To effectively prove the ROI of experience marketing, we spent the last five years undertaking lab and in-market research. In the past year alone, we observed over 55 events in 41 states, where more than 450 brands delivered 550+ unique activations to a diverse group of fans, ethnicities, and cultural tastes. Along the way we uncovered a few golden nuggets that on the surface may seem obvious, but in the absence of data weren’t provable. We’re letting you in on just one of those secrets here, but you can find them all in the GMR Brand Experience Index.
Line length matters.
Rarely do people get excited at the prospect of waiting in line, especially when they’ve arrived at an event they’ve been looking forward to, for days, weeks, or even months. But guess what? The more folks in line, the more excited people tend to get. We call this the bandwagon effect. It doesn’t matter if what’s at the end of the line is mind blowing or as dull as dishwater – the line represents the possibility for awesome, which drives people to give it a chance. In fact, even if the line is 25 people deep, most are prepared to roll with it, although the sweet spot is around 10. Anything more than 25 and people are unwilling to hang around for what could be a total (and very time consuming) let down. Unsurprisingly, no line is a big no-no.
When designing your brand experience, be intentional with how you enable access to your space. Are there logical moments to “narrow” the line, slow people down and engage them in some fun moments while driving a bit of line FOMO to onlookers?
