Dr. Tony Vercillo

Link: http://www.ifmc-consultants.com/shop

It's pretty clear that the headline says it all. In this blog we've addressed some truly inspirational ideas that marketers have come up with in their quest to get the product noticed and in people's hand's. But what is the reason for it? I mean, commercials and print ads have worked well for the last who knows how many years, so why do so many marketers push for creative, guerilla-style advertising?

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Because it works. Commercials and print ads have been around for eons (well, print ads, at least), but that is generally the problem. People are so tuned to this type of marketing; they don't even really notice them much anymore. So what, exactly, is guerilla marketing? It's a marketing campaign that relies on a type of PR stunt that involves imagination rather than a large advertising budget. Typically, they are unexpected and "unconventional, potentially interactive, and consumers are targeted in unexpected places."

While many people think of this type of branding as something that's done by small companies who don't have the funds for big budgets, many larger companies are getting in on the action. And not just film studios, who have been known for using these sorts of tactics for years, but companies like Mr. Clean or Charmin.

There are actually several types of guerilla marketing. Below is a list of the various types typically found in the marketing world:

Reverse Graffiti — clean pavement advertising

Viral marketing — social network marketing

Presence marketing — marketing for being there

Grassroots marketing — tapping into the collective efforts of brand enthusiasts

Buzz marketing — word-of-mouth

Undercover marketing — subtle product placement

Astroturfing — disguising company messaging as an authentic grassroots movement

Experiential marketing — interaction with product

Tissue-pack marketing — hand-to-hand marketing

Live-in marketing — real life product placement

Wait marketing — when and where consumers are waiting (such as medical offices and bus stops) and receptive to communications

This last one is a type of marketing called experiential marketing, where the marketing is in the experience. It may seem like a big-budget marketing, but it does fall into the part that includes unconventional and interactive marketing that’s key to guerilla.

Want to know what you look like with a different nose and fuller lips? Check this one out. This particular piece of advertising was done by a plastic surgeon’s office in Canada. So which type of marketing is this? Would it be another example of experiential marketing? Or something else entirely?

The pointof guerilla though isn't necessarily to convert someone to use this product or service, but to get potential consumers to remember their business. That way, if it's something a potential consumer is considering, they'll remember this. This is why firms big and small are turning to alternative forms of marketing to get their message out there. Commercials and print ads are still effective, but consumers are much more sophisticated these days and marketers are recognizing that.

So here's the challenge for my marketing students. The first five people to bring me what you perceive to be the oddest way to advertise that can be found will receive an extra credit point. Good luck.

Lastly, take a look at a great series of articles that deals with guerilla marketing. Just don't take your ideas from there.

The History of Guerrilla Marketing