4 Creative Brand Activations

Trade shows and conferences are wonderful things for both sales and marketing of your business (or client’s business.) However, securing the booth/table is only half the battle. Getting people to come OVER to you and then actually remember what you talked about is harder.

This is also key to making sure you get some ROI out of the sponsorship.

So how do you get attendees to engage with your brand?

You get creative! Think of it the way my college counselor (and aunt) used to instruct me wen writing my college admission essays:

Show. Don’t tell.

At the time she meant this in regard to writing, but it is the crux of a good sponsor or brand activation too.

Translation: get them involved in your (brand) story.

The way to do this is with activations that make them a part of your brand, rather than a bystander listening to you tell the story of the brand.

Ok so how do you do this? I’ve got four creative ideas from you scouted from Smart Meetings, Creative Champagne Group, VIBE Agency, and Luster that will all help make your brand sticky in the minds of attendees.

Example 1: Photo Booths … With a Twist

“Photo booths are so not new,” is what you may be thinking. And, to that end, you are correct. They’re not new. However, the way you approach them can make all the difference.

One of the reasons photo booths are so popular is because they work! Plain and simple. Guests love to take pictures with friends and share them directly on social media, so giving them that chance at your event is like shooting fish in a barrel.

However, let’s take that one step further as SmartMeetings magazine did at their recent IMEX activation in Las Vegas. What made it different? The props and printed photo put attendees directly on the cover of the magazine with a headline correlating to that of the actual issue: 2019 Planners of the Year.

Example 2: Make It Hands On (Literally)

VIBE Agency also did something similar when they took Hermés beauty advisers to Cancun for a multiday seminar to go over the newest products for the next season. Since sitting in a training seminar all day can easily make people’s eyes glaze over, VIBE’s Director Valerie Bihet set up an outdoor painting tent where attendees could paint their very own Hermés perfume bottle.

“During those training moments, we always try to find a way to make it more fun and have people remember it in a more engaging way,” says Bihet, who added that each attendee took their customized bottle home as a souvenir.

Example 3: Fully Utilize the Power of Hashtags

Every event planner knows that you need to have a custom hashtag for your event to extend the reach beyond just those in the room. However, by taking advantage of Luster’s Hashtag Printers, you can add yet another engagement options to those in the room as well.

It works like this: Attendees post an event pic on their Instagram or Twitter profiles using one of four predetermined hashtags. Luster’s technology receives the signal that the picture has been posted and mini printers deliver a photo that guests can take home with them.

The photos can also be used to create a larger mosaic image of your company logo, tagline or any other significant brand image on a designed wall of your event space.

“From personal experience, I can guarantee you, anyone who has contributed to the mosaic will be walking by regularly to watch its progress and guess what the final image will be,” says Melissa Park, a global event producer who has participated in the mosaic wall creation at multiple trade shows.

Example 4: Give Your Guests the Power

If you really want to get your guests to engage, give them the power to decide what happens next at the event via live polling. Turn your event into a Choose Your Own Adventure with a set of predetermined options (all of which your team is prepared to execute) and let guests vote which happens next. Think of it as a new twist on crowdsourcing your next step.

For instance, Park executed this via live polling at Dataworks Summit in Munich. She provided attendees of the multiday summit with the opportunity to choose what the company’s executive wore on stage during his keynote address. Options included a flamboyant Hawaiian shirt, character onesie or a pair of wacky socks.

“Because they felt part of it, our attendees filled the mobile app with images of the executive and his socks,” Park says. “The hashtag #crazysocks was even trending on Twitter that day.”

While this tactic is best suited for an all-day or multiday event logistically, it can also be applied to shorter timelines so long as your options are easy to change from one to another depending on what the crowd decides.

Whichever option you choose, the more you can provide ways for your attendees to truly connect with your brand, the more memorable your event will be along with any marketing and business purpose behind it.