Branding by experience. Who says you can't measure experiential? Experiential is one of the most measurable marketing channels when planned and implemented effectively. Even Richard Branson agrees! Find out why here.

1. Why experiential? a. Word of mouth (WOM):
The best brand strategies are the ones that find a way Few would argue that WOM is the holy grail in
to tap into people’s feelings and emotions. Most terms of ‘how’ we go about reaching our
consumers don’t just buy products, but the consumers, who according to McKinsey & Co. are
personalities and stories associated with them. This is heavily influenced by their peers. 50 to 80% of
what makes experiential a hugely important part of the consumers (category dependent) say WOM has
marketing mix. It provides a way to dazzle consumers’ the biggest influence on purchase.
senses, touch their hearts and excite them in a way
that functional benefits and product quality claims There’s no doubt that a successful experience
BRANDING BY never can. drives extensive WOM, both online and offline.
The average consumer will tell 15 people about
EXPERIENCE. Most brands know that an immersive experience or
event participation, is vital to engage consumers.
an experience - American Express. Surely, this is
a far higher quality of reach than standard TV ad
views?
WHO SAYS YOU However, they often don’t understand the real value or
potential of it, let alone how to measure it.
Fundamentally, experiential leads to longer
CAN’T MEASURE Measuring experiential relationships and increased advocacy that pays
off in terms of extended, quality reach over time.
Measurements do exist, and this is something that
EXPERIENTIAL? brands should be investing in, just as they do with
more ‘traditional’ media channels.
Marketers need to look beyond the immediate ‘activity
When planned and implemented measures’ (the number of samples, interactions and
effectively, experiential is one of the immediate sales) to measure the ‘value’ the
most measurable marketing experiential campaign has added to the brand longer
channels. term.
It might not always be possible to
measure experiential ROI in terms of “The idea that business is just a number affair has
linear £-for-£ sales, but as specialist always struck me as preposterous. For one thing,
experiential marketers, we believe I’ve never been good at numbers but I’ve done a
the longer-term impact on brand reasonable job with feelings. And I’m convinced that
value created by strategic and it is feelings – and feelings alone – that account for
the success of the Virgin brand”
engaging experiential campaigns is Richard Branson
highly measurable. And it’s these
measures, which have been proven The Lynx Fever brazilian hot mud wrestling saw
time and again to have the ultimate entire audiences of guys filming on their
Whilst it might be tempting to look at immediate sales
impact on sales. If anyone tells you mobiles and uploading to youtube, generating
as the key ROI measure, this spike will not drive long-
10,000’s views of consumer generated content
differently, well they’re talking term brand buy-in. We believe, the key measures are:
and a real post event, online buzz. Real,
nonsense. measurable, WOM advocacy.
1.Extended reach and advocacy
Read on to find out more. Look beyond the reach of the experience itself to www.theloungegroup.com/lynx-case-study/
measure two forms of extended reach generated by
experiential marketing:
thoughtreport#2

2. b. Content: • Experiential provides a direct, tangible and
memorable experience of both the brand and the The Lounge’s tips for achieving
With the rise of on-demand radio & TV services, the product or service itself. and measuring experiential ROI
question is really whether ads are even getting the • When based on real-world consumer insights, it can
1 Focus on your consumer
views and cut through. It’s no wonder then that provide consumers with a tangible benefit, which
brands such as Smirnoff are spearheading a trend builds resonance and a meaningful connection with Don’t think of your experience as a brand
towards experiential providing the ‘content’ for the brand. activity, but as a consumer benefit. Think
digital and ATL communications. • It allows more time to be spent with consumers, about what your consumer is driven by, what
observing their reactions, interacting with and they need, what motivates them and thus,
2. Quality of reach/interaction learning from them. how your brand can add real value through an
• It inspires more rapid behaviour change and action experience.
Don’t compare quantitative measures, such as
reach, with traditional media. The quality, and value, from participant 2 Know your ROI before you go live
of the interaction is totally different. Don’t create in isolation from the target
audience. Test and refine in partnership with
Our Santander your consumers to understand the likely ROI
experiential before you go live.
campaign, built 3 Think beyond immediate sales
on real consumer Sampling and immediate sales drivers can be
insight, doubled
the number of a part of the experience but more important is
school leavers the longer-term emotional engagement.
accounts opened Understanding why your brand is for them vs a
yr-on-yr for 3 yrs. competitor, will drive real loyalty. Experiential is
the most effective channel for this.
4 Encourage and motivate action
No, not just a basic coupon. Give participants a
The real impact on sales reason to continue the engagement. For Havana
We believe there are three ‘quality’ measures, which Club we set up partnerships with high end bars
will have a tangible impact on ultimate sales. These and included clever mechanics to drive people in-
should, and can easily be assessed to gauge the bar, to encourage in-home consumption and to
success of an experiential campaign: continue the dialogue online.
5 Invest in ROI measurement
Brand Perception: Don’t scrimp on measurement, it’s what will
What did they take out of the experience? What allow you to tweak and make the next
feelings did it create about the brand? iteration more successful, providing the
Consumer insight revealed that Havana Club’s metrics to the business to allow for greater
audience share the Habaneros’ mentality of Propensity to Recommend: future investment in the ultimate brand
creating what they want and need out of what Telling others about the brand in a favourable way - engagement channel.
they have – or ‘upcycling’. So we created urban increasingly important in a social media age
Mojito mint gardens in 4 cities using upcycled
items and engaging off and on-trade mechanics Purchasing Behaviour: The Lounge Group is a brand experience agency
resulting in a 49% yr-on-yr sales increase. Are they more likely to buy subsequently? that uses intelligence and insight, through our
network of 10,000 consumers, to develop effective
www.theloungegroup.com/mint ideas that connect with your audience.
Aim for and measure the longer-term value generated
for the brand as this will result in brand loyalty and
Interested in maximising your experiential ROI?
repeat sales vs an immediate but short-term sales
Drop a line to sara.gil@theloungegroup.com to
increase spike.
chat about what we can do for you.