Quarantini or No Quarantini seems to be the question inching to the top of everyone’s Netflix & Chill snack lists nowadays? Who doesn’t have fond memories that involve ice cream in some way or another…celebrating a team win, first date or birthday. Let’s face it, ice cream always makes everything better and Tipsy Scoop is changing the ice cream social game with delivering boozy ice cream kits for virtual cocktail parties.
Getting hundreds of people off of their couches, NYC’s ice cream “Barlour” teamed up with Rosé Mansion (click here to read about my visit to Rosé Mansion) to create a “rosé all day” virtual cocktail party happy hour on IG Live that included everything that you need to make the most delicious rosé infused ice cream drinks. My hand delivered kit included Tipsy Scoop’s Red Velvet Martini Ice Cream, Raspberry Limoncello Sorbet, a bottle of Maison Marcel Rosé Wine, a bottle of Quady Electra Red Moscato, a Rosé Mansion wine glass, printed instructions to properly mix my cocktails and toppings (lollipops, sprinkles & gummies) for each fun drink. The Raspberry Limoncello Sorbet paired nicely with the white peach, lychee and elderflower notes in the Maison Marcel Rosé Wine; but the Red Velvet Martini cocktail was my ABSOLUTE favorite. It was just something about the ice cream infused with cake vodka, creme de cacao, cherry liqueur and a splash of Quady Electra Red Moscato that left me swooning over each yummy scoop!
After unpacking my insulated bag full goodies, I joined the Tipsy Scoop & Rosé Mansion Instagram livestream to learn how to make the Rosé Mansion cocktails during their virtual ice cream cocktail party. Not only was it easy to follow along, but I loved that I had an opportunity to hear about each brand from brand representatives and ask questions in real time in the comments.
Prior to this pandemic, some of us have probably been a part of some sort of virtual event before in one way or another, but our current COVID-19 world has taken virtual events to another level where we’re watching an
interactive webinar or panel discussion, or maybe we’re online for a happy hour over Zoom with friends or co-workers. But what really makes a virtual event a success?
Like most of the world around us, I have been making major adjustments to both my personal & profession agenda that has led to scrambling to cancel in-person gatherings. Virtual events like this cocktail party happy hour have changed the way I view socializing.
Plan an agenda in advance
Getting into the details of exactly what your virtual event will look like will help you to narrow down how you want to rollout the event (how many participants, programming, schedule, etc.). Not all of your participants are in the same time zone as they are when you meet in-person, so it is important to coordinate & plan ahead to ensure that things run smoothly.
Find tools that work for you
As with all live events, technology is one of the most important aspects of a virtual event. Lately, I’ve been using Zoom (I love how I can touch up my appearance & change backgrounds), Microsoft Teams, Instagram Live and House Party. There are a lot of options out there, from easy and free to sophisticated and costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Engagement is important
Keep your content engaging. When someone is jumping online from their home, there isn’t a limit on what might drag them away from your virtual event. Build in breaks every 10 minutes for Q&A and audience polling. Design engagement points throughout each session.
“If the plan doesn’t work, change the plan, but never the goal.” – unknown
