When you think about marketing as a consumer journey, it’s very easy to immediately picture the classic sales funnel.
You know the one — ‘know’ or ‘awareness’ at the top, ‘consideration’ in the middle, then a little further down, the good stuff that translates into financial gain: ‘conversion’.
When we, as marketers, feel particularly confident in our skills we’ll add a pointy, emphasised fourth stage at the bottom of the funnel, and label it ‘advocate’ or ‘trust’.
The funnel is a tried and tested method that helps marketers to consider the psyche of a consumer from the first time they see a brand, right through to when they’re gushing over it at a dinner party (that’s right, advocate!)
But, in a world of ever-changing consumer behaviours and an unprecedented desire for experiential fulfilment, customers are wanting different ways to not only ‘know’ a brand, but to experience it.
Enter stage right, the brand activation.
In the traditional sales funnel, brand activation is likely to sit between conversion and advocacy.
However, the beauty of a great brand activation is that it fast-tracks the sales funnel altogether and creates an opportunity for personalised, one-to-one interactions with active consumers.
Point in case, the return of Adelaide’s Festival Plaza.
When Renewal SA approached Fuller to help it relaunch the former heart of Adelaide’s music and arts scene, we were asked to create a brand without a brand…and an event which wasn’t an event.
The answer? Activation.
Our job was to activate a space which had lay dormant under the rubble construction for seven years.
The space had to be seen as something malleable and ownable; something for the people and by the people.
So, rather than tell people what the space was all about and how it could benefit them to visit it, we set out to show them.
Festival Plaza Presents allowed us an ever-changing public space which demonstrated its ability to transform and flex into whatever the people of Adelaide wanted it to be.
A gourmet café? Sure! A night time live music space? Let’s do it! Family friendly games? Why not! Interactive art? Yes please! Live footy on the big screen? Absolutely.
We marketed the revitalised Festival Plaza by activating it over a six week period, allowing consumers — new and old — to be re-introduced to the space (awareness) in ways that engaged with them personally (consideration) and that encouraged them to take action – whether buying a beer, taking in the water feature or interacting with our art, music, games and more (conversion).
Those who experienced Festival Plaza Presents spoke about it, without any paid media spend required.
They shared their experience via social media; through media commentary and through feedback directly to our activation staff.
Can you see where I’m heading? That’s right — they advocated for it.
The magic of a great activation is that it doesn’t feel like marketing. And that’s what makes it so effective.
It’s inviting the consumer to the driving seat, knowing the test drive will leave them wanting more.
Build an army of brand advocates with help from Fuller’s brand strategists – we’d love to help. Get in touch today.