Digital integration
Connecting beyond screens
Alex Vera, VP of creative & strategy at international brand experience specialist agency SGK, discusses the potential for integrating digital technologies in an experiential approach to connecting people with your brand.
n a world where
I technology can achieve almost anything your brand desires, it’ s unsurprising that some companies are tempted to start with attentiongrabbing tech and build the brand story around that,” says SGK’ s Alex Vera.“ But whether you’ re exploring the digital metaverse, staying in the analogue world, or bridging the gap between the two, if the experience you’ re creating doesn’ t allow people to authentically connect with your brand, all that investment and creativity is simply wasted,” he adds.
Vera’ s insights are rooted in his extensive experience of delivering world-class experiential brand engagement solutions for some of the world’ s most recognised brands. As VP of creative & strategy at SGK, he leads a team of over 90 creative and strategy professionals across North America and says he is passionate about delivering integrated physical and digital experiences that bring brands and consumers closer together, pushing the boundaries of brand expression across all channels.
“ New opportunities are constantly emerging to surprise, delight, and entertain consumers with creative approaches to leveraging technology,” he continues.“ We’ re creating brand experiences at a time when we have the digital tools to make people feel like they could be anywhere, and we’ re able to bring the brand to life in a multi-sensory, immersive way. But we don’ t just want to surprise and delight – we need to connect people with the essence of the brand; otherwise, they
Above: Alex Vera
“ We need to connect people with the essence of the brand; otherwise, they will remember the clever tech and creativity without becoming excited about the brand”
will remember the clever tech and creativity without becoming excited about the brand.”
Bringing the digital brand experience to exhibitions While the team at SGK has delivered brand experiences at exhibitions and trade shows, much of the company’ s work focuses on connecting the physical brand experience( on packaging, in-store, or at events) with the virtual brand experience( on social media platforms, through augmented reality( AR), virtual reality( VR), or creative audio-visual experiences). SGK occasionally helps brands create a more dynamic and memorable presence at exhibitions, drawing on the company’ s experience in in-store and event environments to enhance what can be achieved at a show.
“ Creating an impactful digital experience at a stand has to be about much more than playing a video on a screen or placing a few QR codes here and there so that people can download a digital brochure,” Vera explains.‘ The companies coming to us for help with their exhibition stands understand that. Usually, they are either existing clients who have worked with us on other digital brand projects, or they’ re disruptor brands who want us to help them strategically leverage the power of digitally enabled creativity to articulate their brand and help people understand what makes them different.”
Left: Learn to leverage the power of digitally enabled creativity
Creating an impactful brand experience With the success of a digital brand experience relying as much on the strategic thinking steering the project as the technology used to deliver it, Vera highlights linear thinking as one of the key obstacles to achieving a truly impactful digital experience.
“ Most people immediately think of how they can add digital to www. exhibitionworld. co. uk Issue 2 2025 49