Street marketing in Milan, by cargo bike
The cargo bike's round
How does a day of street marketing work?
Like a bike ride: load up, set off, stop where people pass, give, listen, count. Follow the route.
Load up
The cartons carrying your brand go into the cargo bike's box. The bike is a sustainable vehicle and advertises even when parked: the box is branded, with the QR code on show.
Set off
The cargo bike moves easily through city centres and turns heads before it even stops: yellow, branded, hard to miss.
Stop where people pass
In the photos from the first Refreesh event we are outside Milano Porta Genova station. Market research picks the spots and the times, based on the audience you want to meet.
Give
Promoters hand over the carton, person to person. That is the moment your brand changes hands, and whoever takes it keeps it with them while they drink.
Listen
While people drink, the team offers a short survey or a form. The answers are the campaign's first data.
Count
At the end of the day we line up cartons handed out, answers collected and activity online. Those are the numbers that will become the final report.
The promoters
Who hands out the water on the street?
Our team of promoters, in white uniforms with the Refreesh logo, working alongside the yellow cargo bike.
- The uniform
- White with the Refreesh logo: promoters are easy to spot, even in a crowd.
- The gesture
- They give the carton away: whoever takes it finds your brand, the QR code and your social handles on it.
- The questions
- They help anyone who wants to answer a survey or fill in a form, without pushing anybody.
- The bike
- The cargo bike is the base: a stock of cartons, a sign on the move, a meeting point.
Where
Where does street marketing with water make sense?
Wherever your audience passes on foot and a drink of water comes at the right moment. That is what the cargo bike is built for: events, city centres, busy public spots.
- City centres
- Pedestrian streets, squares, station exits: lots of people, little time, a gesture that asks nothing of passers-by.
- Events
- Wherever crowds arrive or leave, say outside a concert or a match. For exhibitors there is a page on trade fairs and events.
- Schools
- At the gates, to reach pupils and parents: we did it outside middle schools for Scuola Freud's open days.
- Wherever your audience goes
- Places and times are never improvised: market research picks them at the start of every campaign.
Data on the spot
What data do you collect on the street?
The answers to the surveys and forms people fill in during distribution, with help from our team.
We write the questions and fields with you in the first consultation, based on what you want to learn: interest in a product, take-up of an offer, contacts for an event. Personal details come only from people who choose to leave them.
The measure
What does a street marketing campaign measure?
What happens on the street and what happens afterwards: in the final report they become the campaign's KPIs.
| What | Where it comes from | When |
|---|---|---|
| Cartons handed out | Each day's count | During distribution |
| Answers and contacts | Surveys and forms filled in on site | During distribution |
| Online engagement | Online activity the campaign generates, for instance from the QR code on the carton | During and after |
| Social interactions | Monitoring of your social profiles | During and after |
| Brand perception | Feedback and interviews | During and after |
| Sales | Your sales figures, if you share them | After the campaign |
The same round works at trade fairs and events and outside schools for open days. What goes on the carton and the eight steps of the process are on the custom branded water page; every route is on the branded water marketing page. And the water we give away is part of Refreesh's purpose as a benefit corporation.
Street marketing: your questions
What is street marketing with sampling?
It is promotion done on the street, face to face with people, by giving away a sample or a product. With Refreesh the product is carton water carrying your brand, handed out by promoters with the cargo bike.
Where do you do street marketing in Milan?
Wherever your audience passes in numbers: city centres, events, busy public spots. Market research picks the places and the times; in the photos from our first event, for instance, we are outside Porta Genova station.
Who are the promoters?
They are the Refreesh team, in white uniforms with our logo, working alongside the cargo bike. They give the water away and help people answer surveys and fill in forms.
How much does a street marketing campaign cost?
It depends on length, number of cartons and distribution points: the price comes with your proposal, after a consultation with cost and benefit projections. Write to us with your dates and the audience you want to reach.
How are results measured?
With the surveys and forms collected on site, online engagement, social interactions and, if you share them, your sales figures. The final report sums it all up in KPIs.
Shall we take the cargo bike where your audience is?
In the form, pick the topic “Marketing with carton water” and tell us your dates and area.
Plan the round