Expanding your marketing efforts into the crowded paid social space as an outdoor brand is smart, while potentially overwhelming. From Instagram to YouTube, finding the right way to reach your audience is crucial to its success. We’re sharing our best practices, curated from our experience in outdoor apparel, gear, and hospitality.
Learn more about how to maximize your impact in the paid social space below.
Focus on the experiences created through your product
Great ad campaigns are ones that speak to the heart. The outdoor brands that are succeeding with paid social campaigns are pulling users out of their daily routine into breath-taking landscapes, remote adventures, and exhilarating moments. While the features and quality of their products may be unparalleled, these should be reinforcements for user’s desire to fulfill their longing for adventures.
Relentlessly employ video ads for brand awareness
You know what they say, a picture is worth a thousand words and a video is worth a million. Well, maybe just we say that. Well designed videos create memorable moments while scanning through a newsfeed. Not only can video create these moments, but they’re invaluable for creating engagement audiences to cultivate.
Engage with your fanbase via Instagram Interactive Stories
Instagram Interactive Stories are not only a fantastic medium for engagement with your customer base, but is yet another valuable tool for creating audience segments to further nurture. Staying abreast of the outdoor industry trends will help you keep up and grow your audience.
Reinforce trust by highlighting warranty policies
It’s no secret that quality outdoor gear and apparel comes at a cost. When you invest in a new tent, jacket, snowboard, or bike, the expectation is that you’ll get years of adventures out of this purchase. The clever outdoor apparel and gear brands are aware of this fact, and are committing ad spend to assure potential purchasers that their investment will provide years of adventures.
Create awareness and engage in conversation around the brand’s social values & political stances
Taking stances on political & social issues has become a defining mechanism for aligning with core customers. Issues such as climate change, fracking, and deforestation directly impact outdoor brands, making it all the more pertinent to take stances on said issues. Here’s a great example of how Patagonia advocated their position on a political issue in order to create an opportunity for change. Plus, by advocating for causes your brand aligns with, you’ll build brand affinity. Learn more about building a purpose-driven digital marketing strategy here.
Use transaction-related Call to Actions sparingly
While oftentimes, generating revenue is the objective of paid social campaigns, the top brands have learned to reserve purchase-related CTAs for select campaigns only. Dynamic remarketing campaigns are great for encouraging purchases, as well as campaigns announcing upcoming sales, specials, or discounts. Keep these CTAs away from awareness or consideration campaigns.
Curious about how to get started on paid campaigns for your outdoor brand but don’t have time to become an expert? We can help you get off to a great start. Reach out and set up a free consultation with our team today.
