Experiential Marketing Is At The Backbone Of Everything We Do: Social’s Divya Aggarwal

In an exclusive conversation with Divya Aggarwal, Chief Growth Officer, Impresario Entertainment Hospitality, we delve into the innovative marketing strategies driving the success of Social. Aggarwal shares insights on the #DoosraStadium campaign, emphasising Social’s commitment to creating community-centric spaces that resonate with India's youth. She highlights the brand's unique approach to experiential marketing, hyperlocal engagement and impactful collaborations with industry giants like Nestle, Sony Sports, Netflix, Spotify and more, all of which contribute to Social's vibrant and immersive customer experiences.

Excerpts:

Can you elaborate on the inspiration behind the #DoosraStadium campaign and how it aligns with Social's brand identity?

We really celebrate it as a space where communities and connections converge. Sports is one of the important communities and cricket is one of the more important communities in India.

Our thought process is that if you're not watching it at a stadium or you're not watching it at home, then you watch it at Social, which is your ‘doosra stadium’. What do you need in a stadium? You need the food, beverages, vibe and the match to be screened. That's exactly what we try to do and that's why we call it a ‘doosra stadium’.

This year, we have also roped in a few brand ambassadors like Surya Yadav and we have created some films which are fun banter, which is in the tone of voice, of what social as a brand also stands for, which is a more youth-centric brand.

It's about people doing something together. That's the philosophy and that's how it sits in really well with our brand identity. While we are an all day cafe and a high energy bar, what we are also is a place where the communities, cafe culture, everything confluences together.

How do you ensure that the experience provided by Social's stad-yum menu and stadium-inspired décor resonates with customers?

We have created the ‘stad-yum menu’, where the dishes that we create are more shareable. The LIIT is one of the most popular drinks at Social and we have created an LIIT for each of the teams and supporting teams. We've also tied up with fan code, which is the official merchandising partner. We employ things like that, to create an overall immersive experience, rather than just doing a plain Jane screening.

Can you discuss the impact of brand collaborations with companies like Nestle, Sony Sports, Netflix and Spotify on Social's marketing efforts and customer engagement?

When we tie up with other brands, what we look at is a similar set of audiences. What we get by tying up with such brands is that we are able to do something which is more innovative, unique and in terms of impact, the brand is able to reach out to an additional audience.

For example, we were the official partners in India with Universal Music and we launched Taylor Swift's new album. We did it in two outlets, Bombay and Bangalore. It was such a thrilling experience because the ‘swifties’ community was queued up outside the outlet singing the songs together. We also did something for Dua Lipa, with Warner Brothers, for her album called radical optimism.

How does Social's hyperlocal approach contribute to understanding the pulse of Indian youth and tailoring experiences accordingly?

We have to, there is no other way for Social to work. We are 53 outlets strong right now and every outlet has a PIN code engraved in the outlet name itself. When we start thinking about the outlet, we first start researching about the hyperlocal community. That is what becomes the outlet elements and philosophy. We have something called local heroes in our menu, which is a dedication to that particular hyper-local community. When our marketing team starts thinking of how to market in that community, while you will have national campaigns like Doosra Stadium, you will always think hyper-locally. 

We have to understand the audience to market, to activate and to serve the community accordingly.

Can you share any insights into the role of experiential marketing in Social's overall marketing strategy?

In the month of January, we tied up with Nestle for the first-ever plant-based menu they launched in India. It was a co-curated menu with the insight that this is a global trend.

The ‘doosra stadium’ campaign is an immersive viewing experience. It's not only about screening, but also a multisensorial experience about what you are eating, what you are viewing. You can shop cricket-related merchandise.

I think experiential marketing is at the backbone of everything that we do and we really do take care of that in the way we market.

It's becoming essentially important, day by day, customers are experiencing more, they are becoming more aware and they're expecting it from brands like us at least. 

Pratyaksh Dutta

BW Reporters The author is a correspondent at BW Businessworld. He closely looks after the vertical of Everything Experiential and writes on experiential marketing.