There were over 200 startups showcased at TechCrunch Disrupt, but only one made quite a…splash. Instead of handing out free swag, hiring expensive performers, or generally wasting a lot of money making our booth look great, FeeFighters decided to go for a more creative, guerrilla marketing style approach at TechCrunch Disrupt. Here’s what we did:
1) Urinal Mats- “Pissing away money on credit card processing?” We put these urinal mats in all the bathrooms at disrupt. They not only had our logo at the bottom, but messaging that related what we do. This way we got guaranteed, unadulterated attention from the majority of the attendees.
However crude it may seem, it certainly worked. People came and talked to us just because they liked the stunt. We even got social media love from bloggers and tweeters.
The urinal mats cost a measly $3.44 each, and with 9 urinals, the total cost for this guerrilla stunt came out to be $30.96.
2) Badass Samurai - We advertised for a samurai on Craigslist and got an awesome guy to come in, wear a FeeFighters Samurai shirt, and do tricks around the #TC Disrupt pavilion. But wait. That’s not all…our samurai procured access to the #TC Disrupt stage during lunchtime (if you want to know how, just ask…it’s a funny story!) and did some moves in front of the whole audience…twitter was ablaze, and everyone asked us about him. Total cost? $50 for 3 hours of his time.
3) “Don’t Pay an Arm and a Leg for Credit Card Processing.”- When we were buying candy at CVS, we noticed gruesome arm and legs props intended for Halloween. Bingo, another opportunity to make a statement that would catch people’s attention. We stuck the arm and leg by our booth, and nary a person walking by our table could stop without asking about intent. Then, we launched into our pitch. Total cost of gimmick: $10.
As a startup, we can’t compete with glitzy companies who have fat marketing budgets. But that doesn’t mean that we still can’t make a statement and get people’s attention with more cost effective but creative marketing techniques. Watch out for more of these at a startup conference near you…
