5 guerrilla marketing lessons from ‘IT’ campaign

With red balloons and stencils, promoters of Stephen King’s horror film gave fans a fright that they eagerly shared on social media. Here’s how to replicate that success.

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The marketers wanted to inspire dread—and sell tickets.

The latest adaptation of Stephen King’s horror masterpiece has smashed box office records, and the red balloon of the title creature Pennywise continues to be a cultural touchstone.

Stephen King teased the opening of the film by displaying a red balloon in the window of his New England mansion. The object later inspired a prank in Lilitz, Pennsylvania.

The pranksters turned out to be teenage girls looking to shock their friends.

Mashable wrote:

The cops politely requested that the prank be stopped, admitting they were “completely terrified.” They were good sports about it, but it was clear they did not want this to turn into hysteria.

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