5 real-life examples of experiential marketing

Marketing is constantly evolving and staying ahead of the curve with the latest strategies can be challenging. Consumer behaviors shift constantly, and new products, services, and brands are always rising. The dynamics of technology are reshaping the way individuals interact with brands and enterprises.

So, catching the attention of your audience requires more than your modern-day standard marketing techniques like social media, search engines, paid ads, and emails. Along with all those methods, you must get more creative with your marketing campaigns.

That’s where experiential marketing comes in as an innovative approach. Experiential marketing, also known as engagement marketing or event marketing, involves a marketing approach where companies curate distinctive and affirmative experiences tailored to their target audience. It enables brands to better connect with their customers and leads by involving them in in-person, hybrid, or immersive virtual events.

In this post, we’ll further explain what it is and how it works. Furthermore, to foster better comprehension, we will share various real-life examples of experiential marketing that highlight its benefits for businesses.

What is experiential marketing?

At some point, you must have come across people giving away free samples of their products, perhaps something like a new brand of cookies or yogurt. It’s a very common strategy many brands use and can be considered one of the basic examples of experiential marketing.

Experiential marketing is a marketing approach where brands create an interactive setting that people can directly experience. It can be hosting live events, enjoyable activities, or any creative idea in which audiences can also participate. With advancements in digital technology, it’s very much possible to run virtual events for experiential marketing campaigns.

There are no hard and fast rules for running experiential marketing campaigns. It’s not like your standard marketing channels but more of a concept focusing on engaging audiences. Instead of telling people to buy your products or services, you invite them to try and experience them first.

Why experiential marketing matters today?

Experiential marketing isn’t a new concept, and its concept was often discussed and even implemented quite often, even during the early 2000s. Even today, it continues to function as a strong marketing approach. In fact, experiential marketing has gained amplified importance within our contemporary society.

How so? Just look around the marketplace these days – both online and offline. There are countless products, services, and non-stop marketing activities everywhere. Consumers are constantly surrounded by a relentless stream of ads and promotions.

And that is where experiential marketing matters the most. By getting people to participate in hands-on events, you’re promoting the experience associated with using your product and not the product itself. It’s a powerful strategy to generate authentic engagement that goes beyond numbers and metrics.

The benefits of experiential marketing

Now, let’s examine the key advantages of experiential marketing:

Unique approach and competitive edge

As we explained earlier, experiential marketing provides a change of pace for both marketers and their audiences. Amid all the ads and promotional emails that people see these days, the chance to participate in hands-on events is something different and exciting. This unique approach can set you apart from many competitors.

Lasting impression of brand image

Experiences are usually imprinted in memory. People remember good times and pleasant moments in their lives. If your marketing event entertains or pleases the audience, they will associate happy memories with your brand. As a result, they will be more willing to buy your products or services in the future, even if they don’t do so immediately.

Brand loyalty

When brands engage with their audience through experiential marketing, it also inspires loyalty. And loyal customers are less likely to move to competitors, which reduces the churn rate. Having loyal customers also means you do more repeat business while spending less on costly customer acquisition efforts.

Emotional connection

Another benefit of experiential marketing is that if done right, it will evoke many positive emotions among people. If your marketing campaign or event entertains and makes people happy, they will associate those emotions with the event and your brand. The emotional bond further enhances their inclination to do business with your company.

What are the various types of experiential marketing?

Broadly speaking, experiential marketing lacks predefined guidelines or regulations. You can conduct any sort of event or activity, both live and virtual, and the only limit is your creativity. Having said that, there are some popular experiential marketing examples and events which businesses often implement.

Virtual events

Today’s digital technology makes it possible to create virtual experiences for a large group of people. That is why virtual events are also becoming popular among brands. From webinars and live streams to multi-day, multi-track events, there are many ways to engage your audience through their screens.

Physical events

Real-life events are the most common type of experiential marketing. They can involve music, games, food and drinks, and a lively, fun-filled atmosphere for attendees, along with presentations, keynote sessions, and workshops, of course. This experiential marketing type is best for businesses seeking to improve personal engagement and brand awareness.

Pop-up shops

Pop-up shops are temporary retail spaces set up for a limited time, often in unexpected locations. Customers and visitors can personally explore these establishments and engage directly with the brand and its array of offerings. The shops may showcase new products, offer exclusive discounts, and provide a curated experience that aligns with the brand’s identity. The temporary nature of these shops also creates a sense of urgency among people. It intrigues them to visit at least once before the shop packs up.

In-Store experiences

Instead of organizing a large event or setting up a temporary shop, businesses can also launch experiential marketing campaigns on their own premises. This type of marketing is exclusively relevant to businesses with physical stores, such as clothing brands and restaurants. Interactive elements such as product demos or entertaining activities can be organized within the store to attract more people and let them have fun while exploring your products.

Collaborative experiences

Another type of experiential marketing campaign is one where two or more different entities collaborate to create shared experiences. Brands could join hands with celebrities and famous personalities. Or even two completely different businesses could come together with creative campaigns that benefit both parties. Co-hosted events and joint product launches are some good examples of collaborative experiences.

How to create experiential marketing the right way?

Any campaign that invites people for a hands-on experience can be considered experiential marketing. It’s a broad concept, and as we’ve already said, there are no strict guidelines. However, conducting such engaging campaigns does require proper planning and execution, so you need to do things the right way.

Here’s a step-by-step process of effectively launching experiential marketing campaigns.

1. Define objectives: The first step is to set clear objectives for your campaign, whether it’s to improve brand awareness, engagement, launch new products, or boost sales.
2. Define the target audience: Like with all marketing campaigns, you must also identify your target audience and analyze their preferences, behavior, and pain points.
3. Brainstorming sessions: Now, based on your objectives and target audience, the next step is to get your team together and brainstorm creative ideas for the campaign.
4. Plan the setup and execution: After you finalize the idea or event for your campaign, it’s time to start planning details for its execution, such as time, location, budget, etc.
5. Generate interest: Before your event goes live, you must promote it to as many people as possible. After all, higher participation will make your campaign more successful.

This simple 5-step plan lays down a quick outline for successful and engaging experiential event marketing.

6 best examples of experiential marketing

Does the concept of experiential marketing seem right for your brand? If you find yourself in this situation but are grappling with generating creative concepts, explore a selection of actual instances showcasing how other businesses have accomplished it. Presented below are six examples that highlight some of the most remarkable experiential marketing initiatives executed by well-known brands.

NBC’s Peacock Playground

As a perfect example of physical events in experiential marketing, we applaud the Peacock Playground organized by NBC at SXSW in 2022. The adult playground included games like mini golf and life-sized chess. The venue was decorated with colorful installations complete with an open bar where attendees could unwind. The setting was ideal for engaging in games, relishing delectable cuisine and beverages, and capturing numerous shareable selfies for social media.

The event offered a fantastic opportunity for individuals to thoroughly enjoy themselves while also serving as a platform to promote upcoming shows set to debut on the Peacock streaming service.

Benefit’s lashtastic virtual campaign

Benefit Cosmetics launched an amazing virtual event campaign to promote their new mascara product. To participate, users had to sign up on the brand’s website. Then using Augmented Reality (AR) technology, they gamified the experience by allowing participants to use their phone camera to scan their surroundings for special ‘tokens.’

Users could then exchange these virtual tokens for various gifts such as Benefit’s beauty products, discount offers, or even a live online consultation on their website. This is an excellent example of virtual events done right with experiential marketing.

House of Vans

House of Vans is an experiential marketing campaign from the popular footwear brand Vans. The company established pop-up shops in diverse locations worldwide. But what’s interesting is that they set up these pop-ups in skateboarding parks, hitting the right note with their target audience. The young and adventurous demographic were ideal customers for Vans footwear, and choosing skateparks as the location was a brilliant move.

It also goes to show that if you want to try out pop-up shops for experiential marketing, location is a key factor. You must identify locations where most of your target consumers are located to gain more attention and greater footfall.

Burger King

Back in 2017, Burger King launched a Halloween campaign that some would find fun, others would find scary, but everyone would love. The first 500 people to walk into select Burger King outlets in a clown suit would win a free Whopper. This drove flocks of people to put on their clown outfits and head to their local Burger King joint, also attracting the attention of thousands of other spectators.

It was a simple yet brilliant move for an in-person experience where people had to visit the burger outlet to participate, or in this case, collect their reward. The campaign fit the festive theme well and allowed people to do something fun while also earning a free burger.

Fortnite Concert

Fortnite is known for its celeb collaborations. The battle-royale game frequently joins forces with popular celebrities and launches their unique skins in the game. But in 2020, they stepped things a notch higher and hosted a virtual concert in collaboration with Travis Scott, using the rapper’s lifelike avatar. The concert was named “Astronomical,” and it was attended live by 12 million people. At the time of this writing, the official YouTube video of the event stands at 207m views!

The right collaboration along with creative events, can turn experiential marketing campaigns into huge hits.

Summary

When businesses stagnate with their marketing efforts, it’s time to spice things up. Through experiential marketing campaigns, brands can position themselves as the focal point by providing individuals with one-of-a-kind and enjoyable encounters. As a result, individuals also form a favorable perception of the brand, exhibit heightened purchasing inclination, and maintain enduring loyalty to the business over time.

This strategy is not just a gimmick but rather a powerful strategy that can boost brand perception, awareness, engagement, and sales.

The examples above clearly demonstrate different types of experiential marketing events and how different brands pushed their creative limits. So get your creativity flowing, and spice up your marketing efforts by organizing your own experiential marketing event. It can be as quick and easy as running a memorable and engaging virtual event on Kaltura!