Experiential marketing is the new (and perhaps, the only) way to do events. Therefore, it’s right to say that this is the time to deliver an experience and not just an event to attendees.
My event must stand out! – Follow this motto and you are halfway there in creating a memorable experience (rather than simply an event) that will be etched in your audiences’ mind for a lifetime. And in order to make this happen, you can look at integrating the following trends into the experience you create:
Augmented Reality
Up until now, it’s just been big events where Augmented Reality has been utilized to create rich experiences for attendees, but this year even smaller events will get a chance to taste the wonders of AR and connect with their audience on a personal level. And trust us, leveraging this cutting – edge innovation will take your audience’s experience to a whole new level.
Crowdshaping
Post – event surveys are what every event organiser does in order to get an insight on how their event actually performed and what more he/she can do to improvise for future events. However, what if you could obtain all this data in real-time and enhance your attendees experience there and then!? Yes, that is possible now! Welcome to the era of crowdshaping. Subtle but impactful, this passive technique is going to be the next big thing in organising a more effective & efficient event.
Social Media Integration
Live stories, influencers, campaigns and what not! Social media is booming with something new every other day. With the majority of the people acquiring even their daily dose of news from social media and considering the reach & speed with which everything escalates on social media, this integration is a must if you want your event to reach far & beyond.
Personalisation
Personalisation is going to be one of the biggest assets of your experiential marketing strategy this year. With cutting – edge innovation being readily available to everyone, it’s your brand’s personal touch that will differentiate you from others. However, that does not mean that you bar your event from tech entirely. What we mean here is that a perfect mix of tech and personal touch is key. If you’re a client, make sure you are joining hands with an event organiser who perfectly knows how to blend these two factors, and you are surely going to be greeted by an effective event.
Budget Allocation
Just going with the trend does not make an event effective. Thus, a careful allocation of budget to respective event activations is necessary in order to derive maximum efficacy and Return on Investment (ROI).
Digital VS Physical
With everything and everyone going digital right now, the convergence of digital marketing strategies with physical will be one of the most sought – after trends in 2018 to develop a 360 degree experiential connect.
Integration of Mobile & Technology
Given that this is the age of heads – down generation, how can this not be one of the leading trends in creating an effective experiential event!? And if you want to continue to be a part of this race then integrating mobile & technology into your event operations is a must.
Data-driven Experiential Marketing
No experience can be established without well – focused planning and study for which the collection & analysis of that data of your past events is a must. It has the potential to help us predict future behaviours. It is one of the most embraced trends of 2018 and is going to gain a prominent role in event planning in the years to come.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Chatbots
Artificial Intelligence & Chatbots will cut off a huge chunk of your workload, with chatbots being used for immediate communication with attendees, giving prompt answers to the queries etc. AI can even cover a wide spectrum of mechanical work right from registration to providing assistance to the attendees; thus, saving a huge amount of time & energy of your team without affecting the quality of the experience that you aim to deliver.
Convergence of Real and Virtual Experiences
This was bound to happen one – day considering human’s growing habitude towards the virtual world and 2018 is that year of convergence. Various technologies are being used to concentre AR, VR, AI etc. with other physical, real – life experiences. And that day is not far away when this trend will become a usual, every-day part of experiential marketing strategies.
We at Shobiz are always ready to embrace new challenges, master them and then apply them to event marketing plans thereby delivering a stellar experience.
Cheers!
Shobiz Creative Corner