Colorado natives are fiercely proud of our microbreweries, and many have grown up with New Belgium as a household name. The company has been praised since its beginning in 1988 for its variety of beers, non-traditional employee perks and community involvement, but today we would like to point out how New Belgium is an innovator in the world of Experiential Marketing.
Tour De Fat Denver
(Just as a refresher–we define experiential marketing as a form of marketing that becomes an experience, inviting participants to become fully immersed in a brand.)
Can you think of a time when you were fully immersed in the New Belgium brand? Maybe when you visited the brewery and went on the tour for the first time or when you went to a bike-in-movie they hosted. Well, at Silver Spur, we can confidently say we were immersed in the brand during the Tour de Fat this year. Chief Wrangler Bradley Joseph attended the event in Denver, and Content Writer Elizabeth Young attended in San Francisco.
Here are 5 reasons why we feel this is one of the best Experiential Marketing campaigns around (and not just because we are big brand fans):
1. It’s an event not to be missed.
Especially in Colorado, Tour de Fat has become a yearly tradition for many. Whether it is the costumes, the bikes, the beer or the community that keeps the crowd coming back, they are definitely doing something right!
2. It’s completely immersive.
Once you arrive at the event, you are completely surrounded by everything New Belgium. The brand isn’t necessarily in-your-face, but they work to ensure you are experiencing everything the brand embodies.
3. It’s all about the culture, not the beer.
Shoe-Bike in San Francisco
After Tour de Fat we felt like we had a new understanding of the New Belgium brand. It’s funky and fun, like the mobile karaoke stage. It’s trendy and innovative–like the concert lineup and various flavors of beer. And New Belgium is just down to have a good time–like the weird bikes we took for a test ride in San Francisco. An event like Tour de Fat really allows a brand to define themselves on a deeper level than any other form of marketing.
4. It’s about the community.
New Belgium connects with the community through charities and community involvement. All of the Tour de Fats this year sold $5 beers and donated 100% of the proceeds to local bike nonprofits. In Denver, all beer sales benefited Bike Denver, and in San Francisco they went to the SF Bicycle Coalition and the Bay Area Ridge Trail Council. As consumers, this makes us feel more connected to the brand because they care about making our cities more bikeable and livable.
5. You walk away with a new brand loyalty.
After having a positive and immersive brand experience at Tour de Fat, we walked away with a new-found enthusiasm and respect for the brand. We feel that we have a deeper understanding of what they are all about, and have found ourselves gravitating towards buying more New Belgium six-packs than we may have before.
What did you think about this year’s Tour de Fat? Did you walk away from the event with a different perception of the brand? Let us know in the comment section below.
Until next time,
SSM
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