Kansas City's All-Star Game Hits a Social Media Home Run

For hundreds of years, baseball has been all about tradition.  Ballpark hotdogs.  Take Me Out to the Ballgame. The 7th inning stretch.  Baseball is one of America's most beloved pastimes--and we don't see it transforming dramatically anytime soon.  But a popular technology was implemented in this year's All-Star game in Kansas City and it elevated the buzz of the entire week to a whole new level.  What was the technology, you ask? Social media, of course.

According to many, the All-Star game in Kansas City was the most social All-Star game ever.  But why wouldn't it be?  Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Blogger and even Instagram have grown exponentially since last year.  To learn that the 2012 All-Star game was an extremely social one should come to no surprise to fans and social media gurus alike.

The Social Media Command Center.

image via Kansas City Star

But it was surprising when Kansas City Mayor Sly James commented that his favorite part of the All-Star game was the social media center, which was made up of a small group of volunteers at the H&R Block World Headquarters, about 15 minutes away from Kauffman Stadium.  The center quickly became known as the Kansas City Social Media Command Center.  The Center was used to monitor content posted from social media users in Kansas City using specialized software.  Volunteers also responded to questions about tourism, travel, KC, and all activities circulating the All-Star game.

Hashtags including #ASG and #HRDerby decorated Kauffman Stadium throughout the week.  The hashtags were even printed on each and every ticket sold.  A Twitter feed was rolling near the outfield in which 290,000 comments were posted with #ASG in the first inning alone!  That number alone surpassed the total posts from the entire All-Star game in 2011.

Twitter may have hit its peak when Robinson Cano (New York Yankees) stepped up to the plate during the Home Run Derby.  As the player was surprisingly booed by a plethora of Kansas City fans (much to the disapproval of Cano himself), the Yankee responded immediately with none other than a 140-character tweet.  And it was a tweet heard 'round the world.  That tweet alone caused an onslaught of both positive and negative attention on KC fans.

Although we still love the classic bag of peanuts, a coordinated "wave" from the crowd and those once-in-a-lifetime home-run catches from the stands, we are ecstatic that Kansas City went above and beyond with its social media effort during the All-Star game.  Next up?  The Olympics.

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Mobile App intevli Knocks One Out of the Park During First Fridays

This past Friday July 6^th was First Friday, Kansas City’s way to showcase its love affair with art, business, food and entrepreneurship. This First Friday carried a unique feel to it, due in part because KC is hosting Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game. It also was unique because the event-centric app intevli held its official launch party during Entrepreneur Corner at 1800 Baltimore. Created by Van Osdol and Mcgruder Attorney Chris Brown and Adcuda’s Vice President of Technology Tom Jenkins, intevli was built to help attendees of large events filter what they want to and do not want to explore. Available for free on iPhone, or web-based on Android, one of the goals of the app is to stop the aimless wondering that often occurs during First Fridays. intevli helps attendees of large events find exactly what they want to see, when they want to see it. 

The impact of intevli could be felt instantly during its launch on Friday.  Novice First Friday-goers who stopped by the launch party got the chance to take advantage of the app.

“This is perfect” was just one of the phrases heard among the crowd.

First Fridays rookie Shannon Richards of Overland Park was one of the biggest fans of the new app: “My husband and I have never been down to a First Friday before. It’s been overwhelming how much is going on!  We’ve been having a fantastic time exploring like toddlers, but stumbling upon intevli has been awesome.  We’re starving and now we can decide where to go!”

We are well aware that there are thousands of apps out there created to serve a specific purpose.  But the best apps tend to make our lives easier.  intevli does just that. When something comes along that is able to save you time, there’s value there. Tack on the fact that it’s completely free, and you’ve got an All-Star app. 

To learn more about intevli, visit www.intev.li.  intevli is currently looking for businesses, artists and restaurants interested in featuring their First Fridays activities.  To submit your First Friday event, please click here.   

Get Your Pitching Arm Ready! All-Star Entrepreneur Corner is Friday!

Are you ready for a night of pitching, posing and partying?

In honor of the 2012 MLB All-Star Game in Kansas City, we’re throwing the ultimate Entrepreneur Corner party (with a baseball twist)! Think Big Partners’ All-Star inspired Entrepreneur Corner event is this Friday, July 6, from 5-9pm. Part of Kansas City’s First Fridays, this event is the place to be this Friday night! So warm up your throwing arm, practice your pitch and put on your dancing shoes—it’s almost time to come on over to 1800 Baltimore for a night of fun!

Pitch Here, Pitch There Contest

Have you ever wondered just how fast you can throw? Ever thought you could give the Royals a run for their money? Now you can find out! We have a machine that reads how fast your pitch is. Pitch Here and finally find out how much of an all-star you really are! The fastest pitch gets a prize at the end of the night!

Next, walk a few steps to Pitch There. You will be able to pitch any creative, wacky or just plain genius idea that you may have. Some of our favorite ideas will win prizes (even Royals tickets!). Having a hard time thinking of anything? We’ll have ready-made ideas for you to pitch your own way. See how creative you really are!

intevli Launch: First Friday app

Have you ever been wandering KC during First Fridays and wondered which place had the best activities, prizes or food? Well intevli solves that problem. This app tells you everything you need to know about all things First Friday (including parking)! We’re unveiling the intevli app during Entrepreneur Corner, so check it out and give us your feedback during the launch party from 6-9pm this Friday.

Life Equals Photo Booth

Remember our All-Star inspired Entrepreneur Corner forever! Stop by the Life Equals photo booth to take some pictures with baseball themed props!

Local DJs Dishing the Tunes

As if there weren’t enough to do, we’ll be blaring the tunes! We have 2 local DJs (which happen to be Think Big employees), Bobby Miller and Max Gall, spinning the tracks all night long! Don’t be shy; dance the night away!

Ballpark Munchies

We didn’t forget about the food! We’ll be serving baseball inspired snacks, for free! And we have beer—3 kegs, compliments of Boulevard Brewing Company.

So come on out (and bring your friends!) to 1800 Baltimore for our first All-Star inspired Entrepreneur Corner from 5-9 pm this Friday! You’ll be sure to have a great time pitching (literally!), dancing and taking tons of pictures!