The Guerilla in the Room

Ran across this post via Twitter regarding 20 places to activate a guerilla marketing campaign. Although I’m not usually one to express my disagreements via the internet, I felt compelled to respond in this instance not out of any animosity towards the author or company (quite the contrary, Pro Motion Inc seems like a rock-house marketing company), but towards the practice of guerilla marketing programs.

My feelings towards guerilla marketing are admittedly mixed. As the former manager of a large (28K) outdoor amphitheatre, GM teams were a constant nuisance on most every show. They'd show up onsite, sample for a few minutes until noticed by our staff, and then promptly bounced from the facility after reaching maybe 100 guests. As they should have been. After all, if they were conducting business on our property, they should be required to follow the proper sponsorship channels, and pay the associated fees. However, the young punk that still resides in me (somewhere) still relishes the at-any-cost, DIY ethic that comes with the this type of marketing.

My personal feelings regarding the practice are essentially irrelevant, however. The objective assessment is much more important - unless done exeedingly well, guerilla marketing is simply a bad, often counter-productive business practice.

When considering any guerilla marketing campaign, keep in mind the following phrase - if it's not public, it's trespassing. In most people's eyes, the line between public and private property is open to interpretation. In the eyes of the law, however, it's not, and the designation of "private property" usually works in the facility's favor. After all, you've made the decision to go after THEIR audience, outside (or on) THEIR property, without asking the same permission as everyone else who participates in the event. Unless you're working in a decidedly laid-back jurisdiction, you've just broken the law, and can face expulsion or arrest. Adding to this insult, most guerilla marketing teams are comprised of students and/or younger marketing grads, ambitious, naive, and given little instruction as to how handle such situations. If they're lucky, they've been told by their supervisors to simply pack up and leave when told. If they haven't, they're faced with a quandary - do the job they've been paid to do (and have often been told, incorrectly, that they have the right to do) or leave, having wasted an evening for an hours pay. Meanwhile, what does the client get in return? Very little.

Marketing is more complicated than simple impressions. It's about building goodwill, not only with your target demographic, but with the larger community (business or otherwise). Compromising a venue's exclusive deals by simply "showing up" not only destroys this goodwill, but makes both the marketing company AND client look unethical. Although it may cost more, I would always advise a client or marketing agency to play above board and go through the proper channels. The benefits simply aren't worth the risk.