Vegas Day Zero

It's been quite a day! I'm in the room relaxing before the big Welcome Get-Together later tonight. It has been a very intense day, with LOTS of learning and ideas, ultimately which will be shared with you to help you make your wedding day more FUN, UNIQUE, STRESS-FREE, and MEMORABLE.

Here are some highlights from today's seminars and workshops:

JIMMY JOHNSON warmed up the audience before the first seminar.



PAUL KIDA talked about finding inspiration, and being inspiring to your clients. From this seminar, I picked up a BRAND NEW table release activity that is VERY INTERACTIVE and A LOT OF FUN.



ROB PETERS, MIKE FERNINO, and SCOTT FAVER spoke about tax strategies, doing events for non-profits, and maximizing your exposure in dealing with these organizations.





The ThinkCycle Session was a workshop on maximizing your business and performance. Everyone shared ideas and gave constructive criticisms on how we market our businesses and communicate with our clients. I was able to pick the brains of some people from Kansas, Indianapolis, and Chicago; get their insights on how they communicate in their markets; and adapt what I learn to the brides & grooms I meet in Hawaii.

Officially, the day is over, but there is still a lot going on! There's the Welcome Party tonight, and I'm going over to Bucca de Beppo with some good friends for dinner. There are over 70 of us going, so the experience should be interesting!

Come back tomorrow for more stories and images from my adventures here in Las Vegas at the Mobile Beat DJ Conference!

Aloha from Vegas!

I finally made it! I'm in my room here at the Riviera, and it's the morning of the first "unofficial" day of the MOBILE BEAT DJ CONFERENCE. The flight itself was uneventful.

Thumbs up, we are a Go for takeoff!

DON from I Do Wedding Entertainment/Spin Doctors Mobile Disco and I finally arrived at 11:30pm Pacific Time. Although we didn't get to our room until around 1:30am (due to many factors), we were still in pretty good spirits.





After dropping off our stuff in the room, we went out for food. We ended up meeting JERRY, a DJ from San Diego, and his wife LISA, and having breakfast with them. It was cool to pick their brains and see what unique things they are doing for their brides and clients in their market; likewise, we shared some of the original things we do for you in Hawaii. In the end, Don and I picked up some very good ideas that we can use to make your wedding more FUN & UNIQUE! And the seminars haven't even started! By the end of the week, I'll have many more ideas, which will ultimately help you have a more FUN, UNIQUE, STRESS-FREE, and MEMORABLE experience at YOUR wedding!

Stay tuned throughout the week as I post new ideas, thoughts, and experiences that I will learn about! Check back often for the latest!

INCREDIBLE Offer for Videography from Advanced Visual Arts

Are you still looking for a great videographer to document your day? GREG and the guys from Advanced Visual Arts have an incredible offer.



AVA has two videography packages. The Basic Package includes:

• 1 Camera at your Ceremony
• 1 Camera at your Reception
• 6 Hour Coverage
• Professionally edited with Music and Titles
• Custom Designed Video Case
• 3 Complimentary DVD Copies

The Classic Package gets you:

• 1 Camera at your Ceremony
• 1 Camera at your Reception
• Professionally edited with Music and Titles
• Custom Designed Video Case
• 8 Hour Coverage, instead of six hours
• Prebridal Coverage
• Records the Photo Session
• Interviews with Bridal Party & Family
• 5 Complimentary DVD Copies, instead of three

Normally the investment for the Basic Package is $895, and the investment for the Classic Package is $1095. But GREG (AVA's owner) is offering you the opportunity to have the Classic Package for the same investment as the Basic Package. This gives you so much more value to your videography package!

To be eligible for this offer, you need to...

• Already be my client. So if you haven't booked me yet to be your Certified Professional Master of Ceremonies, this is another good reason to.
• Understand that Greg will not be onsite on the day of your wedding, but he will edit the final copy of your video. Greg has a wonderful team of experienced videographers to capture your day. I have worked with them; they are superb guys.

I have worked with Advanced Visual Arts on many occasions. They are outstanding people with incredible product. Get more info and check out samples of their work by visiting

http://www.advancedvisualarts.com

Tell GREG that Marino sent you!

I'm on Facebook!

My profile is still very much a work in progress, but you are invited to drop in and be a friend! :)

OWA Halloween Fun

Yesterday, I provided music and served as the Master of Ceremonies for the Oahu Wedding Association's annual Halloween Party.



This year, the event was held at WENDY ROBIN'S Studio W of Honolulu. The fun was evident from the get-go, with people arriving in costume:







The low-key costume contest was entertaining, and the delicious food by VANESSA HOLINGER with Beaches & Backyards Catering was 'ono (delicious). The food was sooo good that all of it (except for six pieces of sushi) were eaten!

All in all, it was a very lively and entertaining experience.



Special thanks to last night's "Production Crew" for making the event such a success:

• Dave Miyamoto & Michelle Gouda, Dave Miyamoto & Co.
• Wendy Robin, Studio W of Honolulu
• Vanessa Hollinger, Beaches & Backyards Catering
• Kris Labang, On3 Photography, for taking all of these great images
• Dina (Wendy's friend), for letting us use her studio next door as well

Thanks also to Ryan Pierce from Lift Your Spiritz for the fun spontaneous flair bartending demonstration!



And to those who came, thank you!

Find more images of this event here on the Oahu Wedding Association blog.

Ed & Monica Pingol = Awesome

Back in July, we helped Christy & Kris create a very unique, very memorable, very exciting presentation for their wedding celebration. They had games, surprise dances (including their version of the Evolution of Dance), and even a surprise birthday cake for the bride. Many guests approached the newlyweds at the end of the night telling them just how original and inspiring their celebration was.



To document all of this, Christy & Kris asked Ed & Monica Pingol to photograph their wedding day.



Ed & Monica recently posted some teaser shots on Ed's blog.

I have worked with many photographers...but very few artists. Ed & Monica Pingol are artists.

You can find images of their work at Kris & Christy's wedding.

Here is my favorite, a series of photos of the Reverse Garter:



Notice how much FUN everyone is having!

The pictures will show two things:

• How awesome your wedding can be if you have your wedding hosted by me!
• How awesome your wedding pictures will be if you have your wedding documented by Ed & Monica!

NACE 50th Anniversary Party = success!

So we had the 50th Anniversary Party for the National Association of Catering Executives, of which I am a member, and the event turned out to be a smashing success! We had over 100 guests, lots of great food, great entertainment, and tons of fun. The money raised went to some great causes, including the Lokahi Giving Project to support former Aloha Airlines employees; Aloha Harvest, which helps distribute food to the needy; and the NACE Hawaii Scholarship Fund, which helps to support up-and-coming catering executives.

What made it great was how everybody all worked together to put on this awesome event. Members of the board and the chapter graciously donated their time and talents, and the results were very impressive. As one of the hosts of the event (sharing hosting duties with local celebrity JIM LEAHEY), and I received many positive comments--a good sign.

Our next fundraiser will be sometime in October...If everyone pitches in again and comes together, it should be just as successful as this one.

More networking

In two days' time, I did a lot of networking with fellow wedding vendors and colleagues, and it was a fun whirlwind of a time! Tuesday night was the monthly Oahu Wedding Association meeting; this month it was held at the Mid-Pacific Country Club in Lanikai. Laura from the club gave us the tour of the facilities, and the place is gorgeous. If you are still looking for your location and want an outdoor wedding that is an alternative to the overcrowded beaches and ballrooms of Waikiki, then Mid-Pacific Country Club is the answer for you.

Yesterday, the Hawaii chapter of the American Disc Jockey Association met, and I spent time hanging out with some of the smartest and most successful DJs in the state. The highlight was spending time with Ed Frank and Dave Green, two dear friends, emcees, and DJs from KENTUCKY. They are here in the islands to help another friend with several Project Grads. In our conversations, I picked up a bunch of great "nuggets" to help make my wedding presentations so much more elegant and exciting!




Overall, while the last two days have been busy, they also have been quite rewarding. Learning from others and making oneself better in order to better serve one's clients...isn't that what it's all about?

Jazzed about things...

I attended the NACE meeting earlier tonight and had a great time! I met a lot of awesome wedding vendors and made some excellent contacts. The big news is that the NACE 50th Anniversary Party is coming together very nicely. Later today I will try to write more info on it, but suffice to say, I am very jazzed about it!

Another thing that's going to be in development is an improv production I am working on with Lawrence at Crane Media Productions. Plans are still very much in the elementary stages, with nothing firmly set yet, but if things fly, it will be a very fun and interactive activity...

Think experimental, experiential live theatre...I am jazzed about it too. When things get more firm, I will write more about it!

Lucky we live Hawaii

Every day I never regret the fact that I live and work in beautiful Hawaii. I am truly blessed to be here, doing what I love, and meeting brides & grooms I enjoy working with. I was on my workout ride yesterday (cycling is my sport) and came across this reminder of how lucky I truly am to be here:



This photo of Ala Moana Beach was taken with my cell phone camera. Time of day was late afternoon, around 630pm, right around sunset. Gorgeous view, right?

And just to show proof that I was on my workout, here's a pic of me:




Tonight is the monthly NACE meeting. The big discussion will probably focus on our upcoming 50th Anniversary Party on June 3, which will double as a fundraiser for Aloha Harvest and the Lokahi Program, which will benefit families affected by the shutdown of Aloha Airlines. Tickets will be in the $50-60 range but will go to a good cause. If you are free on the evening of June 3rd, come on by! There will be games, good food, free drinks, and much more. I will be providing the sound system for the evening's entertainment.

Building REALationships

As part of my commitment to serving my clients and making their wedding day as stress-free and smooth as possible, I attended a meeting of the Oahu Wedding Association last night at RumFire in the Sheraton Waikiki Hotel. I attend these wedding industry functions in order to network and get to know a lot of my colleagues. By building REALationships and getting to know one another before the wedding day, it makes it easier to work with your photographer, videographer, etc. on the day of YOUR wedding. I had a great time, spent some quality face-to-face time with some photographers, videographers, florists, and entertainers I really enjoy working with, and had some good food.

Before that, I spent the day following up with brides I met at the World Class Wedding Expo two weekends ago. I met a lot of 2008-2009 brides who are looking for something unique and different for their celebration, and many were turned on to the fact that what I can help them create is something that will make their celebration more lively, fun, unique, and memorable. So if you haven't heard from me yet or if you were strongly interested in knowing more about what I do, check out my website today! You can find it at www.ninjaentertainment.com

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Since we're talking about building REALationships, here's a good low-key icebreaker-type game you can play at the beginning of your reception as your guests arrive.

For many of your guests, particularly your co-workers, friends, and extended family, your wedding may be the first time they have met each other. So have some fun with them as they get to know one another--after all, everyone is now one big ohana/family, right?

As the guests check in, each guest is given a sheet with boxes of different categories that may describe your guests. It may look something like this:

Is one of the bride's best friends	Drives the same type of car as the groom	Owns a car like the bride
Is directly related to the bride	Works with the groom	Went to college with the bride
Traveled the farthest to be here	Lives a block away from the bride	Is wearing a tux

More categories can be added and personalized to fit the bride & groom's personal styles and tastes, and to more accurately reflect who the guests are.

During cocktail hour, guests are invited to go around to meet each guest and see if that other guest applies to any of the given categories. If that guest fits, then he or she places his signature in the box underneath the category.

And the end of dinner, the guest who has collected the most signatures wins! A good prize to reward their efforts may be to send them FIRST to the buffet line, after the bride & groom's families have gone through.

To take it a step further, you can even make this game more exciting during dinner, although a little more prep work may be involved. To do this, a few weeks before the wedding, the bride, groom, and their families get together and play the game, but instead of looking for signatures, they try to imagine who among their guests best fits each category. Hopefully they come up with 2-3 or more names per category. Each name is then put on a strip of paper along with the related category, and then put in a box.

During dinner at the reception, the guests will play bingo with their funsheets! The bride & groom will randomly pull a name out of the box, and if a guest has gotten THAT particular signature in THAT particular category, they cross out the box, just like in bingo! The first person to cross out a row, column, or diagonal wins! This addition makes mealtime much more entertaining, since the guests are actively involved rather than simply sitting around waiting for their turn to the buffet.

Meeting lots of people, getting lots of ideas

Has it really been two weeks since the last post? My apologies to my faithful readers. It's been busy. There was a lot of followup after the expo, calling back many of you to set up appointments, as well as following up with vendors I met.

Went to the NACE meeting on Wednesday and met a lot of great people.

One of them was Vicki Liao of Fairy Princess Affair. She's an awesome person with a great idea. If you have a niece or daughter that wants to be treated like a princess on her birthday, give Vicki a call. She can help you create a really nice "fairy tale" presentation for the child's birthday, complete with costumes for the kids, finger-nail painting, children's makeup, etc. Basically, the kids get treated like princesses. And if your daughter/niece likes the costumes, Vicki also offers the dresses and accessories for purchase, so that your daughter/niece can be a princess 365 days of the year. Check them out on their website here. Don't forget to mention that Marino with Ninja Entertainment sent you!


Another vendor I met was Claire from Edible Arrangements. If you are looking for something original for your centerpieces, or if you are looking for something unique to give as gifts, check them out. They make gorgeous and tasty bouquets of fruits. They will be opening a retail store in downtown very soon, but you can order items online now, so if you still haven't found something to give Mom for Mother's Day, this may be something unique and special that Mom will definitely enjoy. When you contact them, mention that Marino from Ninja Entertainment sent you!

Finally, I met Cassandra, David, & Brook from Cassandra Dieterle Photography yesterday before meeting with JAMES & CHARLENE (getting married on June 23). What a great person to know! If you know me, you know I am very passionate about helping my clients create really FUN, STRESS-FREE, UNIQUE, and MEMORABLE celebrations that they and their guests will remember forever. Cassandra shares the same passion in capturing those moments and encouraging her clients to relax, have fun, and enjoy their wedding day! One of the things that impressed me about her was her willingness to offer engagement photos to the bride & groom as part of her service, not just to provide additional value to the client, but also to get to know the bride & groom in advance and to make them feel comfortable in front of a camera! Wow! I haven't met a photographer yet that does this (other than her), but it really did impress me that she goes above and beyond to simply make her clients very relaxed and happy on their wedding day. If you haven't found your photographer yet, please really do consider Cassandra. Check out her website here, and when you call, mention that I sent you.

In terms of clients, I met with JENNA and her mother NANI last week regarding Jenna's wedding in September 2008. Yes, you read right, 2008. Because of the uniqueness of my service, I do get inquiries as far out as 2009, so it really does pay off to reserve my services in advance. Jenna is coming in at current (2007) investment levels, so she won't have to worry about prices going up! We are planning a very exciting and high-energy presentation for her and BILL. From what Jenna told me, both families are really outgoing and full of energy, and all they need is someone to help them "focus" that energy into a very fun and productive party! Nothing has been set in stone yet, but I can tell you that there event will have a lot of unique activities that have not been seen in Hawaii yet!

Yesterday I met with JAMES & CHARLENE. They are planning a wedding next month. Fortunately, they are almost done with the planning and only have a handful of items to wrap up. For this event, I am being brought on board to host the party and to suggest creative ways to personalize their wedding and add entertainment value to the celebration. Both of them are really personable and full of love and positive vibes, so I really am looking forward to creating something magical with them. What's neat about their wedding, too, is that they already have a DJ! Victor with Rhythm Creations is a good friend of mine, and I'm looking forward to working with him again. Should be an exciting presentation!

Lastly, on Monday I met with ROBYN & GREG for their upcoming wedding. With a Sunday evening wedding at the Turtle Bay, you may think that their guests would go home after dinner. Think again! They have planned a unique and original presentation that reflects Greg's love of country music and Robyn's love of the sea. Let's talk about the centerpiece giveaway as an example (and this is your Wedding Tip Of The Day). On each table next to the centerpiece will be a "message in a bottle," which is a piece of parchment paper in a tiny champagne bottle--very fitting for the "seashore" theme that Robyn is shooting for. When it is time to give away the centerpieces, I'm going to ask one person on each table to pull out the message and to read it aloud to the people on that table. The message will reveal some sort of trait for one person on each table (e.g., tallest person, youngest person, etc.). The winner of the centerpiece is the person who best fits that trait! So instead of the guests randomly having to win the centerpiece, the centerpiece will be presented to someone special on each table, but everyone was involved in the presentation, making it much more fun and entertaining for all of the guests!

Greg & Robyn really put together something fun for everyone to enjoy, and in the following weeks, I will gradually reveal some of their unique plans. In either case, their celebration will be fun. I'm excited and really looking forward to it!

Until the next time, stay safe and keep smiling!

All the best,

Marino
Ninja Entertainment