The best event marketing campaigns

It all started with passing samples of products on the streets… Experimental, engaging marketing has gone from the edge to the great player in marketing. With events being a spectator turns into experiencing so the participant’s attention is sensitized. Check out our picks of the best event marketing campaigns to get inspired and implement the brand new event marketing strategy to your company.

Event marketing – the right definition and meaning

Event marketing is very closely connected with engagement marketing. It simply means using events in order to promote a brand, product or idea. Don’t mix the definition with promoting a certain event. We explained the nuances of the matter in the article about the misunderstanding of event marketing.

It is closely connected with emotions. Concerts, trips, exhibitions and competitions – naturally, you are experiencing different emotions. Research shows that while making a brand decision people rely more on emotions than information. In those conditions, there is a bigger probability that the company will stick in your mind and the memory will create its picture. Event marketing is a huge, and still growing, part of marketing. It is using experiences that engage the customer and create relations with a given brand, product or idea. Physical and interactive experiences, which are being more commonly used, make the potential client feels, that he is a part of the brand. Good event marketing can be something differentiating the company from the competition.

By the face-to-face experience, the company is getting the opportunity to drive brand loyalty and finally… sales. According to an EMI/Mosaic study, 75% percent of companies, with event budgets between $50 and $100 million, indicated they anticipate ROI at the level of over 5 to 1. Even marketers with smaller investment expect 3 to 1 in return.

How to create brand impact?

“Reaching people isn’t the challenge — it’s connecting with people” said Charlie Horsey from MKTG, a marketing company that specializes in event and experiential marketing for companies like Nike and Google, are perfectly showing the marketing challenges. “Tactile engagements where people can feel, touch, taste the product — rather than simply reading about it, deepen and enhance relationships.”

Mentioned before – engagement. That’s the first part, bring the idea, which is bringing the message and vision to life. But most probably you want to make an impact on the specific group of people, maybe customers, employees or cooperating company? Targeted group is the next keyword here. And multiply it by the trust that you are gaining while creating emotional connection and experience, the loyalty raised by the attendance and shared experience. It is all part of the event marketing campaign.

The most engaging event marketing campaigns

You probably also have at least one memory of a time when you felt a special connection with a brand, its product or service. In other words, you were fully immersed in the experience offered by that brand.

Let’s go together through some examples of the memorable event marketing campaigns:

Red Bull Can You Make It?

Red Bull created a competition for more than 200 students from around 60 countries across the world. The contestants have 7 days to travel through Europe and here’s the catch… They have only cans of Red Bull as currency. It is like hiring marketers to spread product all around the world and also making promo materials as videos and pictures. The emotions they are giving to the students who participate are connecting and warming the image of the brands. It is creating the relationship and giving a value, more than just a prize – memories.

Video on the website.

What was the measurable outcome for the company? The social media numbers articulated were enormous, the event garnered nearly 4 million likes and shares. Moreover, more than 16,000 cans of Red Bull were used as a form of currency throughout the week, increasing the business’s brand exposure across Europe.

PZU marathon

This marathon is an event which took place 39 times and 40th will be in 2018. Since 2018 the name is “PZU Warsaw Marathon”. Each time there is a fundraising for 1 out of 9 organizations (to help children, medicine, animals etc.). What is more, PZU is giving 10 PLN per every kilometer covered by each runner for support of Piotr Boratyński, who is waiting for the pelvic surgery.

That marathon became one of the most famous ones in Poland and mentioned insurance company is closely associated with it.

DreamForce

SalesForce is the world’s #1 Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platform. It offers cloud-based applications for sales, service, marketing, and more — log in and start connecting to customers in a new way. You can check Salesforce’s ideas on creating great customer centric experiences on their blog.
The conference created by SalesForce brings together 170,000+ members of enthusiastic customer base for a week of sessions, keynotes, networking, and intense innovation. It is a possibility to share, connect, collaborate, and inspire. What is different from other events like that is the level of entertainment and people, you can meet there. 2017 edition’s speakers were e.g. actor Ashton Kutcher, former First Lady Michelle Obama, executives from the most recognized brands and artists like Lenny Kravitz or Alicia Keys. The event offers a wide choice of really interesting activities and possibilities.

DreamForce is being called the “Super Bowl of B2B Event Marketing” for a reason, 2017 edition brought back a crowd of 170,000 attendees, including scores of Salesforce customers and partners, to the Moscone Center in San Francisco for a week.

Elon Musk & Tesla

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has sent its Falcon Heavy rocket into space… with a Tesla car. Not only did they illustrate how SpaceX could eventually use its rockets to send goods and people into space, but they also made a smart marketing ploy. The amount of media coverage around an event was HUGE. It was possible to watch the launch through SpaceX’s live stream on its website or YouTube channel. SpaceX and Tesla are receiving a lot of attention and are positively raising their brand awareness. Probably many people were unaware of the SpaceX program, Tesla or maybe even Elon Musk, now they certainly know their names. Imagine that people now talk about Elon Musk or SpaceX instead of NASA. Marketing mission throughout the streamed event – accomplished.

Wrap up

Do you want to make an impact and involve customers? Invest some time into thinking about the ways people could interact with you. What may be interesting for them and connect your brand with the public? When you give them emotions, they will be talking – spreading your brand, product or action marketing all around. However, the most important – they will feel connected.