A Day in the Life at NASCAR in Sonoma
Managing a travel event is no small task; it takes weeks of planning, coordination, and the ability to keep things running smoothly throughout a busy event. This past weekend, I had the exciting opportunity to lead the Zip activation at the NASCAR races in Sonoma. From early morning flights to engaging with thousands of NASCAR fans, here’s a glimpse into a day in the life of a manager on a travel event.
The weekend kicked off bright and early at 4:00 a.m. on Friday as I gathered my team of 15 brand ambassadors at LAX airport. Our job? Representing Zip in San Francisco during the NASCAR races. Ensuring the team's safe check-in and boarding onto the plane was just the beginning of my weekend.
Upon landing in San Francisco, our team jumped right into it. My co-captain Kes and I immediately organized transportation to our hotel, ensuring everyone settled into their rooms before starting our first day of work. With the venue an hour's drive away, pre-scheduling our Uber XL rides became a daily ritual to ensure prompt arrival at the Sonoma Raceway.
Once on-site, the job began. After assisting in setting up the Zip booth and helping with adding Zip branding to various portions of the Raceway, we were ready to go. Our team of brand ambassadors had a clear job: drive new customers to download the Zip app. With enticing giveaways like custom trucker hats, free kettle corn, and cotton candy, our incentives resonated with the fans, making our job infinitely easier. Zip also offered a generous $500 incentive for the ambassador driving the most app download which added an extra layer of motivation to our team.
Beyond managing brand ambassadors, we also had a dedicated content creator from our team, Monica, capturing the entire weekend for Zip's social channels. She was able to capture VIP guests, the races, and our team engaging with NASCAR enthusiasts. Monica always goes above and beyond and even helped come up with IG Reel and TikTok video strategies to film throughout the weekend. She not only created raw content, she also helped to compile and edit the videos to post throughout the entire weekend.
Working a travel event isn't just about the job; it's also a great team building opportunity. From early morning flights to team dinners, the team all grew even closer than we were before. Our team had the chance to explore San Francisco together, from the iconic Golden Gate Bridge to the city's streets, creating lasting memories and strengthened team dynamics.
While I was expecting the inevitable challenges of event management, the weekend actually flowed seamlessly. For the biggest problem that occurred to be an Uber cancellation, I think I can say the event was nothing short of a success. As the races concluded on Sunday and we said goodbye to Sonoma, we left the raceway knowing that our brand ambassadors helped drive close to 1000 new Zip downloads, over 200 being from our $500 winner, Eli.
In hindsight, managing a travel event is as fun as it is demanding. It's about more than logistics; it's about creating experiences and connections, both with the team and the guests. And as I look back on this weekend at NASCAR in Sonoma, I'm nothing but grateful for having such a wonderful team that made my job such a breeze. Now we are home safely and ready for the next adventure!
