At lotus823, experiential marketing is a focal point within our integrated strategies. It offers our clients the opportunity to fully connect with their audiences through experiences. And those audiences are able to provide live feedback and a strong understanding of a brand’s message.
In 2015, a number of brands made the most of these experiences in a big way.
Bud Light House of Whatever
Building on its #UpForWhatever campaign, Bud Light brought the House of Whatever to Super Bowl XLIX. Located in downtown Phoenix from February 5-7, the House of Whatever served as the location for invite-only party events held across the weekend (one event on Friday, two events on Saturday, and one event on Sunday).
Invitations were given to 4,000 winners of the #UpForWhatever video contest based on their willingness to be up for whatever while holding a Bud Light. The House of Whatever featured music performances from Nicki Minaj, Steve Aoki, Diplo, and more, arcade games, a carousel horse for painting, and a social tree displaying tweets. Plus, Bud Light rented double-decker buses to provide safe rides home.
With the success of this campaign, originally started at Super Bowl XLVIII in 2014, Bud Light also brought the House of Whatever to Spring Break with multiple activations in Lake Havasu, Arizona; Panama City Beach, Florida; South Padre, Texas; and Cancun, Mexico.
A&E’s Bates Motel at SXSW
To promote season 3 of A&E’s hit television show, Bates Motel, the network took over Austin in March 2015 during SXSW with its own fully functioning Bates Motel. With a large fan base in the SXSW audience, the faux Bates Motel was built from the ground up as an exact replica of the motel from the television show. It offered 3 rooms accommodating up to 6 guests per night. In true Bates Motel fashion, the rooms featured unique décor including fake blood, Norma Bates’ robe, and art created by the show’s fans, which was collected through a partnership with Tumblr. To tie in with SXSW, guest rooms also offered gift baskets filled with treats from local businesses, startups, and tech companies. To provide fans with the ultimate experience, a sweepstakes offering fans the opportunity to stay one night at the hotel was held each day of SXSW in the motel office.
Nestlé’s Coffee-Mate Natural Bliss Nude Baristas
In July, Nestlé took over a NYC coffee shop to promote the brand’s new Coffee-Mate Natural Bliss creamer. Calling the shop, bliss café, all of the baristas, who were actually actors, were nude, but covered with body paint. Offering free coffee at the shop, the body painted actors were meant to entice millennials and bring more attention to the topic of creamers and in this case, a new natural creamer from Coffee-Mate.
While patrons visited the coffee shop, Nestlé and its agency, 360i, were recording the interactions, which were turned into videos to be shared on various channels, including Facebook and YouTube. Nestlé branded the videos with the hashtag #NaturalBlissCafé.
See the full ad here: https://youtu.be/Zp2mEY3QtlY
What are some of the top experiential marketing campaigns you’ve seen this year? Share your thoughts in the comments below!