BSPR’s adaptive event coordination meets the needs of clients and Montana communities
Since its founding in 2008, the Big Sky Public Relations (BSPR) team has planned and executed successful events for a variety of clients across construction, government, and nonprofit organizations. As a local firm with deep personal and professional ties to our communities in Montana and Washington, we are experts at bringing our client’s message to communities on the ground level.
At times, the best place to start a conversation with the public is at a traditional place of gathering (community centers) but our team is not afraid of thinking outside the box to maximize an event’s impact and reach. Our creative team planned community events and outreach at basketball games, construction sites, parks, and even created a carnival specifically for a project. We see events as an opportunity for our clients and local community members to connect as people, with shared values, hopes, experiences, and goals. Sometimes the best way to do that is to have a little bit of fun in the process.
For one of our clients, the Montana Department of Transportation (MDT), we manage communications for projects spread throughout the state. To our team, there is never a one-size-fits-all approach to event coordination. We adapt event formats, presentations, imagery, and general messaging to best fit the project facts and the community’s identity and perspective.
Russell Street
Although events help communities come together at the beginning stages of a project to learn about the future of their roads, bridges, walkways, and more, we also believe that there is a time to celebrate the completion of a project as a community. MDT’s Russell Street project concluded with a ribbon cutting ceremony that brought together community leaders, MDT professionals, and residents to enjoy the completed result. Residents drove, biked, and walked to the ceremony with their dogs, who were even given Russell Street bandanas. Mayor John Engan and MDT Director Mike Tooley spoke to neighbors and fellow community members and closed out the ceremony with a ribbon cutting to unveil the final product of Russell Street. Throughout the event, the rich community support and engagement with the project was evident and encouraging for the future.
Bridge Street - Bigfork
At events, one of our main goals is to provide comprehensive information and advanced project materials to educate the public and bring them into our world. This past August, our Marketing and Project Manager, Amy Aiello, Creative Coordinator, Olivia Simas, and CEO, Courtenay Springer, met with the Bigfork community to provide a 360-degree view of MDT’s Bridge Street - Bigfork project, literally. At the open house, Bigfork residents viewed a 3-D rendering of the future bridge structure. By bringing the future of this project to life, residents saw that the future bridge will maintain the historic style and presence of the existing bridge. The open house also featured interactive ways for the community to share feedback with the project team.
US 2 – Hungry Horse to Stanton Creek
As the rest of the world adapted to pandemic conditions, so did the BSPR teams when planning events. As seen in our open houses and informational events for US 2 - Hungry Horse to Stanton Creek, we continued to bring critical information to the communities near projects through hybrid options. Returning to our belief that effective communication is not one-size-fits-all, BSPR provided community residents the option to attend the MDT open houses through in-person options or virtually over Zoom. Regardless of the format community members chose to attend, they were able to learn about the project, get their questions answered directly from the project team and engage with interactive project materials and models.
The BSPR team has no shortage of event coordination tools, talents, and ideas we bring to the table for every current and future client. As a firm, our ability to adapt to the nuances and changes within local communities, technological advancements, and global times brings together clients and their communities in a deep, lasting way to benefit all.