Ever noticed a fruit seller offering a slice of watermelon or a mango to taste before buying it? Or have u been on a test drive in your favourite car you wish to buy Or smelt the aroma of Bru Coffee on a newspaper? Yes! Am pretty sure most of us have witnessed one or two such instances which prompted us to make a purchase decision. Well these are typical examples that we generally come across every day which is called Experiential Marketing.

What is Experiential marketing?

It is one of the marketing approaches used by marketers to create brand awareness in the minds of the consumers either through tangible or intangible experience by emotionally connecting them with the product in order to convince them to buy it. Experiential marketing works basically on this idea where favorable experiences that is shared through word of mouth can help in converting potential customers to loyal customers by the repeated purchase they make.

Examples of Experiential Marketing!!

Adidas, the leading footwear brand used this strategy to promote its limited edition Derrick Rose’s signed sneakers where the fans were asked to jump atleast 10 feet high to win a free sneaker. In Indian context experiential marketing is catching up at a steady pace. Homeshop18, Indian ecommerce player launched a virtual shopping wall in Delhi Airport where the buyers can scan the QR codes of products they wish to buy and pay later through Cash on Delivery. Similarly, Asian Paints also launched the experience store — ‘Color with Asian Paints’ which allows the consumers not only to select the colors for their homes but also decide on the home décor. (Source: Afaqs)

Statistics:

One of the studies from marketing week says that 50% of consumers find experiential marketing more effective than any other forms (Source: afaqs). Few other statistics about this innovative form of marketing shows:

1. 75% of Customers say it is extremely influential about the overall opinion of brands and products.
2. 80% Teen aged respondents said it would increase & quicken purchase decision.
3. 75% of Women respondents said they would tell others about their experiences.
4. 72% who are aged between 18–23 said it would make more receptive to the brand. (Source: Prezi)

The numbers above indicate how the experiences associated with the brand can help instill a positive brand image in the minds of the consumers who can either make repeated purchases or encourage others to buy the product.

To Conclude:

Like any other marketing communication means, experiential marketing specifically aims to create a connect between the consumers and the brand through a memorable experience & urge them to buy and create value for money. But all experiences cannot be expected to be positive, sometimes it can be negative or biased which can lead to a negative word of mouth that will hugely impact the brand and the potential buyers. Experiential marketing is considered as the future of marketing campaigns and to further enhance the experiences technologies like Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, etc has much more to offer in this space.