Ambush marketing-Is it really an effective marketing technique or just a fad?

Ambush marketing-Is it really an effective marketing technique or just a fad

?

Ambush Marketing or sometimes even referred to as "Parasite Marketing" is a type of a guerrilla marketing that usually takes place around an event but does not include a sponsorship fee payment to the event. It is one of the most effective communication tools used today as it not only helps in promoting a brand and at the same time cutting costs but is also a smooth attempt used in a detriment of a direct rival of the brand in question.

One of the very first example of Ambush Marketing dates back all the way to 1984 Olympics, when Fujifilm became an official sponsorship of the event and Kodak sponsored the television stations that covered,generating the public the impression that both marks share the same level of involvement (Kodak played them back in the Summer Olympics of 1988, showing one of the main dangers of such actions).

Nowadays, Ambush Marketing is not only used by smaller firms who cannot afford to pay the high fees of sponsoring major events. In fact this sheer genius act of cost cutting has caught the fancy of the legendary marketing gurus worldwide. Additionally, Ambush Marketing not only allows firms to market their goods or services on a large scale to massive audiences but at the same time helps in targeting new markets or commercial segments. Some of the most prominent examples of Ambush Marketing include:

During the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, where Converse was the official sponsor, Nike built large walls close by the Los Angeles Coliseum and displayed the Nike logo with several athletes wearing the marks clothes; the ads could be seen from inside the Coliseum

Pepsi flew a hot air balloon over the Sharjah on the day of the Coca Cola Cup final

On the other hand, Coca Cola launched its C2 refreshment by sponsoring 8 cars during the Pepsi 400 at the Daytona Speedway. Inside the track, Pepsi signs were seen but outside the venue, Coca Cola placed stands and banners everywhere.

Apart from this, other acts of ambush marketing involve giving out free merchandise around the venues of an event, tickets to the event, in and out transportation of the hosting city at the time of the event etc.

In the short run, ambush marketing may seem to be a fabulous cost efficient means of marketing. However, it may raise some ethical concerns in the long run. This sort of cheap misrepresentation of an organization being associated with an event or product may even have a bad influence on the organization's goodwill and lead to future law suits.

Thus at this point it seems difficult to reach to a conclusion regarding how effective ambush marketing really is or what the future holds for it. But one thing is definitely for sure, if ambush marketing is to be diminished or exterminated, strict laws and legislations must be adopted.

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