Marketing that challenges conventions is sometimes the most memorable. It carries associated risks in the online and offline worlds — so striking the balance between quirky and challenging and annoyingly attention-seeking is tricky.
But some bold companies pull it off with ease and remind us that creativity and innovation aren’t the sole property of ‘higher’ forms of art. If you’ve got moxie, guerrilla marketing could help you differentiate your brand and grab loyal customers. Here are three wild and wonderful campaigns to get you started.
- Burger King
Fast food chain Burger King has never been afraid to push buttons with its ad campaigns, but 2017’s ‘Google Home for the Whopper’ was a tour de force that brilliantly blended digital and traditional methods.
The invasive campaign started with a 15-second advert where a BK employee simply asks ‘OK Google, what is the Whopper burger?’.
This triggered thousands of Google Home devices across America to reel off the mouth-watering properties of the chain’s flagship product — bringing viral advertising right into customers’ living rooms in an uncompromising manner.
This type of strategy is too extreme for many firms, but it’s certainly hard to ignore.
- BrewDog
Scottish craft beer brand BrewDog is another outfit which courts controversy and dominates headlines.
Its punk ethos is evident on everything from verbose product descriptions that adorn bottles to the fixtures and fittings in its pubs.
The firm’s maverick marketing campaigns have made it famous — it’s attempted everything from producing the world’s strongest beer to driving a tank through Camden.
Last year, it pushed the envelope further by sending out thousands of vinyl posters bearing the legend ‘I am Punk’ and asking people to fly post them anywhere they saw fit.
Asking customers to potentially break the law to demonstrate their commitment to the cause probably isn’t the wisest move for a startup. But it’s another example of this company excelling at engineered outrage.
- State Street Global Advisors
When asset management firm State Street Global Advisors wanted a novel way of advertising their support for female-led enterprise, they contracted ad agency McCann to develop something rather special.
The result was ‘fearless girl’ — an instantly iconic bronze statue that stands strong in Wall Street, defiantly squaring up to the financial centre’s famous bull statue.
The campaign won awards aplenty and raised the bar for marketing outside the box.
And in a case of life imitating art, British graduate Jade Delaney bagged herself an internship at McCann’s Bristol office by posing as the statue outside their office for hours on end.
So, if you want to blaze trails in business, this is another example of a calculated risk paying off positively.
There are several informal and structured ways to keep abreast of the latest marketing techniques. You might pay more attention to TV ads, subscribe to industry websites or even take a digital marketing course with online educator Anglia Ruskin Distance Learning.
Whatever your future path, these three wild and wonderful guerrilla marketing campaigns provide plenty of inspiration.
What’s your favourite marketing campaign? Share your thoughts in the comments section.
