6 reasons to invest in experiential marketing now

Traditional advertising can only do so much. It’s is a one-way conversation that doesn’t allow your target audience to experience your brand, product or service in real life. People are tired of being talked at.

It’s time to make it a two-way conversation. That’s what it takes to break your audience away from the Netflix binge and get them immersed in your brand.

How do you do it? Experiential marketing. Here are six reasons why now is the right time for you to invest in experiential marketing.

1. Experiential Marketing makes the brand real.

Experiential marketing immerses consumers in your brand, making a connection by helping your audience truly understand your values, products, services, charitable causes and how your brand fits into their lifestyle.

For example, an advertisement focuses on selling a brand, but a pop-up shop can sell a lifestyle by incorporating Instagram-worthy moments, charitable giving stations, offering products and services and generating fresh content that lives on long after the pop-up shop closes its doors.

Delta Air Lines, Blvd Bash - Global Street Party

2. Consumers put more trust and value in a brand when they can experience it.

Experiential marketing events give your consumers the opportunity to demo and sample products or services before they commit to a purchase. Experiential marketing allows consumers to try your product on, give it a test drive or customize it in real time.

Launching a product that’s not available yet to demo? No problem – create a mixed reality version for consumers to experience.

Air France, DFW Direct Flight Launch Party

3. You can create awareness and change perceptions in the moment.

Lacking brand awareness? Not yet in the “consideration set” of your target audience? Change that through experiential marketing. By immersing your target audience in a relevant, inspiring brand experience, you can create awareness and change perceptions in the moment. The trick: Choose the right brand ambassadors and arm them with key messages that resonate and make consumers think: I can see this in my life.

4. It inspires and motivates consumers to take the next step in the customer lifecycle.

Create a call-to-action on site that will get consumers excited about: going online or to a retail location to find out more; scheduling a test drive or in-home consultation; or receiving a special limited time offer to purchase.

MLK Holiday Breakfast

5. Experiential marketing generates content.

Staged photo and video shoots can be expensive. Create authentic, in-the-moment content instead. Experiential marketing is an inexpensive way to capture and generate content before, during and after the experience. When done right, experiential marketing delivers content that can stay relevant for 12 - 18 months after an event. This effect can be amplified when the right influencers are tapped for supportive social media campaigns.

Delta Air Lines, All Hail The Queen The Farewell Tour

6. Experiential marketing offers so many ways to continue the conversation.

Make sure to capture leads in ways that sync up with your CRM system to survey, offer special perks, show gratitude for purchases, encourage enrollment in loyalty programs and give sneak peeks into what’s next.

Effective experiential marketing campaigns should give your brand a platform for ongoing conversations that drive business results.

Cut through the messaging clutter. Immerse them in your brand. Convert your target audience into loyal consumers and brand advocates. It’s all about the experience.