The automotive aftermarket event industry is changing. Consequently, the marketing strategy to drive new business and retain customers is also changing. There are two highly effective ways to market to the automotive aftermarket consumer. Moving forward, you’ll need to consider a marketing agency for off-road experiences.
Digital Marketing
Digital marketing is a valuable tool for reaching people nationwide interested in your product. This marketing strategy affects sales, and there is proof of this. Creating dazzling video content that immerses the consumer in the experience is vital to reaching your target market.
Experiential Event Marketing
Event marketing and experiential activations might seem outside the annual marketing budget. However, when a brand considers the customer reach, customer awareness, and consumer engagement of event experiences, the ROI goals can be achieved within the budget parameters. Aftermarket automotive product consumers crave engagement and experiences from the brands they plan to purchase. Event marketing is the only way to effectively bring that experience to the consumer.
Digital and experiential marketing strategies must work in tandem. Plan for collaboration between your digital and event marketing teams to get the most out of your marketing budget. These two marketing teams, on their own, provide an average performance. However, when these two marketing strategies are combined, the ROI increases exponentially.
Experiential events provide quality content that drives engagement and increases your brand’s reach. For example, you’ve had a great event but didn’t take photos or videos. This limits sharing these valuable brand experiences with those who didn’t attend. Additionally, your content team is always looking for photos and videos to share and increase impressions and engagements.
Additional considerations: Having a quality photographer or videographer on-site ensures that you capture great content that is usable on social posts and company presentations.
Lastly, ensure you have someone on-site focused on capturing great content and sharing it with the correct department to magnify the event experience.
Where do you want to market your Automotive Products?
These are a few of our favorite annual aftermarket automotive enthusiast events to attend.
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Specialty Equipment Market Association, the SEMA Show
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King of the Hammers
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The SCORE Baja 1000 Mexican Off-Road Motorsport Race
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Easter Jeep Safari
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Texas Heatwave
Finally, don’t forget motorcycle rally marketing opportunities, like the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. Obviously, an event that includes 10 days and nights of riding, food, and music has a massive influence on the aftermarket industry. Indeed, 500,000 riders, concert fanatics, and street-food enjoyers attending the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally is a huge experiential marketing opportunity.
Mainstream Brands Are Entering The Aftermarket Automotive Event Industry
As the popularity of automotive aftermarket events increases, so does the cost of brand marketing at these events. Not only does your brand need to be present to compete, but your brand has to create an experience to draw the consumer to your brand’s event activation. Unquestionably, these consumers thrive on speed and adrenaline. So setting up an event space with excitement is vital to ensure traffic, brand recognition, and word-of-mouth marketing.
Not all event marketing ideas are expensive to execute. Building excitement at your event space can range in cost. For this purpose, hiring an experiential marketing agency for marketing strategy, event space fabrication, event sponsorship, and onsite activation can save your team time and money. Additionally, an event marketing agency can help you compete while entering the aftermarket automotive event space. The in-house marketing team is excellent for long-term relationship management and overseeing the project. Still, when it comes to the details, it might be better to let an agency handle the multitude of moving parts.
Of course, event relationships are key. If you are a long-time vendor at an event, your relationship with the promoter can elevate your access to the event. You’ve invested in a partnership that will pay off for years as long as the key people stay in their positions. However, as these events grow, the relationships can lose steam, and the marketing dollar starts to take over.
If you are new to the automotive aftermarket industry, having a seasoned and networked experiential marketing agency is vital to navigating event sponsorship and brand placement.
Get to Know Off-Road Experience Consumers
All consumers are not the same, and the automotive aftermarket consumer is no different. The automotive aftermarket customer is a unique target market. One of the first things you notice about these consumers is the importance of community. Everyone is welcome; the more these consumers see your brand, the more they are open to purchasing your product. Building a relationship with these consumers takes time, trust, and consistent engagement.
Additionally, relationships drive these consumers. They want to know their brand intimately, the people who work for it, and the story behind their products. Consumers want to connect with the vibe of your brand. These events allow you to make that connection, so don’t waste it. These consumers are incredibly loyal.
Finally, they are highly educated on the products they buy. Most likely, even the most educated product rep can learn a thing or two from these consumers. These consumers want the best, and they research to ensure they buy the best. Cutting corners will not go unnoticed. Brands must make product decisions with their consumer in mind.
Looking for a Marketing Agency for Off-Road Experiences?
Not all marketing agencies have the same capabilities. For example, Evolve Activation Marketing Agency focuses on events and in-person engagement. We are not a digital agency. Evolve focuses on event logistics, consumer engagement, onsite event ROI measurement, and consumer experiences. For example, our initial venture into the off-road racing event space started at the Mint 400. Now our passion and knowledge in this industry have grown immeasurably since that first event.
Can Any Marketing Agency Create a Winning Automotive Aftermarket Event Activation?
No. Every experiential marketing agency has its unique skills and event capabilities. Evolve Marketing Agency is engrossed in the production of automotive experiential events. Find out why automotive brands choose our agency.
Evolve Activation – A Marketing Agency for Off-Road Experiences
- Operational Organization – Spreadsheets, checklists, backup plans. We think of everything.
- An Inviting and Cohesive Company Culture – When building a team for a brand, we ensure that personalities and skills match our client’s needs. We want each client call to be enjoyable and productive. We believe you can have fun while working hard if you provide a positive working environment.
- Building a Team of Leaders with the Right Experience – If we find a gap in the skills needed, we hire the right person to meet those needs. As a marketing company that has grown 400% over the past year, we are ready to add new talent to meet our clients’ goals.
- Dedicated to the Brands We Support – We become an extension of your brand and your brand’s core values.
- Communication and Partnership – Our clients come to the table with years of experience and knowledge. We build on that experience to amplify the success of your brand. Additionally, our company leadership is available to our clients at any time. Every client is valuable to us. Expect the treatment you deserve as a client.
Contact us through this link to discuss the various experiential marketing services that with drive brand awareness and conversion.
Additionally, read our client reviews on Clutch.co. See why we are ranked as one of the Top Event Marketing Companies in North America.
About the Author:
Ashely Lopez is a racing industry veteran with 15 years of automotive aftermarket event industry experience. She started her career working at the K&N Filters warehouse and finished her career as the Events Manager. During her busiest year of event activations, she managed the logistics of over 300 events in one year. You’ll find her hands-on at her mobile touch-up paint business when Ashley isn’t on the automotive circuit. Additionally, Ashley partners with the Evolve Activation Marketing Agency, activating Firestone and Fox Factory marketing events.
