Marketing stunt drives big traffic to Make Meaning
New York -- A marketing stunt ended up driving hundreds of visitors to entertainment and events retailer Make Meaning’s location on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. Inspired by the creativity of the infamous and elusive guerilla street artist Banksy, whose handiwork has been popping up around New York City for the past month, the CEO and CMO of Make Meaning arranged for renowned New York street artist Alex Gardega to spray paint the façade of the building with a Banksy-esque silhouette in the middle of the night.
Dubbed "Fishing for Time" as a nod to the retailer's mission to provide a fun and creative environment to enjoy quality family time, the Alice-In-Wonderland inspired piece debuted in the early hours, and instantly sent hundreds of people to the storefront, taking photographs and posting their find online, where an intense debate ensued around the validity of the piece.
The piece also paid tribute to the NYC landmark "Yorkville Clock" which stands in front of Make Meaning. Excited viewers tweeted and posted that the clock was set to 5:00 PM, which was the time of Banksy's scheduled reveal, which for some confirmed that this was in fact Banksy's latest piece.
"What started as a fun experiment quickly became a huge moment in guerilla marketing inspired by a guerilla artist," said Amy Kotulski, CMO of Make Meaning, who also arranged a security team to add extra credibility to the scene, and was later actually used to maintain crowd control.
CEO Dan Nissanoff was overwhelmed by the response, which became an immediate viral hit on Facebook and Instagram, and an all-day frenzy ensued as tourists and locals demanded access and entrance to the store.
"Retailers will use their windows to attract customers and evolve seasonally, but they usually don't consider what an impact their facade can make on the public until they make a change,” he said. “As a creativity-based destination which is uniquely experiential, it seems totally appropriate to communicate to consumers and our community in such a fearless and dynamic way."
Due to the enormity of the feedback and excitement from the public, Make Meaning plans to create evolving murals on their facade in the upcoming months.