Convergence LA 2050

Please describe the mission of your organization.

We are the entertainment capital of the world yet local talent struggles to thrive in our own marketplace. We create and publicize opportunities in performance and entrepreneurship through community driven marketing initiatives that guide struggling Angeleno’s to thrive in our city.

In which areas of Los Angeles will you be directly working?

• City of Los Angeles

In what stage of innovation is this project?

Applying a proven model or solution to a new issue or sector (e.g, using a job recruiting software or strategy to match clients to supportive housing sites, applying demonstrated strategies from advocating for college affordability to advocating for housing affordability and homelessness, etc.)

Please list the organizations collaborating on this proposal.

• Puppet Master Marketing
• Freeborn Productions

If you are submitting a collaborative proposal, please describe the specific role of partner organizations in the project.

Puppet Master Marketing and Freeborn Productions in collaboration with Convergence, work as the service verticals that will allow for Convergence to scale as an operation. By collectively building infrastructure, partnership reach, brand integrations, virtual and live event activations we will reach a more extensive scope of audiences and individuals.

What is the need you’re responding to?

The recent pandemic is leading all industries to digitize day-to-day operations and initiatives. Displaced artistic and entrepreneurial Angelenos need a place to converge and reevaluate their capabilities and the needs of the city. Los Angeles must create a container to filter through the needs of individual Angelenos, corporate initiatives, and the LA2050 vision. There is an opportunity to build a thriving business around this need. Through this program we will recruit our own team of young Angeleno creatives and tech developers dedicated to the vision of making LA better. We will develop product management systems that are scalable so we can duplicate this process within each goal. Our agency will utilize virtual summits to give Angelenos a voice in the vision while inviting small businesses and corporations to participate as exhibitors and sponsors. The digital convergence will lead to a live festival celebration where all participants can connect.

Why is this project important to the work of your organization?

We are brand development and growth strategists. We developed this unique ability from joining grassroots festival organizations and contributing to their growth from in home operations to major corporations. Our passion for underground music and live events placed us in the unique position of growing brands organically pre-social media. We’ve toured internationally building production and operations teams for festival departments in multiple markets. We’ve also taken event brands from the club to the festival level by utilizing organic reach, SEO, and social media to advance revenue growth. We combine a human first approach with an expertise in digital transformations to leverage programming, optimize processes, and advance results in cause based marketing initiatives. This knack for brand growth, operations strategy, and talent fulfillment lead our projects to success based on data and results. We will be applying this methodology and our network to this initiative.

Approximately how many people will be impacted by this proposal?

Please describe the broader impact of your proposal.

We are the marketers that built the digital reach of Coachella, Rock the Bells, and Electric Daisy Carnival. We will combine LA 2050’s current marketing assets with our expertise to increase the program’s digital footprint while developing a business accelerator style framework for LA2050 initiatives. We can confidently recruit 250 participants in each of the 6 metric category summits in Q1 and Q3. That is 3,000 virtual participants. Our team has a history of successful festival execution and can leverage programming with your current reach to secure 3,000 festival attendees. That is 6,000 Angelenos directly affected. Our marketing automations, SEO, and keyword strategies will allow us to exponentially grow that reach by 20.

Please explain how you will define and measure success for your project.

We will use marketing analysis, participation, and profitability as measures for this program’s success. We are setting a goal of increasing your current digital footprint by at 25%. Based on our previous community successes we are setting our virtual summit attendance goals at 250 participants at each of the 6 virtual summits in Q1 and Q3. That is 3,000 virtual summit attendees. We aim to produce a festival with the same amount of attendees. Our attendance goal is 3,000 virtual and 3,000 in person.

We will also use profitability as a metric for success. All grant money will be allocated towards marketing and increasing the program’s digital footprint. Our business development team will launch the virtual summits and festival with a mixture of free and paid tiers in order to develop a regenerative business model for the program. We will leverage the relationship with the city, the purpose of the campaign, and the inner city location of Hollenbeck Park to entice partners to invest in the vision. Our business development team is setting a goal of $100,000 raised in partnership support and for Converge LA 2050.

Which of the create metrics will your submission impact?​

• Employment in the tech industries
• Employment in the creative industries
• Minority- and women-owned businesses

Are there any other LA2050 goal categories that your proposal will impact?

• LA is the best place to LEARN
• LA is the best place to PLAY
• LA is the best place to CONNECT
• LA is the healthiest place to LIVE

Which of LA2050’s resources will be of the most value to you?

• Access to the LA2050 community
• Host public events or gatherings
• Communications support
• Office space for meetings, events, or for staff
• Strategy assistance and implementation