Hot Take: Why “Experiential” is Trending

And why the bots aren’t yet equipped to displace experiences.

BY JP Stacey – Senior Account Director , Outerkind

If I could buy stock in the use-frequency of a word by the marketing industry, I would invest in “experiential.” Here’s why.

Like the “reimagine” boom circa 2010-2020—when every brand from Dove to Capital One to Lincoln Motor Company was marketing products and services as reimagined—we see the experiential label everywhere now: experiential retail, experiential learning, experiential dining, experiential content, experiential team building. Even though experiential has been around for many decades—and agencies like ours have been executing it for just as long—it has become a commodity word in business speak, and for good reason.

Trial is king

I’ve worked in marketing and advertising for more than 15 years, and one truth I’ve found is that creative tends to attract, while trial tends to close. Markets are increasingly noisy and crowded, and products are easier to buy than ever. Many consumers get their Halloween costumes, satire, world news and health advice from the same social media channel. You can buy with one click and receive the product the same day.

Meanwhile, misinformation is on the rise, complicating and undermining trust between brands and consumers. The world is increasingly digital, but even DTC brands will tell you that the modern marketplace forces an exponentially difficult struggle to put products in front of people in meaningful ways and build relationships with shoppers and audiences.

With the speed of transactions continuously increasing, purchases are up but so are returns. This is why Amazon developed “Try Before You Buy,” why Costco will forever employ “free samples,” and why OEMs will continue to offer test drives. All five senses (plus the sixth sense, “instinct”) come into play in one experience. Immersive displays at festivals, pop-up stunts, deep digital engagements, emotional storytelling, and more prove that we are naturally social in one way or another. 

Trial is still king, and giving consumers a story to share helps create loyalists and the best form of marketing—word of mouth. That’s what experiential tactics are built to deliver on.

Empowering without interrupting

A former agency owner I worked for headlined the motto: Don’t interrupt, empower. I took it to heart. Another owner once said, “Your work-from-home better not be sitting on the couch in pajamas watching South Park.” But that’s a story for another time. 

While all forms of marketing can have interruptive characteristics, the goal should always be to find the most natural fit for consumers’ lives—to pique curiosity and guide people to choose to participate in an interaction with a brand. 

Unfortunately, that’s not the modern model; it’s a numbers game. Impressions and resonance need great frequency. As tactics evolve, I am more disheartened with what the industry forces consumers to endure—and make no mistake—so are they. Ads, with some exceptions, can be inundating, overwhelming, burdening, and relentless. That’s why I choose to work in a corner of the industry that elicits positive emotions from consumers, not irritation—no matter the tactic.

Mandatory humanity

The beauty of experience-based models, whether live or through storytelling, is that many times, the barrier is already lowered. Consumers have already decided to attend, watch, interact with, or expect your engagement. They understand the transaction. 

Another benefit is that designing meaningful experiences still requires a human perspective. Here’s what I mean:

AI prompt: Design new brand logo for Lorem Ipsum company. [hits Enter]

AI thinks, generates options…

Marketer: Meh.

AI prompt: Design new logo for Lorem Ipsum brand, which creates products that enhance outdoor adventure customers’ camping experiences. Pull in emotions: joy, happiness, excitement. Logo should visually inspire customers to push their limits outside. [hits Enter]

AI thinks, generates options…

Marketer: Hmm… okay, now we’re getting somewhere.

Yes, modern tools such as AI are making good marketing easier. You can subscribe to an AI platform such as MidJourney or Open AI and receive a decent brand logo, mission statement, interactive element—hell, even a spokesfigure—within a series of clicks if the prompts are on point. It’s not so easy with trial-based marketing. Direct engagement strategies are harder for a non-human to envision because the best ideas are designed without precedent—for instance, without something an algorithm can pull from. They require continuous oversight and pivoting. Try telling an AI that your multimillion-dollar test-drive campaign isn’t delivering results and to produce a new approach without rebuilding assets, pausing the tour, or adding budget. (AI: thinking….) You’ll likely spend more time prompting than if you took the time to retool the program mechanics in a single war-room session.

Can AI play a meaningful role in experiential? Of course. Will AI get smart enough to develop our campaigns? Likely, and likely sooner than I’d like. 

But for now, the process requires human services and messy-yet-productive working sessions. The spends are too great to risk on quick solutions, and as such, the value and expectations are higher: The clients expect more for their money, which puts pressure on the agency to think bigger, push harder, and prepare better. This dynamic creates an incredible value proposition for both parties.

All this is to say that right now my investment is in experiential methodologies. I’m excited to continue working with clients to tell great brand and product stories while giving consumers an uninterrupted, natural, and human way to experience it all for themselves.

Source: Outerkind

  Agency, experiential, JP Stacey, Marketing, Opinion Piece, Outerkind