Promotional Events

Specs Howard School of Media Arts became a promotions and events machine from 2009-2011, and even into 2012. In 2009, I not only launched a reporter-based street team that regularly attended and set up shop at radio station events, we took the booth to just about every big (and some not so big) events in and around Detroit.

My goal was for Specs Howard to be everywhere, so we hit events like Motor City Comic Con, Detroit FanFare, Motor City Pride, WYCD's Hoedown, The Ticket's SportsFest, Movement Electronic Music Fest, BLED Fest, Stars & Stripes, Arts, Beats & Eats, the Woodward Dream Cruise, the Birmingham Cruise Event, WRIF's Harley Fest and Rock Girl events, the Ann Arbor Film Festival, and so on and so on and so on.

The following photos are some highlights from our three-year tour.

Specs Howard School teamed up with WDIV 4 at the Michigan School Expo at Oakland Mall. We set up the green screen so attendees could actually experience what it is like to be a weather anchor at a news station.

We also set up a jib arm and provided demonstrations on its use in a studio or location setting.

Here is another scene starring the Specs Howard booth, on location at the Motor City Comic Con (above and below). I purchased and oversaw the design of the booth and all its accessories, including the various "uniforms" worn by the street team and booth personnel (also below).

We never went to an event without our requisite Specs beads. Even people who had never heard of the school before would see them on people and come looking for them. The little button pins (shown below) were a hit among the indie rocker/punk kids.

At Sports Fest, we actually set up a mini TV studio to interview everyone from event goers, special guests at the event, and even a few graduates of Specs Howard School (who happened to work at WXYT).

We often took the Specs Mobile to special events. In this case, we parked our Camaro outside the Hard Rock Cafe for WRIF's annual Rock Girl finals.

When the WRIF Rock Girl was crowned, she was awarded a full scholarship to Specs Howard School. I created the sign she is holding in this picture.

The Specs Mobile made many appearances. These are scenes from the Motor City Pride Fest parade (above and below).

The Specs Mobiles: While our Camaro went for a ride at the Woodward Dream Cruise, our PT Cruiser was parked at the Birmingham Cruise Event (above). For a better look at the PT Cruiser, see the picture below. Both the PT Cruiser and Camaro were wrapped by Graphik Concepts in Farmington Hills. While they did the final designs on both cars, I provided the concepts and graphic elements that were used for both.

At the time this picture of the PT Cruiser was taken, the school was going through a name change. The marketing department and subsequent car wrap was a little more ahead with the news than the actual building. Also, beneath all that wrap, believe it or not the car is royal blue!

At the "Night 89X Stole Christmas," the station played the videos that the Specs Howard Street Team had produced in cooperation with morning show hosts Dave & Chuck, as well as other members of the 89X air staff (above). They also debuted the winner of the poster contest (below). Contestants competed for a full scholarship to Specs Howard's graphic design program by sketching 89x's air staff.

When we didn't have a place for the Specs Howard booth, the Specs Howard Street Team hit the road and in this case interviewed Detroit Tigers fans (above) and Chris Chelios (below) before a big game.