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Burger King is on a roll and not the sesame seed variety.

The fast-food chain is enjoying its fourth consecutive year of same-store sales growth. Driving that success—along with product a few healthy menu items and that quirky King mascot—is a whopper of a marketing program that for the past three years has put events and sponsorship marketing on the front burner.

“See me. Feel me. Touch me. Heal me.” These words sung by The Who at Woodstock in 1969 and later in the rock opera “Tommy” are becoming the mantra of event marketers looking to engage consumers with sensory experiences. Events have traditionally tapped into our sense of sight hearing and taste with arresting visuals catchy tunes and tasty product samples. Now they are adding new sensations especially touch and smell to facilitate a deeper connection.

They’re opinionated they’re socially connected and they’re on the cusp of gaining a ton of new purchasing power (just as soon as they graduate from college). It’s no surprise then that marketers go out of their way to provide memorable experiences each year at spring break where thousands of these influential young adults congregate. But with economic doom and gloom in the air many companies are cutting back.

Most people know at least one self-proclaimed king of air guitar. The act of strumming an invisible stringed instrument has been a favorite pastime for decades. Now thanks to the proliferation of in-home gaming products like Nintendo Wii Microsoft Xbox 360 and Sony Playstation everybody (of every age) is doing it.

It may seem counterintuitive but a growing number of trade show marketers are leaving their products at the office. They’re paring down displays and demo stations (some by more than 50 percent) cutting back text-heavy signage weeding out clutter and presenting just a smattering of the products they need to sell in order to stay in the black in the coming year.