As its name implies, guerrilla marketing has similarities to guerrilla warfare. When you’re out-manned and out-gunned, you’re not going to fight head-on. You’re going to come up with strategies and maneuvers that allow you to use the resources you do have to out-fox the competition.

If your larger competitor has the airwaves blanketed with their message, for example, the small amount of radio advertising you could afford probably isn’t the best way to go up against them.
But what if you instead hooked up with a charity and repaired a car for a needy family? Let the radio stations know about your good deed and you could be getting more air time – in the form of free positive publicity – than your competitor is paying for with big bucks.

That’s what it means to “go guerrilla.” Here’s how you can wage your own guerrilla marketing campaign.

Think small to get big
Sometimes the best first step to growing your business is to think small: Stop trying to reach “everybody.” Many guerrilla marketers decide to focus their efforts and resources at a niche market. For many in the automotive repair industries, a “niche” means choosing to work mainly on “imports” or “domestics” or choosing one or two vehicle makes to focus on, much like a dealer would.

You may instead want to focus on a particular niche of people, rather than cars. One shop owner, who worked as a certified public accountant before buying his shop, still markets his services to CPAs. He advertises in their publications, helps sponsor their events, stops in to see them (leaving them some of his shop’s business cards and note pads) when he’s out doing sales calls.

You don’t have to pick a niche that you necessarily “belong to.” A Chicago area shop owner saw a huge potential market in a particular ethnic group in his area. He knew very little about this group – and did not even speak their native language. But one of his technicians who did helped him hire and train a bilingual estimator who has helped the shop owner get ads in the publications reaching this group.

Win ‘em one at a time
Another trait that guerrilla marketers share is the understanding that winning over one customer at a time is a perfectly valid way to build a business.

One shop owner in the Northeast, for example, checks out the car behind him at the toll booth in the morning. If it’s a type of car he’s likely to work on, he’ll pay the toll for that car and ask the tollbooth operator to give the driver one of the shop owner’s cards. He estimates that he spends about $25 a month doing this – and not a month has gone by that he hasn’t gotten at least one job out of it.

“There’s been months when I’ve had four or five customers come in and say I paid their toll – or their co-worker or relative told them I had paid their toll – and that’s how they heard about us,” the shop owner said. “No way would a $25 ad anywhere get you that kind of pay-back.”

Reward referrals
Is there an agent that refers lots of work your way? Or one in particular that you wish would?
The traditional marketer might try to “get in good” with that agent by regularly sending over doughnuts or maybe tickets for a ballgame. The guerrilla marketer understands that this will only have a short-term impact – and may even violate some insurers’ rules about gratuities.

A shop owner in Texas who relies heavily on agent-referrals takes a different approach. He noticed that a growing number of insurance companies are selling directly to consumers via the Internet and toll-free phone numbers rather than through agents. He recognized that many agents – including those who refer work to him – see this as a real threat.

That’s where his guerrilla marketing skills came in. Rather than sending gifts of appreciation directly to agents, he’s making sure every customer who gets referred thinks he or she is getting special treatment because of their agent. Those are the customers who get a personal call from the shop owner as repairs are getting started, who get priority for use of the shop’s loaner cars, and who get a follow-up thank-you letter that mentions what a great agent they have and how that agent really made sure things went smoothly during the claims process. The shop may even fill the car’s gas tank, leaving a note saying it was done compliments of the agent.

Think about it: The money you were spending on doughnuts and sporting event tickets is now being spent on your customers, giving them something extra. Yet insurance agents – struggling to find ways to show customers the value and advantages of doing business with them rather than a direct writer insurer – love that you’re making them look good.

Be a winner
Guerrilla marketers understand that winning business and industry awards can be real low-cost way to boost a shop’s credibility and exposure. One local chapter of the Automotive Service Association (ASA), for example, annually selects a member as “Shop of the Year.” The winner has been featured not only in the regional and national trade publications, but in the state’s largest newspaper and dozens of neighborhood, business and related publications. This type of publicity can be worth thousands of dollars, and yet very few shops submit applications for the award.

There’s no shortage of local and national awards presented within the industry. Also watch for awards and distinctions offered by your state or local governments; a number of shops, for example, have been honored for their recycling and environmental efforts.

And check local and national business publications for award possibilities. Nearly all of these award programs choose winners from businesses of all sizes, so don’t assume that your company is too small to win big.

There’s a old business saying: “You’re wasting half your marketing budget – the key is knowing which half.” Guerrilla marketing techniques give you the freedom to try new things without a huge risk – helping you determine how to make the most of all of your marketing resources.

John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, who has been writing about the automotive industry since 1988. He can be contacted by email at jyoswick@teleport.com