Grab Attention and Increase Foot Traffic with Reverse Graffiti
Graffiti has always fascinated me – its incredible how this particular form of painting is considered vandalism in some cases and fine art in others – so I was especially interested to learn how “Reverse Graffiti” is literally cleaning up graffiti’s reputation. Reverse graffiti uses stencils and power washers to create “clean” designs that stand out from the surrounding grime. Street artists have been using this technique for decades, and now the marketing world is waking up and discovering the many ways reverse graffiti can be used for promotions.
Reverse graffiti is gaining in popularity around the world. Here in the United States, marketing pioneers like Starbucks, MTV, and Domino’s Pizza are incorporating it into their broader marketing strategies. According to the New York Times, Domino’s invested less than $20,000 on its campaign, which included 210 street impressions, spread across New York, Philadelphia and Los Angeles. Passersby were invited to send in photographs of themselves with the street images for a chance to win Domino’s gift cards. Domino’s estimates that the campaign brought it about $1 million worth of publicity – thats a 50 to 1 return on investment!
While reverse graffiti has been used successfully by a number of large businesses, there is no reason that small businesses can’t do the same. For example, what if adjacent businesses joined forces to reverse graffiti a themed “path” on their collective sidewalk? By sharing the cost, they could each get plenty of bang for their buck.
In addition to being a relatively low cost form of advertising, reverse graffiti is also kind to the environment. No paints, sprays or chemicals are applied in the process, and the image wears away naturally over time leaving no waste or biproducts behind.
To see a reverse graffiti artist in action, check out what English reverse graffiti expert Moose has done in San Francisco’s Broadway Tunnel as part of The Reverse Graffiti Project.
Happy to hear you liked my idea of adjacent, local businesses partnering to co-create a “path” using reverse graffiti on their common sidewalk – storyboarding their message in effect (a scavenger hunt, game, offers etc.)… you and your readers can see more about storyboarding at Moving From Me to We and more about partnering at How We Partner…. I am enjoying your blog posts btw