Guerilla marketing gone wrong

The city of Boston was shut down yesterday as the police spent 12 hours disarming what turned out to be small electronic cartoon characters to promote a new TNT movie. I was going to write at length, but CK has a great summary post on her blog.

I couldn't agree more with her concluding point:

They definitely got publicity and I'm all for getting creative and think the characters are quite cute BUT......let's delight not frighten people with our cool tactics, marketers (and sometimes it really is best to get permits). I'm sorry Boston.

Update:

• Just posted: Guerilla "terror" marketing out-buzzes Super Bowl
  

Technorati Tags:
marketing, CK, advertising

Comments

[Scott Chapin]

It amazes me that 1) an entire city would shut down over little light boards 2) no one realized what the ads were until Time Warner came clean. It really speaks to our paranoia as a country and the obscurity of Aqua Teen Hunger Force.

I'm really surprised that Boston is able and planning on prosecuting the guys that put those on the streets.

[CK]

Thanks Matt -- Ann at the Daily Fix also has a great post that hits home how bloggers were the first to uncover the mystery behind the devices.

Yep, I like clever marketing--but let's not scare an entire city, eh? What's really poor is that Turner Broadcasting (the producers of the show) waited until 5pm to respond and yet the first device was found at 8am. D'oh!

[Ann Handley]

The rules are different in a post 9-11 world... for better or worse.

[Matt Dickman]

Scott: I too was a little surprised at the reaction, but I guess out of context it does look suspicious. I am a little scared, though that you know the Aqua Teen Hunger Force ;)

CK: Thank you for the comment, I'll have to check out Ann's post at the Daily Fix (located here for anyone interested http://www.mpdailyfix.com). The power of blogging as a near real-time information source really comes out in this case and it's happening more and more. No way that TV or anyone else could react as quickly.

[Matt Dickman]

Ann: Thank you for the comment. You are truly right. New times, new rules and new obligations have been placed upon all marketers from now on.

You know, with a little more planning and permits, this would have been a nice little promotion and it wouldn't have lost any of the grass-roots marketing effect they were going for. But everyone has to play the game by the new rules.

[Scott Chapin]

Don't be too scared, I read/watch the news and not Cartoon Network. They used to have good cartoons, but they stopped showing the "classics" and are all home grown.

This whole stunt brought to mind another Cartoon Network campaign that was done last summer. It was a 2-part billboard series with a silly phrase and after a few weeks, the reveal to the full ad. You can see one of these billboards at this flickr page (at http://www.flickr.com/photos/bigchillphotos/172575110/) to jog your memory.

Time Warner/Cartoon Network is definitley going outside the box on their marketing. The Cartnoon Network pavilion at Turner Field in Atlanta is a bit much too.

[Matt Dickman]

Scott: Thank you for finding that info on the last campaign they ran. It had me baffled for weeks when I saw the billboards (even after I knew what it was), but I'm not the target audience.

[Rob]

OK, I've been fascinated with this for days. I have to say that it's somewhat amazing that the people of Boston were afraid of this. I mean, it lit up. It was calling attention to itself. Terrorists typically don't put characters with lit up faces on their bombs. It would kind of reduce the potential of them going off, wouldn't you think? Are we really that afraid?

And don't even get me started about how ridiculous the comments from attorney general of Massachusetts were. I think I would have the same reaction as the defendants, seen here: http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/2007/US/02/01/boston.bombscare/vt1.cartoon.scare.ap.jpg

And their press conference, was classic. It underscored the ridiculousness perfectly.

[Matt Dickman]

Rob - Thanks for the comment. I do see your point, but I think that there is some common sense to be applied to both sides of this. Getting a permit or setting up some dialog with the powers that be wouldn't have detracted from the execution of the stunt. The authorities may have overreacted, but better that than another tragedy. Those two goof balls need to be left in a cell for a couple of days to wipe the smirks from their faces.

Oddly enough, after the $2 million payment from TNT to the city, it ended up being cheaper than a Super Bowl ad and probably reached more people. Sad.