Creating Consumer Friction

Ryan FitzSimons is the founder & CEO of Gigunda Group, a full-service innovation and involvement agency dedicated to delivering unforgettable brand experiences. Recently named the most creative shop in the United States by Promo Magazine, award-winning and breakthrough work includes Charmin's NYC Holiday Restrooms, the Altoids Anti-Love Valentine's Chocolate Pop-Up Shoppes and the Tide Mobile Laundromat for victims of Hurricane Katrina. Other clients include Starbucks, Sony, Yahoo, Microsoft, GM, Target, Wrigley and Kellogg’s.

Marketing Mix asked Fitzsimons a few pertinent questions about experiential marketing and its role in the marketing mix ahead of his presentation at the 2nd African Experiential Marketing Summit in Johannesburg next week.

Marketing Mix: What is your definition of experiential marketing?

Ryan Fitzsimons: Experiential marketing is the discipline of creating engaging, experience based, programs that drive a brand message to the one to one conversation level. How is this done successfully? First, we find the friction point for consumers. What is it that our brand can do to alleviate a point of friction in the lives of our prime prospects. Second, we build programming based on that insight that will involve our consumers in a meaningful brand experience. Gigunda Group is really an Involvement Agency vs. Experiential. Why? Because we find friction and use that friction insight to INVOLVE consumers in truly relevant way with the brand.

MMX: Where does it fit in within the 'traditional' marketing mix?

RS: Experiential marketing has a critical role within the traditional marketing mix. If we look at all the vehicles available to marketers and put them in a tool box, there are some tools designed to drive mass awareness and brand acceptance. There are other tools deigned to drive purchase. Experiential marketing is the tool that is most responsible for driving the consumer/brand fit revelation. In this day and age of over-messaging there is no more important a tool. As consumers we see thousands of messages daily -- too many to effectively interpret. Without part of a marketing plan dedicated to delivering unique, one on one brand conversations, a brand misses a huge opportunity to drive overall fit with consumers and ultimately long-term growth.

MMX: Does experiential marketing work best on its own, with a few traditional elements thrown in, or in a fully integrated campaign?

RS: The most successful campaigns, by far, are those that are integrated. If our experiential programs are not reinforcing what is communicated in the mass media we have very low chances of involving consumers effectively while working to promote how a brand fits for them. Our philosophy is that a successful marketing campaign must be fully integrated across all mediums.

MMX: How do you measure an experiential 'event'?

RS: Every organisation and brand measures programs differently. Our programming cannot fit cleanly into a mass impression measurement system because the programme objectives change all of the time. We believe measurement should be determined by programme objective. If we are working on a program designed to get heavy users to use more of a product why would we measure that with mass media impressions? We wouldn't. We would place greater analysis interest in how many heavy users we are able to reach and what kind of action we deliver from them. Gigunda Group has a strategic partnership with an unbiased 3rd party vendor for ROI research data that is above and beyond standard programme ROI.
MMX: During an experiential campaign how do you achieve that one-to-one-connection?
RS: Within our campaigns we are looking to deliver brand devotion. We can't do that without a compelling message and experience that is relevant to the brand's target consumer. We achieve affective one to one connections by exhaustively researching what matters most to our consumers when it comes to the product. We then marry this insight to a point of friction for the consumer. When we find the point of friction that can be solved by our brand, then we've cracked the code. Being an affective friction finder will absolutely drive personal connection with consumers. Our P&G work has universally been based on finding the right consumer friction point to leverage with the brand.

MMX: What's the secret to turning people into customers and can this be done by experiential marketing alone? Also, getting indifferent consumers to take action?

The right insight. Period. As I mentioned before, finding the right friction point to leverage is the secret to driving action on behalf of consumers. It is that simple and that hard. Can it be done by experiential marketing alone? Absolutely. If an experiential programme has done it's job properly, consumers begin see how and why a brand fits into their lives and they become Brand Advocates. Brand Advocates are a powerful tool, because they start marketing the message to a much wider audience. Brand Advocates are a credible source that garners buzz, and buzz as we know, lasts well beyond the programme.

MMX: How do you find consumer perceptions (without using the traditional target market info such as gender and income) and make them work in experiential marketing?

RS: We always have to use some traditional information to frame up who the prime prospect is. Solid identification of consumer perceptions is found in truly taking a walk in their shoes to understand what is or what is not important to them as it pertains to the brands we represent. In a focus group a bath tissue can be made to sound like a life and death decision. This is simply not a real world interpretation of how consumers think of the brand. Make no mistake, focus groups can and often do deliver fantastic insights. It takes a further dive with consumers to truly understand if what is heard in groups is reality in life. Understanding reality... where your brand truly fits, how consumers truly view your brand, how the competitive set truly impacts your brand is critical.
Or stated another way….
We have found that what the brand believes the consumers are thinking and what the consumers are actually thinking are often times disproportionate or skewed. Therefore through focus groups, social networks, research, trend watching and other tools we find true consumer perception, which often revolves around a point of friction, or something that is not working in their lives. Once we find that then we creatively and cleverly find the solution and wrap the brand around the solution so they ultimately become a brand-hero - that is how we make the consumer perception work in experiential programmes.

MMX: Could you give us a very brief outline of the Potty Palooza campaign which has been cited as the 'perfect' experiential case study, and why it worked.

RS: Charmin bath tissue, a Procter & Gamble brand, is the category leader. Bath tissue is traditionally one of the lowest involvement categories not just for paper products but the entire supermarket. From the generation-spanning Mr. Whipple to the current ‘Call of Nature’ bear campaign, Charmin has a rich history of delivering memorable – and traditional – marketing.
But back in 2000, faced with countless market pressures and the need to break through the clutter to stand for something more than the product attribute of the week (softness, absorbency, roll life etc.), Charmin committed to pioneering new ground by developing an experiential platform to bring their brand positioning to life. Recognising an opportunity to turn the category on its bottom, Charmin addressed a very real and very raw need for young families on the go – the lack of clean public restrooms!
Working to alleviate this void by delivering a pristinely clean, home-like restroom experience via the famed “Potty Palooza” programme, Charmin quickly moved into the hearts, minds and bath tissue holders of families coast to coast. Further, by becoming known as a trust-brand looking out for families while being adorned by countless family advocate groups with a brand-as-hero badge, Charmin’s “Red Cross of Restrooms” approach was a royal flush. The programme not only allowed the brand to create trial – in a fully branded and uninterrupted environment – but immeasurable goodwill. From the country’s largest state fairs to local & national festivals, parades, zoos, travel plazas and sporting events (including two Super Bowls appearances by request of the NFL), Charmin delivered not only surprise and delight, but a fully immersive, uninterrupted total brand experience.
Having made an undeniable impact (P&G has countless correspondence from families that won’t attend events unless Charmin is there… one event had 34 000 families sign a petition ensuring Charmin’s return), combined with the constant effort to find new ways for families to experience the brand in a live theatre format, the brand decided to star at the crossroads of the world in the ultimate proof-point environment, a place renowned for having virtually everything BUT clean and abundant public restrooms…Times Square!
Wowing New Yorkers and families visiting from all over the world during the holidays, the Charmin NYC Restroom Experience set-up in the epicentre of the world, Times Square and offered 20 stunningly luxurious and immaculate home-like restrooms in a place infamous for a lack of restrooms. Just ask anyone – especially young families with kids – where to find a restroom in Times Square and you’re sure to get an earful. Not any more… just follow your eyes to the brilliant blue 2000 sq. ft. billboard exclaiming You’re in New York…Go in style!. Those flying into area airports were greeted by terminal and baggage claim dioramas announcing the newest and hottest attraction in New York City.
Cleaned after every single use and outfitted with almost every amenity imaginable – hardwood floors and plush carpeting; rejuvenating aromatherapy; Charmin branded wallpaper framed by homey bead board; 5” crown molding with matching chair rail; glistening white porcelain toilet and pedestal sink; elegant glowing sconces and backlit tray ceilings with illuminating cloud-motif; squeezable soft Charmin Megaroll; Bounty Paper Towels, Safeguard Soap and Puffs tissues; working fireplaces (electric!); illuminated topiaries; Winter-Wonderland family photo opportunity featuring a larger than life stuffed Charmin bear riding a toboggan with room for 5; American Band Stand-style dance stage with laser lights and disco ball; valet stroller parking and plenty of oversized, super comfy furniture for all those tired holiday shopping legs – the Charmin NYC Restroom Experience quickly became known as Charmin’s Holiday Gift to NY with overjoyed families unanimously proclaiming 'Thanks, Charmin!'