The Power of Pop-Ups: Creating an Engaging Brand Experience

At its core, experiential marketing allows a brand’s target audience to engage with its products and offerings directly. “Allowing a consumer to physically try a product or taste a sample has a far greater impact [than traditional advertising] — all the questions are answered immediately,” says Ricky Pacheco, director of Ontario, Canada-based Pop49.com.

Therefore, experiential marketing continues to increase as brands lean on pop-ups and special events to create impact and impressions with consumers. Fun activations that tell a story have the power to encourage a purchase or make a favorable opinion of a brand.

According to Business Research Insights’ “Experiential Marketing Service Market” report (November 2023), experiential marketing had a market size of $47.5 billion in 2021. It’s expected to reach $63 billion in 2030. This includes pop-ups, brand activations, one-time events, and workshops, among other variations of experiential marketing.

This anticipated growth means there’s an opportunity for wide-format print service providers (PSPs) to jump in and help brands tell their stories. Wide-format Impressions talked with a few PSPs to discuss possibilities, partnerships, and challenges this segment presents.

Getting Creative

Experiential marketing offers PSPs the chance to show off their printing capabilities on various products, from custom buildouts and large-scale activations to vinyl, banners, A-frame signs, displays, and custom-wrapped vehicles.

“The ability to print directly on glass, wood, uneven, and unconventional substrates has made more creative displays possible,” Pacheco notes, allowing brands to wow their audiences in new ways.

“From traditional wraps of objects and vehicles to buildouts of props,” Magda Donmartin, founder of NVS Visuals in Ridgewood, New York, says the opportunities are plentiful. “There is a push for sustainable object fabrication and the use of paper boards and falcon-like materials in collapsible displays. From walls to custom-tailored mobile food trucks and vehicle branded campaigns — there is lots to print.”

She adds that vinyl is often the go-to for creating a custom space because it can be used on fabricated walls, floors, and sidewalks. Window films like clings and clear vinyl are also great options, in addition to silicone edge graphics.

Pacheco says point-of-purchase (POP) displays have seen growth within wide-format printing. POPs can be used with other printed elements to create a visually appealing and memorable consumer experience.

“Games especially have seen the biggest growth,” he adds. “Games are a low-risk way to get people into an event space.”

General signage also has a significant role at any event. “Having noticeable signage and even possibly floor decals to assist in wayfinding ensures smooth navigation and enhances the overall attendee experience at conferences, festivals, and other events,” Kathy De Noble, owner of SpeedPro Magnolia, adds.

Special Considerations

When creating printed products for experiential marketing purposes, PSPs must keep a few things in mind, from materials used to budget, logistics, and installation.

Pacheco says Pop49 tries to be conscious of the materials it uses, considering strength, print quality, eco-friendliness, and recyclability. “Because events tend to use items only once, keeping waste to a minimum is important,” he says.

Client budgets and timeliness are also major concerns when serving this market. “The balance between expectations and possibilities within a specific timeframe is always top of mind,” Pacheco adds, especially when experiential marketing jobs usually require a tight turnaround. Because these short-term installments can last anywhere from a few days to weeks, return on investment (ROI) for the client is important, so investments in a campaign “need to be strategic,” he says.

On the planning and logistics side, there’s plenty for PSPs to be aware of, including delivery, installation, and permitting. Whether the event is indoors or outdoors will affect the design and buildout.

“Knowing if there will be street level or dock level access often will decide the mode of transport, which in turn will inform the size limitation for the build,” Pacheco shares. “Many times, the cost of a build will increase when it needs to be knocked down for transport as more parts and assembly steps are involved.

Keeping items as one piece is usually more desirable.” For this reason, Pop49 typically designs products requiring minimal buildout — requiring little to no tools. This allows a single person without any experience to set up with ease.

The team at NVS Visuals also takes extra care when it comes to prepping. “Most, if not all, of what’s produced for events needs to be removable,” Donmartin says. “Often, we need to prep the paneling in-house before the event strike due to the limited time on location for installation. The timeframe for a strike at an event must be incorporated into the production timeframe. We print more or with a larger bleed since we know there will be no possibility for a reprint if the measurement is not exact.”

Keeping installation and measurements top of mind, De Noble says SpeedPro Magnolia sometimes finds itself on-site to ensure the dimensions of the space work for the planned installation and elements.
Permitting is another primary concern with pop-up events. According to PermitAdvisors.com, organizers need to be aware of four different permits: racking, building, sign, and electrical. Depending on the build size, signage, and lighting or electrical required, a pop-up could need one or all of these permits. For experiential vehicles like food trucks and airstreams, permitting is necessary. PSPs and their clients must be up to date with a city’s requirements.

Collaborating with Brands, Agencies, and Print Partners

While PSPs play a significant role in making experiential marketing campaigns come to life, they’re not the only piece of the puzzle. Frequently, PSPs work closely with brands and agencies to pull off these projects. Brands and agencies come with a vision and purpose. PSPs bring a unique understanding to the table, Pacheco says. They know their equipment’s capabilities, what boundaries can be pushed, and can educate clients on available materials and what’s possible with print. “Combining large-format printing, CNC, laser, and 3D printing opens possibilities that agencies may not know exist unless they work closely with their PSP,” Pacheco adds.

De Noble says that a PSP can help brands and agencies brainstorm concepts that leverage wide-format capabilities and ensure the final product aligns with the brand’s objectives. Donmartin urges PSPs to be as transparent as possible to ensure a smooth brainstorming and creative process. No matter what, getting to the finish line comes quickly and can be stressful, she says, so communication about capabilities, deadlines, and expectations will go far. She adds that constant and last-minute shifts are the nature of this type of work, so it’s up to the fabricator to anticipate changes and be flexible.

There’s so much a brand can do to elevate its experiential pop-up or event, including adding promotional items and custom experiential marketing vehicles like food trucks, carts, and trailers.

“It’s all about the customer experience, so the more touchpoints one has on a journey to connect with the brand, the better. It’s more immersive,” Donmartin says. “For example, our recent campaign for Quakers Oats, which we’re activating at the Super Bowl, has many touchpoints. There’s a wall for a photo moment, an ice cream cart for a quick giveaway, and our promo truck on which you can walk in and experience the NFL Quakers journey.”

The promo item, photo wall, food truck, or cart draws in the passerby, and the brand-consumer connection begins. No matter the add-on, it must align with the brand’s identity and enhance the experience for the consumer.

“Customized food trucks with brand logos or themed menus can reinforce brand identity,” De Noble adds. “Interactive installations like photo booths, interactive walls, or AR [Augmented Reality experiences immerse attendees in the brand story. When attendees engage with these installations, they generate user-generated content for a social media component.”

Engagement, excitement, and social media interaction are what brands are after when it comes to marketing, and taking the experiential route can bring all of those in one immersive installation.

So, say a brand or agency wants some promotional items or an experiential trailer in addition to custom vinyl and other signage, but the PSP doesn’t offer those items. That’s where having solid partnerships with different printers and vendors in the industry can serve you.

“Partnering up with some of the companies that offer wholesale or below-cost services and support to you helps if you don’t offer everything the client is looking for,” De Noble advises. “It is important to know the quality of work they are doing and that they are reliable because ultimately it is your business reputation on the line.”

With over 20 years in the industry, Pacheco says Pop49 focuses on what it’s good at and leans on trusted vendors to fill in the gaps. NVS Visuals takes a similar approach, leveraging the work of “producers who overlap in part with what we do but complement us with their other services,” Donmartin explains.

Challenges in Experiential Marketing

While experiential marketing projects can be an exciting sector, sources share the challenges these projects can present for PSPs.

“Dealing with a wide variety of clients with different skill sets and backgrounds can pose challenges as they may not understand the elements required for a successful event,” Pacheco says. These elements include timelines, logistical coordination, budget constraints to print design, physical design, customization demands, and sustainability concerns.

To overcome this, PSPs must communicate clearly and educate their clients on the print and design aspects they’ll handle. Having a short list of FAQs for each client can save time.

With many unknowns before the final execution, Donmartin says it’s vital to proactively ask questions about the event site to ensure the vision is physically possible before production starts. Ensuring everyone is on the same page ahead of the event is crucial to avoiding any fire drills or unwanted surprises.