I’ve spent a large part of my career producing events designed to be seen, shared and streamed.

Bigger screens. More content. Faster turnaround.

All of it built to capture attention.

But when I look back at the events that have really landed, the moments people talk about afterwards are rarely the ones on a screen.

Recently, I’ve started to notice a shift. Not away from technology, but towards using it more intentionally. Knowing when it adds to the experience, and when it gets in the way.

We’ve Optimised for Sharing, Not Experiencing

Events have become very good at creating content.

Every moment is designed to be captured. Every detail considered through the lens of how it will look, how it will be shared, how it will perform.

We’ve all seen it.

Phones up before a speaker has even started.
People watching through a screen instead of what’s right in front of them.
Even something as simple as food becoming a photo opportunity before it’s actually enjoyed.

It’s become second nature. But it comes at a cost. Attention is split. People are there, but they’re not fully in it.

What Happens When You Remove the Option

Some of the most effective experiences right now aren’t adding more.

They’re taking things away.

Not as a gimmick. As a deliberate design choice.

The Masters

If you’ve ever watched coverage of The Masters, it feels different straight away.

No phones held up. No people filming every shot.

Just thousands of people actually watching what’s in front of them.

What’s interesting is they haven’t just removed technology, they’ve replaced it with something intentional.

If you need to contact someone, there are landlines on site.

Simple. Functional. No distraction.

It creates a completely different atmosphere. Quieter. More focused. More respectful.

You’re not watching through someone else’s lens. You’re in it.

Harry Styles

At almost all gigs now, half the crowd is watching through their phone.

Filming it. Posting it. Saving it for later.

At his Co-op Live shows in March, that dynamic shifted.

Phones were restricted. And instead, something physical in return.

Polaroids.

It’s a small change, but it completely reframes the experience (photo pun intended).

You’re not capturing the moment for later. You’re part of it while it’s happening.

And what you leave with isn’t another video in your camera roll. It’s something tangible. Something you keep.

(No photos for this part, of course!)

Pinterest at Coachella

And then there’s this week. At Coachella 2026, a festival built on visibility, content and social sharing, Pinterest created an experience where phones weren’t part of it.

No filming. No posting in real time. If you stepped inside, you had to be present. Which, ironically, made it more memorable.

Because instead of thinking about how it would look online, people focused on how it actually felt.

(Again, no photos)

Different environments. Different audiences. Same principle.

Remove the distraction, and attention follows.

A Postcard in Orlando

At a recent event in Orlando, one of the simplest ideas ended up being one of the most effective.

A postcard.

People took a moment out of the day to sit down, write something properly, and send it home.

One of our team, Emma, sent a postcard back to her son in Italy. She wrote it at Harry Potter World during the event.

When it arrived, he thought it was the coolest thing ever.

Now he’s holding onto that moment, talking about it, keeping it alive. And he wasn’t even there!

That’s the part we don’t always measure. But it’s the part that sticks.

Why a Bit of Friction Matters

In events, we’re trained to remove friction. Make everything seamless, quick and easy.

But not all friction is a bad thing. Sometimes, it’s the point.

Taking a few minutes to write something instead of typing it.
Waiting for something to arrive instead of seeing it instantly.
Giving people a reason to pause.

None of this is complicated. But all of it is deliberate.

And it’s that deliberation that creates meaning.

Designing More Intentionally

This isn’t about removing technology altogether. Technology is still critical for scale, accessibility and reach. But not every moment needs it.

The opportunity is in being more intentional. Knowing where tech enhances the experience, and where it takes away from it.

Because when people are genuinely engaged, they don’t reach for their phone.

From Content to Connection

We’ve become very good at creating content. But content isn’t the same as connection.

Connection is what carries beyond the event. It’s what people talk about afterwards. It’s what makes something feel worth it.

Sometimes that shows up in the room. Sometimes it shows up weeks later, on a doormat in a different country.

In a world of more tech, more content and more noise, the real opportunity is knowing when to use less.

Because the best events don’t just stay with the people who were there.

They find their way home too.