By Auxilia Katongomara, Marketers Association of Zimbabwe, Corporate Communications Manager
“Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way.”
These are the words of famous British physician and father of lateral thinking, Edward de Bono.
These words aptly describe the essence of Guerrilla Marketing – a creative content marketing strategy that prides itself on being unconventional.
A guerrilla campaign starts with a creative and engaging idea, generally involving not just the content of the message, but its form.
Surprises and innovative methods of communication are key components for engaging the interest of the consumer and in a time where there is a multitude of competing forces for attention.
The use of guerrilla marketing can be the difference maker in creating lasting impressions in the mind of a consumer.
One popular application of guerrilla marketing that comes to mind is the 2019 Zimnat Billboard Campaign along Borrowdale Road in Harare.
The winners of that year’s ‘Best Outdoor Advert of the Year’ at the Marketer’s Association of Zimbabwe Exceptional Marketing Awards.
It simulated a collision involving boulders falling from a container on a billboard and a car beneath the billboard with the caption “whatever life delivers Zimnat makes it better”.
The billboard shook many onlookers! Some motorists confessed that on the first day they stopped to check on the ‘crash’.
It was all about creativity, shock and moving out of established patterns like Bono says.
The Coca-Cola Company as we shall read in one of the articles in this edition has over the years successfully implemented guerrilla marketing in its campaigns.
The conservative culture in Zimbabwe has seen a reluctance in moving away from traditional marketing channels.
However, globally, marketers recognise the need to stand out and be creative.
Some examples include the use of publicity stunts such as the Red Bull Formula 1 campaign that featured a pit stop in the middle of Times Square, viral videos and stencil graffiti – a form of combining street art with clever marketing messages that cost virtually nothing to the company.
The month of March is Women’s month and in our edition, we feature a number of articles to celebrate incredible and phenomenal women.
This year’s theme is #EachforEqual, calling for gender equal opportunities for women in all sectors.
We are happy that over the years we have seen women in the Marketing profession climbing up the corporate ladder to take up key positions.
There is also an interesting line-up of news that captures developments within the Marketers Association of Zimbabwe.
We feature The Marketers Luncheon, the ZimChartered, Business Leadership and Digital Marketing graduation held in February.
Other new events and programmes to look forward to are; the Boot Camp, Annual Continuous Professional
Development Master Class and the Superbrand Launch.
We will also celebrate achievements of colleagues in the Marketing fraternity who have moved to new portfolios or organisations.
Happy Reading For feedback and comments contact
auxilia@mazim.co.zw
