Top 5 strategies to execute a successful experiential marketing event

REEFExperiential Marketing Blog
successful event
Events are a tested and trusted method of building consumer relationships and creating hype and awareness around a brand. They aim to establish positive connections between attendees and a company that’ll translate into warm lead generation. However, not all experiential events are made equally, which is why you’ll want to consider a few critical elements if you want your marketing efforts to be successful. Here are the top five things to keep top of mind when organizing a stellar experiential event: 

Audience

Your target audience should be the first factor to consider when planning a successful event. Your event attendees will drive your event towards specific tactics and engagements to positively impact your key audience. Your key audience could be your current buyers – the audience that typically attracts to your brand – or a new audience that you’re trying to connect with. Regardless, by learning about the experiences your target demographic is looking for, you can better execute a highly-engaging event to help you achieve your company objectives.

Location

Location is key when hosting a successful event, and there are a lot of venue-related factors that will contribute to the quality of your attendee’s experience. First, did you choose an accessible location? Your attendance levels may be low if you select a location that does is not easily accessible to the demographic you are trying to encourage to attend. Likewise, you’ll want to make such your venue supports the anticipated amount of guests and target demographic as well. Things to consider include parking, public transit access, and maximum capacity as well as the trendiness of the venue.

Timing

When do you plan to host your event? Not only do we recommend avoiding major holidays where people would otherwise be busy, but it’s also important to consider what other events are going on in the area around your ideal time. If your event is competing with several others of similar design, then you will see attendance numbers lower than expected. Also consider the weather around that time of the year. Whether people will be at work during the times of your event and whether the date/ time of the year fits the theme.

Data Capture

The last thing you want is for attendees to go to your event and then completely forget their interactions with your brand or product. To keep this from happening, you’ll need a way to stay in touch, thank them for attending, remind them to stay connected with your brand and keep them up to date with future happenings. Lead capturing onsite along with following up directly from the event, can help with this. Regardless of your event, lead capturing is crucial when turning event attendees into loyal customers.

Drive Social Sharing, LIVE, from your event

Event success is measured in a variety of ways; these can include the level of attendance, quality of interactions between guests and staff, how many units of products were sold or sampled at the event or how much revenue or new business gained. If your goal for the event is simply brand exposure, you may choose to measure success by your social media mentions or new followers on Facebook and Instagram. Creating custom hash-tags and integrating unique photo opportunities or experiences drive social sharing and engagement, allowing you to add more KPI’s to track the success of your event. Hosting a successful event can be a delicate balance between appeasing your guests and creating meaningful impacts that’ll translate into long-term revenue if you lack the staff and resources to manage the juggling act, trust an event marketing company to bring your brand to life in an exciting way. The marketing team at REEF Agency has 15+ years of experience creating custom experiential programs, experiences, and events for top tier brands in Canada and the US for a variety of industries. Connect with REEF Agency today to learn how an experiential event can connect you to new and loyal consumers, for long term brand growth.