Noah Scott: There's a new kid on your block and it's one that's redefining the power of old school marketing. Brick and mortar pop-ups are becoming all the rage, providing a new way for brands to create a buzz with consumers, especially with companies that started out with only an online presence.
Recent additions to the scene include the pop-up Google stores in the trendy Melrose district of Los Angeles and Flatiron in New York. Given the company's more recent venture into hardware, with their Pixel range, VR equipment, and smart home products, it only makes sense to give customers a space to experience, touch, and interact with these products.
What about those brands that still only have a purely digital presence? How does a short-term pop-up work for them? Well, the concept is far from new. Brands have always taken opportunities to engage with consumers in unique and interactive ways, from sampling activities, and consumer exhibitions, and trade shows, to guerrilla marketing techniques like flash mobs and street promotions. The terminology has shifted through many forms, from traditional promotions and field marketing, to experiential and immersive branding. Ultimately, the purpose is all the same: to give the consumer a unique and exclusive interaction with the brand or product so that they come away with a stronger affiliation to it and a story to share.
In today's landscape where everyone is competing for attention, from social media influencers to full traditional marketing teams, it becomes a challenge to provide that next dopamine hit to the discerning millennial with disposable income or to encourage skeptical buyers to switch brands.
Let's take a look at the VRIN framework for marketing a product or person as it relates to pop-ups. Let's break down what VRIN means. I know it doesn't spell anything really, but hey, V is for value, R is for rarity, I is for inimitable, and N is for non-substitutable. The concept of a pop-up store fits this framework extremely well.
It begins by giving value in a way that customers or fans have never seen before. This could be as simple as access to view physical products, but the sky's the limit. For example, Bumble, the dating and business networking app who just opened their pop-up during award season here in LA, are literally creating a physical space for some offline, real world networking to be done, complete with drinks, activities, and special events. Other ways to create value are product giveaways, limited edition versions, or some kind of immersive experience.
Rarity is an easy one. Pop-ups usually only have a couple of locations at most, and that adds to the kind of unique proposition that is an Instagrammer's word-of-mouth dream. "I was here. Don't you wish you were, too?" This factor also becomes a major draw to potential consumers. These days, status means doing something or going somewhere that most people can't. The rarity of a pop-up feeds in perfectly.
Inimitable, again, is uniquely tied to the concept of a pop-up. If you launch a regular brick and mortar store that sells a variety of products in a category, you're just pretty much like the rest. But a brand-centric pop-up with a limited timeframe and a constantly changing program of events is an experience unique to a specific time and place. Extra points if you can offer some exclusive product offers to the lucky souls who attend.
Non-substitutable fits like a glove with the uniqueness and time constraint of a pop-up model. Could you do something else in its place that gives the same value proposition? Probably not if it's done right. This is also a key reason why many brands choose to piggyback on other exclusive or inimitable events, like the Coachella Festival or award season in LA. These positive associations not only give the brands leverage of a popular event or celebrity, but also create the allure of exclusive insider intrigue that resonates with their target customers.
This works particularly well with aspirational brands, such as Bev, a recently female-founded rose wine brand who wanted to resonate with their audience by showing support for the women's movement. They chose to launch their women up hashtag campaign at the Gold Meets Golden event in Hollywood, where ahead of their soft launch, they engaged celebrities like Jessica Chastain, Nick Jonas, and Nicole Kidman to support their message. This, in turn, creates content to share and inspire their consumers, ultimately driving sales that align with their brand message and proposition.
The important takeaway here is that no matter how much you engage in a digital sense, your customers are still human and we humans, we like all of our senses engaged. Sight, sound, touch, smell, taste. If your brand can offer a unique and exclusive environment to do that in, then you are on the road to success.
That's it for pop-up marketing. If you guys liked this video, be sure to subscribe to the Growth Everywhere YouTube channel and Eric will be back tomorrow with some killer advice and marketing techniques to help bring your business to the next level.