Grow Your Business

Don’t let limited resources hinder your marketing efforts. Get creative and see your business grow.

The term was coined by American guru Jay Conrad Levinson in his groundbreaking book, Guerilla Marketing. Though the idea has entered popular culture and everyday conversation, not many fully understand it. This approach is all about “using non-traditional, unconventional methods to attain   powerful awareness and profit,” explains Eric Ladines Villarama, a licensed guerrilla marketing master trainer. Using a military analogy, Levinson labeled this style “guerrilla” because it represents “the tactics, strategies, and executions of guerrilla soldiers,” who are “not equipped with much supplies and weapons,” shares Villarama, who is a speaker with Salt & Light Ventures Inc., a company that specializes in organizing learning events.

He adds: “They instead are forced to use their problem-solving skills and the little resources they have to … attack the larger opposition, [and] not by brute strength or force. This is the same mantra for guerrilla marketers. Traditional marketers may have a large budget to work with, but guerrilla marketers don’t. Thus, they must think more creatively.”

Guerrilla vs. Traditional
If you don’t have enough money to promote your venture, accept it as a given. Instead of fretting about it, keep your eye fixed on your target market. According to Villarama, “You should rely first on qualitative data from the target audience and begin creating scenarios for low-cost methods to create unconventional awareness campaigns. Guerrilla marketing is about connecting a relevant message of the brand to a specified representative of a target audience.”

Guerrilla marketing allows you to cut costs while “creating powerful emotional connections between the potential consumer and the brand,” Villarama says. And unlike traditional marketing’s focus on closing the deal, the guerrilla system emphasizes strong follow-up. After making the sale, it continues “to sell to the customer—via giving freebies, collecting their contact information, sending gifts to them on their birthdays, etc.”

He thinks that entrepreneurs are particularly suited to this nontraditional route because they’re “idea people, and this is a great strength.” You can begin by studying a particular person in your target demographic. “Understand the habits, patterns, daily paths of that person. From there, amazing awareness campaign ideas will begin to pop up. This will also build your confidence as a marketer,” he suggests.

The key term is “low or no cost,” so this means you must be open to experimentation and be bold enough to implement them. Also, because you have spending restrictions, you may not be able to hire help. Prepare to become a one-person marketing team—a multitasker, if you will. As Villarama advises, “Remember, it’s about investing your time, energy, knowledge, and creativity rather than worrying about how much of a budget you have,” Villarama advises.

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