If you think back to all the times you were given advice about how to conduct better conversations with others, you would recall statements such as:
- Be a good listener
- Don’t talk at someone; talk to someone
- Personalize your conversation
- It’s not all about you, etc.
To me the concept of involving experiences is one of the most exciting best practices associated with the Internet. To be sure, it’s what we would call a visionary best practice or putting it slightly differently, a best practice in training, the reason being that deep validation in the form of consistent endorsement, research and/or case analysis is still pretty light relative to some of the other best practices.
Don’t get me wrong – there are plenty of examples out there right now to suggest we’re onto something (big), however, I think it’s safe to say that we’re still learning the full capabilities (and possibilities) of what this best practice is capable of achieving, and thus it’s probably still a little too early to conclusively deliver a hard and complex dissection of the DNA of this profound differentiator.
To begin the description of this practice, allow me to inject some perspective based on a statement from an ex-colleague of mine who once said to me, which is more interactive: a 468x60 banner or a coloring-in sheet on a McDonald’s tray-table? I answered then, as I would answer now, probably the latter example. I could substitute the word “involving” for “interactive” and would probably arrive at the same conclusion. This is naturally a generalization, but I think it’s a safe one, given the fact we (the industry) are still firmly divided in our understanding of the precise role of “banner” (for the most part) creative (read: online advertising):
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There are still way too many camps that look to produce creative that is just like offline (no more; no less)
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There are those who hold that tricking people into clicking is a great way to drive traffic to a destination Website
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Others assert that powering conversion is the primary mission of the most widely used unit.
This is not to say that those who bear the coat of arms of involving experiences are either zealots or in the minority; it’s just the recognition that we are still at the very beginning of our journey in terms of understanding the oil field we’re busy pecking away at with a solitary rock hammer.
I first came across involving branded experiences through my past client, ABSOLUT. The very nature of ABSOLUT’s first foray into online suggested that something interesting was happening. For one thing, the landmark brand’s long-standing equity associated with print advertising was being brought to life. But moreover, the very nature of the communications’ process was being evolved. Consumers would be invited to interact with the creative – in fact not unless they interacted, would they arrive at the famous two-word tagline that would pay-off the experience and in so doing, reward their involvement with a punch line.
The “metrics” then and now suggested that we were on the right track as we were rewarded with double-digit interaction rates, repeat views, viral sends and time spent.
G.M. O’Connell, founder and Chairman of Modem Media, puts it this way, “The only advertising that’s going to thrive is advertising so good, people can use it as a service.” He cites a recent example for Kraft whereby “experience units” were created which, instead of saying “hey, we’ve got delicious, healthy foods” took it up a notch with an invitation to Moms along the lines of “Look it’s 4.30 and you’ve got to make something for dinner.” Kraft then helped moms select and use quick and easy recipes.
Here’s a fairly recent case study involving another alcohol brand (what is it with Vodka, innovation and creativity?), Smirnoff.
Smirnoff was looking towards online to help launch the new Smirnoff Ice Triple Black brand. The objectives of the campaign were to establish and specifically increase product awareness and ultimately drive purchase intent.
One of the elements used in this campaign was an involving experience – a branded extension of the popular Bejeweled game.
Results were breathtaking to say the least:
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44% increase in unaided brand awareness
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556% lift in online ad awareness
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164% lift in message association
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Purchase intent increased by 54% as a direct result of online ad exposures.
And what really impressed me was that this campaign actually moved consumers closer to the brand – overall brand favorability increased by 48%.
Here’s another case study, this time for the high-consideration purchase of the ultimate gift: a diamond.
Background:
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DTC was looking to target Married Affluent Men 25-54 during the 2002 holiday season
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Objective was to break through the clutter at a time when this target is inundated with messaging in order to deliver the message of the perfect gift.
Approach:
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The idea was to bring the Design Gallery experience to the user to stimulate purchase intent of diamond jewelry
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Highly interactive and information packed units (led by the Superstitial) allowed users to interact with the brand without having to redirect them to the Website
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Continuity units (Eyeblaster’s commercial break, banners, large IMUs, and skyscrapers) contained a countdown message to nudge consumers closer to a decision point. For example, “6 days to Christmas, it’s officially time to panic” ran in conjunction with the Unicast unit that allowed the user to actually search for the piece he may be interested in buying, all without having to leave the site he was on.
Results:
A key learning from this campaign is encapsulated in these words from Roni Jenkins, Partner, Director of Communications Strategy at digital@jwt. “Know your target. If they are connecting through a broadband connection (for example), give them more to interact with. Do not just dial-down the creative experience so “everyone” can see the ads. Everyone is not your target.”
Interactivity is without question a central cog in the mechanics of involving experiences. However it is not the sole raison d'etre. Involving experiences reinforce a central theme which comes from the client side: give me solutions, not ads and resonates on the receiving end at consumer central station: reward my attention and interest, don’t insult it.
In other words, it’s the process of transforming communications from being the end itself to a means to an end.
