The Perfect Time to Reach Your Customers

As winter drives us inside, it’s easy for anyone, even the most devoted Active Explorer, to lose touch with the rhythms of the outdoors. Cycling to work might become a quick drive, or a hiking trip may be sacrificed for a weekend with central heating and a favorite TV show.

Despite the weather, brands can still communicate with customers who fit this Active Explorer persona: the consumer who relentlessly pursues improvement of both their body and mind.

We know that even when these people are driven indoors, they don’t stop exploring. They’re inquisitive by nature and open to brands that share their values. Some stay indoors and make grand plans for longer days. Some rise to the challenge of harsher conditions, reveling in the adrenaline rush. Even when they look like they’re standing still, they’re thinking about their ski equipment, or poring over maps for their next big trail.

Inspire

The “offseason” is the perfect time to inspire your customers with an idea. During a retailer lull in March of 2015, The North Face launched the “I train for” campaign. It appealed to their loyal core audience: people who live their lives in North Face gear, but it also cast the net wider. It asked people to imagine themselves in the gear and describe who they were and what they do. Inspire your Active Explorer consumers to be imaginative. Help them to catalyze their ideas with your brand identity: become a part of their plans.

Join In

One of the hallmarks of the Active Explorer is their connection to communities of people like them. Not only do you need to inspire them, you need to talk to them where they are. Active Explorer communities, or tribes, are living things; they’re full of people sharing information, recommendations and more—they’re effectively helping each other plan adventures and build goals. Right now, June campsite reservations are going on sale in Washington, and we’ve already got campers trading tips for the best sites. They might be unboxing your products in video reviews or shopping in a brick and mortar location, but your customers are always talking. Find out where these tribes thrive and join the fun.

Create Opportunity

As we know, the Active Explorer audience is willing to pay more for quality – and the Ford Motor Company knows it. They’ve just staked their claim to being the car company for the “Swiss Army Life” – building an automobile that stays with their customers through several life stages, over ten years. Winter is the perfect time for fresh starts, big ideas, and new cars are a big part of those plans. Ford’s being smart by reaching their customers when they have a lot of time to consider their options, and start to align their cars with the values of the Active Explorer.

Everyone’s an Active Explorer when it’s 72˚ and sunny. The trouble is, on those days, everyone’s too busy to hear your message. Take some time this holiday to craft your message to your best customers at the moment they’re most likely to hear it. If you need some pointers, we’ll be sitting by the fire, planning our next trail run. Just give us a call.

If you haven’t read our Guide to the Active Explorer, it makes a great stocking stuffer for your whole marketing team. Click here to order your free copy.