Experiential Marketing (Brand Activation) is becoming the fastest growing segment of the Integrated Marketing Communications, IMC sub-sector. Activation Agencies search for new ways to amplify every marketing campaign to reach pre-destined consumer attraction. Princewill Ekwujuru examines activities of Experiential Agencies and challenges in brand Activation.

In the brand-laden world, a consumer sees choice, but in contrast, brands see competition. One thing unites both groups-they both see clutter. Cutting through the clutter with relevant, fresh product and brand Activation idea is becoming a sought after marketing tool employed by Activation Agencies to create a niche in the market.

Aside this, today, culture is playing its role, and constantly changing, and brands that anticipate that change have an advantage, that’s on the premise of added values for a brand. And that is why brands will do exploits to retain their position in the market deploying the Activation strategy.

For brands to attain their goals, Activation Agencies keep their fingers on the pulse of the latest technological innovations, thus committed to finding ways to increase awareness, brand penetration, workability and return on investment, RoI.

However, to survive and prosper in today’s hypercompetitive fast moving market, brands need to be agile to be able to adapt and react quickly, and that is why Chief Executive Officer of Oracle Experience Limited, Mr. Felix Eiremiokhae, said that brand Activation has moved from street dancing to storytelling.

“Brand Activation is the future, we have moved away from dancing on the streets to seeing ourselves as storytellers, on how you can touch the people’s sixth sense that is the emotive sense. So that is the direction. That is why you discover that most agencies that are not into ideation would struggle as we progress in the industry, because every brand wants to tell a story.

Story that people can walk away and remember over a long period but how many agencies can tell a story through Activation that is another story for another day.” There is no profession without its peculiar challenges as can be envisaged in brand Activation projects, like Oracle CEO stated: “Life itself is a huge challenge and what separates you from others, and make you outstanding is how you are able to manage these challenges when they come your way.

I keep telling people you need to take risk for you to be able to stand out.” Continuing he said; “the biggest challenge we keep seeing in the industry is ourselves. We keep doing things that had never been done in the industry and that is a huge challenge for us because you are required by clients to surpass your previous feats. So, it is already difficult for people to understand the direction we want to go.”

What we do here at Oracle is like a painter who has all the ideas but those ideas are inside of him. Therefore, trying to reinterpret those ideas sometimes could be really challenging. But the good thing is that clients are always patient with us and give us the opportunity to express our inner thoughts and that make it easy for us.

And again, looking at our environment you discover that sometimes budget can also be a very big issue. Besides that man power and third party supplier are huge challenges an agency like ours could face in delivering on these innovative brand engagement activations but somehow here we are the clients are happy with us despite the challenges and they are always ready to stay in a journey with us.

In winning laurel, he said it has been from glory to glory and every single day a lot of challenges keep coming our way in terms of delivering on promises we made to clients and we just keep doing it and that is the magic for us.