Shop Advice: Guerilla Marketing

Guerilla marketing is one of the most useful tactics we can use to promote our shops and make an impression on potential customers. First coined and defined by Jay Conrad Levinson in the early 1980s, guerilla marketing is ideally suited to small businesses and refers to unconventional methods of promotion that focus on time, energy and ingenuity as opposed to a large marketing budget; it is entertaining, innovative, creative and an excellent way to shine the spotlight on a particular product.

Many of us already employ guerilla marketing (whether we know it or not) by enclosing small bonus items with purchases, offering free or extremely discounted items in our stores, and having promotions that provide the customer with more than they're ordering (like buy one get one free). 

Don't be afraid to get creative and try new ideas --  when Yahoo was starting out they would put coins in parking meters for huge numbers of cars and leave a note saying, "Your meter has been fed by Yahoo.com." Good resources include Levinson's book Guerilla Marketing, and www.gmarketing.com. 

And for a look at some tactics that really catch the eye, click here.