Dynamic Marketing Communiqué

This Netflix bus stop ad has everyone creeped out! [Gorillas of Guerrilla Marketing]

April 17, 2020

Bus stops are a common sight in cities, providing commuters a convenient place to catch a ride.

This is also the last place you’ll expect to see anything creepy or out of the ordinary.

But… this was definitely not the case for a lot of American commuters in 2018.

There were frozen bodies encased in clear plastic on the side of bus stops!

These bodies looked very lifelike. If people looked closely, they even looked like they were breathing!

Surely, this is something you would not expect to see during your morning commute!

This advertisement was used to promote Netflix’s new show. Altered Carbon, a sci-fi series set 300 years into the future. The show features characters who are able to switch their consciousness to different bodies. Hence, the frozen bodies encased in plastic bags.

This campaign received mixed reactions—some called it creative and thought-provoking, while others just found it creepy and too graphic.

Nevertheless, it was able to generate a good amount of hype for the show, adding more intrigue to the already mysterious sci-fi plot. This also received so much attention from news outlets like Fox and CBS in the US, which definitely led to more people talking about both the campaign and the show.

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This guerrilla marketing campaign helped generate some hype for Altered Carbon and gain strong viewership numbers upon its debut on Netflix, with 2.5 million viewers in the first seven days.

Altered Carbon received nominations for Outstanding Main Title Design and Outstanding Special Visual Effects at the 70th Primetime Emmy Awards. It also received three nominations at the 17th Visual Effects Society Awards, winning one for Outstanding Effects Simulations in an Episode, Commercial, or Real-Time Project.

The campaign was also recognized by Adweek, winning Best Media Plan of the Year.

Guerrilla marketing strategies like this are designed to generate buzz and create conversations across social media and news outlets. They might be disturbing, weird, or even grotesque, but they get the job done — they effectively capture people’s attention. The same group of people would then share it with more people!

While using a fake frozen body is not something that other brands can do, being creative with your ads is a great way to stand out from the competition. You can place these ads where many people pass by and so they remember your brand.

Guerrilla marketing is all about creating a conversation and getting a unique reaction from people, and advertisements like these are a great example of how you can do it!

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 is 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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