“May the shopping force be with you!” Find out how this company upped its customers’ shopping experience! [Fridays: Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing]
At some point during your childhood, you probably imagined what it would be like to have the power to move objects with just your mind.
… put one thing here, place another thing there―how interesting would that be to have such telekinetic ability!
Did you know that towards the end of 2015, Romanian shoppers experienced this power while they were shopping for groceries?
This generated buzz among other consumers in the store and compelled them to check out what the phenomenon was all about!
Carrefour is a French multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets, groceries, and convenience stores.
The company is the eighth largest retailer in the world by revenue and as of January 2021, it has more than 12,000 branches in over 30 countries.
One of these countries?
Romania, which presently houses a total of 358 Carrefour stores!
Going back to the shopping phenomenon we were talking about…
Carrefour tapped into grocery shoppers’ childhood imaginations by creating a guerrilla marketing campaign that enabled them to “shop like a Jedi!”
[Jedi: A member of the Star Wars franchise’s Jedi Order, a fictional ancient order of protectors united by their abilities to harness the power of The Force―usually, the light side of The Force.]
The campaign was called…
“Shop with The Force!”
This was in line with Carrefour’s partnership with the Star Wars franchise and the growing hysteria during the opening weekend of the movie’s seventh episode, “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”
So… what exactly did Carrefour do to give the best gift to Star Wars fans who visited their stores?
In collaboration with creative and digital marketing agency Publicis Romania, the retail company set up interactive shopping billboards at 150 of the 192 Carrefour stores at the time across Romania.
Using Kinect technology, Microsoft’s motion sensor add-on to the Xbox 360 gaming console, the campaign team enabled shoppers to unleash the power of The Force during their weekly shop!
Once consumers stood in front of the interactive billboard, the screen displayed an entire Carrefour range of grocery items. Instead of physically placing items in an actual cart, shoppers swiped, grabbed, and waved their selected goods into a virtual cart.
A large crowd gathered around the interactive billboard to cheer for the shoppers. Each participant had a different technique on channeling The Force as some used a slow and steady approach while others opted for small, quick movements.
Now we know what it looks like to summon the power of The Force during grocery shopping―it makes your overall experience more convenient!
The campaign team took note of what items each shopper chose and coordinated with in-store personnels to collect the actual products and put them in a basket.
Once consumers were done shopping like a Jedi, a campaign staff informed them that their grocery items were waiting for them at the cashier.
… and as the brand activation was made in partnership with the Star Wars movie, shoppers also had the option to buy various Star Wars merchandise such as toys, t-shirts, collectible cards, and cosmic shells!
Was Carrefour’s “Shop with The Force” Campaign Effective?
The brand activation ran for the whole month of December 2015 and after that duration, the campaign team recorded these results for the Carrefour Mega Mall:
- A 22% increase in in-store traffic.
- An 18% increase in Star Wars merchandise sales.
What else?
Carrefour’s “Shop with The Force” campaign got media coverage from different online websites like Digital Buzz, AdWeek, AdAge, Trend Hunter, AdForum, and many more!
Just like Carrefour’s Star Wars-related brand activation, you can also encourage your target market to try out a brand new experience through a fun and captivating guerrilla marketing strategy.
Take note: The retail company didn’t just simply jump in on the Star Wars craze and expected the products to sell themselves. Instead, Carrefour combined creativity and uniqueness to win the hearts of customers who are willing to spend time (and even money) for the campaign.
What about you―how can you use your brand’s products and services to provide a new and interesting experience for your target market?
Use your answer to that question to plan a fun guerrilla marketing campaign that resonates with your customers!
As long as you have a deep understanding about your target market’s needs and wants and how your business can be beneficial to them, you’ll be able to create an engaging and memorable experience for them.
Get inspired with Carrefour’s “Shop with The Force” campaign and may The Force be with you as you think about your own guerrilla marketing tactics, too!
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’ve found this week’s guerrilla marketing insight interesting and helpful.
Stay tuned for next Friday’s Gorillas of Guerrilla!
Cheers,
Kyle Yu
Head of Marketing
Valens Dynamic Marketing Capabilities
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