Magic of infotainment

From neuro-linguistic programming to nutrition optimization to the life of illusionist Harry Houdini, the many books in Anders Boulanger’s Osborne Village office cover an array of topics. Most, however, have to do with some aspect of business.

The 48-year-old Winnipeg entrepreneur dips into fiction every now and then, but says he chooses much of what he reads with an eye toward learning things that might benefit his company, Engagify.

Boulanger drew on his background as a magician to create the business, which offers trade show engagement services to tech companies so they can get more booth traffic, more leads and a better return on their investment at trade shows.

“That’s how entrepreneurs are,” Boulanger says of his penchant for reading non-fiction. “They’re kind of always trying to use their downtime to (improve). It’s hard to unplug as entrepreneurs.”

For a while, Boulanger says, the business coach he’s worked with for the past decade advised him to stop reading books and start writing one of his own.

Eventually, he listened.

Boulanger’s first book, Engage First, arrived in stores last week. In the 200-page publication, Boulanger identifies what he calls “the engagement gap.” In many areas of life — banking, shopping, working from home — technology dominates and has eliminated our need to make personal connections with others.

“Our engagement muscles are anemic,” he writes.

The book explores fundamental skills readers can develop to connect with others in face-to-face situations, as well as more advanced techniques. While Boulanger wrote the book with businesspeople in mind, it’s easy to see how it might be applied to a variety of fields of work.

If you’re going to learn about face-to-fact engagement, what better person to teach you than someone who’s been capturing people’s attention for more than 40 years?

Raised in Wawanesa, Boulanger was turning five years old when an uncle gave him a Fisher Price magician’s kit as a birthday gift. Before long he was doing tricks for his kindergarten classmates during show and tell.

By 12, he was being paid to perform at birthday parties, and eventually he started getting gigs at fairs and festivals. Working as a magician paid for his education at Brandon University, where he earned a bachelor of science degree majoring in physics.

Boulanger recalls driving home after performances in his blue 1989 Dodge Daytona, riding what he describes as a post-show high, his props in the trunk and a Tragically Hip album playing on the stereo.

“I just remember this chill going down the back of my neck, just being so happy,” he says. “I knew I was in the right place (and that) I was doing what I loved. I’ve been blessed to be able to keep doing that.”

After graduation, Boulanger immediately went pro with his magic business.

In 2007, he trained under L.A. magician Joe Bauer and started focusing on trade shows. Rather than bill himself as a magician, Boulanger began calling himself an “infotainer.” (His company was called the Infotainers before he rebranded as Engagify.)

Boulanger says his performances are about conveying a client’s message; magic is the visual aid he uses to get the message across.

Today, Boulanger spends about 60 days each year on the road, mostly appearing at trade shows in major U.S. cities.

He performs close-up magic, turning a handful of $1 bills into $50 bills with the snap of his fingers or cutting a long piece of dental floss into tiny pieces and transforming them back into a single long piece. Each presentation is customized to reflect the message of whatever company Boulanger is working for, be it Microsoft Azure or Siemens.

Engagify employs eight other infotainers across the U.S. and Europe who do the same work, and the company also has a network of “engagement specialists” clients can hire to engage trade show attendees, scan their badges, hand visitors off to a product expert or salesperson and assemble an audience for in-booth presentations.

The goal is to generate new customer leads for Engagify’s clients.

According to Boulanger’s calculations, the company has generated more than 100,000 leads which have resulted in more than $152 million in sales. On average, Boulanger’s clients see a 54 per cent increase in their trade show leads. He adds 65 per cent of clients get a 10x or greater return on their investment when they hire Engagify.

“The idea that we pay for ourselves is important,” Boulanger says.

Boulanger charges US$7,000 to US$11,000 a day for his services. That comes with a money-back guarantee in case customers aren’t satisfied. No one’s ever taken him up on the offer though, he says.

“It … puts us always in a place where we have to deliver and we’ve got to make this work and we can’t rest on our laurels,” he says. “It’s kind of an honourable way of being compensated if you’re paid for results.”

The investment is always worth it for Bill Masterson, event marketing manager at Fortinet, a global leader in cybersecurity solutions and services.

Fortinet first hired Boulanger and his team 10 years ago, and now the company tries to use them as often as they can, Masterson says. Boulanger’s professionalism, loyalty to the people he works for and the way he tailors what he does to suit individual clients stick out.

“I’ve had people come up afterward and think he’s a company employee because he knows so much,” Masterson says.

When it comes to engaging people, Boulanger “is a master,” Masterson adds.

In recent years, Boulanger has expanded Engagify’s services.

The company offers a variety of training programs for individuals looking to build rapport with prospective customers, whether it’s in person, online or via a video recording.

For years, Boulanger and his team of infotainers have been the centre of attention at trade shows. Ultimately, Boulanger says, he wants to empower clients and those who read his book to take the spotlight and be the hero of their own story.

“If we can combine the skillset of engagement and integrate that into how we interact with others to deepen connection and command attention, then we can have a significant impact,” he says.

aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca