As brands increasingly respond to the growing appetite for real-world experiences from consumers, the spend on experiential marketing is on the rise. Today's Indian consumer is digitally savvy, well-informed, and actively seeks experiences over mere product features. A PWC report highlights this shift, stating that 70 per cent of Indian consumers are willing to pay a premium for experiences that create a connection. This experiential yearning extends beyond physical products; it encompasses interactions with brands and the communities they foster. Unlike conventional advertising, which often feels one-sided, experiential marketing invites consumers to become active participants in a brand’s story.
Experiential Marketing vs. Event Marketing: Understanding the Difference
Experiential marketing is often confused with event-based marketing. Although it contains elements of both, it is distinct in several key ways. Event marketing revolves around creating gatherings like conferences or product launches to promote brands. The focus is on presentations, lead generation, and immediate brand awareness. Engagement can be one-sided, with audiences passively receiving information.
Experiential marketing, however, prioritises crafting immersive experiences. Think pop-up shops, interactive workshops, or even AR/VR experiences. Engagement becomes interactive, fostering deeper connections and lasting memories. It's about the long game – building brand loyalty through positive associations.
The Cultural Context: Understanding Indian Consumers
To truly succeed with experiential and influencer marketing in India, brands must understand the cultural nuances and diverse consumer base. India’s consumers are far from monolithic; they exhibit a wide range of preferences, languages, and cultural traditions. Therefore, marketing strategies must be tailored to resonate with these diverse audience segments. This localization extends beyond mere translation; it involves understanding regional slang, idioms, and cultural references that can make a campaign more relatable and impactful.
A great case study is the ‘Share a Coke’ campaign by Coca-Cola, which personalised bottles with common Indian terms of endearment in multiple regional languages. This campaign was not just about a product; it was about celebrating the unique identities of Indian consumers. The addition of regional influencers sharing their personalised bottles on social media further amplified the campaign’s reach and impact.
Harnessing Experiential Marketing with Influencers
India's influencer marketing landscape is experiencing explosive growth. According to Kofluences’s latest 2024 benchmarking report, the influencer marketing sector has been growing at an impressive annual rate of 45 per cent, with the industry projected to reach a valuation of $2.8-3.5 billion by 2028. This, coupled with the vast number of influencers catering to India's diverse regional languages and cultural nuances, presents unique opportunities for brands seeking targeted engagement. To truly maximise the impact of influencer marketing and experiential marketing working in tandem, brands need a strategic approach that spans the entire customer journey.
Pre-Event Hype: Influencers can create a pre-event buzz through social media teasers, exclusive behind-the-scenes glimpses, and contests to win tickets. This builds anticipation and drives footfall.
Amplification and Advocacy: During the event, influencers can document their experiences, share real-time reactions, and encourage audience participation. This not only captures the event's essence but also leverages influencer trust to drive brand advocacy. Influencers showcasing products through AR/VR filters or creating immersive virtual tours of experiential events can further enhance engagement and brand recall.
Post-Event Engagement: Extend the experience beyond the physical event. Encourage influencers to create long-form content like vlogs or reviews, further amplifying the brand message.
Just last week, Kofluence partnered with Flipkart on their 'Glam Up Fest.' The campaign leveraged thousands of content creators, encompassing Mega, Macro, Micro, and Nano creators, to create a multi-layered and engaging online conversation. We further amplified the experience with immersive elements. A Social Wall Integration allowed live video stories from a plethora of influencers to be showcased virtually, extending the reach beyond the physical event and engaging remote attendees. In fact, the campaign extends beyond the event day with a structured sustenance plan to maintain interest and visibility.
Key Considerations for Brand Marketers
Know Your Audience: It all begins with understanding your target demographic. Tailor your influencer selection and experiential events to resonate with their interests, preferred social media platforms, and cultural nuances. Partnering with nano and micro-influencers for specific regions can be highly effective.
Empowering Influencers with Creative Freedom: While adhering to core brand guidelines, empowering influencers with the creative freedom to craft their own content can be highly advantageous. They possess a deep understanding of their audience and can create content that feels authentic and engaging.
Integration is Essential: Seamless integration between online and offline strategies is key. Promote the experiential event on social media channels and encourage user-generated content during the event itself, for a cohesive brand story across different platforms.
Interactive and Shareable Experiences: Design experiential marketing activities to be inherently interactive and easily shareable. Think photo booths, product trials with social media challenges, or interactive installations. This allows influencers to create meaningful engagement and encourage their followers to participate and share, effectively expanding their reach and impact
Real-Time Engagement and Feedback: Incorporate real-time engagement and feedback mechanisms. Utilise live streams featuring influencers at the event, conduct Q&A sessions, or use interactive polls to allow the influencer's audience to participate and provide feedback as the experience unfolds. This fosters a sense of community and keeps the conversation going beyond the physical event.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, the strategic integration of micro-influencers and a hyper-local focus within experiential campaigns present a compelling opportunity for brands. Partnering with influencers who possess deep cultural insights and cater to specific regions and languages allows brands to establish genuine connections with highly targeted audiences. Moreover, complementing physical events with virtual elements such as live-streamed workshops and AR/VR experiences enhances engagement and extends brand reach to tech-savvy consumers nationwide.
To accurately assess campaign effectiveness, I would encourage brands to prioritise meaningful engagement metrics over superficial measures. Tracking metrics such as website traffic driven by influencer promotions, code redemption rates from influencer-discounted offers, and sentiment analysis of consumer conversations provides valuable insights to refine strategies and optimise future influencer collaborations. This approach ensures that brands not only connect authentically with their audience but also drive tangible business outcomes.
(The author of this article is Sreeram Reddy Vanga, CEO & Co-founder, Kofluence.)
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