There are many ways for brands to create experiences which align with their product sampling campaigns and won’t break the bank. Surprisingly not all brand experiences require a large budget to back them. Within this blog, we will discuss 5 ways to create a brand experience utilising product sampling, all with a varying budget.
Wet Sampling
When considering the best way to create an experience around your sampling activation, we would suggest providing wet samples to get an instant reaction. Running a wet sampling campaign allows you to start conversations with your consumers before asking them to leave reviews with your brand ambassadors.
As we know, tapping into a consumer’s senses helps them to remember your brand and leaves them wanting more. You can run wet sampling campaigns alone or combine them with dry samples for consumers to take home to try again in their own setting, therefore, extending the reach of the experience as they share with others.
To run a successful wet sampling campaign, you must consider food hygiene restrictions and the correct permits to ensure your product is delivered safely and within regulations. For more information and guidance, contact the team who can advise on your best wet-sampling options.
Interactive
To engage the consumer further in your campaign, an interactive/ immersive experience is key. By fully immersing your consumer into your experience, you are targeting all of their senses and building memories they will remember far past the point of activation. Including interactive aspects in your sampling will draw consumers in to try the product and spend longer engaging with the campaign.
Any in-person sampling campaign should have at least 2 brand ambassadors who, for the time of activation, become the face of your brand. They should have a great understanding of the brand and product and can share further information so the consumer feels valued and has instant satisfaction from sharing and asking for more information.
Immersive experiences tend to be high budget but also high reward when done well and will be widely spread, so your goals must be considered. If you are looking to gain wide attention and raise brand awareness plus have the budget to spend, then immersive experiences are for you.
Photo opportunities
GottaBe! always recommend considering photo opportunities. Whether that be through good branding or a dedicated selfie station. To maximise reach your campaign should consider including a dedicated selfie location where possible as these are then sharable and will take your campaign further, sharing the experience with those who weren’t there. We know from activation trends that user-generated content will become massive talking points throughout 2023. User-generated content creates social proof within your product; people are seeing their peers using your product
As the world becomes more digital, it must also become more shareable, and by making this enticing for your consumers, your brand is more likely to increase word-of-mouth referrals. Expanding your reach through your audience is also likely to see your brand reach a look-a-like audience, as your consumer’s needs tend to cross over with their friends and family.
Photo opportunities don’t have to be expensive or use large amounts of budget! They just have to entice the consumer to share your campaign.
Competitions
By running competitions, you can utilise a number of additional marketing channels at a low cost. Depending on your activation and goals, it can be simple to run a competition. For example – ask consumers who visit your product sampling campaign in person to share their experience with your product online for the chance to win. This tactic promotes word-of-mouth referrals, therefore, increasing awareness from trusted sources, all at a relatively low-cost (depending on your choice of a prize). Your brand can then set perimeters of the competition depending on your goals. Within a competition, your brand can collect UGC, raise brand awareness and showcase brand personality.
As always, you should ensure that competitions are run within guidelines and the T&Cs are clear to the consumer.
Take your activation to your audience.
GottaBe! recommends targeting festivals and celebrations with your product sampling where appropriate as you are not only showcasing your product to the consumer but showcasing the life they can have with your brand included. By targeting an event you are showcasing to the consumer that you fit into their lifestyle so your product or service is a must. GottaBe! often help our clients reach their target audience through targeted locations.
Offering product samples can generate a lot of buzz which transfers into word-of-mouth marketing, adding to the existing experience of a celebration or festival; your brand experience will become a core memory.
Targeting an audience based on the event will also give you a good indication of the audience you are trying to reach, by going directly to your audience, the activation is, therefore, more rewarding and should see a better ROI.
Want to improve your brand experiences and include product sampling? Then get in touch. The team have the solutions to your marketing needs.
