Creative pop-up shops disrupt everyday life, and that’s what your marketing team should understand
Originally published at linkedin.com on October 12, 2017.
Size of a donut. Power of a superhero.
On October 4th, Google offered their annual Google Event. Coming in strong, Google unveiled many fascinating products: their latest Pixel 2 & Pixel 2 XL; a wireless smart camera called the Google Clips; Google Pixelbook; an updated Google Daydream View; Google Pixel Buds that get you real-time translation with Google Translate; and finally some additions to the smart-speaker Google Home family: Google Home Mini and Google Home Max.
The Google Event was pretty important and it gave followers a new Google account to follow on Instagram, under the “Made by Google” handle. The Instagram account teased the unveiling of new Google products. A year ago, Made by Google joined Twitter to unveil the Pixel phone.
For the full Google Event live stream, you can watch it here.
Google’s Google Home Mini Donut Shop
Quickly after the Google Event, their social media unveiled their latest activation: Google Home Mini Donut Shops. The key here is to emphasize the power that the Google Home Mini boasts within its size (that of a small donut). The shop allowed fans to queue up in line for a chance to ask a Google Home Mini a question, and then having the possibility of winning one of the 250 products that each shop was giving away.
As Adweek’s Marty Swant details the experience of entering the pop-up shops: “…visitors will be able to walk into a donut shop to a kiosk, where they’ll be able to ask a Mini device a question, triggering a box to slide down from a chute. Visitors will then head to a counter and unbox their package, which will either contain a donut or a Mini.”
You can try your luck at any of the following donut pop-up shops Google will host from the list below:
San Francisco: Oct. 14–15 [RSVP]; Brooklyn: Oct. 20–22 [RSVP]; Austin: Oct. 21–22[RSVP]; Toronto: Oct. 26–27 [RSVP]; Oklahoma City: Oct. 28–29 [RSVP]; Madison, Wis.: Nov. 2 [RSVP]; Chicago: Nov. 4–5 [RSVP]; Indianapolis: Nov. 4–5 [RSVP]; St. Louis: Nov. 9 [RSVP]
For the full map, you can click here.
“I spent 90 minutes in line, not knowing if I’d get the Mini or two donuts”
Lured by the possibility of winning a $49 Google Home Mini, residents of Manhattan, San Francisco, and Los Angeles rushed to the pop-up shops. Google promised every attendee a pair of donuts, but only 250 people would be able to get the coveted Minis.
People lined up, some waiting more than ninety minutes, only for a chance to ask the Home Mini a question. But the wait was worth for some; at least for 250 people per location, per day.
Winners of Google’s activation got to experience the Google Home Mini free of charge, adding it to their selection of Smart Home equipment. Regardless of customer’s phone preferences (from Apple, to Samsung, to now Google), anyone can enjoy having a Google Home Mini in their house, playing with its built-in AI.
Pop-Up shops disrupt the daily commute
Of course, pop-up shops are not a new thing in consumerism. The magic of pop-up shops comes from disrupting a customer’s monotonous commute by providing a small space that seems magical — at least out of the ordinary.
You can read more on You can also read more on 37.5 Technology’s activation . ‘s article here, where she talks with Matt Talbot, WIP’s creative director.
37.5 Technology’s “The World’s Most Remote Popup Shop”
Late August 2017, 37.5 Technology launched perhaps one of the most inaccessible pop-up shops to the every day person: a pop-up shop located 300 feet on the side of a cliff at mountain on Bastille in Eldorado Canyon (Boulder, Colorado).
Seventy persistent climbers made their way through the intense climb to see what the pop-up shop was about. Upon finally reaching the shop, a 37.5 employee popped out of the window and greeted climbers with a friendly “Looks like you could use another layer!” and then handing them gear from Adidas, Rab and Point6 to help them keep warm for the rest of their climb (37.5’s name is a reference to the body’s ideal core temperature, in Celsius).
You can read more on T.L. Stanley Adweek’s article here, where she talks with Matt Talbot, WIP’s creative director.
You can also read more on 37.5 Technology’s activation here.
Snapchat’s Snapbot for Spectacles
Perhaps the biggest disruptor of 2016 was Snapchat. As Snap Inc. began to try and make itself known as a camera company (rather than for their well-known software with 166 million monthly active users), Snapchat began dispersing few sets of vending machines around the United States, known as Snapbots. The Snapbots would vary in location every day, forcing fans of the then newly released Spectacles to stay updated for a chance to buy from one of these bots.
Snap Inc’s decision to distribute only a few per day on its early days was seen as good and bad by many users. Those that got a hold on Spectacles took advantage of the exclusivity of owning a pair that some even reached a price of $1,000 on eBay.
You can click here to find out where the Snapbot appeared.
Creativity is key for your pop-up shops
People are curious by nature, but at times curiosity itself is not enough to attract people to your brand. The key: have something unique about what you are creating that still relates to your main product.
Google had a donut pop-up shop to showcase their donut-sized Google Home Mini; 37.5 Technology placed their pop-up shop on a cliff-side to give an extra layer of warmth for their cold climbers; Snap Inc. took its users to great lengths for a pair of Spectacles; and Oreo created a Willy-Wonka-esque Wonder Vault that gave passing people a try at new Oreo flavors.
The importance of pop-up shops are to create a magical interaction. A customer is walking on their way to work and one day the old garage door gets replaced by an Oreo vault door. It’s magical, and it is this feeling that brands might want to create for their customers.
What do you think? What has been your favorite pop-up shop that you have been or heard of? Has your brand created a pop-up shop? How did it go? Leave your comments below!
Got any thoughts to add? Tweet me @juliangumbo or comment below!
Julian Gamboa is a UC Berkeley graduate with a focus on marketing. Julian was selected as a LinkedIn Top Voice for Marketing and #Social Media (2017) and a Course Instructor of the marketing and digital publishing course Digital Marketing Today at the Haas School of Business. He is also the founder of Digiviewpoint, a millennial publishing account.
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