Paris is a cultural hotspot with over 100 museums. Here’s how this museum set itself apart.

From the desk of Miles Everson:

Hi!

Welcome to  “Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing!”

For those of you who may not be familiar with it, guerrilla marketing is an unconventional strategy that encourages marketers to make use of out-of-the-box strategies when engaging with their target audience.

I believe in this strategy because it’s a reminder that marketing a brand or an offering doesn’t always have to be along conventional lines.

Today, I’ll put the spotlight on a museum that turned its competitors’ collections into an invitation for museumgoers.

Continue reading below!

Paris is a cultural hotspot with over 100 museums. Here’s how this museum set itself apart.

Paris, France houses roughly 130 museums within its city limits, making it a major cultural destination.

While this is definitely a good thing for the people residing in Paris and those who visit it, the abundance of iconic museums like the Louvre, Orsay, and the Versailles makes it hard for other museums to stand out. 

Chief among those is the  Musée de l’Armée, home to many of history’s most iconic cultural artifacts like the sword of Francis I and Napoleon I’s flintlock pistols.

With the likes of the Louvre attracting all the attention, it was clear that the museum had to do something if it wanted to attract visitors. 

However, instead of outspending its peers, the Musée de l’Armée and  BUZZMAN, its creative partner, came up with a clever and unconventional solution.

For context: The Musée de l'Armée was established in 1905 through the merger of the Musée d'Artillerie and the Musée Historique de l'Armée. Since these museums housed artifacts related to artilleries and weapons, most of the collections contained items related to warfare. 

Despite housing a rich collection, the museum doesn't have access to the enormous media budgets that its other rivals had. 

So instead of promoting itself through conventional means, the Musée de l'Armée and BUZZMAN built awareness by turning the masterpieces of the museum’s competitors to serve as an invitation to visit the museum. 

How?

It turns out that some of the paintings housed in museums like the Louvre feature artifacts worn by historical figures, some of which is actually housed in the Musée de l'Armée. A notable example of this is Louis XIII’s armor, which is prominently featured in his famous portrait at the Louvre.

BUZZMAN's creative team developed a bold awareness campaign that playfully featured artifacts from rival museums—then revealed that some of these treasures are actually housed in the Musée de l'Armée.

These cleverly-crafted promotional materials came with a call-to-action inviting whoever saw them to visit the museum. 

The awareness campaign was executed in high-traffic places such as subway stations (with some of them located near museums) and giftshops.

Postcards, which contained QR codes that had instructions for museumgoers, were also distributed.

The result?

Engagement for the Musée de l'Armée skyrocketed, as Google searches for the museum went as high as 876%. This delivered a 19% year-on-year increase in traffic and a record 126,000 visitors in a single month.

Aside from these results, the campaign garnered enthusiastic reactions from social media users and even gained accolades from  D&AD  and  The One Club.

There’s no denying that the campaign was a success!

What’s more?

The campaign proves that brands don't always need conventional tactics to raise awareness and generate buzz. 

Sometimes,  a dash of creativity and wit  is all it takes to cut through the noise and grab attention in a saturated market.

Hope you’ve found this week’s guerrilla marketing insight interesting and helpful.

Stay tuned for next Thursday’s Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing!

Do you want to know  how one beer brand turned everyday venues into sunset-viewing spots?

See it in next week’s article!