Undercover Marketing has been a routine of many successful businesses across the world. Have you ever heard about this strange marketing tactic? If not, it is the right place for you to get its know-how. Without wasting the next moment, let us take a look at what Undercover Marketing is.
Undercover Marketing:
Undercover Marketing is a type of marketing in which the companies advertise their products in hidden words. The marketers advertise the products so that a normal person does not get it as a marketing tactic. Even this marketing type does not aim to create tout or hype, which falls on the list of silent marketing strategies.
Also Read: What is Scarcity Marketing?
One of the best examples of Undercover Marketing is when Colgate designed a brush-like popsicle stick and sold them to some ice-cream company for making ice-bars. This tactic aimed to capture people, especially the children, to brush their teeth with Colgate Toothbrushes and Toothpastes.
Strategies Of Undercover Marketing:
There are several tricks and strategies to proceed for successful Undercover Marketing. What are they? Let us take a glance.
Ad Spies: It is all about hiring influencers who advertise your product in their content. It has been a widely adopted tactic by businesses worldwide, and you must know about Instagram influencers; they're incredible.
Ghost Writing: Through the support of ghostwriters, companies aim to convey their success stories and positive reviews of their products to the public, thus, getting a good response.
Leaners: Companies prefer to hire some masses who are good at acting. They aim to make them advertise their products in such a way that it looks normal and random. Famous YouTubers are a good example of this category.
Product Placing: This is another popular technique in which companies market their product in different Movies, TV shows, and other media platforms to gain public attention. This kind of move was taken by Starbucks when they featured their Starbucks cup in a popular TV show 'Game Of Thrones.
Celebrity Patronage: Getting public attention through celebrity patronage is another quick-to-do trick for Undercover Marketing. They recommend your brand or product in their random conversations to not seem like a proper advertisement.
Pros & Cons
For every strategic decision, there are some pros and cons. Similarly, Undercover marketing also carries some of them. Let us see what they are:
Pros:
Low-Cost Strategy: As Undercover Marketing does not require much expense, it can be considered a Low-Cost Strategy.
Awareness Of New Brands: Start-ups and new businesses may gain a cheap way of getting customers.
Customer Segment Identification: It helps ponder customer needs, thus, providing a good idea about the target audience.
Also Read: Paid Marketing Trends
Cons:
Misleading: As deceptive tactics are being used in this Undercover Marketing, it may mislead customers.
May Face Legal Issue: In some countries, Undercover marketing may face legal issues as it seems to cross the limits of business ethics.
May Ruin Brand Reputation: If anything within the campaign goes wrong, the brand may lose its potential customers and reputation.
Also Read: Paid vs Organic Marketing
