New Report Shows Importance of Experiential and Engagement Marketing

PLANO, Texas and CHICAGO, Jan. 29, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- A recently released industry report reveals that the evolving field of experiential, personalized and hyper-local marketing is now rated "very" or "somewhat" important by three out of four consumer brand marketers, and that engagement marketing causes almost nine out of 10 shoppers to add a product to their shopping list. 

The Path To Purchase Institute, in collaboration with CROSSMARK, a leading sales and marketing services company, and Marketing Werks, a leading consumer-engagement company in the country, just released the industry report which reveals the increasing importance and effectiveness of the evolving field of experiential marketing.

The in-depth report -- "Experiential Marketing: Can it be Localized, Personalized and Scaled Up Affordably?" -- presents the results of a recent national survey of consumers and consumer brand marketing executives. It was designed to gauge the effectiveness of experiential marketing that includes a wide variety of techniques ranging from events, brand ambassador programs and sports marketing tie-ins to highly specialized multicultural and digital campaigns.

Among the consumer findings, 88 percent of shoppers say that if they enjoy an experiential interaction with a product away from a store, they'll add it to their shopping list. Eighty percent said they prefer brands that "do more to interact" with them over those that "just advertise" to them.  Seven out of 10 shoppers say they'll share a brand experience through social media and other means of sharing. Four in 10 say they'd "like" a brand on Facebook, and one in four will post comments on a social networking site.

Jim Rose, President of CROSSMARK Marketing Services, said the report confirms the importance of experiential and engagement marketing in reaching consumers and shoppers.

"Shoppers want to see, taste and try products before they buy them," Rose said. "When marketing is localized and personalized, the impact is powerful. Experiencing a brand facilitates a greater connection and a faster path to loyalty."

The complete report can be downloaded here.

CROSSMARK is a leading sales and marketing services company that provides growth solutions for consumer-branded suppliers and retailers. For more than 100 years, CROSSMARK has helped the most powerful brands in the world achieve their business objectives across major classes of trade.  Expertise includes Headquarter Sales, Retail Merchandising, Retailer Solutions, Shopper and Consumer Engagement, In-Store Events, Experiential Marketing, Shopper Marketing, In-Store Data Collection & Field Intelligence, Business Insights, and Retail Technology Solutions. Headquartered in Plano, Texas, CROSSMARK employs more than 39,000 associates worldwide with offices throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand.

Marketing Werks – a CROSSMARK company – is one of the leading consumer engagement firms in North America. Founded in 1987, Marketing Werks is made up of people experts who create highly persuasive, personal, experiential marketing campaigns that are national in scope but hyper-local in relevance. The company's blue-chip client base spans many industries, including telecommunications, healthcare, consumer packaged goods, consumer electronics, and entertainment. Among the company's offerings are social media, digital, business insights, multi-channel analytics, experiential marketing programs, event marketing, brand ambassadors, sports marketing, pop-up retail events, mobile tours, multicultural, public relations, and creative.

The Path to Purchase Institute is a global organization of brand marketers, retailers, agencies and manufacturers focused on improving retail marketing strategy worldwide. The Institute serves the needs of its membership by providing information, research, education and training, networking opportunities, trade publications and a trade show designed to further the understanding, acceptance and effectiveness of in-store marketing. For more information, go to www.p2pi.org.

Contacts:

Phil Roth
CROSSMARK
469-814-1756
[email protected]

Cindy Kosydor
Marketing Werks
312-784-1608
[email protected]

SOURCE Marketing Werks