If you didn’t ‘gram (stream, story, binge..) it, did it even happen?
In today’s social media fueled world, life is often lived through the lens of a smartphone. The mindset of younger generations is: if you didn’t post it, you didn’t do it . Though fancy coffees and gooey burgers (getting cold while sitting below an iphone) are a hallmark of this social phenomenon, it goes much further than foodies documenting their favorite eats. The way people share their worlds is something that affects the way consumers view and engage with their physical and digital worlds.
Want to show your future daughter how kick-ass the US Women’s Soccer Team was in 2019? Easy. It lives forever on YouTube.
Did you miss how Drake’s team did some really big things in the NBA Finals? The internet’s gotchu.
T-Swift’s last tour was siiiick, but you already know that, right? All your friends all shared it live and then Netflix kindly let you binge the entire performance in your pj’s.
There is no limit to today’s consumer experience and the emerging digital entertainment world is every marketer’s oyster.
From selfie stations to live streaming and holographic concert performances, tech innovation in social media, and entertainment for the advancement (and enhancement) of user experience is just getting started. Some feel this way of engaging with entertainment, and life as a whole, takes away from the human experience. Others embrace it as an unlimited opportunity to connect in new and exciting ways. Whatever your feelings towards these alternative experiences, understand that they’re not going anywhere. So how do marketers keep up and capitalize on these new opportunities?
First, let’s dive into what entertainment looks like today.
Be There or Be…There Still
Entertainment is no longer just about the main event: it is about the entire experience – in reality, socially, and digitally. Out-of-the-box events like Coachella and Burning Man create extreme social sharing environments where the performers and artists take a second seat to Insta-friendly experiential displays and attendees’ bizarre outfit choices. Those who can’t attend get to live vicariously through feeds and live streams letting them feel as though they were the ones wearing a 2-foot tall peacock headdress while watching Beyonce perform. Mega popular online video game, Fortnite, is making history with innovative in-game events that take the digital experience to new levels. This year’s live digital concert by Marshmello, had no actual in-person attendees, but saw 10.7 million people virtually attend through gaming systems. This merging of gaming and music was an immense success and groundbreaking for both industries.
The life of an event has become limitless: expanding well beyond the stage, court, or fairgrounds though the magic of technology. Months later, Marshmello’s Fortnite concert has accrued an additional 38+ million views on YouTube (you just added to that number if you clicked the link up there^). Sharing an experience can still be a valued moment around the dinner table with friends, and nothing will replace someone reliving an event through story-telling. However, today’s stories aren’t complete without the addition of videos, pictures and an onslaught of available media around any given event. Once you would share family pictures from polaroids. Now you can just whip out your phone!
Use It or Lose It
The expanding list of platforms and features available to consumers and companies can be daunting. However, this innovation is extremely valuable, allowing for unprecedented access and engagement with audiences. The trick is figuring out how your event can capitalize on all this innovation. Ticket sales, awareness, viewership, targeting a new audience, sharing your message, and changing consumer perceptions are just some examples of how the entertainment industry can utilize digital media to their benefit.
Let’s take NASCAR, a huge sports entity that currently uses social media to connect with their fans and further their brand message, but still has so much opportunity to grow in this new era of digital media. Blazing hot asphalt, cut off jorts, coolers full of tall boys, and a rowdy “redneck” crowd is the stereotypical picture of this popular southern sport. However, there’s a lot more to it than this view suggests, and NASCAR is working to change that perception.
NASCAR COO, Steve Phelps, says of their efforts, “If there is one single goal, it is to grow the fan base and make it a younger and diverse fan base.” The sport has seen a major decline in viewership resulting in drastic measures such as tearing out thousands of stadium seats to avoid broadcasting empty grandstands. Adding to the difficulty of filling those seats is a fair amount of passed-down prejudice and rebel flags proudly flying at tailgates, causing friction with
their new target audience: the extremely liberal and inclusive Millennial and Z generations. To battle this perception, they’re attempting to highlight their programs like Drive for Diversity and NASCAR Next, which has brought new fans and drivers into the fold including Bubba Wallace and Daniel Swarez.
But are these messages reaching those younger generations? NASCAR, like every other brand large or small, must meet their audience where they live: online. (And we mean everywhere online, k? #omnichannelmktg FTW)
Find the Remote – You’ve Got Some New Channels
A few weeks ago, we shared about the importance of Omnichannel Marketing and the utilization of social media influencers. Our thoughts on that go hand-in-hand with taking advantage of these new opportunities in entertainment, so if you haven’t already, go take a quick read and come back to us.
Otherwise, here’s a quick refresher.
Omnichannel marketing refers to reaching consumers at all possible touchpoints with a single, cohesive brand strategy. Which means, your social media posts, email outreach, live experience, et cetera, should all interconnect, share the same messaging, and drive the same goals – ultimately leading the consumer from discovery to (ticket) purchase (and beyond) with ease. Your strategy must be flexible, because omnichannel marketing knows no limits and as innovation expands, so does the number of consumer touch points.
One aspect of omnichannel strategy that can be applied to all industries, events and marketing platforms is social media influencer marketing. In our experience, influencers are a non-negotiable aspect of successful omnichannel marketing, so we’re gonna make sure they’re part of your plan. Check out Part 2 of this blog series for our influencer best practices. For now, let’s focus on how to make your event irresistible through innovative omnichannel marketing strategies.
Friends and Family
Take a look at who’s already a part of your crew and use them to put your event on blast. Entertainment generally comes ready-set with involved, interesting and influential people (aka, talent, players, important fans). USE THAT. Steph Curry has more than DOUBLE (25.9 M) the amount of Instagram followers than his own NBA team’s account, @warriors (12.2 M). People get people to events, not the events themselves. Personal promotion from talent, players, interesting vendors and important fans all garner impactful attention. It may take some moolah, a contract redraft, or a couple pretty please’s, but do whatever it takes to entice your event’s bigwigs to share.
When in Doubt, Document
To effectively use omnichannel marketing, you’ve got to have a lot of content. Like, a lot a lot. You need to share everything, everywhere! Even if you’ve never heard of a platform or don’t use it yourself, your audience just might. TikTok, IGTV, Snapchat, Pinterest…get on ‘em all and start posting. Take behind the scenes videos, post candid pics of talent setting up, record audio of rehearsal on the tour bus. Then, post on every account possible, switching up the type of content to best align with the different platforms and audiences. Repetitive content is okay, but be sure you’re sending it out to different audiences. Your followers on Snapchat may be quite different than those on Facebook, cater to each. Video is key! The more you can show visually, the better. Don’t worry if it’s a tiny snippet, short is sweet (tiny human attention spans..). Keep in mind that captions are important! A whopping 85% of Facebook videos are watched with the sound off.
NASCAR is attracting attention through innovative content including driver cams that give fans a race experience from the perspective of their favorite driver and the use of up-and-coming media like podcasts. Glass Case of Emotion, a podcast hosted among others by young-gun and fan-favorite Ryan Blaney, is attracting a younger and more diverse audience. The podcast discusses topics that largely don’t relate to racing, allowing newcomers to find unexpected connections to the industry and it’s racers.
Give ‘em What They Want, What They Really, Really Want
Wanna go viral? Want consumers to recognize your hashtag? Want to top the 2019 Trending lists? You gotta get with the times and give people what they want – fun, exciting, social-media friendly experiences. Experiential displays are like catnip to millennial kittens. Give them a photo booth, glitter face-paint station, a Mickey D’s Play Place-style ball pit, and be prepared to up your wifi bandwidth to handle the onslaught of post uploads.
Branded, unique, in-venue usable swag (flags, hats, temporary tattoos..) are other easy ways to up the attendee social shares. Additionally, pay attention to consumer needs and interests outside of your direct industry. Make your guests feel welcome by accommodating their needs – they’ll thank you on social. Including an Impossible Burger vendor at your country music festival will open doors for more potential fans to enjoy the tailgate. Bold and buzzy t-shirt vendors could bring some trendy, updated styles to the plain old printed tee market. LGBTQ-owned businesses will send an inclusive message that consumers will love.
Like we said earlier, it’s not just about the main event, fans are looking for a whole package. Give them what they want and you’ll zigga zig ahhh-ll the way to the bank.
Want to learn how to incorporate social media influencers into your event’s marketing strategy? Watch out for Part 2 of this blog series coming soon! In the meantime, start with these tips and give LMS a shout if you want to hit the (fair)ground running with some kick-ass omnichannel marketing strategies. Have your people contact our people at: imgame@wearelms.com.
[simple-author-box]