B-to-C Events

The Public Broadcasting Service launched the 10-day American Experience tour last month to promote Freedom Riders, a film about the group of people who, in 1961, used public transportation to challenge segregation in the South. The film and mobile tour celebrated the 50th anniversary of the historic ride. The tour, which ran May 6 to 16, retraced the original bus route from Washington, D.C. to New Orleans, making stops in Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia. The film premiered on PBS on May 16.

The Ben & Jerry’s ice cream truck is on tour again this summer, but with less of a focus on fixed events and more on personal requests via Twitter.  Touring since May, it’s currently taking requests in the New York market. Though Twitter is the main social media hub it’s using, Facebook, Foursquare, Flickr, Tumbler and others are also part of the strategy to connect with its target of professionals in their 20s (no worries, requests are open to all ages).

 In its first foray into event and social media marketing, Luzianne Tea in May launched a Specially Blended RV Tour that offers consumers six-ounce samples of its freshly brewed sweet, unsweetened and green iced teas. Brand ambassadors post images on Facebook and Twitter from the campaign, which is expected to serve more than 250,000 samples and distribute $82,500 worth of coupons both online and on tour.

Thanks to the evolution of modern technology, event and trade-show marketers no longer have to stand idly by as consumers peruse their exhibits, waiting for the right moment to engage and wondering what they’re interested in and where they are in the purchase funnel. Widely available tech tools like GPS, RFID, QR codes and smart phones now enable you to track prospects and customers at multiple points along the journey while making the live experience fun and engaging for them. Here’s a look at four ways to track—and attract—consumers.