Marketing your brand on social media isn’t enough to get business. Hosting a brand event can help boost holiday sales. However, you don’t want to set up a booth with a logo and call it a day. You need to think outside of the box when it comes to creating a unique brand experience. This guide gives you five innovative ways to host a brand event that drives more sales.
1. Invite Influencers
Your brand event should include influencers that are relevant to your target audience and your company’s brand image. These people are social media followers who are in love with your brand. Most influencers build up a large following over the years. Invite any influencers who are familiar with your brand and are willing to share engaging posts on social media. You can also share them on your brand’s Instagram feed with their permission.
2. Give Goodie Bags
The holidays are the season for giving. What’s better than giving your customers something special? Everyone loves a goodie bag. This allows them to try your products and services. They might also spread the word about your brand to their friends and family.
Branded goodie bags are an effective way to market your business. They can include pens, coffee mugs, snacks, tote bags, and T-shirts. You might also want to set up a photo booth where attendees snap photos with your brand featured in the background.
These photos can be printed onto your merchandise and taken home with them as a token of your appreciation. This makes the experience more memorable and allows your brand to stick to their minds.
3. Host a Holiday Mixer
Have a holiday mixer that throws everyone together. This experience gets customers offline and into the real world. It encourages them to get to know like-minded people and your brand. A great thing about mixers is that they can leave feedback or offer suggestions. Most people let loose at these events and often brag about it with their social media followers.
4. Launch a Pop-Up Event
The holidays are the perfect time to host a pop-up event. You create buzz for your brand by opening a store that’s only available for a limited time. You might also want to offer exclusive offerings and promos.
This creates a sense of FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) with your audience because they don’t want to be left out of the fun — especially when word spreads on social media. You should hold a pop-up event in a heavy tourist area in your own city or destination cities such as New York City or Las Vegas.
5. Try Experiential Marketing
One last option is to give experiential marketing a try. It’s a marketing approach in which you want to create an experience for your customers. Instead of relying on traditional marketing methods, you want to involve the customer and encourage them to try something new. Some examples of experimental marketing events include interactive kiosks, product demonstrations, virtual reality in the Metaverse, or an Instagram live stream.
