Marketing Tactics People Rarely Think About

Marketing Tactics People Rarely Think About

When most people think about marketing, they imagine the usual suspects: ads on social media, email campaigns, SEO, maybe even a trade show booth. But the truth is, the most powerful growth drivers often happen in places that don’t show up on Google Analytics or your CRM dashboards.

This “invisible” side of marketing is what we call dark social, the private, untrackable channels where real conversations happen. If you’re not thinking about how to tap into it, you’re leaving growth on the table.

Let’s break down a few overlooked tactics, starting with dark social, and how to leverage them.

Dark Social: The Unseen Word-of-Mouth

Think about how you share content with your friends or colleagues: a quick text message, a Slack DM, a link dropped in a private Facebook group. These aren’t public posts, but they’re powerful endorsements.

How to use it:

• Track “copy-and-share” behaviors. Add UTM codes to share buttons on your blog posts. When someone clicks “share via WhatsApp” or “copy link,” you’ll get a clue that dark social is working.

• Fuel the conversation. Create content that’s easy to pass around privately...think helpful calculators, benchmarks, or punchy memes.

• Be present where it happens. Join niche Slack communities, LinkedIn groups, or WhatsApp chats where your audience naturally spends time.

Micro-Influencers in Niche Communities

We all know influencer marketing, but people often picture celebrities or million-follower Instagrammers. The overlooked goldmine? Micro-influencers embedded in niche communities—people with 500 to 5,000 highly engaged followers who actually care about what they say.

How to use it:

• Partner with micro-influencers in your industry vertical or geographic market.

• Offer them exclusive access, insider tips, or even co-create content together.

Employee Amplification (Or Evangelization)

Your employees are walking, talking brand channels, but most businesses never tap into that potential. People trust humans far more than logos.

How to use it:

• Encourage employees to share company wins, content, or stories on their personal LinkedIn or Instagram accounts.

• Provide pre-written content they can personalize, so they don’t feel like corporate megaphones.

Ungated Value (Flip the Script)

The old playbook says: gate your best content, collect emails, and then nurture. But here’s the twist—giving away high-value resources without a form can actually drive more credibility, shares, and inbound demand.

How to use it:

• Turn a gated whitepaper into an open guide.

• Share templates, checklists, or data openly.

• Let value drive demand, not a form.

Borrowed Trust: Partnerships & Co-Marketing

Instead of trying to build an audience from scratch, align with someone who already has the trust of the audience you want.

How to use it:

• Co-host webinars with adjacent (non-competitive) businesses.

• Cross-promote in newsletters or podcasts.

• Package your offer with a partner’s service to expand reach.

The Power of Memes & Informal Content

This might sound unserious, but memes work because they’re shareable, relatable, and human. They thrive in dark social channels like group chats and DMs.

How to use it:

• Create lighthearted content that reflects industry pain points.

• Use humor as an entry point, then link back to more serious resources.

The More You Know

Marketing isn’t just what shows up on your dashboard. It’s happening in the conversations you’ll never fully see, in private group chats, text messages, and coffee meetups. That’s where trust lives.

By tapping into dark social, employee voices, niche influencers, and ungated value, you can unlock growth in places your competitors aren’t even looking.