Experiential & Social Media Marketing – The new BFFs*?
at 4:14 pm
*Best Friends Forever
Experiential and Social Media marketing are two mediums both trying to create a lasting relationship between brand and consumer, but can they actually work smarter, together?
Social media platforms like facebook may still remain a fad to those that have abstained from joining, and yes, you might get poked by people you barely know, and yes, you might have to delete your mum’s friend request for the 5th time!! But no matter how you look at it, social media is a fast growing platform in which a brand can successfully communicate with its target audience, in a space they feel comfortable in.
So, what’s this got to do with experiential? A brand experience is all about bringing a brand to life! More often than not this will take place within an environment that the consumer feels comfortable in, allowing them to engage with the brand on their terms and on many levels (trial / sample).
But why stop there?! A brand can be further brought to life through social media and this is where both offline and online can really benefit from collaboration. By joining forces with the online world a brand can effectively use their facebook or twitter site to share the content of a live experience with those ‘fans’ that didn’t have the opportunity to see it first hand, allowing brands to extend the life and reach of an experience for everyone.
Another key point to consider is that platforms like facebook provide consumers with two way dialogue that they crave, a voice that could prove to be an incredibly powerful tool for a brand.
Yes, we all know that if facebook were a country it would be the 3rd largest in the world…yawn. More importantly it’s a world where more often than not, you’re influenced by your peers. For example, you’ve had a positive experience with a brand first hand, so you tell the world (kind of). Whether it’s via a ‘like’ or a ‘tweet’, this can have a huge effect on what you’re friends will now think about that brand or maybe they didn’t even know about it before?! The fact that the typical facebook fan averages around 300 virtual friends, means that the reach of experiential marketing could be phenomenal!! It certainly kicks into touch the more traditional ‘advocacy model’ that experiential marketers have become so quick to rely on!
Experiential marketing & social media should definitely be new ‘best friends’, but in the fast moving world of technology I’m just not sure how long forever is!
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