How To... Turn Your Brand Experience into a Tourist Attraction

Whilst Seattle has never been top of my travel destination list, when I finally visited the rainy city for a business meeting last month, I found myself giddy with excitement.

But not because I might finally get to see the infamous space needle and traverse the city’s lush evergreen mountains and forests. What I truthfully wanted to visit was the world’s only Amazon Go Store and Jeff Bezo’s balls, of all things. 

Amazon's The Spheres HQ (aka Jeff Bezos' balls)

So, as I relinquished your traditional go-to tourist destinations in favour of some mega-brand experiences, the question popped into my head of when brand interaction became more compelling than city sites. My own unexpected behaviour led me to think that there must be others out there like me, searching for the ultimate brand destination and getting a taste for something beyond tradition. 

But what does Amazon Go have to offer that other brands don’t? How can brands define and maximise their experiential focus in an age of digital and brand purpose both online and off?

Focus is key 

What’s the beauty of online shopping? It cuts out the middle man. Yes – human interaction is important, and as social beings we need conversation and communication. But as time-poor consumers we’re often more drawn to being able to get in and get out – hence the attraction of avoiding long check-out queues and store assistants politely asking if we need a hand. 

Amazon have taken their online shopping experience and successfully mirrored it offline. They’ve achieved what might otherwise seem impossible – removed the human element from a physical store. You walk in – fill your basket – and then you walk out. Everything you take with you is automatically credited to your online Amazon account. Genius, right?

It’s true that not everyone can emulate this – but looking at it through the lens of brand experience, coupled with the importance of differentiating in an oversaturated digital world – Amazon Go has gone in guns blazing. 

Amazon Go is consistent as a brand experience, putting a laser focus on cutting-edge technology, used to enhance a shopping experience so that it is more seamless for the consumer. And so, their experience is synonymous with the brand. It might not be particularly emotional, but it works efficiently and expediently. 

Not all brands need necessarily make their offline experience synonymous with their online experience – a case in point being Today at Apple [below]. But when, for example, clients who rely on retailers to drive sales ask me, “What’s our website ambition?” my answer is simple: experiential should either reinforce your brand’s values or add another dimension to your existing ecosystem.

Be holistic: think online, think offline 

I have in the past claimed the battle between offline and online retail experiences is coming to an end, because online-only brands like Everlane and Warby Parker have recognised the importance of physical space to reinforce brand experience, whilst traditionally more offline brands are fast coming to terms with building their brand presence in the online world. 

There does eventually come a moment in time when consumers actually want to interact with a brand. Companies that have successfully built trust-worthy, reliable and convenient brands online recognise that sometimes, people still want to have an offline experience, which is where Amazon Go has prevailed. Selfie-taking was something I’ve never quite experienced whilst food shopping. 

No, it’s not the most exciting brand experience, but it makes sense for Amazon. Amazon Go tangibly reinforces the company’s superiority in cutting-edge technology to drive a seamless consumer shopping experience. Other brands can emulate this too. They need to consider their brand experience offline and ask themselves either, “Does everything our brand encompasses online translate offline, and vice versa? Or “What’s missing from the brand experience overall and how can offline help to fill a void?”

Don’t undersell purpose 

It might sometimes feel like brand purpose is being oversold to the savvy consumer – but this couldn’t be further from the truth. A purpose is more than a catchy tagline or CSR. Purpose is a brand’s north star. A brand should serve to make meaningful connections with people. Amazon have been smart with their purpose: “Earth’s most consumer-centric company; to build a place where people can come to find and discover anything they might want to buy online”. The brand is synonymous with ease and innovation, and from a consumer standpoint its purpose is reflected through Amazon’s actions and behaviours. 

Getting it right isn’t always easy and different brands have different tipping points when it comes to their experiential offering. But by bearing in mind the importance of consistency, an online and offline offering as well as playing a meaningful role in people’s lives, brands could be on the way to becoming a main landmark in history. After all, if a brand has the power to speak to consumers as an experience, then surely our cities will be thankful for it.