As head of a brand, it’s important to constantly think of ways to improve your marketing strategy. SXSW is an annual tech, film, and music festival in Austin, Texas, and draws more than 25,000 people every year. Attending this festival with your company is an excellent way to increase brand awareness, but how to capitalize on the event and get the very most out of it? Check out a few inspirational ideas:
Showcase Your Product/Service to the Right Audience
Plenty of parties happen at SXSW, and while it’s easy to think of said parties as a way to drink and have fun, some companies took advantage of the partying. For example, two years ago 3M offered to put screen filters on iPhones at the annual Mashable MashBash party. Since most attending the shindig had iPhones, there was a line of people waiting for their filters, and they tweeted about it while in line. A fantastic way to showcase a product in a crowded environment, 3M didn’t resort to desperate sales techniques, nor did they look irrelevant or completely out of touch. The company got the exposure they wanted with little effort.
Offer Convenience Consumers Can’t Turn Down
Lines are often dreadfully long at festivals, so last year PPLConnect took this annoying event aspect and made it work for them. An app company that links smartphones to computers and other mobile devices, PPLConnect enticed consumers to download their app by providing 40 people to wait in SXSW lines for them. Nice, right?
Another example of fabulous perks consumers couldn’t turn down at SXSW is the Refresh Lounge provided by Cottonelle. The lounge offered free massages, makeup touches, and even hair blowouts, all while snuggling Cottonelle pillows. An excellent idea for any makeup, hair, or massage company, going a step further could include QR codes written on pillows or other freebies as a way to score exclusive deals or sign up for digital newsletters featuring monthly coupons and the like.
Pique Consumer Curiosity
Two years ago at SXSW a company called Higi encouraged consumer curiosity by featuring cards and flyers all around the festival with the words, “Looking to score at SXSW?” Further reading of said cards and flyers pointed consumers to various health-oriented, Higi-branded kiosks where festival-goers could get their weight analyzed and blood pressure taken. Consumers most likely walked away with a few freebies and literature about the company, which perhaps inspired them to visit the company’s mobile site, like their Facebook page, etc.
These are just some examples of the unique ways to ensure marketing success at SXSW….
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