Brandweek just came out with its roundup of the best alternative and unconventional marketing ploys of the year and there are some terrific lessons to be learned. With consumers distracted by everything from the economy to their smartphones, its a real feat to get people’s attention. Thinking outside the box can apparently be a winner even in these times.
Here are some guerrilla words of wisdom:
Go virtual: BMW created a faux promotion about the worlds largest car ramp that was going to “launch” its new 1 series sedan to the US. No ramp, no town of Oberpfaffelbachen, no anything… except a You Tube video. It is estimated that based on Web hits and blog mentions 10 million people have “seen” the ramp. As the say in the Brandweek article: “A decent return, considering they didn’t spent a buck on timber.”
Provide an escape: Travel Alberta International transformed 8 subway benches into winter wonderlands, chair lift and…skis? It was effective enough to bump visitors to the site 138%.
Put it out there: In Kobe, Japan Ikea took over an entire subway train and decorated it with couches, curtains and wallpaper. Riders got to test the goods in smaller-than-a-studio-apartment venue. No way to tell what the ROI was, but you get the point. Put it out there and let them test or sample it.
Provide a positive emotional experience: Scholastic Media promoted an interactive console game, Goosebumps HorrorLand, by setting up an elementary school teacher in the middle of Times Square with a pile of pumpkins and letting him try to beat his own pumpkin carving world’s record.
Be fun and appealing: Small coffee maker, Coffee of Hawaii, wanted to get in on the action at a big Ironman competition, but didn’t have the bucks or access. So, they floated a coffee bar-ge where athletes were training and submerged a billboard 20 feet under the ocean where practicing swimmers could see it.
In this day of reduced budgets and consumer apathy, guerrilla marketing is a good way to break through with a small budget. Get creative. Think outside the box. If you haven’t already given it a try you might be surprised at the results.
Photo: Arturo de Albornoz at flikr.com under creative commons
About Jennifer Kaplan
Thanks for the great post, always interesting to see some of these successful campaigns!
Wow. I love the submerged billboard. The one place where people have absolutely nothing else distracting them…they’re looking down at, literally, a sea of blue. And then…suddenly they want Coffee Hawaii.