Brand Activation is an abstract topic and anyone can talk/write about it endlessly. In today’s world, each and every business owner is looking for creative ways to mark a longer-lasting impression on consumers. A brand activation agency focuses on creating a genuine relationship between the brand and the consumer instead of just highlighting the product or service. One of the important aspects of Brand Activation is Experiential Marketing – You can read about it in my previous article.

What is the difference between Brand Activation and Experiential Marketing? While both the terms seem similar but there’s a difference between them. Experiential marketing is often used as a method of brand activation. However, it is important to remember both of them are not the same.

• Brand Activation is used to “Activate” the brand’s value. The consumer then starts associating that value with the brand creating a strong bond. Example – “Kuch Meetha Ho Jaye” (Let’s have something sweet) it’s a common phrase that has been used in daily life for centuries. Now it is completely associated with Dairy Milk. People think about Dairy Milk Chocolates as soon as they hear this phrase. Meaning the Brand value has activated in the consumer’s minds.

• • On the other hand, Experiential Marketing uses activities and experiences. Concepts are created for consumers so that they can actually experience the value proposition of the brand. For example – hashtags are created specifically for the brands. These can be shared with the in-store activity -might be a photo booth. Check out this photo booth which creates an 8-bit gif. Check out Missionzx too, play, score, redeem and win big!Why Brand Activation is Great for Brands and Businesses?

Brand Activation Campaigns are a variety of methods and technology that helps enhance its power. Online or offline they are able to make a strong, indefinite image into consumer’s minds. The campaigns are always mixed elements of Experiential Marketing, Gamification, Crowd Gathering, and Mall Activations. It is very vast and consists of multiple techniques but Brand Activation offers some of the best benefits to Brands and Businesses.

• Direct Reach – Brand Activation campaigns are different from the traditional advertising methods. They are able to reach, talk, and share the required information with the consumer directly on a one-to-one basis. It not only saves valuable time but also able to provides feedback directly to the brands. Recently we had done an activation that involved the touchless sensors to call the promoters overseas (Who couldn’t come down due to travel restrictions ) and the end result was awesome. The event carried on as if Covid never happened!

• Innovation – Innovation makes everything extraordinary. Innovative Brand Activation Campaigns catch the eye over conventional marketing techniques and gather more crowd. We had recently done this brand activation for a famous shoe brand to measure the shoe size of the user automatically. The idea was new, fun, and innovative.

• Ripple Effect – Brand Activation campaigns are all about creating a relation between brands and consumers. It can be online, offline, with sampling products or in-store activations. All these promotional campaigns create a ripple effect. The kinetic flower wall is our very own product, we had modified it for UAE National day to replicate the waving flag. I wish you were there in Burjuman mall to see the consumers get astonished with this activation.

• Brand Positioning It’s been known as the best result of the Brand Activation Campaign. Think of it as your go-to toothpaste. Every time you run out of one, you just grab the same brand (I know I do that). This is what Brand positioning, how many times have you changed your toothpaste since childhood? We had done this gamification for an Ice cream brand to promote their newly launched flavors.

• Long Term Effect Brand Activation campaigns are quite distinctive from the traditional promotions which provide direct reach and interaction with the consumer. These elements remain in the consumer’s minds for a long time resulting in higher engagement and loyalty. Check out this video of our project where user position and direction are tracked and the feed is used to promote the upcoming shoes in all colors available. How exciting it is that what we do!

Considering the changing market environments, it is quite necessary for the brands to come up with ideas and tools to enhance the visibility in the market and curate the top position in the minds of consumers. And Brand Activation is one of the best techniques to attain the objectives of awareness, customer loyalty, and higher sales.

Sneha Motarwar Co-Founder | COO @Lazulite Technology Services LLC