Consumers are no longer excited by traditional commercials, including display ads, banner ads, and native ads. In fact, these ads are causing a pandemic known as “ad fatigue” and symptoms range from disinterest, boredom, to fatigue, and the problem is only getting worse by the day. According to research by MaketingDrive, around 81 percent of consumers say that the many commercials they encounter online make them feel exhausted, while another 67 percent consider majority of digital adverts irrelevant. This explains why a large number of internet users prefer to make use of adblockers when browsing the internet.
Now, what is the option for marketers? Traditional ads are no longer bringing the much-needed results, but competent marketers understand that marketing is the cornerstone of any successful business model. It allows you to achieve certain project goals and reach more potential customers within your area. This is why experiential marketing is a must in today’s business world – it is certainly a reliable alternative to the boring conventional commercials, say experts at iDEKO.
What is Experiential Marketing?
Every Marketer has his or her own unique definition of experiential marketing. This form of marketing is also known as “engagement” or “live” marketing and acts as a tool that urges the consumer to participate in an activity organized by your brand. Those activities usually seem like random occurrences. But they are prudently organized events to steer brand awareness and provide relevant information about your company to the target audience.
At its core, experiential marketing is all about immersing consumers in live experiences. Experiential marketing campaigns use activations such as product sampling, immersive experiences, stunts, and events to bring brands to life and interact directly with the target audience. Experiential marketing can help you humanize your brand or a sponsor’s, and create experiences that leave people with lasting, positive brand impressions.
Also Read: 4 Reasons To Make Content Marketing Your #1 Marketing Priority.
A. Why is Experiential Marketing Important?
It is extremely important, actually. Here is why.
1. Enhances Customer Engagement
In addition to attending events and gatherings, people draw pleasure in boasting to others. One of the most important outcomes of an experiential marketing campaign is the improvement in customer engagement. A cutting-edge strategy can inspire the desire for posting on leading social networks like Facebook and Instagram. If you deliver what people are expecting, they will definitely share their experiences on their social media accounts. In simple terms, you can end up strengthening your global social media marketing presence with little to no investment.
2. Establish Meaningful Relationships
Experiential offers a platform for consumers to interact with your company’s staff. They get an opportunity to meet the people who work behind the scenes to deliver a product they love. This humanizes your company and elevates the relationship between customers and the brand.
3. Cultivating Brand Affinity
There are various competing brands out there. Consumers effortlessly move from one brand to another, so you must invent a strategy for maintaining them long enough to convert them into loyal customers. Delivering authentic interaction during a campaign is an ideal strategy for ensuring customer retention. Experiential events offer a chance for your customers to gather more firsthand information about you and try out your products for free. This allows your brand affinity to grow steadily and leads to better sales.
4. Get More Consumer Data in the Moment
Knowledge is an integral part of any marketing. This is why most businesses invest time and resources in collecting, analyzing, and interpreting consumer data. Brands require data about their potential clients to figure out the means of reaching them more efficiently. Data helps product developers to identify products that most consumers like. Business leaders, on the other hand, use it to make critical company decisions.
Also Read: How To Market Your Nigerian Business On LinkedIn.
Actionable Experiential Marketing Tips
If done correctly, experiential marketing campaigns can offer great returns on your investment. Below are a few tips to help you create unforgettable experiences.
- Determine what your customers expect from your brand. This way, you will come up with experiences that suit the needs of both new and current customers.
- Organize your campaigns in phases for more impressive results. Find good project management software to accomplish this task.
- Gather details from consumers at engagement events, including names, cell phone numbers, occupations, email addresses, and much more. This data will help you know more about your target customers so that you can tailor your future marketing efforts to their needs and interests.
- Use your official social media accounts and website to market your engagement events. Study your audience and use localization marketing by engaging them in translated content.
Conclusion
Now that consumers have decided conventional ads no longer work for them anymore, it is important for marketers to be innovative and provide something that offers real value. To achieve this, marketers need to invest in experiential marketing. This form of marketing will help you teach your customers about your offerings, improve consumer engagement, and enhance brand visibility.
True magic happens when brands put individual customers or groups of consumers in an immersive branded experience. Thus, brands must go beyond PR stunts, display ads, and promoted social media ads to stir positive emotions in people and foster brand loyalty. Successful campaigns encourage customers to come back to influence their customer lifetime value repeatedly.