We’ve all seen them during lunch. Likely some of us have even been stopped, sub in hand, on the way back to the office, and been persuaded to sing, take a mystery gift or worse still – engage in an actual conversation. Street marketers: they’re everywhere in summer, beating down on all of us worse than a noonday sun.

But while the cynic may say the streets are now paved more with gimmicks than gold, street marketing can provide a brand with short term visibility, seasonal spikes in attention and inexpensive traffic generation at a fraction of the cost of traditional advertising. That said, you need to know your way around to get the best out of this growing discipline.

Knowing the Terminology
Street marketing is called many things: guerilla, word of mouth or WOM, non-traditional marketing, experiential and worst of all – street theater. But the takeaway is always the same, engaging consumers and members of the public in some form of branded interaction on the ground, wherever that may be.

Follow the Crowd?
It’s a common misperception that if you build it, the all-important “they” will come. Businesses can fall in love with fun or zany ideas that they imagine will hit the sweet spot with their perfect customer – and then rush to get the idea onto the streets. While following the crowds may give you the best volume, it will also give you a lot of blank faces.

It’s rare that that ideal customer will be lining up or passing by. So, it’s critical for a business or brand to really know its audience – who they are, where they live, how they play. A soccer mom on a budget will stop for a fun promotion outside the grocery store but it’s doubtful that you will find her on the streets of downtown Minneapolis.

It’s About Experience, Not Eating Street marketing campaigns should go for the heart not the belly. Sure, it’s great to sample food products and give your customers a real taste for a brand, but there has to be emotional involvement. Campaigns must offer a fun, immediately engaging experience, jumpstarting a customer’s enthusiasm and making them want to interact with a marketer and go beyond that initial – and very natural – hesitation when they first encounter something surprising on the streets. These campaigns should also be relevant for a brand’s image. For our client Stagg Chili, whose tagline is “Get Fired Up”, Kerker created a mobile fun fair high-striker that traveled to West coast college campuses and grocery stores where young guys could swing the hammer and compete against each other. Guys could also be filmed doing the weight lifter, muscle-flexing Get Fired Up” pose that was first introduced in a TV spot. These filmed poses are now making their way to Stagg’s web site.

Size Matters
Small can be a good thing. Most consumers today shy away from big brand marketing. Businesses need to understand that consumers today are much more sophisticated, cynical and attuned to marketing. Often a smaller, low-brand street marketing vehicle is the way to go: something that surprises the public, allows them to “discover” the brand connection for themselves and to think about it. Again it’s an experience not an ad and the old saying “show don’t tell” has never been truer.

Know What You Don’t Know
Experiential and street marketing budgets have grown year on year by more than 25 percent, according to industry analysts. As it becomes harder for businesses to stand out and reach their audiences, these kinds of campaigns are becoming increasing popular. But businesses should plan carefully to get the best return: knowing your audience is critical as that guides location of the campaign, the tactics used, the tone of the approach – and more importantly the appropriate monetary investment needed to reach them. Just as crucial for any marketing director considering a program of this nature is to know how to execute. From conceiving the original idea through to finding, training and putting the right people onto the streets, street marketing can have a lot of moving parts that can snag a budget or bring the operation to a grinding halt. An experienced partner is critical to greasing the wheels and cogs of the program and ultimately in saving money from original concept to final performance.