EXHIBITOR Magazine: How does your organization incorporate live events and activations into the marketing mix?
Umi Patel: When we think about designing live events, we think in terms of how we can build solutions that allow us to meaningfully connect face to face with audiences. We also aim to create experiences for our customers that resonate at an emotional level. For us, creating a successful marketing campaign – especially a big one – isn't just about media and point of sale promotions. We're also thinking about the types of live experiences that we want consumers to have, and how we can help them live and feel the brand through experiential events. For example, we launched a Pepsi #Summergram program that encouraged consumers to live summer to the max, especially in the North territory and places like Michigan, where summer comes late and leaves early. We've partnered with iHeartRadio to get the word out, and we've created 13 pop-up events that bring the brand to life through fun, games, and other activities.

EM: So would you say live events are just as important as other channels such as social media and e-marketing?
UP: It depends how you look at it. For Millennial or Generation Z audiences, you almost cannot connect with them at all outside of digital and social channels, unless you're at a concert or another venue where they're a captive audience. But if you're talking about the power of live experiences to connect with consumers in general, they remain tremendously powerful. In that sense, they're one of the best options in a marketer's toolkit to help create meaningful relationships and facilitate hands-on trials with your brand. I think the most important thing to keep in mind is that there's still plenty of room for all sorts of marketing strategies. What it really comes down to is understanding who your consumers are, how they live their lives, what places they frequent, and how you can integrate with them in a seamless, organic, and authentic way.

EM: With that in mind, do you see digital channels as separate from live events, or are the two more symbiotic?
UP: We try to create digital content during our live events that consumers can continue to engage with beyond the 20 minutes or so they might be spending with our brands at the events themselves. For instance, at the All Star game in Cleveland, we had a 60-foot hot dog for them to take pictures with, as well as places where they could engage with the brand and find out more about our products. All of those engagements made for great Instagrammable moments. We also did a public relations event in New York, where we put a giant flamingo in the water that drove a great deal of media coverage. In that way, live events can actually drive online exposure and create a ton of PR and social wins for your business.

EM: Okay, so those are examples of face-to-face experiences that delivered. Do you have any examples of tactics that didn't?
UP: What I've found doesn't tend to work is trying to create a destination and drive consumers there. Instead, make a point as a marketer to go where consumers are already heading, such as the beach, amusement parks, water parks, concerts, sporting events, etc. Then find ways to organically integrate your brand. In other words, think about where they're going and what they're going to be doing there. Then think about how you and your brand can fit in. Trying to steer people to a destination that's not on their radar is often much more difficult, expensive, and challenging.

EM: Are there any particular trends that PepsiCo is currently incorporating into its marketing efforts?
UP: Augmented reality is top of mind lately. We launched a program for Mountain Dew called Dewnited, where each of the 50 states gets bottles with different labels. Consumers can scan the QR codes on these products to enjoy augmented reality experiences on their phones and collect all 50 states to win $100.

EM: What one tip would you give marketers regarding how to stay relevant in today's rapidly shifting marketplace?
UP: More and more, it's becoming vital to understand customers in a local context. You'll see that even with our marketing campaigns that run across a series of events, we're looking at how to customize each event for local audiences. What's important to a customer in Detroit is not necessarily the same as what's important to one in Kentucky or Ohio. We think the fact we're able to customize campaigns to these local audiences will prove a real source of competitive advantage for us going forward. E