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Category: Experiential Marketing

Come on, Barbie, Let’s Go Market!

Posted on by Sarah

Experiential Marketing

Rendering of a Barbie themed pink airstream with a water slide a pool and people enjoying the event.

There’s no doubt about it — Barbie is back. Everyone’s favorite childhood dream girl is hitting the big screen on July 21, and the hype has people of all ages seeing pink.  

The Barbie movie represents an iconic moment in pop culture because Barbie herself is iconic (so is the movie’s cast). But also, because the experiential marketing surrounding the release of such a renowned brand has created enough buzz to have people longing for the days when they could spend their afternoons pushing Barbie around in her dream car instead of “circling back” and “following up” on emails. 

Just like FTP, Barbie is known for her collection of show-stopping vehicles. Her history with hot wheels dates a little farther back than ours, as Mattel gave Barbie her first ride in 1962 when they introduced her Austin-Healey convertible. 

Since then, Barbie has been behind the wheel of a host of other larger-than-life cars, like:

  • Barbie’s 1971 Country Camper: Barbie wasn’t just about girly dresses and bows — she enjoyed the great outdoors, too. The groovy, original camper captured the era’s emphasis on peace and love, and everyone loved seeing the adventurous side of the notoriously posh girly girl. If FTP were in charge of hitting the road in this vehicle, we’d have it serving up timeless classics like hot dogs and s’mores to reel in crowds across the country.
The cover of the 1971 Barbie Country Camper toy
  • Barbie’s Limos: When she wasn’t embarking on a cross-country road trip, Barbie knew how to enjoy the finer things in life. She also knew that the finer things in life were better in hot pink! We agree that if you’re going to make a statement with a limousine, you might as well go big or go home.
The Barbie Limo toy with the top opened for display
  • Barbie’s Corvette: Barbie’s Corvette was by far her most recognizable dream car. It’s the vehicle featured in the Barbie movie trailer and a model that was continuously upgraded year after year. We can’t think of anything more fitting for Barbie to hit the town with her friends in than this one.
Multiple angles of the Barbie Corvette toy including the packaging

It’s clear that Barbie and FTP have similar tastes in cars, and we’re no strangers to creating one-of-a-kind experiences on wheels that feel like they’re straight out of a fantasy. Nothing would make us happier than fabricating a vehicle to help Barbie paint the town pink. 

Since Barbie was a little too busy with her Hollywood debut to ask us to build her a car, we took it upon ourselves to dream up Barbie’s dream car on our own. We weren’t about to miss this monumental marketing moment (experiential marketing is our thing, after all), so we jumped on the Barbie trend to create an activation worthy of the “it girl” on everyone’s mind — whether she asked us to or not. 

A guest and brand ambassador conversing inside of the Barbie mobile pop-up truck
Barbie mobile pop-up display case showing a variety of Barbie attire and accessories.

Barbie is definitely going to need to unwind after all the hard work she put into her movie. If you ask us, adding FTP’s Barbie’s Dream Airstream to her collection would be the perfect way for her to enjoy some much-needed R & R while promoting her movie on the road. So, Barbie, if you’re reading this, let’s go market! 

Get in touch today to get started on your own project with Food Truck Promotions.

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Beat The Heat With A Summer Brand Activation That Connects With Your Consumers

Posted on by Claudia

Experiential Marketing

Contents

  1. Why Summer is the Best Season for Experiential Marketing
  2. Summer Brand Activations That Will Bring Sunshine
  3. Tips For a Successful Summer Activation
  4. Dive In

June through September is a time when most people hit the beach and soak in the sunshine— and for brands, summer marks the start of special promos, content marketing initiatives, and media campaigns that are all meant to connect with their sun-kissed consumers.

One of the most effective ways to capitalize on the lively, upbeat summer vibe and stand out from competitors during this hectic marketing period is by creating immersive brand experiences via experiential marketing.

Experiential marketing creates unique, fun experience that leave meaningful connections with buyers during warmer, happier months of the year.

That said, here are ideas and tips that will help you put on a summer activation that strengthens your existing connections with your consumers while forging new ones!

Why Summer Is The Best Season For Experiential Marketing

Of all the seasons, summer is the absolute best time for an experiential marketing campaign. Here’s why:

The weather is suited for outdoor brand activations

This almost goes without saying, but nobody wants to check out your pop-up in the freezing rain! You’re far more likely to see success with your activation if the weather is nice and people are out and about.

More events for your brand to leverage

Summer is packed with outdoor concerts, music festivals, food tastings, parades, and more, which opens the door for your brand to catch pedestrians’ eyes with a brand activation that leverages the action-packed summer season. 

Consumers are more likely to positively associate your brand with summer fun

We all know how brands use an emotional connection to connect with consumers, creating some sort of appeal to emotion to influence a potential customer’s decision-making process. In the summer, however, the leg work is done for you! People feel more outgoing and sociable when the weather is nice, so be sure to capitalize with an eye-catching activation to connect those feelings to your brand. 

Summer Brand Activation Ideas That’ll Bring The Sunshine

We work with brands across all industries— fashion, beauty, tech, and more—  to produce summer activations and pop-ups that stop beach-goers in their tracks and create immediate brand engagement. 

If you’re considering a summer activation, here are some examples you can pull inspo from:

HEAD ON A PRODUCT SAMPLING TOUR ACROSS THE US

ACTIVATE YOUR BRAND AT PRIDE FESTIVALS DURING PRIDE MONTH

PARK A MARKETING VEHICLE STOREFRONT TO DRIVE CONSUMERS TO POP-UP

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BRAND A FOOD TRUCK AND HAND OUT ICE CREAM AROUND CITY

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Tips For A Successful Summer Brand Activation

Consider location/markets 

Is there a special outdoor event or festival taking place in a specific market? In which neighborhoods or areas can you best reach your target audience? Ultimately, how does city A measure up against city B? Are there any differences in acquiring permits and licensing between the locations?

Think about the weather

Take Miami as an example. Miami is warm year-round, and during the summer, there are certain periods where it gets rainy mid-afternoon or it’s too muggy.

Incorporate summery imagery and themes into your brand activation 

Create an association between your brand and the summer vibe/aesthetic. 

Hire brand ambassadors 

If you have room in your budget, hire brand ambassadors to put a human touch on your brand. 

Be deliberate in your vendor partnerships 

Perhaps there’s a local floral or ice cream business that receives extra attention during the summer; if there is, work with them!  

Time To Dive In

Summer brand activations are guaranteed to create meaningful connections with your consumers. 

Whether your goal is to amplify brand awareness, gain email subscribers, or simply execute a celebratory PR stunt, the impact of curated, face-to-face experiences with your consumers cannot be understated. 

With the help of summer pop-ups, mobile tours, showrooms, and dynamic event marketing experiences, there isn’t a single business goal that can’t be reached. 

Interested in working alongside an experienced, visionary experiential marketing agency to pull off the greatest activation of the summer? Reach out to our team today! 

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The Ultimate Guide To Pride Month Marketing in 2023

Posted on by Claudia

Experiential Marketing

June marks the beginning of Pride Month. Over thirty days, Pride Festivals pop up across the country in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Miami, and more, creating a series of local events where thousands of people are invited to come together and show their support for the LGBTQ+ community. 

Because there is so much built-in excitement and emotion attached to Pride Month, from a marketing perspective, June makes an excellent time to execute a campaign that communicates your brand’s inclusivity and successfully connects with the LGBTQ+ demographic (consumers that hold an estimated 9.7 billion to 1.4 trillion dollars of purchasing power in the US alone). The challenge, however, is tapping into this target demo authentically and memorably. 

As we head into Pride Month, here’s everything you need to know about developing a marketing strategy that leaves a positive, lasting impression on your queer consumer base. We’ll begin by covering why Pride Month marketing is essential, and then dive into the ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’ that will act as your ultimate guide for Pride Month marketing in 2023.

WHY PRIDE MONTH MARKETING IS ESSENTIAL

Pride Month marketing is essential because it’s an opportunity for your brand to show empathy, creativity, and authenticity. Not only does the LGBTQ+ community make up a significant percentage of consumers worth marketing to, but the queer community is also a historically marginalized group that should be championed by institutions, your brand included. When it comes to empowering the LGBTQ+ community, you don’t want to be the company that misses out. 

Pride Month is the ultimate opportunity to flex all of your muscles and create a campaign that truly stands out.  

WHAT NOT TO DO WHEN YOU'RE LEVERAGING PRIDE MONTH

As effective as Pride Month marketing can be, it’s crucial to know what not to do when you’re leveraging this time of year to drive business growth. Rule #1? Don’t be inauthentic.

Many companies have experienced first-hand that any kind of perceived inauthenticity can be detrimental to your brand image, as in the case of these 7 brands in 2022.

There’s nothing wrong with acknowledging the LGBTQ+ community as a sizable part of your consumer base and creating marketing tactics that specifically target this audience; however, appealing to this demographic can be seen as problematic when companies are simply monetizing the rainbow (and other gay imagery) instead of demonstrating actual inclusivity— a practice otherwise known as ‘rainbow washing.’

WHAT IS RAINBOW WASHING AND HOW CAN MY BRAND AVOID IT?

Rainbow washing refers to a phenomenon in which companies “use or add rainbow colors and/or imagery to advertising, apparel, accessories, landmarks in order to indicate progressive support for LGBTQ+ equality but with a minimum of effort.” 

It’s a type of performative activism, in which companies support a cause or issue to garner attention, support, or monetization from others rather than actually caring about making a difference in the cause. 

The best way to avoid falling into this marketing mishap is by ensuring that your campaign checks off one, or all, of these things:

  • BE PERSONAL. 
  • SPOTLIGHT GENUINE PRO-INCLUSION COMPANY POLICIES.
  • INCLUDE A CALL-TO-ACTION.
  • DONATE TO RELEVANT ORGANIZATIONS OR CHARITIES.
  • DON’T IGNORE THE QUEER COMMUNITY THE OTHER 11 MONTHS OF THE YEAR.

EXPERIENTIAL PRIDE FESTIVAL MARKETING IDEAS FOR YOUR BRAND

As mentioned before, being personal is one of the best ways to avoid rainbow washing, which is why experiential marketing is the go-to Pride Month marketing strategy. The face-to-face nature of experiential marketing, via pop-ups, showrooms, marketing tours, mobile billboards, etc. can be extremely impactful, especially during a time when so many companies are executing their own campaigns.

Going beyond just branding your products or logo in rainbow colors for the month, developing an experiential marketing strategy shows you’re making an effort to meet and connect with your LGBTQ+ consumer base. This goes a long way. 

ZARA WORLDPRIDE 2019: HYDRATE AND CELEBRATE

Take the case of Zara at WorldPride 2019. The brand made an appearance at the NYC Pride Festival with a glass truck display of rainbow water bottles. However, instead of simply adopting the rainbow aesthetic, the brand had Zara brand ambassadors on-site to hand out the JUST water bottles to the parade-goers, helping people “hydrate and celebrate” while meeting their LGBTQ+ consumers face-to-face and creating meaningful connections.

The practical (who isn’t thirsty on a hot summer day in NYC?) and interpersonal nature of Zara’s Pride Festival activation made all the difference: the brand played an active role in the festival, instead of superficially or overtly leveraging the hype to their own advantage, and that showed through in over 1M impressions.

Pride Month Marketing Wrap Up

Though Zara’s appearance at WorldPride 2019 is an excellent example, there’s no one size fits all to Pride Month marketing. In fact, a large part of what makes this time of year so exciting is that it’s an opportunity for brands to showcase their creativity by developing and executing unique marketing initiatives that truly resonate with an often misunderstood and historically marginalized group.

One of the absolute best ways to target your LGBTQ+ consumer base is through experiential marketing. The face-to-face and completely customizable uniqueness of experiential marketing is inherently emotional and genuine, and it gives you the chance to connect in real-time to your LGBTQ+ consumers, especially when you make an effort to appear at a Pride Festival with a contribution to the day/cause. 

Interested in producing a brand activation this June? Reach out to our team. 

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Top 5 Cities For Your Summer Mobile Marketing Tour in 2023

Posted on by Claudia

Experiential Marketing

Brands know that experiential marketing is invaluable, which is why in recent years, mobile marketing tours have boomed in popularity. Companies across all industries have discovered that mobile marketing tours can serve an array of business goals, such as driving brand awareness, delivering eye-catching PR stunts, strengthening existing relationships with consumers, and so much more. As summer comes around, the nice weather makes it the perfect time to visit cities nationwide.

But, before your brand can hit the road in a marketing vehicle, you need to decide which cities are best suited for an effective campaign. As experts in the industry, we know first-hand that choosing brand activation spots is one of the most crucial parts of planning a mobile marketing tour. 

So without further ado, here are our top five city recommendations:

NEW YORK, Ny

At the very top of the list is New York, New York.

In terms of population and density, no city in the US can compete with the “Concrete Jungle.” Hitting NYC on your mobile marketing tour will guarantee a significant reach for brands in all industries. One of the many perks of choosing NYC as a tour destination is that it’s the most diverse city in the US, so you will undoubtedly connect with whoever your target audience is, whether that be young single women in their 20s, artists, higher-ups in finance, vegans, the LGBTQ+ community, dog-walkers or athletes.

One important thing to note is that when you partner with an experiential marketing agency in NYC, they can help you choose neighborhoods based on specific demographics and also help you navigate iconic spots like Time Square, Soho, 5th Avenue, and the WTC. Their market knowledge is invaluable in this bustling city of 8 million people.

Special Recs: Herald Square, SoHo 

Summer Events: Governors Ball, New York Pride, Electric Zoo

CHICAGO, IL

Because Chicago is home to some of the harshest winters in the US, this Midwestern city is a prime location to visit during the spring and summer months. With the extreme and anticipated change in weather, there is never a lack of foot traffic when it finally gets warm out. Bustling streets open the door for your brand to produce an activation that resonates with your target audience. Not to mention, Chicago is the third largest US city by population, so you’re guaranteed to have a massive reach when you choose this city as a summer mobile marketing tour spot. 

Special Recs: Michigan Avenue, Wrigley Field, Lincoln Park, Lakeshore Path

Summer Events: Lollapalooza, Chicago Pride 

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LOS ANGELES, CA

Next, there’s Los Angeles: home of celebs, influencers, and the newest trends. Where better to stop on a mobile marketing tour than in a city that is all about innovating, creating, and pushing boundaries? Many brands choose to bring their brand to LA because they know that LA is home to whatever’s next: if your brand can make an impression here, it’s only a matter of time until the whole country is talking about your brand or products. There’s also an abundance of locations that make perfect activation spots, such as Venice Beach, Santa Monica, and West Hollywood! 

Special Recs: The Grove, Venice Beach, Melrose Trading Post 

SAN FRANCISCO, CA

Though located in California, San Francisco provides different marketing opportunities than LA because the culture and demographic in this northern city is so distinct. While LA is known as the entertainment capital of the US, San Fran is famous for its booming tech industry, significant LGBTQ+ community, and sizable Asian demographic. Stanford University is also located nearby in Palo Alto, which means you can target Gen Z and college campuses when you head to the Bay Area too. So as a mobile marketing tour stop, you reach a significant and particular audience when you stop in SF!  

Special Recs: Civic Center, Golden Gate Park

AUSTIN, TX

Austin is one of the fastest growing cities in the US, drawing people in with its lively nightlife scene and picturesque parks and landscapes. This city makes a particularly effective mobile marketing tour location when brands are targetting young audiences and/or people in the tech industry. Keep in mind, too, that Austin has pretty agreeable weather year-round, so while summer is an excellent time to hit multiple cities across US, your brand can head to Austin year-round.

Recs: Rainey Street, 6th Street, Zilker Park 

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More Information on Summer Mobile Marketing Tour Locations

For more information on these locations or other locations near you, contact us here at Food Truck Promotions and we’ll get you started.

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Mother’s Day Experiential Marketing Campaign Ideas For 2023

Posted on by Claudia

Experiential Marketing

When many of your consumers are Mothers, they deserve to be celebrated in a bigger, better, and more beautiful way than your competitors. That’s why Mother’s Day is the perfect opportunity to turn to experiential marketing. 

Whatever your industry, Mother’s Day experiential marketing campaigns are the perfect way to complement a larger marketing strategy (social media, email marketing, TV commercials, online promos etc.) by creating a true emotional connection with your female demographic.

If experiential marketing is out of your wheelhouse, don’t worry. Our team of experts knows exactly how to help your brand stand out from the crowd.

Here are five creative ideas for your Mother’s Day campaign that are sure to strengthen brand-to-consumer relationships and forge new ones. Let’s get started! 

1. HAND OUT FLOWER BOUQUETS

Nothing screams ‘Happy Mother’s Day’ like a beautiful bouquet of flowers.

A flower giveaway is a thoughtful way your brand can show appreciation for its women’s customer base while acquiring new consumers.

For example, take last year’s ShopRunner and Coach collab. Last May, the brands teamed up and put on a Mother’s Day promotion to #GiftMomBack giving out free, branded flower bouquets from a mobile pop-up in Soho. To ensure this promo directly benefited the ShopRunner brand, there were QR codes designed onto the pop-up shop itself, brand ambassadors’ necklaces, and bounce-back cards that sent people to sign up for the ShopRunner app in real-time.

Over three days, this Mother’s Day campaign resulted in more than 2,500 subscriptions for the ShopRunner app, showing how far a bouquet can go with consumers.

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2. INTERACTIVE CHALKBOARD EXPERIENCE with photo-ops

Mother’s Day is all about telling moms ‘I love you,’ so why not let people write why they love their moms so much on a chalkboard outside your pop-up shop? Tia did something similar to celebrate the opening of their Santa Monica office with the glass board depicted below.

Allowing your consumers to interact with one another, and your brand, through thoughtful messages is a great way to play on the Mother’s Day spirit. This drives positive brand associations that will make a long-lasting impact on business success. You can even prompt the board with questions like, “What’s your favorite memory with your mom?” or “Why is your mom the best?” to get the conversation going.

A little girl using marker to write on a glass board at Tia's pop-up

3. BRAND A MARKETING VEHICLE IN FEMININE COLORS ASSOCIATED WITH MOTHER'S DAY

Marketing vehicles are extremely effective for driving business goals. From food carts to glass trucks, experiential vehicles are known to be very adaptable and can be customized to meet many different needs.

When it comes to Mother’s Day, your brand can exude the feminine spirit by flaunting an eye-catching mobile billboard, showroom, pop-up shop, etc. in fitting colors. 

How you choose to design your vinyl is entirely up to you, leaving a lot of room for creativity and connection with your audience! 

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4. GIVE OUT FREE COFFEE AND A BRANDED TOTE

What busy moms need more than anything else are a cup of coffee and a bag to keep them energized and on-the-go. This Mother’s Day, you can be the brand that helps moms do it all by handing out complimentary coffee and branded totes.

These gifted items are a straightforward, low-cost way of connecting with your women target audience during a special time of the year. To make certain that your brand will benefit from this promo, you can even incorporate a call-to-action where consumers are asked to sign up for email subscriptions or download your app in order to receive the free goodies! 

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5. PROFESSIONAL MAKEOVER USING YOUR BEAUTY PRODUCTS

If you’re a beauty or skincare brand, your target audience is largely women, making Mother’s Day a prime opportunity to drive brand awareness, host a product launch, or acquire new customers through a unique experiential marketing campaign.

One way you can accomplish these goals is by allowing consumers to sample your beauty products with a professional makeover! 

For instance, when e.l.f. Cosmetics wanted to shed a light on their Halo Glow Liquid Filter, they hosted a mobile pop-up shop in Soho where consumers could line up to get their makeup done by celebrity Lea Michele or professional makeup artists from the e.l.f. team.

This interactive element goes a long way compared to just free samples to-go. So, if you’re marketing a skincare or beauty line, you should definitely consider a way to incorporate an educational, interpersonal consumer experience into your Mother’s Day promotion.

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TIME TO SPREAD THE LOVE THIS MOTHER'S DAY

It’s time to get the ball rolling on your Mother’s Day experiential marketing campaign. No matter your market, the five ideas we listed are surefire ways of leveraging this holiday to create emotional connections with your women consumers. 

Interested in seeing what else our agency can do for you? Reach out today and start spreading the Mother’s Day love!

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