Guerilla marketing has come into vogue for small businesses. Start-ups, local businesses and companies with less corporate restriction embrace this method because of its lower cost and greater creative appeal.
Guerilla marketing often relies on informal communication channels and lets marketing professionals use less traditional ways to deploy their message.
Guerilla marketing stems from guerilla warfare. It highlights the success of small highly flexible units as opposed to more traditional large organized groups. Guerilla marketing employs novel or unconventional methods to boost sales or attract interest in a brand or business.
It offers a low or no-cost option for small businesses to approach targeted groups and create personal interactions which draw attention to their product or business.
Sticker Marketing
Using stickers in your marketing campaign is very versatile. Stickers can convey a message without being intrusive. People like them because they can choose where to put them and how to interact with them.
Stickers can grab attention, pique curiosity and encourage conversation. Every time someone sees your sticker they associate it with your brand. When they see it repeatedly it becomes a memory that lingers and grows into a strong brand connection.
Sticker printing is very affordable. The challenge is designing a piece that will capture attention and coming up with clever ways to get your stickers into circulation.
Social Media
Social media is ideal for guerrilla marketing because it gives you access to longer-lasting exposure. You can combine guerrilla marketing tactics with more traditional social media marketing.
There are several different approaches to using this marketing approach on social media platforms.
- Create viral content – create content that shocks or amuses our audience. You want them to share it with their friends, who in turn share it with their friends, etc. until it is a viral sensation.
- Publish Polls and Quizzes – some users are addicted to polls and quizzes. A poll lets them express their view while a puzzle can keep your message in front of them for a long time. Included in your poll or puzzle your company’s brand image or offering.
- Host Giveaways – with a giveaway you earn shares and likes and all the exposure they provide.
Outdoor Guerrilla Marketing
This is the act of placing something unusual in an outdoor environment. It is most successful in urban areas with lots of foot traffic. You can add something to a statue, place an oversized replica of a small object or put objects in the street to attract attention.
Ikea made a brilliant guerrilla marketing move when they put their sofas at bus stations in Sydney and Perth. In addition to winning awards, the company was able to hand out catalogues to delighted travellers
When GoldToe launched a new line of boxers and briefs in 2010, they dressed the New York City Stock Exchange bull in a giant pair of their new underwear. It was silly and memorable and garnered good media coverage for its irreverent approach.
While you don’t want to violate fair trade laws or abuse public spaces, you can get very creative in how you go about your guerrilla marketing campaigns.
