Daria Higgins, Founder & Creative Director of True North Agency
I’ve been thinking about how small, sensory moments that leap out at us from the humdrum of our day-to-day stuff – ‘glimmers’ – help us to access inner joy. Glimmers are delightful and uplifting. They transport us to times of delight and contentment, and they make us smile. In short, they’re magical.
But glimmers don’t just happen in our personal lives. There’s a move towards intentionally inserting them into the professional world as well. In our world of designing and delivering event experiences, glimmers don’t just elevate agendas; they can take the ordinary into the extraordinary and make events personal and memorable.
The key is authenticity though. I often talk about the necessity of weaving a golden thread throughout brand engagements. By consciously and consistently intertwining micro moments of joy into our clients’ narratives we support the strategy in driving deeper engagement and participation. It’s about brand enhancement. It’s about initiating a shift in perception and behaviour.
In addition to their potential for brand-building, glimmers can also counteract modern-day realities like ‘mean world syndrome’ (which basically refers to how we worry about everything, all the time). This perception of the world as a much more dangerous place that it actually is, is linked to rising stress levels and mental health concerns. Glimmers can be a vital tool for staying balanced, hopeful and optimistic, and I don’t think there’s a brand out there that doesn’t want to instil this kind of positivity at every touchpoint.
Here’s how glimmers work: Gentle, multi-sensory cues create a dopamine boost that in turn enhances focus and memory, thus making an entire programme more meaningful. The inclusion of these elements helps keep event attendees and presenters alike engaged and present. And they don’t have to be big elements. Often, it’s the littlest things that make the biggest impact. Elements like feel-good music, tapping into the nostalgia trend, and even ‘make it yourself’ craft and food stations all create little pockets of fun. (Don’t ever underestimate how happy it makes grown-ups to bling out a donut!)
In the end, it’s these small, thoughtful touches that transform events from simply ‘well organised’ to ‘well, that was unforgettable’. By embracing glimmers, we’re not just enhancing brand experiences, we’re creating memories that linger long after an event is over.
