Guerrilla Marketing: Pros and Cons You Should Consider Before Opting for It
Guerrilla marketing is a creative and unconventional way of promoting ideas or products.
Guerrilla marketing has recently gained immense popularity, and it is recognized as one of the most preferred marketing approaches by business owners. But what is guerrilla marketing? Various companies employ this marketing approach to advertise their product or services to their target market through the use of unconventional elements of surprise. Strategies of guerrilla marketing use humour, shock, and surprise to generate word-of-mouth, thereby creating brand awareness without draining out the marketing budget of the company. Below are some pros and cons that you should consider before opting for this strategy.
Pros: Low cost
Guerrilla advertising campaigns are a low-cost and creative alternative to conventional marketing approaches. The strategy’s uniqueness does most of the work: It effortlessly links the target market with the brand name, and the message of the idea or product is further passed on by the consumer through social media or word-of-mouth.
Cons: Risk of failure is high
One of the major downsides of this advertising strategy is the high risk of failure. You may create an astonishingly innovative concept, but if it fails to appeal to the masses, the strategy will misfire and will not yield success or profits. Even though the failure will not lead to any significant financial dent, it will not generate positive outcomes as well.
Pros: Going viral
The finest guerrilla campaigns can instantly go viral if they succeed in capturing the imagination and attention of the target audience. Viral marketing has the power to reach more people and substantially enhance brand awareness. This approach is more constructive than conventional campaigns.
Cons: If the message is misunderstood, it may backlash
The message may be crystal clear at times, yet the greater portion of the audience may misunderstand it, resulting in backlashes. Several elements about your advertising campaign can sadden or offend people. Hence, it is essential to consider this risk.
Pros: Emotional impact
The Guerrilla marketing approach connects with consumers emotionally—they get surprised, laugh, and think of the campaign’s subject. Emotion is an influential motivator for making purchasing decisions, and if your approach fails to connect with the consumers’ emotions, the strategy will inevitably collapse.
Cons: Unprecedented issues may arise
Sometimes unforeseen issues like poor weather conditions, pandemics, and political tensions may arise. Such social factors can cause a roadblock to your advertising campaigns. During such situations, the Guerrilla marketing approach would be a big no-no.
Overall, the Guerrilla marketing strategy is a good option for brands to adopt, and in most cases, it is well executed by the companies.
