Xercel Blog

Unusual Marketing Strategies

A good friend of mine just sent me the best marketing article I've read in a long time. Its about unusual marketing tactics. And since I'm such a fan of funny - I wanted to share this article with you.

http://www.inc.com/magazine/20090301/the-wexley-way.html

The article talks about a new type of advertising agency - one that uses humor to grab the attention of their potential clients. I'm not sure how my potential clients would react if I sent them a can with a spring snake in it. You know the kind I mean - from when you were a kid. The gag snake. Personally - if someone sent me that - I'd get a real laugh and probably want to talk to the person that sent it to me. And use the prank on 5 of my closest friends immediately. But then again - I think I could write episodes for the show 'Curb Your Enthusiasm'.

I shared one of the concepts from the article with a client of mine and I was surprised by her reaction because she is in a creative field. The tactic I told her about was one that included sending a photograph with a 'demand' - mafia style. I personally found it funny. She is a Director of Marketing with not 1 minute to spare in her day. She told me she wouldn't want to receive that sort of solicitation. That she just doesn't have time for it. I mentioned the same tactic to another friend who is the President and CEO of a 500 person organization. He thought it was clever and said it would definitely grab his attention and make him willing to talk to the potential vendor.

It all comes down to knowing what your potential client is going to be receptive to. And that's what marketing is all about.

Posted at 04:15PM May 08, 2009 by Xercel Blog in General  |