Zipcar Stages Clever Publicity Stunts to Reach City Residents

The car sharing service Zipcar constructed a pedestrian speed trap in New York City, complete with working radar detector, to increase interest in their services. Pedestrians could see their slow pace displayed as they passed, accompanied by signage stating that they could “get there faster in a Zipcar.” Convincing mock speeding ticket flyers were also handed to passersby with promotional discount codes. Zipcar didn’t stop there. They also staged live vacation street scenes on sidewalks to remind city dwellers how easily you could get there using Zipcar. Attention getting scenes like camping and beach spots have been popping up in Washington D.C., New York City and Chicago thanks to Zipcar’s street marketing tactics.

http://www.zipcar.com/

Dutch Magazine uses Guerrilla Video Projection to Stage a Prison Break

In an attempt to direct attention to their special issue on criminals and prison breaks, a Dutch magazine staged an escape. A 3D video projection of a prisoner escaping through a window was cast onto the wall of the famous Bijlmerbajes prison. The illusioned inmate scaled down the building on a bed sheet rope so realistically that the guards sounded the alarms! A viral video of the staged break also caught much attention, as realistic guerrilla projections are becoming increasingly popular.

See the video here.

http://www.revu.nl/

The Salvation Army's "This Ad Cost Nothing" Guerrilla Campaign

With the help of over 50 local businesses, Portland, ME-based VIA Agency created a guerrilla campaign for The Salvation Army that cost close to nothing. Teams transformed everyday items like pizza boxes, coffee cups and dirty cars into ad space. Each ad contained the The Salvation Army's logo, URL, and slogans like "The less we spend advertising, the more people we can reach." The three-week campaign was a creative and socially responsible way to reach New Englanders and show that the The Salvation Army truly is "Doing the most good with your donations."

salvationarmydonate.org

Video

Mentos: Giving the People the Publicity Stunt They Want

Mentos went guerrilla for the Canadian release of their new gum. 12,000 people participated in a contest that invited those interested to submit ideas on how to "make the world go rounder," with the grand prize being $5,000 and the execution of their idea. As part of the campaign's promotion, the brand let thousands of jumping balls loose in Canadian cities and filmed city-goers reactions and interactions with the balls. Winners will be announced shortly.

http://www.makeyourworldgorounder.ca/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHIN4PCLBJ8

Mannequin Marketing

In an effort to put pressure on the New York City Council, interest group Privy Council called on Saatchi & Saatchi to draw attention to the need for more public restroom facilities. A clever (and shameless) way to attract eyes, these mannequins were placed in plain sight around the city. The mannequin backs directed passers-by to the Privy Council website, and encouraged those interested to contact city reps to voice the need for a new network of public restrooms.

Nike Goes Guerrilla for World Car-Free Day

Nike joined earth-conscious citizens in celebrating World Car-Free Day, an annual event dedicated to reducing dependence on automobiles by using alternative forms of transportation. Nike took part in the fun in Prague by placing paper “boots” on hundreds of cars throughout the city. The “boots” were a creative and cost-effective way for Nike to encourage consumers to run rather than drive, and the campaign received worldwide recognition.


View a video of the program here.

'Feel the Bubbles' with Nestle and Burnquist

Nestlé teamed up with skateboarding legend Bob Burnquist and skate filmmaker Ty Evans to promote their bubbly Aero chocolate candy. Armed with dozens of cameras, the crew created a skate park full of thousands of chocolate-colored balloons, and sent Burnquist skating through them. The Aero “Feel the Bubbles” campaign was viral success, with thousands of people viewing the ad online.

View the video here.

Global Warming Awareness: A Guerrilla Approach

As part of an awareness campaign for MTV Switch, cleverly designed flotation devices were dropped into Amsterdam canals. The realistic looking signs got many double-takes, as it appeared the individuals holding these signs were treading water (or drowning) below the waterline. The signs were simple (each one included a short question and a website address), inexpensive and effectively communicated the topics the show planned to address on-air.

Adidas: Unofficial Curator of Berlin Street Art

With a single iPhone application, Adidas has set themselves up to be the modern day curator of all things street art. The brand recently released Urban Art Guide, a free iPhone app that allows users to view a Gooogle map of Berlin's street art masterpieces. The app lets users search for artwork close to their current location, take a guided, walking tour of the best pieces, or browse a Gallery of all the city's featured art. Each artwork marker links to information on the piece, and, if the artist is know, the artist. Users are also able to rate and comment, as well as upload their own snapshots of new street art. Plans are underway to expand to other cities.

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"Lambient Media"

Thetrainline.com has recently started working with a new type of billboard: farm animals. The company is now outfitting sheep living along popular railways with Thetrainline.com branded coats.

The sheep owner, Hugh Broom, provided quite possibly the best quote in nontraditional marketing industry news this month: “...it’s surprising that nothing like this has been done before in the UK. There is quite a bit of surface area to work with, plus it’s sure to brighten up train travel. I just hope my ewes don’t start turning into divas!”

The walking, "baa"-ing billboards are part of the company's larger campaign, which uses the animals in both TV commercials and outdoor poster ads.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6gs2OdzZj0

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