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Data, Straight Up! Real Time, Customer Focused, Digital Marketing at a Scotch Tasting Event

I recently attended a Scotch tasting event with friends, thinking that the most I would leave with was a potential new libation when what to my wondering eyes did appear? Some pretty exciting data gathering and marketing techniques that I hadn’t seen before. The analyst in me swooned.

Photograph by Matt Wunderle via Flickr

It all started at my desk when I received an email forward inviting me to the tasting. I picked a date, filled out my contact info and printed my ticket-a QR code that was scanned at the door. We’ve all done it before and this is usually where it ends.

This event was different. Stations were setup throughout the hall to teach me about the product, the history, the aroma, the taste. My favorite station was the scent station-identify your favorite aromas by smelling the scents, scan your QR code on an Ipad kiosk, pick your 3 favorites and viola-the machine makes you a recommendation!

 Photograph by Ted Murphy via Flickr

Why it’s awesome: With just that one station the Brand now knows who I am, how to contact me, what I like scent wise in general, and has the opportunity to market to me a product it directly knows that I’m likely to try!

What I’d add or change:

• The company texted me a message-I don’t usually like that. Send me an email, it doesn’t cost me anything to open it while a text eats at my plan.
• The message they texted me was to download an app…not great. This is my first time tasting scotch and they know this from the questionnaire I filled out during registration, I see no value in downloading an app-I don’t even know if I like the taste!
• If you’re going to send me something, send me the name and maybe an image of the Scotch that’s recommended for my taste preference. I’m not taking notes as I walk around and it would be nice to be able to refer back to it.

How other companies could benefit from this:

•  I would totally take advantage of this in other settings if it were offered. I immediately thought of how useful this would be for buying wine. No more risky picks at the liquor store. If I could walk into the store input my taste preferences and get recommendations for what’s being sold right there I would get a bottle of wine that matched my pallet AND the store would know a little bit more about my buying behavior and tastes-all the better to market to me.
• This type of data gathering and marketing could work for other industries as well. A person visiting a museum, a zoo, any sort of venue where the idea is to get people to engage with an exhibit could benefit from this type of marketing. Knowing who your visitors are, why they came to the venue, and what their particular interests once inside the venue can only help your business.

Let’s raise a dram to clever data collection and innovative marketing. Slainte!