Be Ready for the Phygital Revolution of Brand Activations
Thanks to the pandemic, hybrid experiences took centre stage in the world of marketing. Blending digital and real life enables us to create innovative experiences that give us the best of both worlds. But, we are now seeing a trend where events are moving beyond hybrid, where live experiences have a notional digital add-on. Brand experiences are now more than just ‘part physical, part digital’ – they’re phygital.
Let’s get phygital
So, what is phygital marketing, if not purely a combination of physical and digital? Phygital marketing carefully considers every aspect of the pathway to purchase, analysing the myriad of touchpoints a customer has with a brand in real life and online. Phygital experiences give equal weight to physical and digital depending on the consumer need, seamlessly integrating both into the marketing mix to formulate a unique, interactive activation that optimises the user experience.
Omnichannel experiences
One of the most frustrating things for any customer is the friction they experience when dealing with a company. Our expectations are high, and in recognising this, brands combine communication channels so that every touch point is connected and personalised where possible. This ‘omnichannel’ approach is what makes phygital experiences so powerful.
Modern marketing campaigns are bridging the gap between physical and virtual reality. Adding physical elements to digital campaigns throughout the entire customer pathway is the ultimate key to success.
Ensuring there is a digital element to your physical event will help to:
Drive more attendees to your in-person event
Amplify your experience in real-time on social channels
Extend the conversation with attendees beyond the event
Provide a more immersive experience
Engage the wider audience not able to attend in person
Most importantly, make your experience more personalised, tailored and therefore impactful with your audience
For phygital experiences to reach their full potential, all your agencies and internal departments must be aligned. Working collaboratively is essential, meaning creative, PR, brand, production and digital all pull together to make your phygital campaign work in a channel-agnostic way.
The proof is in the phygital pudding
At Quantum, we’re passionate about the power of phygital marketing, and our campaigns are a testament to the success of this approach.
Our Hendrick’s Gin digital sampling campaign is an excellent example of a digital-first experience that drives footfall to on-trade, real-life experiences. We created a Facebook chatbot for the quirky brand that delivered free Hendricks G&T samples at premium venues to those who interacted with it. This personalised digital experience embodied the Hendricks brand yet made important on-trade physical locations the hero. This phygital experience allowed full reporting on the user journey from digital to on-trade.
The campaign saw 3,500 free drinks vouchers awarded and over 200k messages sent to participating consumers.
Change is happening – be ready
As phygital continues to grow and evolve, brands must adjust their marketing methods, putting phygital experiences at the forefront of their campaigns. Our metaverse article is a must-read, detailing the importance of connecting the physical and digital worlds.
Is your brand ready for the phygital revolution? Get in touch today to see how we can help you strategise and apply phygital elements to your brand experiences.
