zaterdag 11 december 2010

Guerilla Marketing: An Introduction



In the next couple of weeks I'll be writing about the phenomenon Guerrilla Marketing. Guerrilla marketing is a system of promotion which is unconventional and unexpected. The objective of guerrilla marketing is to create a buzz about a brand or organization. A successful guerrilla marketing isn't as easy as it seems. Not only does the stunt has to be creative, it also has to be engaging enough for people to talk about. What's also important, is that the guerrilla marketing isn't considered offensive or immoral. This will create a negative buzz about the company or brand.
A lot of companies used guerrilla marketing for promotional intents. Some of the companies have created memorable stunts, while others failed in their attempts. A well-know example of a failed guerrilla marketing stunt is the one for the animated television series Aqua Teen Hunger Force. The marketing division of this show thought it would be a good idea to cover a city with magnetic lights, displaying the characters in the show. Unfortunately these lights were mistaken for explosives, and the police had to close several bridges and roads to examine and destroy these lights. The maker of the show (Cartoon Network) had to deal with a lot of negative publicity and had to pay a pretty high fine. This is, of course, a classic example of how a guerrilla marketing stunt shouldn't be.

In the next couple of weeks I'll dedicate my entries to some of the more successful guerrilla stunts. A guerrilla marketing stunt is successful when it has reached a large group of people, while the stunt itself was only witnessed by few. That is why many of the famous guerrilla stunts are posted somewhere online. Therefore every entry that I'll make is supported by a picture or a movie demonstrating the stunt.