BY UMESH RAWAT
Guerrilla marketing uses unconventional, disruptive tactics to promote a brand. It aims to reach consumers in unexpected ways that garner attention and buzz.
Huawei conducted a clever guerrilla marketing stunt outside an Apple store during an iPhone launch event in Singapore. They secretly handed out free Huawei branded power banks to customers waiting in line, labeled "You'll need it" to mock the new iPhone's smaller battery capacity compared to Huawei phones.
Indian rideshare company OLA took over their official Twitter account and posted funny drunken-style tweets tagging major brands. This confused people into thinking the account was hacked. OLA then revealed this was a campaign to spread awareness against drunk driving, reminding people to take safe transport options like OLA cabs during celebrations.
To promote its new jumbo muffins, grocery chain Bloom placed a billboard showing a massive muffin appearing to crush a car below. This humorous visual of an oversized muffin destroying a vehicle garnered attention and conveyed the large scale of the new product.
Air France set up mobile games for passengers in airport lounges outside boarding gates. Participants were offered a chance to win free business class upgrades on their economy tickets, encouraging instant engagement.
Fevikwik created funny video clips showing people proudly fixing broken items with their glue to spread a message of acceptance and repair.
Coca-Cola transformed an ordinary drink vending machine on a college campus into a "Happiness Machine" that dispensed surprises like gifts and treats instead of just soda. Hidden cameras captured delighted reactions as students received random acts of joy from what they assumed was a regular vending machine.
When Indian celebrity Shah Rukh Khan tweeted about being asked if he had eaten, Swiggy playfully responded offering to deliver food. They capitalized on the viral moment by actually sending items to his home from multiple Swiggy employees.
Instead of traditional ads, beauty brand Glossier sends free products to popular Instagram influencers for honest reviews and posts using their hashtag #glossier. This organic word-of-mouth spreads brand awareness.
Rival grocery and food delivery services Blinkit and Zomato put up billboards remixing a famous Bollywood movie line to highlight their respective services playfully.
Instead of plain ads, Dunkin' posts beautiful, colorful photos tied to trends and events. This attracts engagement through visual appeal rather than promotional messages.
Leverage these examples of disruptive guerrilla marketing ideas to creatively and memorably promote your business.