February 2020 had us heading to Miami for the Super Bowl, where we did a host of brand activations across the city. We were commissioned by the marketing agency Brew ‘N’ Motion as part of their brand activation project for Bud Light.
Quantifying brand awareness with brand activations
Who were you rooting for, the Chiefs or the 49ers? Personally, I was rooting for finding a parking space as we dashed from one brand activation event to the next during a hectic Miami Super Bowl week.
For football fans, the building excitement and intensity of the football season culminates in the Super Bowl. Either the team you’re supporting either wins or loses and you collectively celebrate your win or commiserate your loss. But very quickly life gets back to normal until the NFL starts again in September.
For event planners, marketing agencies, and corporate marketing departments the planning work begins long before the NFL season begins. And ends long after with analyzing the performance and effectiveness of Super Bowl projects. Sounds simple enough but unless you’re a very high turnover industry, such as groceries, how do you accurately quantify an increase in brand awareness and customer loyalty? The answer to that question is as elusive as the study of alchemy.
If you’re not sure what brand activations are then check out my blog post on brand activations and why it shouldn’t be overlooked. Essentially, it’s about promoting brand awareness in a hands-on, fun and memorable way. That’s where Airbrush Events comes into play.
Parking troubles
Four artists from Airbrush Events headed to Miami to work on three different projects for three different corporations, Bud Light, Visa, and Adidas.
Yariel had a relaxing time poolside airbrushing temporary tattoos for Visa and Maris had a really fun time painting at a school where Adidas had donated Astroturf for the school sports field. Nick and I on the other hand had a grueling five days with a scattered schedule for Bud Light.
The Bud Light brand activation had a different aspect then the events we usually attend. As a way of promoting the brand to customers while also building relationships with bars and restaurants who sell Bud Light, we were required to attend numerous different locations around Miami across 10 hours each day. This involved turning up at a location, setting up and working for one hour at that location, then moving on to the next location. At each location, we could produce around 15 footballs and 20 helmets, plus one to leave for the bar or restaurant to keep.
Unfortunately, due to the excess Super Bowl traffic and the resulting parking difficulties, it wasn’t always possible to arrive at a location on time. But nevertheless, we ensured each location received their full one hour allotted time. And given it was Super Bowl, the business owners were very understanding.
Personalized promotional gifts
Nick and I worked separately, with Nick painting the helmets, while I airbrushed the footballs. We were required to paint either the Super Bowl or Bud Light logo on each gift, plus personalization. The footballs were large enough to include the logo, either a beach or Miami skyline scene and the guest name. The helmets had room for the logo and guest name.
Each of us had a Brand Ambassador assigned as an assistant. These young ladies dressed like cheerleaders and would greet guests, take orders, and promote the brand while the guest waited for their promotional gift. I worked with Andrea, who was a great help. Having her help meant I could devote my time to airbrushing. People love free stuff and the promotional gifts were so popular; Andrea had to stop taking orders after just 15 minutes at each location. Sadly, this meant many disappointed guests who didn’t get the chance to receive a gift but no doubt next time they’ll make sure to be at the front of the queue. Those who did receive a gift were extremely happy and brand activation was achieved.
As the helmets were non-porous, Nick used paint pens, as we did with the custom water bottles for Webroot. It would have been possible to airbrush them but this would take an enormous amount of preparation work and time sanding, painting and then clear coating. Plus, fumes from clear coating inside an enclosed public area would be a bad idea and added drying times meant paint pens were the obvious solution.
At the end of the day - great success
Despite the setback of excess Super Bowl traffic, we had a very hectic but successful five days. An hour before kick-off we packed up and headed home exhausted but satisfied with a job well done.
Contact us and see how Airbrush Events can help your next brand activation project reach existing and potential new customers in a fun and memorable way.
