When done right, temporary experiences can punch well above their weight in attention, emotion, and business results.
Pop-ups, brand activations, and experiential moments — they’re often described as “fun,” “tactical,” or “nice-to-have.” And they’re often underestimated.
Here’s the truth: temporary experiences can be some of the most powerful tools in your marketing mix. Not in spite of their brevity — because of it.
This article offers practical, strategic tips for the best brand activation — particularly when it’s a short-term or lower-cost pop-up that still needs to deliver big brand impact.
“If it’s short-lived, it can’t be strategic” — False.
Pop-ups are great for “visibility.” But they’re often treated as “filler” rather than as brand-building. That’s a missed opportunity. While long campaigns build consistency, short bursts build moments — and moments are how memory works.
Done well, even a single-day activation can generate brand buzz, content, engagement, and data. And smaller pop-ups can also be more cost-effective — especially when space is expensive.
Scarcity creates urgency. Ephemeral creates energy.
Humans are wired to notice what won’t last. Temporary installations create urgency. They feel exclusive. They feel special. That’s why they drive FOMO, interaction, and shareability. Especially in high-footfall, high-speed environments, your design needs stopping power.
Pop-ups and brand activations also let you:
- Prototype fast, without long-term investment
- Deploy quickly in culturally relevant moments
- Reach audiences where they are, not just online
- Move a physical activation across locations
- Use smaller-scale designs to create multiple instances in-market at once
Example : Cricket Australia
We built a simple pop-up for a promotion being run by Cricket Australia for the Big Bash League. The premise was simple, a huge big ball has landed on-top of, and crushed, a coffee cart. Designed to grab attention, the cart also engouraged visitors to snap a photo and post it on socials to win tickets to the game. The cart was toured through numerous locations in Sydney and Melbourne in the lead-up to games. The signage was modularised and changed for each iteration to allow for event specific customisation.
Temporary execution. Long-term thinking.
A brand activation isn’t just a booth. It’s a strategic experience — even if it only lasts a few hours. But that experience needs to be brand-first, brand-strong, and smartly designed for reuse.
To make your pop-up or experiential activation count:
- Design for portability: Modular builds or compact formats reduce setup time and open up your options for reach
- Build for reusability: Use physical structures with swap-out printed elements or adjustable messaging
- Think across teams: Assets can sometimes support field teams, sponsorships, or retail — plan for broader use
- Brief staff well: Make sure those working on-site know more than just the campaign. They should be ready to talk brand and product
- Have customer support ready: Route serious product or service queries to someone equipped to help
Example : Myer Pop-up Shop
We built a Pop-up shop for Myer to use across the country in the leadup to major sales promotions. It needed to be built to the exacting standards of a permanent store to allow them to use their standard kit of merchandising tools and hardware. It’s first use was on the concourse of Southern Cross Station during the lead into Christmas. The containerised store meant that logisitcs were simplifiied with a setup time of less than 4hrs and a strike time of 90 minutues.
If it disappears physically, it still echoes digitally.
Even temporary activations can deliver long-term value if they’re integrated into your broader marketing ecosystem. Document them well. Build content. Connect them to CRM, sales offers, and broader campaign data.
And think practically: plan your trash management. Don’t give away junk. Consider sustainable materials. Nothing says “forgotten brand” like bins full of discarded branded stuff.
Don’t just fill space. Make a moment.
Whether you call it a pop-up, a brand activation, or experiential marketing — the goal is the same: deliver impact.
These experiences might be short-lived, but the impression they leave shouldn’t be. Temporary activations that are brand-aligned, behaviour-driven, and well-integrated can become some of the strongest brand moments in your calendar.
Example : Myer 3 Weeks in New York
To support a Myer national campaign called “3 Weeks in New York” We devised a series of moments that happened across the country in Myer Stores. Giant NY themed inflatables, in-store flash mobs singing Broadway show tunes complete with full orchestral backing, and iconic NYPD and NYFD characters and vehicles interacting with customers at key locations. Fast to deploy, high impact, memorable moments.
Want to create something unforgettable — even if it only lasts a weekend?
The best brand activations don’t need to be big. But they do need to be bold. Portable. Intentional. And memorable.
Let’s build something smart, efficient, and designed to matter.