The success of most events used to be measured by who showed up. Now IRL experiences are measured by who shares them.
We're designing events with a second life in mind — creating memorable experiences for creators and guests on the ground, followed by the amplification to millions experiencing the event through social content. That reality pushed party planning to become inherently social-first.
Now — as unplugging becomes the ultimate flex — it’s forcing another shift.
What happens when the most culturally relevant thing you can offer is an experience people don’t feel compelled to post?
Establish expectations first
Before designing the moment, define what success looks like. Because right now, there’s a disconnect: As culture moves toward touching grass and living in the moment, leadership is often still chasing impressions.
What makes for a successful event: Is it your guest list and the associated clout? Cultural relevance? Or content creation?
Clarity is key to sidestepping misunderstandings and making sure everyone is on the same page. Without it, you risk building an experience that tries to do everything and ends up doing none of it well.
Pinterest planned for a phone-free experience at Coachella this year. And even with no real-time documentation from inside, the volume of social conversation on Pinterest and Coachella was larger than in previous years.
“We sparked a conversation around analog living and disconnecting from screens,” Sara Pollack, VP, Global Head of Consumer Marketing told me. “And that to us is a far more meaningful outcome than a feed full of selfies.”
In other words: The impact wasn’t in the content. It was the idea.
Design for “touch grass” moments
“As people become more intentional about what they share online, in-person experiences are shifting from constant posting to moments of living in the present,” said Michelle Curtis, Senior Director of Events and Marketing at Whalar.
“We’re seeing a move toward immersive, participatory, and even phone-free environments — where people want to be fully engaged, not performing.”
That sentiment aligns with broader cultural signals.
Nearly half of Gen Z would choose to live in the past if they could, according to an NBC News survey — pointing to nostalgia for unplugged moments.
At Coachella, Pinterest experimented with this approach. Instead of encouraging attendees to document everything, they asked them to do the opposite.
“The goal was to shift away from constant self-capture and performance, and let the experience be lived first,” said Pollack.
Guests collected physical artifacts throughout the experience — stickers, postcards, lenticular photos — and assembled them into a personalized “Joy Guide” they could mail home to themselves.
Memories were designed to be something worth saving rather than a moment to swipe through.
Try it: Designing the takeaway is just as important as designing the space. Adobe Express has a library of postcard and keepsake card templates you can customize to match your event's aesthetic — no designer required. Start with a template, swap in your brand colors and messaging, and have print-ready files in minutes.
Deliver analog aesthetics
"Instagrammable" isn’t dead, but it’s evolved. The focus is shifting from creating moments that look good to moments that are worth talking about, according to Curtis. People are still sharing, but differently. It’s less frequent and more likely directed to a Close Friends list than plastered over the feed.
Even digital platforms, like YouTube, Meta, and Spotify, are leaning into analog experiences at creator events — emphasizing activities like charm-making, journaling, and thrifting.
When the pressure to perform disappears, creative thinking starts to flourish. For Pinterest, that meant building around analog, shared activities, including beauty moments, styling touch-ups, and personalized keepsakes, instead of optimizing for selfies at every corner.
“We also had a postcard station where guests could write a note to their future selves, almost like a journaling exercise,” said Pollack. “It was packed the entire weekend. In the middle of everything happening at Coachella, people wanted to sit down and reflect.”
Try it: Want to recreate a moment like this? Adobe Express makes it easy to design branded postcard templates your guests can actually write on and keep — or mail home. You can build a cohesive set of stationery-style assets (postcards, note cards, envelopes) that feel intentional and on-brand, even if you're a team of one pulling it together last minute.
That tracks with cultural signals seen on the platform: Searches for “analog aesthetic” are up 260% among Gen Z on Pinterest. While “screen-free ideas” are up 113% across users.
Try it: Adobe Express has templates that lean directly into this aesthetic — think: grain textures, muted palettes, handwritten-style fonts, and layouts that feel more editorial than digital. If you're designing event materials (menus, signage, programs) and want them to feel tactile and considered, it's a good place to start. Search "analog" or "retro" in the template library and build from there.
Offline first, online later
We’re seeing a pattern where people live in the moment, but then curate and share those experiences later.
But even that framing implies the offline moment was simply in service of posting to social. Pollack says that’s the cycle they’re trying to break: “The way we think about it is online first, offline next.”
When you design for immediate documentation, the experience often centers around big visual moments, selfie spots, fast shareability, and vanity metrics.
“When you design instead for presence and intention, you think more about how people move through the space, how they interact with one another, how long they stay, and whether the experience creates real, quality engagement rather than just content output.”
That doesn’t mean shareability disappears. The basics — like thoughtful details, aesthetic design, and personalized touches — still matter.
“It can be a menu inspired by the brand or theme, a handwritten note and curated playlist to real-time customized gifting like an embroidery station, custom patches, or attendee illustrations by a sketch artist,” said Curtis.
The most effective details aren’t optimized for the camera. They’re optimized for connection.
Try it: Adobe Express is built for exactly this kind of work — menus, event programs, name cards, table signage, and stationery that feel intentional even when designed digitally. The texture and warmth you'd associate with printed materials? You can get there without sending anything to a print shop first.
Design for the memories, not the photo moment
These are the special experiences people carry with them — whether they ever post them.
- Design for presence first — shareability will follow.
- Create artifacts, not just content — something to take home, not just post.
- Let analog details do the storytelling (paper, texture, handwriting, sound).
- Give people ways to participate, not just observe.
- Replace “capture this” cues with “experience this” cues.
- Make small details feel personal — customization is the new luxury.
Try it: This is where Adobe Express really earns its place in an event workflow. The bulk create feature lets you personalize assets at scale — individualized place cards, guest-specific inserts, name tags that actually feel considered. You design the template once, drop in a spreadsheet of names or details, and Express generates a unique version for every single guest. It's the kind of personal touch that used to require a calligrapher.
Lia Haberman is the author of the popular ICYMI newsletter sharing weekly platform updates and social content trends. She’s been tapped for social media insights by brands such as Google, Robert Half, and AT&T; led social branding and creator workshops for Disney's Creator Lab, Macy's Style Crew and YouTubers Colin and Samir’s Creator Startup, and teaches social media and influencer marketing at UCLA Extension. When she's not working, she's scrolling TikTok and Instagram looking for new places to eat in Los Angeles.
