Are you thinking about taking your new product on the road? Did you know? There is a season for mobile tours and engagement marketing in every state. The suitable seasons for your brand would depend on when people like outdoor activities unless you are planning to do something unique at the local mall or the subway station.
In most cases, mobile tours capitalize on the location. These typically include the places of the daily commute, local parks, busy roadsides and market areas. If you are hoping to set up a pop-up shop soon for your new product in an open space in these, then you might want to think about the convenience of your target audiences first. You don’t want them to freeze while you deliver ice cream from your truck! That would indeed not be an enjoyable experience for anyone involved.
- Planning for an event is easy. Preparing for success is what takes a lot of commitment. So this is what you need to do to plan the success of your upcoming campaign –
- What are the objectives of the new mobile campaign?
When you have a few clear objectives, it will be easier for you to plan the campaigns. The fine details of your experiential marketing strategy will depend upon the season’s business goals, the investment, the expected returns, average transaction value, target booking levels and target engagement metrics. Before you dish out the money for booking the tour, jot down the different goals you wish to fulfill through this event.
- Who is your target audience?
Whom do you want to reach through this event? Do you want to reach the hip and happening young crowd by organizing the event next to a college campus? Do you want to engage the health-conscious folks next to a yoga workshop? Are you targeting the daily office-goers by setting up the mobile truck in an office locality? The primary users of your products will determine the target audience. Without finding a target audience before setting up, you might end up at sea with tons of products but no buyers.
- Have you thought about the date and duration of your campaign?
The launch date of your campaign is crucial for you and your target customers. Firstly, you need to speak about the events on social media. Spread the news, so people know where to go for the unique experience. Secondly, tell them how long you will be there so they can tell their friends and family to visit your site as well. A significant part of the success depends upon the old-school word-of-mouth marketing. So, start planning now. You will need a good 3 to 4 months to prepare, depending on the resources you have available.
- What kind of a marketing message do you want to send?
Do not forget that mobile events always carry a marketing message. Each campaign should be able to reinforce the brand’s personality, mission, and story. Without a clear strategy to do so, you will fail to achieve customer loyalty. Customer loyalty is the only thing that keeps people hooked on a particular product from a company. There is no other reason people need to keep drinking the same coffee for a decade or use the same shampoo since childhood. However, people do so, and that is what you should be gunning for.
- What should your campaign strengthen the brand message?
Your upcoming mobile event should cover a little more than entertainment. While great experience is always necessary to drive brand recall, it cannot work alone. You need to strengthen the campaign’s message with the following –
- The core message of your business
- The brand and its personality
- The nitty-gritty of your offer
- The final call-to-action that your customers shouldn’t miss
- What are the methods/channels you should leverage?
There was a time when experiential marketing used to work alone. That was about ten years ago when people did not have Instagram to share their experience at outdoor events! Now, people love to have fun and share that with their social media friends. That gives you the chance to capitalize on the use of branded and product-based hashtags to propagate your social media campaigns. Use your engagement events to fuel your SMM strategies. Encourage people to speak about the products, brand experience, and the events. In short, let them do the talking, while you take care of quality control.
Engagement marketing is exciting, different and rewarding for everyone involved. By everyone we mean the marketers, brand managers and the target customers alike. Through location-based mobile marketing tours, people get to interact directly with one another. Real life interactive experiences are the best catalysts that power conversion and brand loyalty. A well-planned mobile tour is all you need to be able to capture the attention of the right people and keep them on your team forever.
