You can’t go wrong with an ice cream van and great-tasting treats. But while ice cream sampling is always a surefire hit, there are ways to take your event from chill to thrill – for an experience your audience will never forget!
This guide will help take your ice cream campaign to the next level. Get the inside scoop on the biggest wins, from humorous tweaks to major additions worth melting for!
Most brands like to have fun with the ice creams themselves, even if they're just a play on words. Netflix handed out ‘Mr. Witchy’ cones as a play on the classic Mr. Whippy, while Kraken named its ice creams after the high seas.
From vanilla vibes and mint condition to choc it to me and sundae service, getting playful will make your guests smile and ensure your treats are easy to remember!
A splash of colour will decorate your treats and keep your ice cream promotion on-brand. If your brand colours are red and yellow, then you could pick red and yellow gelato, or just theme your vanilla whip with coloured sprinkles!
Matching colours with the van and branded tubs can help tie your ice cream campaign together. Simple colours can be sourced quickly. See our guide to ice cream sampling for more on lead times, plus our standard and artisan options.
Go beyond the whippy with artisanal flavours like banana boat, rum ‘n’ raisin, cookies and cream, mascarpone or cherry ripple, just to name a few. Many of these can also be made vegan, fat-free, or gluten-free so that everyone can have a taste.
If you’d like your ice cream sampling to be fully inclusive, you could look into specific flavours like lemon and raspberry, which can be made without dairy – great for anyone who’s lactose intolerant.
Not everyone will be there to taste your delicious ice cream, but that doesn’t mean they can’t join in the fun. A hashtag or QR code makes things interactive, and with a cool background as a photo-op, guests will be lining up to snap their own shots – for advertising that works for you!
Capture your ice cream campaign’s coolest moments with high-res images and videos. These can be used for advertising on your site and social feeds, and even in your printed materials. Discover the importance of great content here.
Prize draws and spin-to-win games can inject some extra fun into your experience – making it more than just another ice cream sampling event. Guests will typically hang around longer, and they’ll be eager to get their hands on any freebies up for grabs.
As the perfect way to turbocharge your campaign, a fun game can encourage people to sign up for newsletters, so you can easily reach them again in the future.
Unless you want guests to ‘grab and go’, it’s worth creating a space where they can hang out, chat, and enjoy their treats in peace. Like ice cream sampling itself, this works best in the height of summer when people spend time outdoors.
Why not put in branded deckchairs (as seen in the Raccoon store) and throw in some entertainment like the Haagen-Dazs DJ booth?
Your ice cream campaign will need locations with enough space to make this happen. Visit our location planning services to see how we can make sure each venue’s just right or find and book them for you.
A famous name could lend star power to your ice cream promotion. Local influencers can have millions of followers begging for more content, and by getting them on board, you’ll naturally attract a young and ‘online savvy’ audience.
You could make it a meet and greet, invite them to try your treats and snap a few pics, or ask them to help with serving. Netflix (for Too Hot to Handle) and the musician Jax Jones put star power into their activations, adding a hint of glam for extra buzz.
If you want your ice cream campaign to go further, Promohire has has you covered. We have a range of great support services on offer, ranging from enhanced logistics and staffing to expert content capture that will record the best moments.
Click the button to see how we can make your campaign the cream of the crop, and how much it’ll set you back, in our costs and services guide.