There are only a few marketing strategies that I would say are not yet known to the general public. Generally, these strategies are known as “stealth marketing”; which basically means unconventional and subtle campaigns that advertise without the potential consumer knowing it. Naturally, such an obscure field is full of bizarre strategies and juicy scandals that arise when executives want to ditch the glossy, corporate feeling that tends to turn people off. Most recently, for example, 20th Century Fox created a number of news websites with falsified political headlines to generate hype for the film “A Cure for Wellness.” Sites like the “Los Angeles Dispatch” and the “New York Morning Post” were constructed, and the articles encouraged readers to go on Twitter and use the hashtag #acureforwellness. The articles spread even amongst celebrities–until the farce was revealed. Fox has since apologized.

A more insidious form of stealth marketing is “astroturfing”, a term that is somewhat well known but people still seem to fall for it, especially online. Entire companies exist to make discussions more “positive” about a product–a recent Forbes article, featuring a journalist who posed as a potential customer, revealed that these companies will buy old online accounts (for veracity) and then subtly mention products in a way that appears natural. Everyone knows you can “buy” followers on Twitter, likes on Facebook etc. However, the truth of the matter is that these marketing agencies can bring a product to the front page of any content aggregator, by using many many accounts to manipulate where a product appears on a site. Product placement is another form of stealth marketing. Until a few years ago, nobody noticed when products were placed in conspicuous places. But since advertising seemed to become more stigmatized in recent years, it’s now obvious when a character holds a drink with a label facing the camera, or casually mentions buying (brand name).