Thinking Guerrilla: The Power of Projections

There are few universal truths in the world of business. There are many different ways to become successful, just as there are many different ways to manage. One thing that all thriving business do share, however, is their ability to make the most of the resources available to them.

And yet, there is one resource – abundantly available – that is all too commonly overlooked.

Space.

Allow me to clarify. As I sit typing, there is a window to my left. Out of this window, buildings stretch as far as the eye can see. I expect you may be sat reading in a very similar environment. When I say space, this is exactly what I’m referring to: the environment in which we live and work. The empty canvasses all around us – buildings, walls and landmarks that thousands of people pass every second, of every day.

As Guerrilla Marketers with over 20 years' experience, here at Kommando we try and explain to people that Guerrilla is not any particular style or discipline of marketing. It is a state of mind. Guerrilla Marketing is a way of viewing the world around us, and identifying advertising opportunities that are above and beyond what is ordinary.

In the technology-driven, media-fuelled planet on which we all now dwell, the impact of broadcast advertising has long been diminishing. The world around us is saturated with traditional advertising platforms to such an extent that we have learnt to ignore them. They have become expected, and altogether uninspiring. I’ll wager that on a morning commute, you pay no more attention to traditional advertising outlets than you do to the walls and buildings that make up the very fabric of your city. The lines of one advert blur into the next, and most go entirely unnoticed.

This is worrying news for marketers. The challenge for those in our industry is learning to adapt, and embracing a fresh approach. The challenge is to spot an opportunity where others don’t, and to break free from the monotony of everyday advertising noise.

Now, stop. Look around again. Are you beginning to see things differently?

That vacant wall across the street from your office is a fantastic resource. Some of the most powerful and high-profile Guerrilla Marketing campaigns in recent years have made effective use of projectors, in order to hijack and transform an otherwise dead urban space into a celebration of light and sound.

Think back to the giant projection of Gail Porter on to the houses of Parliament in 1997 and how it captured huge PR exposure for FHM at the time. Today the effect can be made even more spectacular, as we now have access to 3D mapping technology to make buildings come to life.

In the past, large-scale projections have been the activity of a rather exclusive bunch. The chief reason for this has been cost. With the advent of the latest hand-held iProjector from NomadiX Media, this no longer has to be the case. Cost-effective, high-impact projections are now available to everyone.

The beauty of projections – from a marketer’s perspective – is found in their flexibility. They can appear anywhere, at any time. In a world where traditional advertising is expected around every corner, marketers must strive to be unpredictable. The only chance we have of capturing the attention of a 21st-century consumer is to catch them unawares.