3 reasons experiential marketing is a great value for mid-sized brands
For mid-size brands, experiential marketing is not only possible, it’s a must. Experiential marketing is a growing trend that lets brands bring immersive, interactive experiences to consumers. The experiential marketing campaigns of brands like Frito Lay and Adidas have shown how big brands do it, and this booming marketing trend is possible on a mid-size brand scale with our nimble creative team. Let’s focus on 3 key factors of why experiential marketing is not only necessary but affordable:
Experiential marketing is designed for amplification
Experiential marketing is designed to build an emotional connection between consumers and products through immersive experiences or interactions. Personal interactions create immediate response and feedback. Engaging, memorable experiences also lead to organic social media sharing which greatly increases the value of experiential marketing. Consumers share experiences on social media, but they do not share ads or billboards.
Chipotle just crushed the experiential marketing game by launching its #FlipYourLidChallenge which encouraged users on TikTok to flip their burrito bowl lids using the base of the bowl. The challenge went viral thanks to early engagement from big TikTok stars, and the rest is history. The activation only required a few key video placements and an enticing prize, and participants had to buy a delicious burrito bowl in order to participate. Talk about a win-win!
Creativity drives results
Perhaps the greatest feature of experiential marketing for mid-size brands is that personal experiences cost a fraction of a thirty second Super Bowl commercial and they deliver much higher engagement rates.
When it comes to experiential marketing, event planning and creativity are essential. Mid-size brands have a unique opportunity to engage with their consumers in a personal way by meeting them where they gather. That might be at an event, or it might be on the pages of certain social media personalities.
Be strategic. A smart strategy connects your target audience with your products in an interactive way. Keep it simple and whimsical. Think about the Chipotle challenge. With nothing more than a smartphone camera, a burrito bowl, and some gift card prizes, Chipotle hit a Gen Z grand-slam with over 120,000 TikTok video uploads in the first week of the challenge.
Simple engagement is perfect for mid-size brands to attract target audiences, but it’s important to keep in mind the new ways to measure ROI in the experiential world. Stay focused on the end goal of creating an emotional connection between your brand and consumers. Measure engagement and brand sentiment just as much as clickthrough sales. Build your social audiences and email lists, generate organic social sharing, create brand evangelists–and get good at keeping track of these types of wins. Then the sales numbers will speak for themselves.
You can’t afford NOT to do experiential marketing
These recent statistics highlight the increasing importance of experiential marketing, which is now considered the most successful marketing tactic by industry professionals by a wide margin.
- 74% of consumers say that engaging with branded event marketing experiences makes them more likely to buy the promoted products. [8]
- 67% of consumers bought products straight from consumer experiences. [11]
- According to industry professionals, the no. 1 most successful marketing tactic is experiential/events (38.34%). This is followed by digital advertising (19.69%), content marketing (12.44%), partnerships/sponsorships (9.33%), and traditional advertising (7.25%). [14]
- 60% of industry professionals said that effectively reaching non-physical attendees (i.e., viewers or audiences watching live streams on social media) is critical to an event’s success.
On the other side of quarantine, people will be hungrier than ever for immersive experiences. And even during quarantine, there are plenty of ways to make a splash with audiences that are eager for good news and entertainment. Let’s create a viral video or deliver joy to frontline workers in a safe, branded atmosphere. You got this, mid-size brand. We believe in you.
