You've heard of "Viral Marketing"?
*Viral marketing describes any strategy that encourages individuals to pass on a marketing message to others, creating the potential for exponential growth in the message's exposure and influence. *
Well, here's a twist on that theme. You know that citizen standing next to you? He may be a walking, talking, breathing, ad!
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Ordinary Citizens Recruited as Ad Spies
Paid Advertising Mercenaries Clandestinely Spread Word of Mouth Advertising
MIAMI, FL -- (MARKET WIRE) -- 10/21/2003 -- They're everywhere. And when they find you, they're going to get you to buy something you may have never intended to buy.
They're Ad Spies -- strategically placed, "ordinary" people who infiltrate crowds and deliver word-of-mouth advertising cloaked in everyday conversation. At bus stops, on commuter trains, at ballparks and even at work, unwitting captive audiences are being subjected to subliminal advertising messages that appear on the surface to be casual social banter. Paid advertising mercenaries, Ad Spies could be your friends, next door neighbors or co-workers … anyone, anywhere is suspect.
The brainchild of Miami, Florida-based TMR Advertising, Ad Spies was inspired by the success of America's special forces in Iraq. TMR executives reasoned that stealth-oriented, clandestinely conducted advertising would have greater impact than traditional, in-your-face advertising.
The Ad Spies methodology is simple, yet subtle. For example, on the commute home onboard the train someone may mention in passing that he's starved and can't wait to get his hands on a Big Mac. Or, while waiting for a bus a co-commuter might share the fact that this is his last bus commute because he just got a great deal on a new car at a local dealer. Anywhere, anytime ... wherever there's a crowd there's likely to be an Ad Spy.
Ad Spies also are being actively recruited by national political campaigns to garner support for this year's crowded Democratic field.
"The Ad Spies concept is custom tailored for political campaigns," said TMR Advertising Vice President, Margaret Kessler. "We can affect the voting patterns of thousands of constituents with only a handful of strategically placed Ad Spies."
Ad Spies are recruited, or cast, based on product/service target markets. If, for example, the target market is women 25-54 of a certain ethnic/racial and/or cultural demographic, an appropriate Ad Spy would be recruited who fits those demographic criteria.
As for those critics who ask where do you draw the line when it comes to clandestine advertising, Kessler has a definitive answer.
"It's all about blurring lines, not drawing them," said Kessler. "Sometimes it's not so much the message, but the messenger. And we've got the best messengers in the business."
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