At the GAMA Trade Show, Double Exposure, Inc. presented its new Envoy program, an organized play and demo program which deploys trained game demonstrators and game masters to conventions, retailers and gaming groups on behalf of publishers, which pay for its services.   

The program is free for store owners, who sign up for the program by agreeing to allow the representatives, which the Envoy program calls “Heralds,” to run demos and/or tournaments in their stores on a mutually agreed schedule.

Double Exposure launched the program on January 1, offering the demo services at conventions to game publishers. The company has a history in technical consulting and event management, creating several gaming conventions and running the First Exposure Playtest Hall of Gen Con.  The company recently named former Hero Games President Darren Watts as Managing Director of the program.

Publishers can choose one of four levels of involvement, from basic exposure at participating venues to more in-depth programs.  Double Exposure does not support the full-scale programs run by most collectible game companies, instead focusing on publishers looking for support on a less intensive scale.

While most of the 46 publishers currently represented are small, the program does include more notable companies such as USAopoly, R&R Games, Stronghold, Plaid Hat, Indie Boards & Cards and Thames & Kosmos as clients.

Asked for numbers on venues, Double Exposure President Vincent Salzillo focused on the company’s goals.  “The count for venues is a little tricky, because we are trying not to ‘just add stores’ without having a Herald ready to go into the store,” he told ICv2. “Our goal is to reach 80% of the stores in the United States by the end of 2015, and 90% of the conventions.”  The program currently lists 50 conventions.

The Heralds are trained and mentored to demo the games they choose to run, including support from the designers and publishers to they can answer questions from customers.  Potential Heralds must be certified. “Every one of the active Heralds has had a personal video conference with me, and for each game they are certified in, they have had a video conference with one of our team of certifiers,“ Salzillo said. The Heralds are assigned one of 37 “regions,” which are all managed by Ambassadors, who function as coordinators between Double Exposure and the region’s venues.  Salzillo said the company has over 400 Heralds so far. 

Heralds are given a t-shirt and advertising material to support them as official representatives of the companies of the games they present.  They are rewarded with Herald Points, which can be exchanged for games and swag from the Envoy partners. There are additional rewards and prizes outlined in the extensive training manual, which can eventually include Gen Con memberships, free “crash space” and air fare.