Three teams. A bunch of map co-ordinates. A race to work out the clues and reach all the locations first. This was not your average Saturday afternoon!

This weekend, I took part in a ‘geocaching’ challenge for the first time with a group of friends. Whilst our treasure-hunt was just a bit of fun that finished in the pub, geocaching is fast becoming a global craze – and it got me thinking about its potential for experiential marketing and publicity campaigns.

Geocaching is essentially an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which participants (Geocachers) use a Global Positioning System (GPS) such as Google Maps on a smartphone to locate hidden containers (called “caches”). A typical cache is a small waterproof container containing a logbook and “treasure”, usually toys or trinkets of little value. Online ARGs (alternate reality games) are used fairly regularly to build interest in a launch or event, so why can’t the same kind of treasure hunt take place in the ‘real’ world?

'Tomb Raider' Image via Wikipedia

In fact, Crystal Dynamics and Geocaching.com have already got the ball rolling with this and have recently announced a tie-in to promote the upcoming ninth instalment in the Tomb Raider video game series. Explaining how the project will drive engagement, Karl Stewart, global brand director for Tomb Raider and Crystal Dynamics, said “It’s the perfect fit for Tomb Raider and to be able to create a series of worldwide Geocaching treasure hunts for Tomb Raider is going to be a lot of fun”.

I for one am keen to see how the brand creates parameters to protect against the potentially unruly nature of the activity, as this definitely wouldn’t create good publicity! At its best though, geocaching and similar experiential activities have the potential to allow an audience to participate rather than simply consume; it’s an excellent way to bring things to life, make it memorable, and engender loyalty. These kind of transmedia campaigns are set to become increasingly popular as brands and businesses compete for cut-through.

I’m not sure how alike to Lara Croft or Indiana Jones we got as we scurried around looking suspicious in Putney on Saturday, but it really was great fun.