In the LinkedIn Group “Experiential Marketing and Brand Experience” – member Matt Parkes posed the following question:
Could experiential marketing be the only truly integrated marketing discipline?
[Matt] I believe there is a strong case to put to brand owners that no matter how you dress the ‘brand adoption model’, experiential marketing can achieve the same objectives as traditional above & below the line disciplines - just on a smaller & more intimate scale.
Although the investment per consumer tends to be higher, the conversion rate of brand advocates is normally reflected.
So if brands are reliant on advocates, why is experiential marketing still so often the “last to be fed”?
My response:
I agree 110%. Experiential is the only integrated discipline. It involves all traditional and novel components of the proverbial marketing mix, but relies on "empathetic connectivity" that is simply less familiar to brand managers and budget setters. If anyone really thinks that print ads or billboards or POS are anything more these days than visual PR - they are sorely mistaken.
Social media - arguably the most "experiential" platform for the quantitative purists - to me resembles gambling on roulette. Are there strategies? Yes – a variety of them. And no matter what, with enough investment, the player (aka the brand) will recoup some of their money back over time. Even if the player gets lucky and wins big at a single spin of the wheel, their only remaining choices are to walk away (which metaphorically is not really an option) or to keep playing – which WILL result in net losses over time – as there is a inevitable threshold whereby any strategy is simply trumped by chance.
While social media marketing definitely has merit and can "measurably" bridge the gap, it cannot on its own incite the ROE inherent in live experiences. Most advertising and marketing efforts – online or offline – are difficult to genuinely convey as personalized and/or “emotional.” These days, their calls to action are likely value-based, which ironically reminds consumers of their own financial challenges and are likely (and perversely) more depressing than inspirational in the end. I hope more people begin to see that ROE is as important as ROI, and that the "intimacy" you reference IS the key piece of a winning brand puzzle – one that is as affordable and measurable as the rest.
Good to hear other people standing up for experiential marketing!
"Throw A Party!" Create and implement experiential marketing solutions (live events and online communications) that are personal and memorable such that you redirect existing and ongoing consumer affinity, participation, revenues, and loyalties to your business or brand.
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