A quick look at some specific things we see happening in 2021 in the world of Experiential Marketing.

1. EXPERIENTIAL PREDICTIONS

2. Think of this more like 1,000 raindrops as
opposed to a bucket of water. By summer
2021, Americans will take it upon themselves
to gather and celebrate life. No matter their
political leanings, people will crave to get
together and trust that they can assemble
safely regardless of the state of the pandemic.
This means consumers will stage their own
hangouts, backyard concerts, and
celebrations. This trend in turn will show
marketers how to create smaller, more joyous
experiences. Will Coachella and Kentucky
Derby happen in full this year? No way. But
replacing massive events will be tons of
smaller, local gatherings that brands will
wisely access if they want to engage
consumers. This means more work, more
networking and more grassroots activations
for brands and their agencies. Good!
EVENTS
START AS
RAINDROPS

3. The traditional process for allocation of marketing money was
torn up in 2020. And each time a brand or marketing team
started to tape it back together for 2021, another major issue
emerged. So here we are in 2021 with marketing budgets not
simply slashed but still being fought over. How much will
brands get and how will they spend it? The situation is chaotic.
Experiential is not in a good spot, to be honest. But it’s better
off than PR, Sponsorship, Place-Based, or Cinema, that’s for
sure. This year will likely have a lot of last-minute budget
approvals, major justification and senior approval of spends,
and unwillingness of management to commit too much too
early. Still, great solutions usually win the day at smart
companies who won’t sit back and hope all just goes well.
MARKETING
DOLLARS
WAR

4. One positive of the COVID takeover was that it
refocused attention on our own local communities.
Main Street businesses, town government, area
schools, the health of our neighbors, etc. all became
more important than the latest blockbuster film or
fashion trend or product launch. Brands will follow the
direction of Americans and seek to reach consumers in
community-centric ways. Traditional media impressions
became white noise in the pandemic. The few brands
who did outreach on a local level through experiential
strategies found great success. So watch for many
more brands to realize that focusing on community is
not only good for business, it is good for people, too.
The platforms that focus on community will thrive.
COMMUNITY
COMMUNITY
COMMUNITY

5. Youth culture catalysts are moving at a speed that
marketers cannot grasp. Think TikTok is the new
place to be in 2021? Please, boomer. The big push in
2021 will be on platforms like Triller and Dubsmash,
where users create their own music videos with a
look and feel that is undeniably for fun and engaging
than just self-recording as online crowds gather. This
creates big opportunities for creators to stage virtual
events. And that then will lead to marketers crashing
the party. Some brands have joined in already but
this is not just a digital media play. Experiential
experts will see this as an outlet for staging virtual
events rather than letting marketing dollars get taken
away by the digital or mobile groups.
GUERRILLA VIRTUAL EVENTS

6. There is going to be a rise in brands sponsoring or creating
structures designed to help people. By structures I mean some
form of installation in the public space. Imagine a custom
mask-making machine in a train station … free food kit
dispensers at a park … solar-powered lights at a basketball
court to let people stay outdoors longer … Here are the 3
factors to consider: 1) cities and towns will be lacking funds for
community projects in 2021; 2) people need resources and
assistance to live safer and better lives; and 3) marketers need
new ways to engage consumers as boring old tactics fail to
connect or simply cannot happen. Brands have an opportunity
to go way beyond “OOH media” by working with municipalities
to make a lasting impression that improves lives.
HELPFUL PUBLIC
INSTALLATIONS

7. “Sampling” is not a sexy experiential marketing tactic.
But, for years, it was incredibly effective. Fact is, if a
consumer tries a product sample, they are 20x more
likely to become a purchaser than someone who sees
a TV ad. It’s why car dealers do whatever it takes to get
your ass in the seat for a test drive. But the pandemic
not only froze sampling, it essentially cut off any new
brand awareness for consumers. So once the pandemic
lifts by Q3, get ready for CPG brands like Pepsi,
Unilever, P&G, Church & Dwight, Schick, etc. to
relaunch sampling like a damn rocket. People need to
touch, feel, taste, and hold the new products after
such a long separation. Let’s see how imaginative and
fun sampling gets by end of the summer!
SAMPLING
RETURNS

8. EVENTS IN
CRAZY PLACES

9. How do agencies, clients and
vendors communicate in
2021? While the business
world already knew video calls
well, the pandemic thrust
adoption of Zoom tech on our
entire culture. And this year,
the power of video pushes
into personal communications
as people start to use video in
place of emails and phone
calls. This is being termed “1:1
video.” As people open emails
less and less, video is a much
more appealing tool. So
expect to get a different kind
of “cold call” (frosty video?)
very soon.
VIDEO KILLS
THE E-MAIL
STAR

10. We all know the mass use of virtual events is here to stay. This is not just some
marketing world reality; this is hitting all of our lives from schools to concerts to
conferences. So it only makes sense that a new wave of agencies will emerge to
guide clients of all types in staging great hybrid and virtual events. We are just
scratching the surface of tech that will make these events better. Think Ford is going
to rely on their media planning team’s “Zoom expert” to produce a critical vehicle
virtual launch event? New agencies are going to step in to navigate the tech options
and orchestrate events in ways individuals or companies cannot do on their own.
NEW AGENCIES EMERGE

11. Patrick West
patrick@themachinenyc.com
914.216.8948