Experiential marketing's immersive comeback

When it comes to work events, trade shows, or promotional campaigns, customers can be engaged beyond flash. It is not solely the product that motivates people to come back to a brand, but rather the way they experience it. This is where experiential marketing comes in. The goal of experiential marketing is to create lasting impressions on consumers, which they want to share with others and which, ultimately, leads to brand loyalty. You are not advertising a product – you’re letting consumers see and feel what their lives would be like with it. You’re creating an association between your brand and those positive vibes. A Freeman Global Brand Experience Study reports that a third of CMOs plan to devote 21-50 percent of their budget to experiential marketing efforts over the next several years. If the same efforts are not already a big part of your brand’s marketing strategy, then they should be. Here are three main reasons why experiential marketing is making an immersive comeback:

Many of the largest brands have already begun building lasting connections with their customers through experiential marketing, and the best strategies are those that extend beyond shopping. For example, American Express’s AI tennis game at the U.S. Open let event goers enhance their experience while associating American Express with something besides tickets and souvenir purchases.

When it comes to any form of marketing, knowledge really is power. Marketers need data about consumers to know where and how to reach them most effectively. Product developers need data to know which products appeal most to consumers. Business leaders need data to steer the direction of their companies. Experiential marketing gives consumers the chance to learn about products and brands while also enjoying the experience. And those consumers are willing to exchange personal info as the admission price to an event or experience they want to attend. Big data helps provide the tools to deliver real-time actionable insights, which enable brands to be more agile to make changes to messaging, create more value, and increase consumer engagement on the spot.

One of marketing’s main goals is to educate consumers about a product, and that only works if the consumer is engaged. Most people go out of their way to avoid commercials, yet most will also go out of their way for a new experience. That’s why experiential marketing works so well. Tie your brand or product to a fun experience, like a live event, and consumers are more likely to get the message. In fact, about 65% of consumers say that live events and product demonstrations helped them fully understand a product better than any commercial or other method could. Experiential marketing has the ability to transform and elevate the connections that brands build with their consumers, and that’s becoming increasingly important as consumers demand more personalization.