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.
Photo from D&AD
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!
About The Dynamic Marketing Communiqué’s
“Fridays: Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing”
Jay Conrad Levinson (1984) said that Guerrilla Marketing “works because it’s simple to appreciate, easy to execute, and inexpensive.”
Guerrilla Marketing is unconventional.
Looking beyond the traditional ways of advertising, marketers and advertisers need to spice things up in order for their brand to have campaigns that not only make an impact but also stick to their target market’s mind.
Guerrilla Marketing usually aims to have direct contact with consumers.
This type of direct contact should spark an emotional reaction that leads to consumers effectively remembering the brand.
It’s about making a big impression and making that impression last a long time (if not forever).
Guerrilla Marketing can be inexpensive.
The effect of this is being able to create a buzz around the brand, and the strategy used to market it. Almost everything is passed around through word-of-mouth.
Word-of-mouth is one of the greatest outcomes and it usually doesn’t cost anything.
This is every business’ or brand’s dream!
Every Friday, we publish tips, examples, and other useful content on unconventional ways of marketing and promotion.
Learn more about how to grab your target market’s attention and make an amazing first and lasting impression without having to spend a lot of money.
Businesses don’t really need to spend much for a guerrilla campaign. You do not need a big budget to be successful. You just need creativity and a good imagination.
Hope you find this week’s guerrilla marketing insight interesting and helpful.
Stay tuned for next Friday’s “Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing!”
Cheers,
Dyane Diasanta
Senior Content Writer
Valens Dynamic Marketing Capabilities
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