The book also showcases select promotional gifts that have become collector’s items, arresting trade fair stands, guerilla campaigns, and exclusive events. Portraits of trailblazers such as Maison Martin Margiela, Bompas & Parr, Fiona Leahy, Krink, and Trigger Happy Productions provide insight into the process and strategy involved in their creation and implementation. The brand communication measures introduced in Taken by Surprise are so cleverly planned and disseminated that they become self-promulgating—either through word of mouth or in the flow of digital information. Target audiences become brand ambassadors, customers become collaborators, and consumption becomes an experience. Taken by Surprise offers advertising agencies, designers, and marketing departments inspiration for the development of more original, more creative, and more attractive brand communication than ever before.
