The Chief Executive Officer of Oracle Experience, one of Nigeria’s leading experiential marketing agencies, Dr. Felix King Eiremiokhae has tasked experiential marketing agencies to embark on collaboration and deploy innovative solutions in order to survive the effect of COVID-19 pandemic.
He made this known recently at the Live Instagram Chat hosted by the Publisher of Brand Communicator, Joshua Ajayi where he spoke on the topic, “Survival Strategies for Experiential Agencies and Event Management Companies in the Post COVID-19 Pandemic.”
Dr. Felix pointed that the experiential marketing subsector is one of the hardest hit as a result of the lockdown and the new normal of social distancing caused by the pandemic, affecting an industry which thrives on influencing senses of sight, sound, feel, smell and taste.
He noted that the pandemic has disrupted business operations in the subsector which includes market activations, street activations and others.
He therefore urged practitioners to re-strategise in the face of the new normal. He also said for the industry to move forward, practitioners and agencies have to deploy innovation, a situation where high-tech and high-touch meets and work effectively together.
He also spoke on the need for agencies’ collaboration: “We need to work more together, a lot will happen, I say collaboration is key.”
Speaking on what event management companies need to do differently in post COVID-19 era, he said when people come to an event, organisers must ensure that safety measures are put in place that makes people feel secured from contacting any disease or pandemic and with that gradually the confidence to the industry will return.
On the upsurge in digital traffic and engagement by brands, he stated that he doesn’t think digital will overtake the physical interaction because Nigerians like physical interaction and as such digital and experiential marketing will work together and it will be of immense benefit to brands.
In addition, to survive in a post COVID-19 era, Dr. Felix advised experiential marketing agencies to cut off waste, embark on collaboration and change the mindset of do or die mentality. Also, he pointed that they should have a strong relationship with third party who are in the value chain and they have to be smart thinking because “Innovation is what is going to win it”.