Once a year, thousands of Americans will leave the comfort of their homes in the wee hours of the morning, shake off their tryptophan hangovers and take to the streets in search of good deals. This annual ritual signifies the beginning of the shopping season and heralds in a month of long lines, crowded malls, overfilled parking lots and endless opportunities for advertisers.

So, with Black Friday right around the corner, how can local advertisers take advantage of the holiday shopping craze? As experts of out-of-the-ordinary advertising techniques, we at Beyond Traditional have brainstormed innumerable, low-cost promotions that can easily be planned and executed within a short turnaround. Through a combination of guerrilla advertising techniques, and the advantage of having a captive audience (in 2010, the line outside of Macy’s in Manhattan stretched to over 7,000 shoppers!), there is incredible opportunity to secure thousands of impressions and one-on-one consumer interactions for your brand.

Here’s one of our ideas, which is simple in its execution but impactful in terms of quality brand-consumer interactions and impressions. Imagine – it’s 11:45 p.m. on a frigid winter evening and the line of shoppers outside of the downtown Target store is 5,000 deep. People have been standing idly in line for the last 45 minutes, the lack of movement has made them colder than they planned for and shoppers huddle together with their friends and family members to keep warm. Out of nowhere, a team of brand ambassadors arrive on the scene, they are equipped with specially-designed hot beverage backpacks full of cocoa and utility belts holding stacks styrofoam cups (printed with your company’s logo), satchels of mini marshmallows and an artillery of miniature candy canes. The team fans out and cheerfully distributes cups of hot cocoa to the grateful crowd. When the last cup is poured and the doors begin to open, the team melts into the crowd and disappears just as mysteriously as they arrived. In the morning, when the deal-seekers return home to tell their tales, despite all of their shopping induced injuries and arguments, they will remember your brand and that much-needed cocoa as a highlight of the day.

Interested in learning more about last-minute holiday advertising opportunities? Contact Sam Bolland at 206.509.9855.

Last Tuesday, the Beyond Traditional team joined forces with Ad Club Seattle to kick off the first event of the organization’s After Hours series by hosting a kick-ass party in our new, industrial-chic office space in SoDo!

At 5:30 p.m., the city’s marketing gurus, mad men and women and  social media elites began to filter up the stairway and step into our cavernous abode. Attendees flocked to the heated steel bar to sample free tastings provided by local artisans at Epic Ales, Laurelhurst Cellars and Captive Spirits; others piled into our branded photo booth donning fake moustaches and spectacles or swarmed the catering table to chow down on mouth-watering tacos, burritos, chips and queso provided by Qdoba Seattle.

As the night progressed, DJ Coupe kept the mood up-tempo by spinning some fresh beats as attendees mixed and mingled in the lobby, huddled around our custom-built, wood-pallet-and-glass conference room tables or cozied up near the gas-powered wood stove.

We, at Beyond Traditional, want to extend another big “thank you!” to our vendors and to everyone who ventured out to SoDo last week! We had a great time and hope to connect with everyone again soon!

Check out photos from the After Hours event here: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.490499370981813.112782.130693676962386&type=3

Scroll through photo booth snapshots here (tag yourself!): http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.488067244558359.112220.130693676962386&type=3

The Jack Burger Truck is in Baton Rouge!

After distributing thousands of Jumbo Jack® burgers with cheese in Greenville, S.C., the Jack Burger Truck hit the road and set out for Louisiana, just in time for Halloween! On Saturday evening, Oct. 20, the truck’s running lights were aglow as the crew began serving up hot burgers to attendees waiting in line to enter the 13th Gate Haunted House, the scariest haunted attraction in the nation!

By midnight, our crew cooked and served 1,456 burgers to zombies, evil clowns, mad men and horror fans alike! Check out photos here: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.435060946549925.101277.153960694659953&type=1

The next stop for the Jack Burger Truck in Baton Rouge will be at LSU for the team’s football game against Ole Miss on Nov. 10! Click here for the full tour schedule: http://www.facebook.com/MunchieMobile/app_431700306875445

The Jack Burger Truck debuted at the CMA Music Festival & Fan Fair in June 2012; it then embarked on a five-month tour of the Southeast in the mission of bringing savory Jack in the Box® menu items to the masses.

For more information about The Jack Burger Truck and to find out where it will be next, visit www.facebook.com/MunchieMobile or follow the truck on Twitter – @MunchieMobile.