As technology continues advancing and marketers continue to find new and creative digital ways of advertising, consumers have become proficient in ignoring more traditional advertisements such as television, newspapers, and magazines. The internet has also started to deal with clutter that never ceases to expand. As a result, marketers have had to develop alternative marketing methods in order to try and understand where a consumer’s path crosses with a brand’s presence. Let’s explore some of the most common alternative marketing methods.
Buzz Marketing
Best known as “word of mouth” marketing, this type of advertising places emphasis on getting people to talk about a product so that they can pass the information on to other consumers. Consumers either really enjoy a brand and talk to others about it, consumers can receive sponsorships and then tell others about the company, or company employees can pretend to be consumers of the brand and therefore tell others about it. What makes buzz marketing worthwhile is that consumers tend to believe testaments of those who have tried products rather than whole heartedly trusting an advertisement. People also like to give their opinions on things because they desire to be socially active. This means they will naturally want to give their opinion of a product they enjoyed, so word of mouth advertising is a very natural, effective, and free form of marketing.
Guerrilla Marketing
The purpose of guerrilla marketing is so that quick results can be gathered with limited resources, but instead depending on creativity, strong relationships, and trying new things. Guerrilla marketing should involve consumer interaction and strong bonds with customers through branding. Guerrilla marketing can bridge consumer interaction, impact spot markets and create buzz. It differs from traditional means of marketing because it only requires creativity and imagination. It is able to expand when current customers give referrals, which differs from traditional marketing. Because it is essentially a form of word of mouth marketing, it’s a worthwhile method.
Product Placement
When a product or brand is placed into a movie, TV show, or other media program in order to capture consumer attention, marketers are using product placement. Marketers find ways to imbed the brand into the story. For example, watching an actor pour coke out of a very obviously placed Coca-Cola bottle on the big screen. When marketers utilize product placement, their intention isn’t necessarily to get consumers to purchase a product, but instead to increase its awareness and liking. Brand placements are great methods for building brand awareness and are absolutely worthwhile methods. This form of marketing has been used for centuries and is not just a fad.
Lifestyle Marketing
This form of marketing associates itself with consumer hobbies. For example, mall signs and escalator advertisements which are virtually found anywhere including airports, malls, and stores. Some marketers are even placing ads on stair steps. While there are new trends when it comes to lifestyle advertising as far as creatively placing the ads, this alternative marketing method is worthwhile as it can target consumers anywhere.
Worthwhile or just a fad?
There are always businesses competing for consumer attention. As businesses emerge or expand, they all fight the same battle. As they each try their best to be noticed, these alternative marketing methods can really be useful because they give companies more of an edge over those that only engage in traditional marketing. All in all, alternative marketing methods are useful, and many seem to continue expanding rather than fading away as fads do.