This is the decade of creativity and integration, and we’ve got the stats to prove it. According to The Drum, creatively-awarded campaigns are 27% more effective, and “creative quality” determines 75% of ad impact. On the topic of combination, marketing campaigns that use multiple channels in their efforts are more successful than those that focus on one channel alone – 72% of consumers want to be engaged with an integrated marketing approach, but only 39% are receiving that.

That being said, crafting a well-rounded omnichannel  marketing campaign can be a challenge. Understanding which strategies work well together and carrying a unified message across a variety of platforms or channels takes a lot of planning and creativity – but the pay off is definitely worth it.

Evoking emotion through highly creative integrated marketing works to build brand loyalty and trust in your audience, and the most successful marketers and brands already know this. Here are some amazing integrated marketing campaigns that prove the power of creativity and audience understanding is crucial in your marketing effort.

Twix “melts” social media and gift marketing together

Appeasing the crowd with special editions or limited products and gifts is always a great way to keep your audience engaged, but the extra effort is what makes it front of mind for your entire audience. The popular candy bar, Twix, recently launched an Instagram campaign geared towards their craziest coffee-loving fanatics by creating the Twix Meltdown device. which rests on the edge of your coffee mug so you can melt a Twix bar into your drink. Twix-lovers entered the contest by following the company on Instagram and waiting for contest instructions, then a select number of winners were sent the device.

This campaign was not only fun for their audience, it proved that “melting” different channels in your marketing strategy works. The Meltdown campaign combined the obvious power of social media with creative gift marketing and was wildly successful, getting Twix 17 million impressions online and 241 PR placements.

Her Campus Media awarded by Adweek for their multi-level event marketing campaign

The digital magazine for college women, Her Campus, saw a desperate need in their close-knit community last year to still celebrate even with college graduation ceremonies being cancelled last year. They put together the #ImStillGraduating event which included a day long virtual event with gift boxes filled with goodies from event sponsors for Her Campus graduates, and an impressive, star-studded line up of performances and speeches. The event included appearances from Andrew Yang, Eva Longoria Baston, the Jonas Brothers, Jesse McCartney, Liam Payne, and so many more.

By putting together an emotional, integrated campaign using social media, email, gift, and performance, the Her Campus team created an event that brought their community together to celebrate in a time when it seemed impossible to do so. The campaign was awarded Campaign of the Year by Adweek and saw great success on social media with the hashtag #ImStillGraduating trending on Instagram and Twitter the day of the event.

Xbox promotes gender equality through emotional marketing and gifting

As a response to the backlash that players in the gaming industry have been receiving for being non-inclusive to women, Xbox released an edition of their controller featuring an equal sign in place of the typical “B” button. The controllers were sent to relevant influencers across 23 countries on four continents to show support for women in the industry and the gaming community.

Studies show that when individuals have a positive emotional association with a specific brand, they are 8.4 times more likely to trust the company, 7.1 times more likely to purchase more and 6.6 times more likely to forgive a company’s mistake. By taking a stance on an emotional topic for their audience, Xbox left their already very dedicated community more appreciative and supportive of their brand. By also sending an on-brand gift that matches their message to their most dedicated and influential users, the console creator took their brand to another level that resonated with their whole audience.

Takeaways

As you look into the rest of your year, or even ahead to next year, think about your most successful marketing campaign. Now, think about how you can make it even better. These  examples were all highly creative, innovative, and carried a powerful message that resonated with their audience across multiple channels. With strategic planning and maybe even help from a creative partner, you can develop campaigns that do the same.

• Creativity wins. In any marketing effort through any channel, your campaigns have to be creative enough to entice, engage, and build relationships with your audience.
• Integrated marketing campaigns are more effective than single-channel. Uniting a message across multiple channels rather than focusing on one outlet or platform is much more effective.
• Emotion matters. Building trust and loyalty with your audience is not possible without provoking emotion in what you do. A 2019 survey found that 81 percent of consumers said that they need to be able to trust the brand in order to buy from them.

We’re here to make you look good

Outgage is the Direct Mail and gifting solution built by marketers for marketers. We empower and guide B2B marketers on a journey to create meaningful customer engagement through memorable, actionable, and measurable gifting experiences.

Learn more on our website or reach out at [email protected].