Here’s how this brand used scratch-and-sniff ads to promote its new fragrance…
| From the desk of Miles Everson: I’m excited to talk about another campaign in today’s “Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing!” For those of you who may not know, guerrilla marketing is an out-of-the-box strategy that encourages marketers to use unconventional strategies when interacting with their target audience. I’m a fan of this because it shows just how powerful such campaigns can be. Today, I’ll talk about a guerrilla marketing campaign that helped this upstart brand promote its new product. Curious? Keep reading below. |
Breaking through the decades-old fragrance market is a colossal endeavor for new entrants. Prestigious names like Dior, Versace, Chanel, Tom Ford, and Gucci are top of mind for would-be buyers. These brands aren’t just financial successes; they also enjoy a formidable brand equity that’s hard to match for even the most established perfume makers. Given that backdrop, it’s no wonder new entrants to the market find difficulty in carving a place for themselves. Yet, despite this, Rare Beauty took this challenge head on in 2025… An Upstart in A Highly Competitive Market Rare Beauty is a cosmetics company founded by singer and actress Selena Gomez. The brand was launched in 2020 and its name was inspired by Gomez’s third album titled, “Rare.” Rare Beauty is estimated to be worth around USD 2.7 billion. Since its launch, it has sold many products such as foundations, lip creams, beauty tools, lotion, and bags.
The cosmetics brand has clearly been positioned to appeal to women. However, up until 2025, there was a popular item that was missing in its product catalogue: FRAGRANCES. Rare Beauty filled this gap with its first fragrance line. … and how did it promote its new product? It went GUERRILLA! The cosmetics brand generated hype for its perfume line by placing “Scratch-and-Sniff” billboards all over New York City. Yes, you read that right.Scratch and sniff! These special billboards were designed to let bystanders get a whiff of Rare Beauty’s perfume by scratching the surface. QR codes were also placed on these billboards. Once scanned, they led to a Shopify link that was used to order free samples. The “Scratch-and-Sniff” billboards used a special ink wrapped in microbubbles printed across different parts of the billboard. Once scratched, they released the fragrance.
The billboards were placed in high-traffic areas around Manhattan to maximize visibility and target audience interaction. The results? The “Scratch-and-Sniff” campaign managed to:
These numbers didn’t just reveal how successful this campaign was; it also imparted valuable lessons to marketers:
Rare Beauty’s “Scratch-and-Sniff” campaign reminds us that the best campaigns don’t just reveal new products; they also inspire customers to imagine what it’s like to have them. So, the next time you promote a new product or offering, think about what made this campaign successful. Letting your target audience experience what you’re offering to them just might be what you need to push them into buying your product! 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 fast food chain turned the metaverse into a sales machine ? 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.
