Traditional two-dimensional forms of advertising just don’t cut it anymore. Consumers crave new and interactive forms of marketing to grab their attention. Experiential activations give your brand the boost it needs to reach new heights of brand identity.
Chances are you’ve encountered some form of experiential activation at one time or another. It may have been a hands-on booth at a trade show, an interactive VR event, a live promotional concert event, or a pop-up social media photo-op gallery.
These are all the methods that companies are now using to increase their brand identity and consumer engagement. And the results speak for themselves. 91% of consumers report feeling more positive about a brand after interacting with a live event.
Interested in finding out how you can successfully launch your own experiential activation to boost your brand and engage consumers? Keep reading this blog post for further details.
Focus on Your Target Demographic
This is where terms like Boomers, Millennials, Gen Z, and Gen X become more than just buzz words. Instead, think of them more as targeted marketing groups. Focus on where exactly your core demographic lies before you do anything else.
Instead of throwing out a wide net of advertising and marketing that will be hit or miss, zero in on the ones worth concentrating your efforts on. This will save you on advertising costs in the long run.
Use analytics from social media and surveys to hone in on your ideal consumer base. Then you can begin to create the ideal experiential activations based on this data. You can be sure that your brand activation will be a success with the right target demographic market in sight.
Set Measurable Event Outcome Goals
While you may want to reach for the moon, it’s best to keep your event outcome goals modest and attainable. You should also have a goal that is easy to measure the success of.
Say, for instance, that you want to increase the number of followers on your social media account by the event’s end. Decide how much of an increase is desirable but also attainable.
If you set a goal to increase your current follower number, choose a reasonable one. increasing your followers from 60,000 to 4,000,000 over the course of a single event may not be possible.
However, let’s say your goal is to achieve 1,000,000 followers over the course of several experiential activations. This is a more measurable and achievable result.
Scout Event Locations
Another big part of planning your experiential activations is picking out a prime location. You may consider using an unconventional venue for your event, like a haunted house attraction, escape room, or carnival.
You want to get the most out of your event, so you should make sure you are in an area with optimum visibility. You also want to ensure that it is easily accessible and that it is a relevant location to your target demographic.
If you are planning a large event, you’ll want to make certain the location you’ve chosen is big enough to accommodate everything you’ve planned.
Create Experiences With Shareable Content
98% of consumers create content at experiential activities. But 100% of consumers share this created content on social media. Digital photo booths are paving the way for an integrated marketing campaign that attracts consumers to use interactive displays to take fun, themed photos they can share on their social media accounts.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, drive-through experiences became a common way to promote brands through safe and unique experiential activations that got people talking and sharing their photos on social media.
Pop-up art displays with themed rooms or backdrops attracted thousands and rolled out the red carpet for Instagrammable photoshoots. In the modern age, this instant content posting and sharing can also benefit the brands and businesses tagged and featured in them.
Social media sharing leads to a “Fear of Missing Out” (FOMO) that can work in a brand’s favor. The FOMO brand strategy shows others on social media the fun experiences they’re missing out on. If it’s not too late, they can also come down to join in on the fun at these experiential activations themselves.
Establish Partnerships With Influencers
To have a successful brand activation, you need to bring attention to your brand on social media. That’s where social media influencers come in handy.
Social media influencers are aptly named because of their ability to attract a large number of followers in a relatively short time span. They promote current trends. Influencers are an integral part of brand activation events.
Establishing partnerships with social media influencers can help expose your brand to a wider demographic of core followers. Let the influencers wear or use your branded products. They’ll get the word out in your favor and help represent your brand.
Incorporating influencers into your brand strategy enhances your experiential activations. You’ll reap the long-term benefits of a symbiotic relationship.
Promote the Creation of User-Generated Content
User-generated content is worth its weight in gold since it is also a great source of free promotion. Utilize custom hashtags in tandem with your viral experiential activation campaign to bolster your brand activation strategy.
User-generated content lets everyone get in on the action. Their photos on social media combined with your brand identity is a win-win. It taps into consumer engagement through experiential activations.
With an estimated 95 million photos uploaded to Instagram each day, social media is already a wealth of user-generated content.
If they’re taking photos at your event booth, they are sharing them on social media. Your target demographic then posts to other followers who see the branded content. This expands your reach to a wider audience.
Trust Your Experiential Activations to Rockway Exhibits
Planning a brand activation event to promote your brand identity can be complicated. Your exhibit display can make or break your event. If you can’t draw your target demographic in, the whole event can be a huge waste.
With so much at stake, you don’t want to take any chances. You want positive results that help your brand speak for itself.
Consumers want experiential activations that engage and delight. Rockway Exhibits can help you create a one-of-a-kind exhibit display that grabs their attention.
Contact us today for more information on making your next tradeshow or marketing event even more memorable.