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What Is Experiential Marketing?

A well-rounded marketing strategy is key to driving sales, but whether you’re selling cars, insurance, golf clubs or packaged goods, the backbone of any successful campaign is experiential. 

From large events to pop-ups, sponsorships to product demos, there are many experiential marketing campaigns, but they all have the same core goal: Set the table for conversions by creating lasting relationships between consumers and brands. 

Those relationships are nurtured with a strong follow-up plan featuring personalized, timely communications. According to HubSpot, “96% of marketers say personalization leads to repeat business, and 94% say it increases sales.” That personalization should include individual preferences and offer incentives to make customers feel seen and heard.

But to pull off any successful experiential marketing activation, there are a few must-haves before you get to personalized follow-ups: knowledge of your audience, a strong promotional plan, quantifiable objectives, and a seamless experience that connects the before, during and after.

Keep reading for more specifics on the importance and types of experiential marketing and tips, tools and best practices for success.

What is experiential marketing?

crm vs experiential marketing software

Experiential marketing is a strategy that engages consumers through live, immersive experiences. Unlike traditional marketing, experiential marketing turns passive audiences into active participants which builds an emotional connection with brands.

This type of marketing can take many forms, including live events, pop-ups, product demos, and sponsorships. They all have in common their ability to bring brands to life in physical settings, making abstract concepts tangible and relatable. By engaging multiple senses and tailoring experiences to individuals, experiential marketing builds deeper, more personalized relationships with potential customers.

For example, a car brand might host a test drive event, allowing participants to experience vehicles firsthand, or a beverage company might create a pop-up bar that showcases its products in a fun, interactive setting. These activations don’t just entertain—they gather valuable data and insights that brands can use to fine-tune their follow-ups and marketing strategies.

At its core, experiential marketing is about creating moments that matter. These moments captivate audiences and deliver measurable results, from lead generation to increased sales conversions. 

Why is experiential marketing important?

Brand affinity is the first step to a sale, and there’s no better way to create affinity than with experiential marketing. It engages the senses, turns ideas into impacts, and, when done well, tailors that experience to the individual. 

It’s the personalization part that creates the lasting impressions that end with conversions. HubSpot’s 2024 State of Marketing & Trends Report says, "Marketers whose brands give customers a personalized experience are 215% more likely to say their marketing strategy in 2023 was very effective compared to marketers at brands that don’t offer a personalized experience.”

And happy customers are arguably the best way to promote your product. When they're satisfied, they tell their friends and family, and that’s free advertising. 

6 experiential marketing benefits

Experiential marketing directly engages consumers with a brand's values, products, or services. By creating immersive experiences, brands forge deeper connections with their target audience and drive tangible business results.

Here are six benefits you can expect:

  1. Connection: Creating lasting memories connects people to brands on a deeper level.
  2. Differentiation: In a crowded marketplace, experiences offer a way to stand out.
  3. Personalization: Building brand affinity begins with making people feel seen, heard and important.
  4. Engagement: Real-life interactions elicit tangible reactions. Those can be soft, like social media likes and mentions, or hard, like providing first-party data.
  5. Insights: Data collection leads to actionable information about what people like and dislike about an activation, event or brand.
  6. Lead Generation: Filling the top of the sales funnel allows brands to nurture purchase journeys and turn leads into converts. 

By creating memorable experiences, brands will differentiate themselves and build a strong emotional connection with their audience.

Why experiential marketing is effective

In-person experiences engage the senses to form lasting memories. When done well, they are also the most efficient way to qualify leads, learn preferences and harvest the data needed to move people through the sales funnel.

Writes Rhett Power in Forbes: “In a sea of sameness, experiential marketing offers a powerful way for brands to rise above their competitors … [because of its] ability to transform passive consumers into active participants. Unlike traditional marketing, which often broadcasts a one-way message, experiential campaigns engage consumers in a two-way interaction.”

Experiential marketing also creates a treasure trove of valuable data. When people are engaged enough to spend their time and energy testing your product and providing feedback and contact information, they are usually motivated consumers. And the data speaks for itself:

  • 85% of customers are more inclined to buy a product or service after attending a live marketing event. 
  • 65% of customers say that product demos and live events helped them understand the product better than any other advertising method. 
  • 79% of marketers generate sales through events. Additionally, 85% of these marketers agree that events increase lead generation and sales. (Zippia)

These are just a handful of experiential marketing statistics that show the power of this strategy.

8 Experiential marketing strategies

Experiential marketing is any marketing that happens in a physical setting. Here are 8 examples to inspire your strategy.

1. Event sponsorships

From festivals to concerts to sporting events and trade shows, attaching a brand to a cultural event raises awareness.

Think about the Apple Music Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show featuring Kendrick Lamar. A massive TV audience is all but guaranteed, and so is a ton of name recognition.

Apple wants to cement its position as the leader in music streaming, and plastering its name and logo on a huge pop culture event goes a long way towards achieving that goal. 

2. Product demos 

Test drives, workshops, and interactive trade show presentations allow consumers to get up close and personal with products.

case study limelight bmw-1

When done well, they are seamless experiences with data gathering before and during the activations with personalized communications that keep brands top of mind and move leads through the sales journey.  

3. Pop-ups 

These are essentially limited-time surprises and delights that engage people in places they wouldn’t expect or in areas brands want to test out.

A recent example is the Brazilian-based beauty brand Sol de Janeiro popping up in Toronto at a new shopping center (The Well) with various interactive stations. It was smart placement for a brand looking to market itself in a tony location.

 

4. Brand activations 

lc-d23hexadome0809-6credit-little-cinema-for-nat-geo

These can do everything from raising awareness to reminding people of a brand’s product. National Geographic’s “Hexadome” installation at Disney’s D23 event in August was a great example. The goal was to remind visitors that Nat Geo is a Disney brand with a diverse content offering. The spherical theatre immersed people in shows using six giant screens, 53 speakers and a curated video and audio playlist.

5. Guerrilla marketing

experiential marketing example in toronto

Many great examples of unconventional marketing tactics involving art have surprised audiences over the years. One of the most powerful in recent memory was a campaign by Raising the Roof, a Canadian-based charity that works to combat homelessness.

One of its most famous campaigns was Nothing But Potential - "Down Here," which shocked Torontonians into thinking hard about youth homelessness and led to a surge in donations. 

6. In-store experiences

In-store experiences are a great way to introduce new products and harvest data.

Apple set the standard years ago with a simple ethos based on the classic clothing store philosophy of “try it on before you buy it.”

The entire store is essentially a dressing room with experts (the “Geniuses”) offering support and showcasing products. Apple customers can even sign up for workshops to unlock the power of their Apple products or learn how to code an app. Apple’s other leap forward was booking customer visits, which added to its data trove.

7. Mobile tours

love is blind mobile tour

These are similar pop-ups in that they bring brand experiences to consumers but are different in that they’re not one-offs. They raise brand awareness and affinity and are a unique way to gather leads.

An excellent example was Netflix’s Love Is Blind tour, which recreated the show’s pods to give people an IRL experience, including photo ops, giveaways, merchandise and even meet-and-greets with some of the show’s stars.

8. AR or VR experiences

virtual reality experiential marketing

As these technologies have matured, they’ve become powerful marketing tools, able to give consumers ever-more realistic and immersive experiences.

Travel and automotive are two sectors that have embraced these techs. VR has been successful with consumers looking to get a feel for vacation destinations or what the cockpit of a vehicle can feel like.

For more examples of inspiring campaigns, check out our blog: 20 Experiential Marketing Examples That’ll Leave A Lasting Impression.

How to plan an experiential marketing campaign

Creating a successful experiential marketing campaign requires careful planning, strategic execution, and thorough follow-up. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you design an experience that captures attention, builds connections, and drives results.

1. Understand your audience 

Different segments of potential buyers have different needs, preferences and pain points.

Understanding the audience you’re marketing to with an activation is key. You do that by gathering market research and customer data on demographics, preferences and buying behaviours to personalize activations. This ensures the experience matches their interests, increasing conversion.

2. Define measurable objectives

Clear, measurable objectives are the foundation of any successful event.

Set goals around lead generation, brand awareness, post-event follow-ups, etc. Having quantifiable objectives allows you to track performance, measure success and find areas for improvement.

For instance, if an auto brand aims to get a high volume of quality leads to dealers, marketers need to identify the best set-up and tools to quickly move people through the activation and entice them to answer a questionnaire.

3. Generate marketing buzz

A well-promoted event generates excitement and drives attendance. 

To spread the word, use multiple marketing channels like email and ads on YouTube, social media and relevant websites. Highlight what makes your experience unique — what it entails, exclusive offers, first looks at new products or limited-time incentives.

Buzz creates interest and ensures your brand is top of mind on event day. This leads to better registration and higher turnout.

4. Highlight features and benefits

Showcase the best features and aspects of the product you’re promoting.

You don’t test drive a coupe on a bumpy dirt road, you don’t captain a yacht in dry dock, you don’t cook on a barbeque indoors, and you don’t swing a golf club in a closet. Creating experiences that give consumers a true feel for your product is the best way to generate leads and drive sales. 

Adding augmented or virtual reality into a waiting area is a good way to prepare people for their experience and highlight added features or products coming soon.

5. Create a seamless experience

Optimizing activations means creating an experience that flows smoothly and leaves a lasting impression.

Add elements such as a digital check-in process, games, on-site branding and surveys. Well-trained brand ambassadors are also a must, both to answer product questions and guide interested customers through a seamless journey. 

A streamlined, engaging experience reflects positively on the brand, increasing the chances of converting.

6. Engage and nurture potential customers

Activations and events don’t just stop when people walk away; following up is critical to converting interest into sales. 

Collect contact information during the event and use it to send personalized follow-up emails, surveys, or offers. Providing tailored content based on the products they tested also keeps the conversation going. 

Remember, these people took the time to try your product, provide their information and tell you about their preferences. Engaging them with timely and relevant communications shows your brand’s commitment to their journey, builds trust and moves them further down the sales funnel.

7. Report effectiveness

You identified measurable objectives during the planning stages and tracked them using tech. After the event, show its success by reporting on key metrics like lead conversion rates and attendee feedback. Use that information to understand what worked and didn’t and adjust future events accordingly. 

Effective measurement and reporting provide ROI insights and help refine strategies to meet customer needs better, ultimately increasing conversion rates for future activations.

Final thoughts

Experiential marketing is not cheap. Brands often spend six to seven figures on activations because they know that — when done well — in-person experiences are the best marketing tool. 

Today, doing things well means implementing event tech to boost and measure results. For example, Limelight customers see increases like 56% in qualified leads, 72% in lead-to-sale conversions and 203% in sales among customers engaged at live marketing events.

That’s because slick digital and OOH campaigns are nice, but until someone gets up close and personal with a product, it’s just an idea, not a reality.

To plan your next experiential activation, follow these simple steps:

  1. Incorporate measurement tools and apps early in planning
    Identify KPIs to measure success 
  2. Define specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and timely goals
  3. Integrate event tech into the before (registration), during (seamless experience) and after (lead follow-up)
  4. Use digital tools to calculate ROI based on goals and KPIs

No matter what type of experience you’re planning, spending a little money to measure the ROI on an entire budget is the best path to success and ensuring your budgets remain robust.