. It was a competition to see who could get the what table, could get the bouquet of flowers together first. And so you had teamwork. And then those served as the centerpieces for the entire event.
Alysse Bryson [00:17:00]:
And then at the end of the event, people got to take them home. And I will tell you, when it was announced that you could take those Lego flower bouquets home, the women were launched out of their seats at the first moment that they could and not look too crazy. People went for them. So I thought that was so clever. I Love fresh flowers. I do. But, like, I also am a big LEGO girl, so I just thought that was such a clever way to do decorations at the event. Team building at the event, and people actually, like, want to take it with them.
Alysse Bryson [00:17:38]:
Like, fight over. Yeah, almost nobody.
Karianne Michelle [00:17:40]:
Fine.
Alysse Bryson [00:17:41]:
But you know what I’m saying.
Karianne Michelle [00:17:42]:
Oh, I agree. Thank you. That was. We had the original idea of we want something on the centerpieces. We don’t want to be throwing flowers away. The very first event we did, we got really lucky because we. It was, you know, the first event. So you wrote the second one.
Karianne Michelle [00:17:56]:
The first one we did, we had to be very, very, very, very thoughtful about every single dollar. Like a lot of people when you’re piloting something. And we were really lucky because the hotel was having an event the night before and they had all these arrangements. And so we asked, like, our pals at the, like, hotel, like, what are happening to those flowers? And they’re like, you know, that’s facility is like, not your concern. We’re like, what if they were just sort of there?
Libby Sundgren [00:18:21]:
The elevator.
Karianne Michelle [00:18:22]:
Anyway, I don’t know how. What magic we worked, but we were able to get some. So they were repurposed for our events, so they extended it. But then when we knew we were doing this one, it was like, oh, that was so nice. We’re not going to spend that money. We don’t want things to go in a landfill. But we want to do something team building. So at first it was like, is there something with like, a local florist? And is there something where there.
Karianne Michelle [00:18:40]:
Dried arrangements?
Alysse Bryson [00:18:41]:
Right.
Karianne Michelle [00:18:41]:
And that’s kind of where we started. And then I think it was the Reagan team that may have ultimately said, what about lego? And, yeah, it was. It was so smart and it allowed us to have a lot of touch points, was sort of one thing. And I will say Lego, if you’re listening. We did try to reach out to see if you would want to supply them, and we didn’t hear back, so.
Alysse Bryson [00:19:00]:
And we were actually in very close proximity to Legoland.
Karianne Michelle [00:19:04]:
We were.
Alysse Bryson [00:19:04]:
And I, not to brag, but it is not bragging if it’s true. My table took first place and I think we did have a slight advantage because I actually have that LEGO floral kit at home, so I have already assembled it once, so I was quick to become the boss of my table. Nobody’s surprised at this. And we really power through now. When we got to the end, there were a few pieces left over that I’m not sure. Should we.
Libby Sundgren [00:19:32]:
You get extras? They they come with a couple extras.
Karianne Michelle [00:19:35]:
I was at Elisa’s table.
Libby Sundgren [00:19:38]:
Oh. There were enough. There were enough. We hid them.
Karianne Michelle [00:19:42]:
I think we kind of, you know.
Alysse Bryson [00:19:43]:
We did, we did, we took.
Karianne Michelle [00:19:45]:
We’re competitive, a competitive group.
Alysse Bryson [00:19:47]:
Right. We just made quick decisions, mistakes, full speed. Just quick decisions.
Libby Sundgren [00:19:52]:
Okay, well that could. Lego floral arrangements or just anything. Lego would definitely go under the category of best swag items. But Karian, what are the best and the worst swag items you’ve encountered in your career?
Karianne Michelle [00:20:10]:
Wow.
Libby Sundgren [00:20:12]:
So much pressure. I mean it doesn’t have to be the ultimate, but.
Karianne Michelle [00:20:16]:
Yeah.
Libby Sundgren [00:20:17]:
What comes to mind?
Karianne Michelle [00:20:18]:
All right, well first I will tell you I think the best, but it wasn’t necessarily my experience. It was one of my friends who. I’ll never forget this. So she is in sales. So first you have to know that the sales teams, especially at big pharma companies, the.
Libby Sundgren [00:20:34]:
They pull out their budgets are a little different. Yeah.
Karianne Michelle [00:20:37]:
For their national sales team. And she was doing really, really well at the time. It was probably 10 years ago and she was, it was January, kind of like the annual time still teams do this now. And I remember it was going to be a whole week and she’s like, they were asking me for my shoe size and like all these different things. I was like, wow, that’s interesting. Wonder what you’re. What’s going to happen? And they gave her. It was like all the different athletic brands.
Karianne Michelle [00:21:03]:
I mean she got a pair of like trainers in her size. She got a full like, like a top and like bottoms and like T shirt and it was like all the high end brands and I don’t know enough about the back end to know how much of that they just outright.
Libby Sundgren [00:21:19]:
Right.
Karianne Michelle [00:21:19]:
Bought, you know, or how much of it. But she said that it was done really well where when they got there and they checked into their hotel room it was all like nicely put on the end of their beds and it was, she said, I could tell somebody had like very thoughtfully like folded and organized it and like it had a nice little branded note from the company and you know about. We want you basically to feel comfortable being your authentic self. We’re going to have this great week of team building. They had some well being things built in throughout that they could choose to do. So it was also like, you know, you can wear this. But it was. And the thing I remember about it is it was not all branded by their company, which is the thing that most companies will do.
Karianne Michelle [00:21:59]:
So I mean, yes, I think she did have like a pullover or something that was like A North Face brand brand that had a little logo, but everything else was. Was not branded. And I remember we talked about how much she appreciated that because she felt like they actually wanted to give her that swag. And it wasn’t just like, oh, yeah, and we’ll put our logo in on it all. Because you don’t always want to wear your company’s logo. So that’s probably the best because I’m into, you know, well, being and fitness and like, we were running buddies at the time. So I was like, oh, my God, that’s so cool. You got new shoes and you got new socks and you got a new outfit and like, that’s expensive, you know, and it’s nice.
Karianne Michelle [00:22:32]:
And she said too, that like, you know, their team was all different shapes and sizes. So she’s like, you know, I mean, they really. Whoever like in that team curated it was very thoughtful. I think they even in that filled out, like their favorite colors. I mean, it was a very detailed thing. And I remember her saying, like, I don’t know what this is going to be. And then what she told me. So that was the best.
Karianne Michelle [00:22:50]:
That’s like over the top, you know, very customized, very thoughtful and for people who are like, leading the sales of the company. So I think that spend probably really motivated. That certainly did for her. I think the worst swag, honestly, is the repeatable tchotchke crap that I see at trade show booths of every single industry where it’s like, this is a terrible pen. It doesn’t work. I can’t hardly read your logo. I don’t know why I’m getting it. I’m gonna throw it away.
Karianne Michelle [00:23:28]:
And right up there with like, a card that’s oversized in, like, really terrible colors and graphics. And like, I have a stack of 25 of them in this thing, and I’m not using them to look your. Your logo up. I’m not using it to scan a QR code. I don’t remember your brand. It was not one of those eight impression touch points to help me. I wish you would have used your money some other way. So.
Libby Sundgren [00:23:54]:
Yeah, I know pretty much anything. Paper is just like.
Karianne Michelle [00:23:59]:
Yeah, I don’t remember it. The rest. No. You know, it’s so bad.
Alysse Bryson [00:24:04]:
Well, we are in the digital age, so people.
Libby Sundgren [00:24:07]:
Yeah, I guess we are.
Alysse Bryson [00:24:09]:
Less paper.
Libby Sundgren [00:24:09]:
I guess it’s a new.
Alysse Bryson [00:24:11]:
Do you remember when we did the opening for Athleta was opening their first store in the Pacific Northwest and we got to wear matching outfits.
Libby Sundgren [00:24:22]:
We did. It was really kind. They gave us Each a pair of leggings and a top to wear. It was really very generous. But the bottom, the pants looked like we were all wearing diapers. It was something about the way the padding was in and they weren’t made for bicycling. That’s. They weren’t like biking cycling pants.
Libby Sundgren [00:24:47]:
There was just something about these leggings that we all looked like we had.
Alysse Bryson [00:24:54]:
Depends on little extra, little extra.
Libby Sundgren [00:24:57]:
No judgment, you know, but you don’t want to look like you’re. You don’t want to bring attention to the fact that you might be wearing a diaper. And we just. I think we wore them for that opening and I don’t know if we ever wore them again. So it was a very well intentioned, you know, swag for us. I mean, you know, was.
Karianne Michelle [00:25:21]:
It was. It was also like a discontinued item that they’re trying to get something they’re maybe never gonna.
Libby Sundgren [00:25:27]:
I did.
Alysse Bryson [00:25:28]:
I did like the top, though. I kept the top for a while.
Libby Sundgren [00:25:30]:
The top was great.
Alysse Bryson [00:25:31]:
Yeah, the top was great. The top was great.
Libby Sundgren [00:25:33]:
It was a nice purple.
Alysse Bryson [00:25:35]:
Nice purple top.
Libby Sundgren [00:25:36]:
Yeah.
Alysse Bryson [00:25:36]:
Yep, it was great.
Libby Sundgren [00:25:37]:
But the pants. So that’s the other thing. I mean, sometimes that could be a well intentioned item, but you know, the quality, it’s like you can have a really cool gift you give somebody. Like, you can make a really cool design on a T shirt or whatever, a really cool graphic tee. But if it’s one of those thick, like, scratchy, you know, cheap materials, like, no one’s gonna wear it. So, like, they’re still gonna give it away, you know, or like you could have a coupon on your card stock that you put in the bag. But if I have to physically bring it in, am I ever really gonna do that? I think I still have coupons in.
Karianne Michelle [00:26:22]:
Like when I’ve done somewhere when I’ve personally had times for my little small business that I’ve had an opportunity and it’s like, yep, you can have a card, you know, and it’s like, great. What I try to do is think out of the box. So one of the things I’ve done before is done like a 4 by 6 postcard, had a designer friend of mine, you know, pay them a little bit of money, not a ton, but like a little quick hour two project for them to design something on the front that maybe is a little more branded, but using some fun colors in my palette. And on the other side, have a meaningful. I’ve done like meaningful quotes or kind of empowerment stuff statements because I’VE done a lot of events for women, so that makes sense, you know, but that like I would want to see and then work to. Instead of having those go in the bag, be in a place that the attendees are going to run into them or pick, pick them up at a moment. But with the idea that hopefully if the people were like me, maybe some would keep it and they would be like, oh, I really like this. I’m going to put it on my desk or going to hang it up in some place and maybe they’ll get rid of it.
Karianne Michelle [00:27:28]:
But that’s something I try to do to keep things a little bit unique.
Libby Sundgren [00:27:32]:
This was a card my friend gave me, but it says I’ve grown weary of listening to the nonsense.
Karianne Michelle [00:27:39]:
Yeah.
Libby Sundgren [00:27:40]:
And my son is always asking me, what is that? What is that card? I’m like, if you only knew. If you only knew that this card is for you, it’s meant for you. But yeah, I have a bunch of different car. I mean the most of them are like greeting card type things, I guess. But like I did have a business. I bought this artwork from and she sent me. My husband went to WSU and so I bought him this, you know, these drawings of the Palouse and kind of Coug buildings. But she sent me this tiny.
Libby Sundgren [00:28:12]:
I don’t know if you can see it with the light, but it’s just this tiny little, I don’t know, two by like one and a half by three card or two by three card or something. And it’s just a little tiny print of it. But I love it so much I keep it up here.
Karianne Michelle [00:28:27]:
Well, I love it when you again, like you heard me say design. But like artists are just so creative and I feel like there’s a lot of ways that you can use independent artists and help support them. And your like little tiny budget can be very meaningful for them sometimes in like a week of their life or a month of their little business. And it can allow you to like, help somebody else get their art out and to stand out. And a lot of times others people are better at expressing what we’re trying to do. You know, that’s why in branding and marketing, it’s good to have a team of different perspectives because you got visual thinkers and you got number thinkers and you got word thinkers, you know, well.
Alysse Bryson [00:29:05]:
And I know I’ve made mistakes. We’ve made mistakes at swag bag items. Now this was a long time ago, so I do think it at the time, I don’t think this would happen today. But then Libby, you’ll remember this. It was very early on at Celebrity Stakeout, which was a. An annual fundraiser. We did.
Libby Sundgren [00:29:24]:
I know what you’re gonna say.
Alysse Bryson [00:29:25]:
Early cancer, cringe every time. And we had $25 gift cards for a tanning salon in the bags. And we didn’t really think about that.
Libby Sundgren [00:29:39]:
It.
Alysse Bryson [00:29:39]:
We didn’t really think about it.
Libby Sundgren [00:29:41]:
Also, I will say, at the time, there wasn’t as big of an emphasis on. It was just right on the cusp of tanning beds and, you know, sun exposed, like, really highlighting risk of cancer.
Alysse Bryson [00:29:58]:
Yeah.
Libby Sundgren [00:29:58]:
See, we were on the same page. And then we were like. But the speaker’s wife had actually. I think skin cancer is what she had died of. And so it was just really.
Karianne Michelle [00:30:11]:
Oh, God.
Libby Sundgren [00:30:12]:
It was pretty mortifying for us. You guys win. It was a learning moment.
Karianne Michelle [00:30:17]:
You were.
Libby Sundgren [00:30:18]:
You win.
Karianne Michelle [00:30:18]:
Were swag.
Alysse Bryson [00:30:19]:
It was terrible.
Libby Sundgren [00:30:20]:
Yeah, it was bad.
Karianne Michelle [00:30:21]:
That’s a good learning moment.
Alysse Bryson [00:30:22]:
But honestly, we didn’t. Yeah, it didn’t occur to us. Again, it was at the time, like. Like, tanning was looked at in a different way. I used to be a tanner, and this was. This is before I also ended up having skin cancer. My. Myself.
Alysse Bryson [00:30:36]:
It. We really thought we were giving a value in, you know, 25 gift card feels like a value. And you do have the option to use that towards a spray tan. So, like, we really.
Karianne Michelle [00:30:46]:
Okay.
Alysse Bryson [00:30:47]:
We really did think it was a good thing. And then when it was pointed out, that blind spot was pointed out, it was like, yeah. Oh, I still. Yeah, it’s been like 15 years. And I cringe. I cringe when I think about that one.
Libby Sundgren [00:31:03]:
Yeah.
Karianne Michelle [00:31:03]:
Well, I mean, I guess the reality is when you’re in marketing and events, I mean, you get so many of these under your belt, there’s going to be mistakes. I mean, you just can’t avoid it. It’s gonna happen. It’s gonna happen. It happens to everybody. It’s for every big win. You’ve gotta something in the. You don’t want to talk about it anymore.
Alysse Bryson [00:31:18]:
Yeah.
Libby Sundgren [00:31:19]:
So what do you not want to talk about anymore? Can you tell us?
Alysse Bryson [00:31:22]:
Yeah. Oh, oh, dun, dun, dun. Good transition.
Libby Sundgren [00:31:25]:
I want you to tell us about that event that you did in Chicago. That’s a really good story because I still think about that story, and I still am like, she’s a genius.
Karianne Michelle [00:31:39]:
Thank you. Well, now we can see a overflow with cut from that. Basically starting my business, I’m going to do my first event. It’s going to be this, like, epic workshop. And I’m not only going to do one, I’m going to do two, too, because why would you offer one day.
Alysse Bryson [00:31:56]:
When you can offer two days? Not.
Karianne Michelle [00:31:58]:
Not the same people. Two, you know, so, like, one on a Thursday, on a Saturday. Right. We’ll capitalize. Because I think this way sounds. I jump all the way to the big idea. And I had these women that I had found that I thought, well, they could supplement other perspectives. We can have, like, this little panel talking about branding.
Karianne Michelle [00:32:15]:
They can teach some of the little workshops. I don’t have to do it all myself. This is going to be great. And then I didn’t sell tickets, and so I was like, oh. And graciously, I always want to say, we love Liz, my friend Liz, because she bought a ticket for me and, like, forever, even though we don’t really talk anymore, she’s in my heart for that because it meant a great deal. And I ended up deciding, okay, well, we’re going to obviously cancel one of these events because I got Liz signed up for Thursday, and I got no one for Saturday. So that’s. That’s what that is.
Karianne Michelle [00:32:53]:
And we’re, like, a week out, and I’m like, so, right. How am I going to pivot? Right? And this is our entrepreneurial, like, marketing mindset. So I had to do a few things. One, I was like, great, we’ll use it for content. We’ll use it for content. We’ll get content. Okay, great. That means I’m gonna have to pay somebody to come capture the content.
Karianne Michelle [00:33:11]:
So. Okay, we’re gonna spend more on this event. All right, it’s fine. Let’s make the most I can. Okay. I’m gonna need to give away seats. I need to get people there, but I want them just to be anybody. So I reached out to people in my network.
Karianne Michelle [00:33:24]:
This was an event for small business owners, entrepreneurs who needed branding. And so I kind of picked the selection of people, very diverse, because I also knew I was going to be getting content, and I wanted to represent the audience that I wanted to be buying from me. And so, to me, that was very diverse. So I was very intentional asking different gender spectrum and all different types of business owners and etc. And then I had to call the women that I was paying, by the way, for their travel and paying them to be there, because I think big. You know, the first time I’m doing it, coming out of corporate America, thinking, here we go. And I basically said, like, look, here’s the deal. You’re not going to be teaching and doing this both Days, because we’re not going to be doing it on Saturday because no one’s coming.
Karianne Michelle [00:34:09]:
But I still like you to come and I’m still going to pay you. And what I’ve decided is for the second day, we’re going to go to a co working space, which was, like, the one thing that was totally free because I pulled strings or something, and we’re going to work on my company. And so you guys are here. You have other amazing perspectives, and I’m still growing my little brand. Clearly, there’s some things I wasn’t doing the right way to get butts in seats. And second of all, there’s other questions that I would benefit from having some other people who’ve been in business longer than me do. And so that’s what we did. And so I ended up getting some really good content out of it.
Karianne Michelle [00:34:49]:
I felt great about the experience that we gave to people. Genuinely. People loved it. I had a great session with them. It was an amazing experience. It was not any way helping my bottom line. I did get a little. I got two people out of that that did turn into clients.
Karianne Michelle [00:35:07]:
So that did, like, in the end of the year, kind of recuperate the cost back. So that was a kind of a surprise. I mean, I was so frantic that honestly, I couldn’t go into it thinking, like, oh, well, this would be great. They’ll come for free and then I’ll upsell them. Like, no, there was no. There was like, I just need a.
Libby Sundgren [00:35:24]:
Breathing, warm, smart body in just someone.
Alysse Bryson [00:35:27]:
With anyone with a pulse.
Karianne Michelle [00:35:29]:
Yes. So, yeah, that. That had a wide range of motions in it, you know, and to show up and to do it and to capture content and be, like, smiling and happy and confident. When, like, I knew five or six days before that, I was like, I don’t. What are we even doing? You know?
Libby Sundgren [00:35:47]:
Yeah. So it’s just such a smart move. It’s so smart. And also, I want to say, like, really at a moment where you just feel, like, down and, like, really humbled and just like, oh, shoot. You know, like, I’ve had people not buy tickets to some of our events, many events, and I’ve been scrambling to, like, fill seats, and I’m, like, embarrassed. I’m like, what did I. I don’t want to tell people that I didn’t sell these because I’m like, don’t want them to think I’m a loser. This is not directed at you, Carrie, and this is totally my own perception of myself, but I’m like, I don’t want to tell people that, like, I don’t want them to think that I’m, like, lame.
Libby Sundgren [00:36:36]:
But I just think it is so, like, really brave and just such a. Like, a really good way to connect with people. Using that kind of, like, genuine, like, just being vulnerable, you know, and sharing the truth about what’s happening, I think really is, like, totally endearing to people. And they’re like, yeah, of course I want to still come and brainstorm with you for a full day. Like, absolutely. I’m in.
Karianne Michelle [00:37:09]:
Yeah. Thank you. Well, I think part of it for me is that I’ve had a career of pivoting. Pivoting. Pivoting, right. Because in the marketing PR space, especially in pr, but in the marketing world, you can have a great roadmap and a plan that you set up for anything you’re doing from a campaign to an event or whatever. And things change. Real time.
Karianne Michelle [00:37:25]:
Current events change. I mean, so you. I’ve been used to pivoting, so that definitely helped me. I also think that I was surrounded that. That time. I still am as I’ve become more into the entrepreneurial mindset with other people who. When you are working for yourself, you just kind of have to be you, because there’s not really time for people who aren’t going to collaborate, you know, like, yes, you’re competitive, sure, but you’re going to only get as far as you can in business, like within your. Your network and growing beyond your network’s network.
Karianne Michelle [00:37:56]:
Network.
Alysse Bryson [00:37:56]:
Right.
Karianne Michelle [00:37:56]:
So you. There’s sort of. I was lucky that I just. I felt supported to, you know.
Alysse Bryson [00:38:02]:
So as we start to wrap up this very lovely conversation, I know we could talk for at least three more hours, but we’re not going to. We’re all about winning the game of events. So the question I have for you is, what have you learned that is your best event skill that’s so valuable you would teach it for free to others just because you just. It brings you joy and, you know, it bring them joy. It’s something that is like a best practice in that you do besides pivoting, obviously, because that is a superpower.
Karianne Michelle [00:38:35]:
Thank you.
Alysse Bryson [00:38:37]:
Wow.
Karianne Michelle [00:38:37]:
I love it when you guys give me these, like, major extremes.
Libby Sundgren [00:38:41]:
It’s like we’re really about, like, that far end of the spectrum.
Alysse Bryson [00:38:47]:
Wars events, people are intense. I don’t know if you guys have picked up on an overarching thing here a little bit.
Libby Sundgren [00:38:54]:
We’ve got a flair for drama.
Alysse Bryson [00:38:56]:
It’s time for us to put our feet on the ground again.
Karianne Michelle [00:38:58]:
Yes. I Have an answer for you.
Alysse Bryson [00:39:00]:
Yeah. Okay.
Karianne Michelle [00:39:01]:
Okay. Well, I think for me the thing to know is that I study music, I’m a classically trained vocalist, opera singer, and I have been performing since I was about eight years old. Right. And I went to school and did this and then I had a side hustle in Chicago for 15 years singing @ something. I always like to give this number. It gives you context over 1500 weddings. So like, you know, wow, that’s a real thing. Wow.
Libby Sundgren [00:39:25]:
So.
Karianne Michelle [00:39:26]:
So when it comes to thinking about an event and the experience, yes, there’s like the presentation and like how is that coming across, but there’s also the like production of it and there’s all the intangibles that become so important.
Alysse Bryson [00:39:41]:
Right.
Karianne Michelle [00:39:42]:
Like we, we were talking about that earlier. I don’t remember now what we were saying about it. But for me it’s thinking about things like the music that’s playing and how does that music change within what we’re doing. So like when I did that event with you, Elise. Right. We had playlists that I had curated partly from some of the attendees, but then I added onto. But there was one for like the morning, there was one for between sessions, there was one for like evening time, there was one for like the wellness activities. So like, you know, really thinking about that mood and the vibe, thinking through the lighting, if we can, thinking through the temperature, if we can, thinking about the surprise and the delights that are going to happen, you know, thinking about the flow of the day and the energy that’s moving up and down and you know, also really thinking through the audience and how are you going to keep them engaged? You know, how are you going to make sure your show is a success? So I do think for me, yes, I have the actual practical marketing, marketing life and have done that for really, really big brands and I’ve also done it for myself on a really small scale and been successful.
Karianne Michelle [00:40:45]:
But there’s always going to be that, like, what is the experience from a successful kind of presentation? Sort of, you know, theater esque type. So yes, the drama, but not the actual drama. The actual, like. Yeah, how do we not have the drama?
Libby Sundgren [00:41:01]:
The absence of drama.
Karianne Michelle [00:41:04]:
Yeah. And you’re going to get the grounded part too. You can’t not have that with me.
Libby Sundgren [00:41:09]:
So yeah, I’m curious, is there something that you learned as a. Well, because as you said, and as we said too, you’re a classically trained vocal artist, very skilled, lots of experience. Is there anything you learned from that part of your life that has influenced or affected the way that you do something in the event world.
Karianne Michelle [00:41:36]:
I think the biggest thing from a specific in terms of singing and voice is breath and that that’s probably more for if you’re going to be on a panel, if you’re going to give a keynote, if you’re going to introduce somebody, if you’re going to be standing with the mic in front of people. Right. Even as a participant, if you’re moderating all those different roles is the power of your breathing to calm you, to ground you, to help you project your voice, to have that confidence and to take a breath and to pause and to create intrigue.
Alysse Bryson [00:42:08]:
Right.
Karianne Michelle [00:42:09]:
So like the breath does so much because not only does it support you with that presentation, I can also sort of do the opposite if you’ve thought about it well, and sort of just be the thing that keeps people like what’s next? So that I guess that comes to mind.
Libby Sundgren [00:42:23]:
That’s a good tip.
Alysse Bryson [00:42:24]:
Yeah. You guys, I kind of want to go throw a party now.
Karianne Michelle [00:42:29]:
Yeah, I know.
Alysse Bryson [00:42:29]:
Deep breaths and I kind of want to go throw a party now.
Karianne Michelle [00:42:32]:
Okay, let’s do it.
Alysse Bryson [00:42:34]:
Let’s. Let’s figure that out. Well, Carrie Ann, where can our listeners find you?
Karianne Michelle [00:42:39]:
Oh, I love that. Carrie Ann Michelle is available on LinkedIn, on Instagram, my website. Carrie Ann Michelle, you can learn more about the wellbeing practices and you can also learn a little bit more specifically about kind of the well being for corporate on getlofty.com so lofty is my my business brand love.
Alysse Bryson [00:43:02]:
Well, we are so grateful that you joined us today and I don’t think this is the end of our conversations. I think more will be had in the future.
Karianne Michelle [00:43:11]:
I would love that.
Libby Sundgren [00:43:12]:
Yep, I think so.
Alysse Bryson [00:43:14]:
Well, that’s a wrap on this episode. I think we’ll be hearing more from Carrie Ann in the future. If you are winning the game of events, we would love to hear from you and hear all about those stories. You can find out how to contact us in the show notes and until next time, keep the party going. Thanks for listening to Beats Winning the Game of Events where we explore what it takes to make moments unforgettable.
Libby Sundgren [00:43:39]:
If you’re leaving with a little more inspiration, a little more perspective and a big sideache from all of the laughing at our funny jokes, then we’ve done our job.
Alysse Bryson [00:43:48]:
Beats working is a work P2P production. If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please don’t forget to subscribe, rate and review us on your favorite podcast platforms.
Libby Sundgren [00:43:59]:
Your support helps us keep the magic going.
