By 2021, spending on digital marketing in the U.S. is predicted to reach almost $120 billion. But winning in today’s digital marketing world means investing in quality, not quantity. People don’t just want marketing — they want an immersive experience.
Can you offer an experience that people will remember, and that will drive them to take action? If you’re not sure where to start, let us help. We’ve pulled together some of our favorite ways to create immersive experiences through marketing — read on for our top strategies.
Try Giveaways That Go Beyond the Norm
Every brand knows about promotional giveaways, and some may even get good results from them. But to turn a giveaway into an immersive experience, you need to go above and beyond.
The right giveaway will get people talking about it and interacting with it right away. It won’t be something that people stick in a drawer and save for later.
Just what that item will be will depend on your brand and budget. For example, a fashion brand could give away a selfie light for smartphones that will get people snapping pictures in the moment.
Or, instead of giving out merchandise branded with your logo, you could try printing an enticing branded caption on your items, like “FORGET TRADITIONAL DESIGN SITES THAT FREEZE YOUR MESSAGE!” That’s sure to get people talking and asking questions.
Create Sharable Moments
Another reason those two giveaway ideas work so well is that they’re easily sharable on social media. To make immersive experiences memorable, your audience needs to be able to turn them into digital experiences by posting online.
Make the experience fun for people, and make them feel special. For example, you could have a photo-ready pop-up exhibit that will entice people to take selfies in front of it. People shouldn’t just be viewing the experience — they should be taking an active part in it.
Excite the Senses
One great way to create an immersive user experience is to get the senses involved.
For example, creating experiences around food often works well, since food involves taste, smell, and even sight. (Who doesn’t love to photograph a well-presented dish?)
However, the more senses you can involve, the better. What will the experience look like? Sound like? Feel like?
Keep in mind that although immersive experiences are a part of digital marketing, they don’t have to happen just digitally. Your goal is to hook people in person, then keep them sharing the experience in the form of digital content.
Rich, sensory experiences are a great way to make this happen. You can also transform an in-person experience into something digital, such as by capturing an immersive 360-degree video of the moment.
How an Immersive Experience Can Boost Your Brand
An immersive experience should feel equally cool and exciting for the people creating it as it does for your customers. These experiences aren’t just rewarding for your brand — they’re also incredibly fun to create.
When your audience sees the joy that went into creating that moment, they’ll want to follow your brand. This will cultivate the customer loyalty that every brand wants to see.
From pop-up events to 360 videos, you have many options for creating immersive experiences. And for more inspiration and tools to create these experiences, make sure to check out our Tech News section regularly!