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directed to local bars where they could purchase discounted mojitos. UK sales increased and have remained at 50 per cent more since the activity took place.

Not only did the activity capture the public’s imagination and was closely associated with the product, but it was also an example of how a small event can have a huge impact. If Havana Club can use urban gardens to sell its spirit, then why can’t such events be used to sell fresh produce?

+ ere are agencies working within the fresh produce industry that are embracing the idea of experiential marketing. Last year Li, le Big Voice brought a taste of the Spanish coun-tryside to the bleak vistas of London’s commuters and tourists with its Seville oranges campaign on behalf of MMUK and Tesco.

+ e team toured the city’s land-marks and Waterloo station with a pop-up orchard, handing out samples of the fruit and discount vouchers for further purchases.

“+ e response was amazing – there is no be, er place to reach so many people. You never get the opportunity to engage with so many people in other areas – including stores,” explains man-aging director Jonathan Corbe, .

“One key aspect in the success was the product – satsumas are general-ly liked and are the perfect snack food for all ages – that allowed us to speak to anyone and everyone. If you are out o- ering a positive experience to people

resh produce is almost the per-fect product to sell to consumers

– there is little to question about its die-tary benefits.

Yet, the industry is constantly strug-gling to convince shoppers to add more of the good stu- to their baskets. Mar-gins within fresh produce are noto-riously low and therefore marketing budgets are small, if they exist at all. However, in recent years the market-ing industry has been perfecting a form of consumer engagement where budget is not an issue but imagination is vital.

Experiential marketing does what it says on the tin; it creates an experience for a consumer that they will then hope-fully share through social media – e- ec-tively promoting the product for free. It has already been used to great success by the alcohol industry, with Smirno- Vodka’s nightlife exchange project held up as a great example of a brand expe-rience. According to its agency RPM, sales quadrupled following the activity.

While the drink brands can spend thousands on events, a huge budget is not required when you have imagina-tion and organisational ability.

New business manager for + e Lounge Group, an agency specialising in experiential and event marketing, Eve Bo, omley says that the important element to any activity is to excite the consumer beyond the product prac-ticality. “Experiential has the unique power to provide a direct, tangible and memorable experience of both the

brand and product in a way no other marketing channel can achieve,” she explains.

“Use the experiential as a springboard for driving con-versations online and creating greater target audience awareness. Put your product or brand at the centre of the experience and leave your consumer in no doubt who you are and the role you play in their lives.

“Touch your consumers’ hearts and make your experi-ence unforge, able, encouraging them to recall you fondly. When they require a product in your category, you’re front of mind.”

+ e Lounge Group has won awards for its collaboration with Havana Club rum, running a campaign in which they launched pop-up mint gardens in four UK cities in associa-tion with ‘guerrilla’ gardener Richard Reynolds. + e gardens were created out of up-cycled materials, making them very low-cost. Passers-by were handed packets of mint seeds and

Experiential marketing

! e experienceREVOLUTION

Experiential marketing is a form of advertising that is low on budget but high on impact. Should the fresh produce industry take more advantage of it? Samantha Lyster reports

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some great write ups by simply le, ing people know something is in season and allowing them to taste it – and have also started working with some of the most prolifi c bloggers to run both tradi-tional and virtual press events..

“However, some of the best results are achieved by combining new plat-forms with more traditional forms of marketing and public relations. We recently ran a ‘grapefruit challenge’ for South African growers, asking social media users to eat a grapefruit every day for two weeks and report back on the di- erence it made to their weight, hair and skin. + is was linked to PR coverage in the national media and promotions taking place in supermar-kets. Ultimately, if we use social media and experiential activities to drive tra/ c into stores and infl uence sales, we create the best possible return on investment for these initiatives.”.

With so many low-cost options available to the fresh produce industry, could we soon be rocking at Glaston-bury with a plate of sautéed vegetables rather than greasy burgers? *

word will spread – and fresh produce is in a prime position to do just that. Yes, with some products it’s di/ cult – but not impossible.”

Both Jane Milton, founder of the food consultancy Not Just Food and Emma Laney, founder of Syren Marketing, which works with consumer brands including Britvic, say that fes-tivals are an area that fresh produce brands are suited to but have not yet fully explored.

“+ e quality of food at music festivals has increased dra-matically in recent years, and it’s a fantastic opportunity to reach a cross section of people,” says Milton.

“+ ere’s also a great opportunity around cooking demon-strations. + ere are so many people who really do not how to prepare and cook vegetables. Fresh produce brands should be exploring activity at food festivals, where you can make the product come to life – make it exciting and di- erent.”

A good example of this is the Tenderstem in 10 campaign by Pam Lloyd PR, which took the broccoli to several food fes-tivals last summer where the activity was met with an enthu-siastic response. In one day, around 7,500 people sampled the product. Likewise, Laney says fresh produce growers and suppliers could look to how drink brands have ingratiat-ed themselves with events. By creating fun and imaginative spaces at events, brands a, ract a, ention from consumers who photograph and share their experience through social media.“+ ere is a trend for street food at the moment that fresh produce brands could really take advantage of, showing up at street markets for example,” says Laney.

Milton adds that recently the government has called for teachers to add cooking skills to the curriculum, but while

1— Recipes and demonstrations have been key to the promotion of Tenderstem2— Havana Club rum’s mint revolution3— Havana Club gave away seeds and pots of mint4— Promoting Tesco’s Spanish soft citrus in London this year with a pop-up orchard

that’s a noble endeavour how many of those teachers are actually going to have the skills themselves in the fi rst place?

“+ ere’s an opportunity here for the industry to step in and help schools, not just in terms of recipe ideas but again supplying in-school cooking demon-strations,” she adds.

Communications director at mar-keting agency Red Communications, Dominic Weaver, suggests that brands keep abreast of the developments in social media.

“Some of the newest tools available o0 en can achieve good results for rela-tively low cost,” he adds. “Ja- a recently ran a Jumpin’ Ja- a competition, invit-ing students to upload videos of them bouncing on Ja- a spacehoppers to YouTube. As well as the direct promo-tion of the brand to students, the compe-tition generated talk on social networks and also fun content for the brand.

“Using the produce is a great way to engage social media users. We’ve seen

Use the experiential as a springboard for driving conversations

online and creating greater target audience awareness

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