Cause a scene: Guerrilla marketing can have a big impact on a brand’s ability to cut through the clutter

Chris Warren

It is important to remember that guerrilla marketing remains viable, even in a world where people walk the streets staring at their mobile devices, oblivious to the environment.

New Yorkers are not the easiest people in the world to surprise. But this past January even the most jaded residents of Gotham would have been hard pressed to nonchalantly pass by the large, smoking marijuana joints seemingly perched atop steam vents in Union Square, the Meatpacking District, and Williamsburg without doing a double take.

The bigger-than-life joints weren't public art displays or homing beacons for stoners; rather, they were designed to attract viewers for the second season of the HBO show High Maintenance. Passersby also couldn't miss the scores of brand ambassadors. Dressed up as the show's...

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