Did you know that 73% of our vivid memories come from first-time experiences or unique events? This is an important cue for companies looking to make themselves memorable to customers who have been experience-deprived during the pandemic.

But while experience is something that has been closely tied to business, its power in forming stronger connections with your audience through smart marketing remains untapped. Simply put, it’s not enough to help your customers have a great time – to cultivate customer loyalty, you need to remind them of that memory and let them relive it.

Let’s take a look at how leveraging memorable experiences can be the single best marketing asset of a business.

Capture experiences actively, not passively

While customer experiences can be crafted both online and offline, customer-facing businesses like restaurants and tour providers have it easier than anyone else. Yet, even they often capture memories passively: They let customers document their special moment themselves, be it through photos, videos, or other media.

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By letting customers shape their experiential narrative by themselves, businesses are missing out. Even if the customer then chooses to share that moment, for example by posting it on Facebook, it’s up to Facebook to remarket it with the “On This Day” feature, and all of this goes to the exclusive benefit of the platform, not your business.

You can build stronger connections with customers by actively capturing their memories. And by sharing these strategically, you can create new, extremely valuable touchpoints for re-engagement. Let’s say that a family celebrates their youngest son’s birthday with an exciting paintball competition. By sending a happy birthday email the following year and attaching a picture you took of them that day, the customer feels valued and is likely to both want to repeat the experience and share it with their circle on social networks.

The success lies in deep personalization 

Today, marketers are well aware of the benefits personalization brings, with 96% of them seeing its direct value in practice. “Memory marketing” – retargeting the customer through an experience they had with your brand – is perhaps the most personalized form of engagement. Nostalgia plays a key role and, on top of that, having brands acknowledge a specific customer experience can fulfill the human need for recognition.

Imagine that after a wildlife tour, each participant gets a text where the tour guide sends a video, thanking them for attending. Not only does this person remember everyone’s name, but they also recall a meaningful moment from the experience. Being attentive during the tour, and making the experience last even after the tour is over is a powerful strategy for strengthening customer loyalty.

Creating memorable experiences is the springboard, but it’s their strategic retargeting that can help build a special connection with a customer forever. So, whether designing a setup by yourself or working with third-party solutions, leveraging experiences is a fundamental marketing strategy that can transform your business’ future.

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