Give something of value.

will.i.am, Black Eyed Peas

Danny Clinch, whose extensive experience with rock photography and live concert films is apparent, delivers a brief yet intimate look into life on tour in authentic rock-umentary fashion. With delivery ranging from thoughtful to inspired to cocky, the artists invite viewers to experience their private pre-show rituals.

Make it great and people will talk.

Tim McGraw

Not surprisingly, every short film includes shaving in the preparations, but it’s done with a touch so deft it feels completely natural. Consumers who want to dive deeper (and who have the patience for things to load) can learn how to “shave like a rock star” with assorted Gillette (and P&G) brands on the website.

Deliver brand message with authenticity.

All American Rejects

While I’m not Gillette’s target market, as a consumer/marketer/music-lover I’m impressed on multiple levels by this campaign – and I’m talking about it. If more brands considered how to add value to their consumers’ lives, advertising as we know it would be dramatically different.

It’s no surprise that experiential marketing has become a staple in the marketing mix of thoughtful brands – it intrinsically delivers value to consumers. When experiential marketing is designed, planned, and executed properly consumers talk – in person and via social media – about the brand experience, ultimately resulting in substantial ROI.

Generate WOM to deliver ROI.

So congratulations, Gillette!  You’ve certainly captured my attention.  While you probably didn’t design “Uncut” with experiential marketing tenets in mind, it’s clear that we share a fundamental approach to winning the hearts and minds (and buying power) of consumers.  Any time you want to talk, I’ll be backstage getting ready for the curtain to rise.

Mark Hoppus, Blink 182

• “How in the world can this expense be justified?”
• “How do we know if we got our money’s worth?”
• “Can you compare it to TV? We understand TV!”

A decade later, experiential marketing is an accepted entity while the “new kid on the block,” social media, is taking the brunt of industry skepticism. We experiential marketers must push for (and facilitate) the understanding of ROI in social media because we are inextricably linked by our disciplines’ abilities to significantly affect consumer mindset and – subsequently – consumer behavior. Our best practices bring out the best ROI in each other.

Experiential marketing is the epicenter, the nexus, the place where groupthink – or whatever you want to name it – happens. It’s where shared experience drives the sharing of the experience. It’s where the brand connects with the consumer, and the consumer becomes the conduit to their social network.

Because of social media, the energy of the brand experience is more easily broadcast to like-minded consumers. Engaged consumers at an event like Bacardi B-LIVE will share the experience with simpaticos in person and via Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, etc. The digital ripple that emanates from the event is mighty, and it is measurable.

One tangible outcome of a powerful engagement such as B-LIVE is enhanced search engine optimization (SEO). A brand can climb the list in organic search by virtue of consumers blogging and driving traffic through comments on Twitter, Facebook, etc.. Give consumers a rich, sustained experiential and social media campaign experience to talk about, and they will do so. The more they mention the brand, the better the search results ultimately become.

It’s a finely knit garment, this blend of experiential marketing, social media, and SEO…but it’s real, it’s tangible, and it can be measured. It creates profound brand affinity and likelihood-to-purchase shifts in the consumer mindset.

For additional information about the ROI of social media, you may find the articles below helpful:

HOW TO: Measure Social Media ROI

8 Predictions for SEO in 2010

The Only Social Media Metric that Matters

Purex Complete 3-in-1

When the product is ready to hit the shelves, marketers must instill in the consumer that the product is a perfect blend of form and function, and NO other product can match its innovation. I am jaded in terms of marketing and am promiscuous when it comes to brand loyalty – so when I get excited enough to give good word-of-mouth to a product, it’s got to be great.

So…behold Purex 3-in-1 sheets.  It’s all of your laundry products in one sheet: detergent, fabric softener, and anti-static cling dryer sheet.  No more waiting for each cycle and adding the right product.  It gets everything clean and does so with exactly the right amount.   Try it out – you won’t be sorry!!!

Fueled by our personal passions, trend research, and decades of experiential brand marketing – we at Javelin have forged a strategic partnership with the creators of Ink-N-Iron, a lifestyle experience celebrating car and tattoo culture with authenticity.  Three days of hotrod/ratrod/streetrod car shows, a traditional 1940’s pin-up pageant, serious musical talent, burlesque and more make this seven year old Long Beach festival “the” gathering place for kustom kulture.  Ink-N-Iron is the Burning Man of authentic retro cool.

The right brands with the right message can deliver an authentic live brand experience to consumers in this culture that reveres iconic Americana.   The impact on mass culture has already achieved critical mass.  Not only are celebrities like Kat Von D, Guy Fieri, & Jesse James deeply immersed, but unexpected brands like Callaway, Restoration Hardware and Sephora have invested heavily in this space and are ahead of the curve.

Javelin will take this world-class experiential program on tour in Summer 2011, offering brands a custom opportunity to reach consumers in a deeply personal way.

Separate but related is THE CADDY EXPERIENCE, a branded, experiential caddy program that is also one of the most robust brand ambassador experiences on the market…directly aimed at a highly desirable target.

Incubator - photo from Axelhouston on Flickr

The mission of Own The Moment Productions is very simple.  We will innovate, create proprietary content, develop strategic partnerships, and deliver what’s next in experiential.  And we’ll have a blast doing it.

Want to come along for the ride?  Buckle up.  It’s going to be fast and it’s going to be loud.

TRIM at St. Louis Fashion Week

A critical piece of our Brand Incubator program, TRIM is Javelin’s first foray into brand ownership.  We are immersed in the culture of the target consumer as well as the ins and outs of launching a fashion brand.

Garmentos at last!