SIIM

With the increase in competition rising every minute the traditional marketing methods have become ineffective. These monotonous and laborious techniques have let down many companies affecting their monetary resources as well. But here are some smart marketing ideas that some creative minds used that literally got the people speaking.

Want a Free Air Guitar (?)

A new local radio station wanted to get themselves known to the world through social media. And what did they do? Just placed a few empty guitar racks around the city with a sign: "Free Air Guitar. Take One."

Now, who would not notice an air guitar rack asking you to "take one?" FM 96.3 in Glasgow, Scotland succeeded by having photos of these empty guitar racks being posted on social media and blogs. This aroused people' curiosity so much, that they commented on how they can get to tune into the radio station.

Coca-Cola Sharing Can

Coca-Cola needs no introduction to anybody. But recently, they literally brought in a twist in their marketing strategy. They released cans of the fizzy drink that can be twisted apart into two smaller parts. Their idea was that you can share the can with a friend! Another tactic they used was allowing people to customize their bottles of coke with their names on it. The brand let out bottles of Coca-Cola with people's names on them, instead of the brand name. And what joy customers had when they found theirs on one.

Financial Advising for Cookie's sake!

This marketing idea is pretty simple. You just have to club your hobby and your job, and voila! Your business can possibly take off – like Jeanne Brutman’s. Brutman is a financial advocate, although she didn’t have a good number of clients at hand. Having a flare for baking organic cookies from scratch, Brutman decided to bake some for her clients. Initially, she started off by cold calling potential clients. However, instead of talking about her financial services, all she spoke was about tasty cookies she baked.

Brutman used this opportunity to sell her services. She baked a batch of cookies for all client meeting and networking event. At times she even sent them over to her potential clients. To her, it’s a way of acknowledging people’s time. Just by sharing cookies, this lady has acquired several long-term clients and hundreds of appointments. She bakes around 25 to 200 cookies every morning depending on her schedule. Now isn’t that a “sweet” and clever marketing idea?

Toy Train from 1989

How do we get kids to play with an old toy train that lost fame in 1989? In 2013, the Brazilian company Volta Ferrorama and its parent company, Manufatura de Brinquedos Estrela, grabbed the fan-love that continued to live among online population. The leading fan group of the brand tried to bring back the old forgotten toy train.

Thousands of fans, through Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube watched a toy train travel 20 km on just 360 feet of track. But volunteers enthusiastically joined in to build tracks through the city on streets, parks, and other places to keep the train going. It hit more than 600,000 views on YouTube while being featured thrice in Twitter’s Trending Topics in Brazil. The company relaunched the toy, thanks to their fan community's efforts.

Colgate Ice Cream Sticks

In order to promote oral and dental hygiene among kids, an advertising agency used a nice idea to reach them. Colgate, along with Young and Rubicam’s Thailand collaborated with a local ice-cream manufacturer and got them to make ice-cream sticks in the shape of a toothbrush. The sticks had Colgate's logo on them and a short line that said, "Don't Forget." It was a reminder for anybody when they were done relishing an ice-cream.

Now offers: Vacation at a museum

How exciting would it be to stay at a museum for a month? With all the great artifacts, portraits, and scary mummies? Well, in July 2010, the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, held a contest in which one person would be promised a month's stay its premises in the comfort of a hotel-style room. This was done to get internet fans to visit the Museum and up its exposure. The winner also gets the opportunity to take to social media, particularly on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Flicker, about their month-long experience and earn $10,000.

Participants were asked to send in entries. Although the authorities expected only a few hundred essays and videos, they received more than 1,500 entries from all over the world. There were more than 400 blogs to go through alone, to select the winner. Interestingly, this brought in a lot more exposure than they had expected. As a result, the gallery’s existing fan base on Facebook doubled up. It also got national media attention including that of ABC's "Good Morning America” entertainment show. Getting the public to advertise your brand for you - now, this is one smart marketing idea.

A great idea does not necessarily mean that it will rocket your sales revenue. We have to think beyond the ordinary to grab our customers' attention through their mundane and everyday lives. All it requires is one out-of-the-box approach and you are good to go.