Outsmarting the Big Players: Check out how one car company turned a tiny idea into a breakthrough!
Today, we’re putting the spotlight on a campaign that embodied the power of guerrilla marketing. Continue reading below to learn how clever timing and a creative use of location can leave a lasting mark on your target audience! |
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Outsmarting the Big Players: Check out how one car company turned a tiny idea into a breakthrough! Ever heard of the phrase, “small but terrible” ? If “small but terrible” had a marketing equivalent, this Swedish car company’s strategy would be it. Imagine driving into a parking place, backing into a spot, and just as you check your dashboard, a tiny, unexpected ad pops up. You’d probably think it was a glitch or a prank… but in reality, it was an ad so cleverly placed, it didn’t need a giant screen or display to stand out! How did this car brand pull it off? Let’s check it out here! Small Billboards, Big Impact Škoda Auto a.s., a.k.a. Škoda, began in 1895 as Laurin & Klement, a Czech bicycle company that later transitioned into making motorcycles and cars. In 1925, it merged with industrial giant Škoda Works and became the automotive company it’s known for today. Despite being in the automotive industry for well over a century, Škoda still had to compete against the likes of BMW, Ford, and Volvo. This is why Škoda came up with a memorable guerrilla marketing campaign to promote its brand and expand its reach in 2022! Here’s what the brand did: Škoda put up tiny billboards in parking lots of Sweden’s biggest malls. These could only be seen from rearview cameras as drivers reversed into their parking spaces. In these tiny billboards, phrases such as, “You’re backing into the future. Drive Enyaq iV.” and “We got into your car. Now get into ours.” were found.
It didn’t matter if you were driving a Volvo, BMW, or Ford. One look at the message and you’d start thinking about Škoda. Nord DDB spearheaded the campaign, coordinating with Swedish miniature artist Christopher Robin Nordström to create the billboards. With great attention to detail, Nordström added spotlights, ladders, and graffiti to the miniature posters. Josefina Norén, an art director at Nord DDB, said: “In order to break through the noise, we chose a different and literally small approach to communicate by talking to Škoda’s potential customers through their competitors. If you can’t be the biggest, you can be the smartest.” The result? The tiny billboards didn’t just start conversations; they also drew attention to the brand’s innovative take on marketing! The campaign made a powerful impact as it generated 5.9 million impressions and drove an additional 100,000 monthly website visitors to Škoda. The miniature billboards also led to a 45% increase in users customizing their own Škoda automotives online and delivered a remarkable 16,200% boost in brand affinity. Even more impressive, the campaign achieved a 549% return on investment in media value. The campaign also bagged awards from the likes of the One Show, Cannes Lions, and Eurobest! Clearly, this campaign shows that you don’t always need to rely on traditional advertising to make an impact. A smart, unconventional approach can be just as effective—if not more. Besides, it’s all about outside-the-box thinking! Škoda demonstrated this by taking something as basic as a car’s rearview camera and making it a new, personal means of connecting with customers. It was a masterful spin on classic advertising, transforming a mundane moment into an unexpected and unforgettable one. Above all, Dashboard Billboards was a fresh, highly contextual means for Škoda to reach prospective buyers right where it counts most: inside their cars. So, the next time you plan your next guerrilla marketing campaign, keep what this car brand did in mind! Hope you’ve found this week’s guerrilla marketing insight interesting and helpful. EXCITING NEWS AHEAD The world of work has shifted, and there’s no going back. The barriers to entry have never been lower for talented professionals to work independently, and today’s massive external workforce is hardly a pandemic-produced fad. Business owners can only survive in the new work landscape by partnering with this deep talent pool. With decades of experience in both small-business entrepreneurship and executive management at PwC, I truly believe that the future of work is independent. With that, I’m happy to share with you that my book, co-authored with Walter Scott Lamb, is now available on Amazon! Free Birds Revolution: The Future of Work & The Independent Mind This new bestseller is an essential read for both independent professionals and corporate executives. Here, we provide educational and practical guides to unpack the ever-growing workforce and offer you crucial ways to become a client of choice. Click on the link above to order your copy. Let this bestselling book help you future-proof your career and organization in the new world of work. Stay tuned for next Thursday’s Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing! Do you want to know how one brand delivered a larger-than-life solution to a larger-than-life problem in the Philippines? See it in next week’s article! |
Miles Everson
CEO of MBO Partners and former Global Advisory and Consulting CEO at PwC, Everson has worked with many of the world's largest and most prominent organizations, specializing in executive management. He helps companies balance growth, reduce risk, maximize return, and excel in strategic business priorities.
He is a sought-after public speaker and contributor and has been a case study for success from Harvard Business School.
Everson is a Certified Public Accountant, a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and Minnesota Society of Certified Public Accountants. He graduated from St. Cloud State University with a B.S. in Accounting.
