COVID-19 has led to a state of social distancing across the globe whereby we, as people, must do our best to remain indoors and out of contact with others as much as possible. If you’re abiding by these recommendations, you may find that a lot of the interactions you’re having are of a digital nature; smartphones, laptops, televisions, tablets, the list goes on … digital apps, features and services like Netflix and Zoom have seen their engagements sky-rocket due to the worldwide isolation period!
So, does this mean that coronavirus is going to catapult us into the future, 20 years ahead of time, where all interactions are had on an interface rather than face-to-face? Not at all! In fact, it’s going to have the exact opposite effect.
The Incoming Social Activity Spike
Outside our homes, restaurants, bars, pubs and clubs had all been shut down in many countries around the world to help combat against the spread of COVID-19 and gatherings of groups are being dispersed by police authority. Coronavirus turned many major cities into ghost towns with no one out on the streets! Post coronavirus, this couldn’t be further from the reality. Initially, it seems like we’re all heading down the virtual rabbit hole, being sucked in and governed by our devices. But this is because we’re stuck with no alternatives to the technology. Many of us are already sick of screen time and are wanting to drop our phones, switch off our screens and get back out to experience something real.
Human nature is kicking in for a lot of people, reacting to the lack of genuine connections and experiences being had whilst these restrictions are in place. This is why experiential events will be back and bigger than ever once the global lockdown is no more. Technology will be temporarily dismissed, and humans will enjoy getting back out into the real world.
Preparing for a Post-Coronavirus World
Many businesses have suffered at the hands of the COVID-19 pandemic. It’s affecting the biggest and smallest brands just the same. Now, with this oncoming wave of sociality imminent, it’s time to start planning to exploit the hugely increased volume of consumers and demand for experiences.
The greatest tools at your disposal to make the most of this spike are ‘Experiential Events’.
(For those readers who are maybe new to the term, you should definitely have a read of our article explaining what they are and how they can benefit your business after you’ve finished this.)
The act of creating experiences for consumers will enable them to willingly immerse themselves and engage directly with your brand. They can learn more about what you provide, trial products and services and more. This way not only are people leaving with memories of an enjoyable, real-life experiences, but also with further knowledge and a positive image of your brand (as well as some product too hopefully!).
Here’s an example of the kind of experiential brand activation suitable for the cease of COVID-19; check out this sustainable beach party pop-up we did for Corona (pun not intended!) to promote their partnership with Parley.
As an industry leader in experiential events, we can work with you put on a successful and effective experiential event and campaign for your brand.
Create Your Own Experiential Event
We’re the experiential agency with expertise in creating, planning and producing unforgettable experiences. We bring brands to life through effective and engaging experiential events and we LOVE what we do! With lockdown measures being gently eased, it’s now possible for live events to go ahead again (providing the necessary safety regulations are applied). To find out more about how we put on COVID-friendly events, visit our article on it here…
You can also check out our case studies on the ‘What We Do’ page to find out more about what we do and see what we’ve been up to in the past. Hopefully you can draw some inspiration from our work to help conceptualise your very own experiential idea. If you already have an idea, concept or theme that you want to come to us with for development. Or, if you need help with the creative ideas process as well as the event production, you can contact us here. We’d love to hear your thoughts and work with you to take the concept from Sketch to reality.
In the meantime, look after yourselves and stay alert! Love from the Sketch Team.
