Today’s consumers expect more than just advertisements. They expect and have a love for memorable and immersive brand experiences. It makes even more sense in this digital world where everything is captured in a variety of ways.
Most of it is influenced by technology and social media platforms, which is why people now value experiences that they can share online.
A 2024 PwC report revealed that 73% of customers consider a good experience to be a major driver in purchasing decisions, even surpassing price.
For businesses, this shift presents an opportunity to revisit lead generation.
Immersive brand experiences are rewriting the rules of B2B and B2C marketing by delivering interactive, immersive, and highly personalized experiences that attract the eyes, create trust, and convert prospects into leads.
So what is an immersive brand experience, and how can businesses leverage it to create quality leads?
What Are Immersive Brand Experiences?
Immersive brand experiences are not typical marketing that we often see. Unlike typical marketing, it uses technology like VR and AR or events that let people feel experience with their senses.
So, instead of only viewing promotional ads for a product, people are able to interact with the brand more closely, so it feels like they are a part of the brand’s world.
They are able to touch, walk around and even play with things within the physical spaces that the brand has created.
The benefits these experiences give:
- The use of VR, AR, AI, live events, and gamification will create fun and enable engaging interactions.
- Help to build emotional links between brands and consumers.
- Enable active participation from people instead of just watching the content.
- From showing products with AR to offering personalized AI recommendations, immersive marketing enables brands to stand out in a crowded digital world and capture high-intent leads.
How Businesses Can Generate Leads Through Immersive Experiences
1. Virtual & Augmented Reality (VR/AR) for Hands-On Experience
Virtual reality and augmented reality (VR/AR) have become powerful channels for businesses to engage customers in a way traditional marketing is unable to. These tools allow brands to deliver interactive, real-world, and immersive experiences that leave lasting impressions.
B2B Example:
L’Oreal’s Virtual Beauty Advisor
L’Oreal applies AR to create virtual beauty consulting in which the customers can view how makeup would look on them in real-time. They offer AR-powered virtual try-ons to B2B partners like retailers, e-commerce platforms, and beauty stores.
This AR experience is incorporated into their app in such a manner that potential customers can try first and then purchase, while simultaneously collecting valuable data to nurture leads.
B2C Example:
IKEA’s Place App
IKEA offers an AR app where customers can view how furniture would look at home. This kind of immersive experience boosts sales and captures information through requesting email signup to use full features.
2. Live & Hybrid Events to Build Trust
Hybrid and live events combine the in-person experience of physical events with the reach of virtual interaction. These events allow businesses to create extremely immersive spaces where potential leads can ask, interact with products, and converse directly with representatives of the brand.
B2B Example:
Salesforce’s Dreamforce Conference
This flagship yearly event is a prime example of how to utilize immersive experiences in order to capture B2B leads. Salesforce marries live-streaming, VR product presentations, and AI-enabled networking features, allowing visitors to participate in real-time conversations, learn from product demonstrations, and connect with decision-makers themselves.
B2C Example:
Red Bull’s Live Streaming of Extreme Sports Events
Red Bull uses live streaming to engage their audience in the moment by live streaming extreme sports events where their audience can participate in interactive social media challenges. This keeps people engaged and generates leads by collecting social media handles and email sign-ups to access special content.
3. AI-Driven Personalization for Hyper-Personalized Lead Generation
Artificial Intelligence (AI) enables brands to deliver hyper-personalized experiences, showing customers highly personalized content that addresses them specifically.
B2B Example:
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HubSpot’s AI-Driven Lead Scoring
HubSpot uses AI to track user engagement on its platform, scoring leads based on their activity and interaction. This allows businesses’ sales teams to target the right outreach and deliver tailored solutions, increasing conversion.
B2C Example:
Amazon’s Personalized Shopping Experience
Amazon uses AI to make product suggestions based on user behavior, purchase history, and browsing activity. This level of personalization drives repeat visits and creates leads by capturing email addresses for product suggestions.
4. Gamification & Interactive Content to Capture Leads
Gamified experiences engage users through rewards or engaging interactions in exchange for quality customer data. Gamified content has the ability to encourage increased engagement and provide live insights into users’ preferences.
B2B Example:
Cisco’s Gamified Training Platforms
Cisco applies gamification to its training platforms in order to train prospects for its network products. Players are rewarded points as they go through challenges, and Cisco collects valuable data on the most active prospects so that salespeople can concentrate on high-potential leads.
B2C Example:
Starbucks Rewards Program
Starbucks’ gamified rewards program rewards users for accumulating stars on each transaction. The app tracks their activities and sends them targeted offers relevant to their interests, stimulating repeat visits and new sign-ups.
5. Omnichannel Immersive Campaigns for Seamless Engagement
Omnichannel marketing brings immersive experiences from different platforms together to create a cohesive, interactive brand experience. The campaigns allow businesses to reach prospect customers through numerous touchpoints while ensuring brand experience consistency and engagement.
Example:
Nike’s “You Can’t Stop Us” Campaign
Nike launched an omnichannel campaign that combined physical and digital experiences. The campaign involved interactive video commercials, AR product try-ons, and personalized challenges that were distributed via the Nike Training Club app.
The seamless combination of these experiences helped Nike to drive brand engagement as well as lead conversion.
Utilize QR codes, trackable links, and retargeting ads to measure engagement and fine-tune tactics based on behavior.
Conclusion
Immersive brand experiences are changing the way people view ads. By giving customers interactive, personalized, and engaging experiences, businesses can create stronger customer connections, boost conversions, and build high-quality leads.
The bottom line? Customers remember experiences, not commercials. By investing in immersive technologies like VR/AR, AI, and gamification, businesses can leave a lasting impression that inspires both engagement and lead generation, making long-term success in an increasingly competitive marketplace all but assured.
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