Economic Recovery Sparks Entertainment Boom

NASHVILLE, Tenn., May 12, 2011 — The economy is on the rebound – and so coincidentally is entertainment buying. Whereas in the past few years the economic downturn prohibited companies from buying entertainment for corporate events, the trend now is an upturn in the number of companies providing their clients with concerts, celebrities and comedians at special events.

“We are seeing a noticeable groundswell in requests for concerts, comedians and speakers recently, not only for corporate events and conferences, but for society events and private individuals, such as for a milestone birthday,” says Ed Bazel, CEO – Chief Entertainment Organizer – of The Bazel Group, Inc., located on Music Row. “Our products are often considered discretionary income items; thus, in the past few years they have been drastically cut from the budget. We are happy to report that is now changing. The performing arts industry has been called the ultimate barometer of the economy.”

Normally one would think of a concert taking place in arenas, casinos, fairs and festivals. However, there is a whole subculture of unseen performances taking place in ballrooms across the country, which for the most part, are off the public radar. Since they are private events, you won’t see them advertised in the paper, but it is serious business.

Tim Shelton, Executive Vice President & CFO of ISCS – a leading insurance industry software provider, says, “We utilize celebrity concerts as a way to increase our brand awareness and to say a special thank you to our clients. Our events range from The Pointer Sisters to Big Bad Voodoo Daddy to LeAnn Rimes. We understand very clearly the return on investment when it comes to thanking our clients.”

Entertainment is positioned in the corporate world for a variety of strategic reasons including: customer appreciation events, kick-off promotions, enhancing competitive advantage in the market place, improve employee morale, reducing customer defects and simply making a statement. Adding a celebrity concert to an event can make the difference between a “black and white” TV and a high-def big screen experience!

“I see this trend absolutely continuing,” Bazel adds. “We’ve turned a corner and decision makers are once again recognizing the value of providing their clients with memory-making concert experiences.”