Apparently, right here.

Virgin Mobile staged a dancing, twirling, umbrella-wielding, toe-tapping, back-flipping flash mob at the intersection of Yonge and Dundas in downtown Toronto just before Valentine’s Day.  It was part of their Random Acts of Love campaign (every year, VM activates around Valentine’s Day) and kicked off Random Acts all over Canada.

Experiential marketers often struggle with the ROI question.  In a field which is driven by figures (metrics, stats, percentages, dollars, impressions), how do you justify the cost of something that can’t be measured, and how do you justify spending on an activation that isn’t directly tying back to sales, when you could use the same money on traditional PR or media that deliver a set amount of impressions?  This is a deep question that experiential marketers often shy from, but I’d like to stick my neck out and propose the following: experience matters.  Active, dynamic, real-life marketing delivers experiences that resonate and stick in one’s memory longer than passive marketing.

While it loses points for not being inspired by the Sound of Music (as, let’s be honest, everything should be) this was a fun and sassy promo from a fun and sassy company.  It fits the spirit, culture and brand of Virgin Mobile.  If people see it and like it, they may consider Virgin Mobile the next time they’re shopping for a phone.  Consideration leads to acquisition.  The trick is in the follow-up and conversion.  Did VM convert the people who witnessed their performance – was there a cart of pre-paid phones ready for purchase? Coupons that could be redeemed at VM channel partners, such as the Future Shop and Best Buy locations at Yonge and Dundas?  A code to use when consumers call into the Care team to activate their phones, which gives some benefit or deal?  It is in the conversion from spectacle to sale that the opportunity – and challenge – lie.

Disclosure: Nikisha worked for them for 2.5 years and spent most of that time singing and dancing in the office.