Soon after being hired as chief guerilla officer by the marketing agency Draftfcb, Hubert van Wensen pulled off one of his greatest coups: he set up his office inside a tent in the garden in front of the company’s Amsterdam offices. Not only was the unorthodox stunt creative and cheap — two traits commonly associated with guerilla marketing — but it also captured the attention of local and national media.

Breaking through to a public that has become increasingly skeptical of advertising is foremost on marketers’ minds these days. The beauty of a guerilla marketing plan is that it doesn’t require a huge ad buy in traditional media; it’s about creating unusual, fresh, and provocative ways to reach customers and your best prospects. And that, experts say, helps level the playing field between companies large and small.

“Small businesses generally operate on a tight budget,” says Mitch Meyerson, author of Guerilla Marketing on the Front Lines and founder of an online course that certifies guerilla marketing coaches. “They have to be more creative by using time, energy, and imagination rather than by just spending money.”

Here are five hot guerilla marketing ideas that any growing business can put into practice:

1. Partnerships. Consumers are more likely to listen to a marketing message about your business if it comes from another company, asserts Tom Richard, author of Smart Sales People Don’t Advertise: 10 Ways to Outsmart Your Competition with Guerilla Marketing. “If you have a marketing budget of $2,000, go find nine other people who have a marketing budget of $2,000, and together spend $20,000 on the best promotion ever done in your town,” he says. “You get the benefits of a $20,000 marketing campaign.”

Richard has used this guerilla marketing strategy numerous times in the past. For example, in a campaign called Shape Up Toledo, a collection of growing businesses banded together to attract health-conscious customers. “We ended up with 12 different businesses, and each business had a different event,” he says. “It had to be something that people could get out and do. We had personal trainers who took over a park for boot camp–style training and gourmet chefs who did in-home cook-offs.” Richard says all 12 businesses saw extraordinary foot traffic through their stores on the day they hosted their event. Some even recorded record single-day sales.

2. Stunt marketing. Done right, the appeal of this guerilla marketing tactic is that it leaves a lasting impression. For example, Gary’s Uptown Restaurant and Bar in Lodi, Calif., once ran a special on Wednesdays in which bald men ate for free; other hair-challenged patrons were given discounts. It generated worldwide media attention. “That goes to show that you really can do something fantastic if you have the creativity behind it,” says Colleen Wells, coauthor of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Guerilla Marketing.

3. Influencer marketing. This word of mouth tactic relies on the fact that people can be swayed by those whose opinions they trust. In her book on guerilla marketing, Wells writes about how 3M initially tried, and failed, to gain traction with Post-it Notes. Finally, someone had the idea to hand them out to people with some real pull. “They gave them to the administrative assistants of CEOs, who found a use for them as bookmarks,” she says. “Then it took off.”

Growing businesses can take advantage of the same word of mouth marketing technique by associating themselves with community influencers. In their book, The Influentials, Ed Keller and Jon Berry say community influencers could include people who have done any of the following:

• Written an article for a magazine or newspaper
• Served on a committee or a local organization
• Been active in a group trying to influence public policy
• Had a letter to the editor published in the local paper
• Made a public speech
• Attended a public meeting on town or school affairs
• Written to or called a politician

4. Experiential marketing. If you have a product that you’re proud of, why not let potential customers give it a try? Grocery retailer Trader Joe’s, for example, offers customers in-store taste tests of its natural food products. Many personal trainers also rely on this guerilla marketing tactic, offering a free training session to potential customers.

“Experiential marketing is effective because people really want one-on-one interaction,” Wells says. “These high-touch experiences are appealing to people who often feel as though they’re treated as one of the masses.”

5. A smile and a handshake. That might not sound like a guerilla marketing strategy, but Meyerson believes it’s the first step in building customer loyalty for a brand. “You could spend a few thousand dollars buying a classified ad directing people to call you, but if someone in your business is having a bad day and they pick up the phone and have a crabby tone of voice, the prospect will not be interested [in your product or service],” he says. “The first rule in successful guerilla marketing is to be upbeat and helpful every single time you have contact with the public. People fall short in this area quite consistently.”

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