Corporate Product Launch Magician: A Night to Remember with Baker Hughes & Waygate Technologies
Hiring a corporate product launch magician is one of those decisions a team only gets to make a couple of times – and when Baker Hughes / Waygate Technologies brought me in to close out their January 25, 2024 product launch event, the bar was high. The team had spent months on a strategic rollout. The evening had to land. It did.
About the Event
The event was a Waygate Technologies (a Baker Hughes business) product launch celebration held the evening of Thursday, January 25th, 2024. The day was a working agenda of room rotations and sessions; the evening was the payoff – a 7:00pm showcase to recognize the team and rally everyone around their 2024 strategy. I was brought in to be the final act of the night, the moment that turned a great event into one the room would talk about for months.
My Role + Customizations
As the corporate product launch magician for the evening, my job was bigger than “do a magic show.” Tom Ward and Aileen Freier-Graham wanted the performance woven into their 2024 goals and product narrative, so we customized accordingly:
- A celebrity voice piece featuring Morgan Freeman that tied directly into the night’s storytelling.
- A custom finale built around the team’s rallying line – the show closed on “WE ARE RVI!”, which the room shouted together.
- Built-in tie-ins to Baker Hughes / Waygate’s 2024 goals, so the entertainment reinforced the message instead of distracting from it.
Why Hire a Corporate Product Launch Magician
A great product launch needs more than slides and applause lines. Here’s why a corporate product launch magician earns the slot:
- The “wow” moment becomes the company memory. People forget the agenda. They remember the night the impossible happened in front of them.
- It rewards your team. After months of work behind a launch, your people deserve a celebration that feels like a celebration — not another meeting.
- It can carry your message. A skilled performer can weave product names, rallying cries, and strategic themes directly into the show so your launch lives inside the entertainment.
- It creates a shareable moment. Phones come out. Stories travel. The launch keeps marketing itself in the hallway long after the lights come up.
- It’s risk-managed entertainment. A professional corporate product launch magician shows up early, works with your AV team, and never makes the brand sweat.
Watch the Show
[VIDEO LINK — highlight reel from Baker Hughes / Waygate Technologies, January 25, 2024]
Tom Ward of Baker Hughes wrote the morning after the show:
Thanks so much. You killed it. Morgan Freeman was jaw dropping. Thanks again, Christophe – I will definitely spread the word. Let us know when you will be on AGT.
[PHOTO GALLERY]
Takeaways
A few specific things worth lifting from this one if you’re planning your own launch event:
- Pick a closer, not a filler. Putting the entertainment at the end of the day (a 7:00pm start after a full schedule of rotations) gave the night a real peak instead of letting energy leak away after dinner.
- Customize the finale, not just the middle. “WE ARE RVI!” worked because the moment was theirs, not mine. The biggest applause line of any corporate product launch magician’s show should belong to the company, not the performer.
- Build in a real tech window. The team gave me a 9am-1pm load-in and a 5:45pm final check before the 7:00 PM show. That margin is the difference between a smooth show and a stressed one – and it’s the cheapest insurance you can buy.
- Pair the entertainment with a clear theme. Tying the show to the 2024 goals turned a “fun ending” into a strategic punctuation mark.
Book Me for Your Next Event
Planning a product launch and looking for an act that does more than fill time? Use the form below to start the conversation about bringing in a corporate product launch magician who will tie the show to your message and send the room home talking.
