Dr. Sabrina Segal

Guerilla marketing is paramount to marketing for Guerillas, which is taking advertising into unchartered, dangerous territory. Ever think about training for an exciting and fast-paced career in smuggling? Radio Guatemala is looking for you.

How do advertisements for “guerilla transporters” play into a successful economy? While Guatemala boasts a rich Mayan history, the last half of the twentieth century saw nearly 36 years of warfare in the guerrilla state. Internal strife in the country has killed more than 100,000 and left behind one million struggling refugees.

According to the CIA, Guatemala is a major staging ground for the transport of illegal drugs, making it a hotbed of guerrilla transport.

One way to escape poverty in third world nations is to join the military, or the “Maroon Berets” and Kaibiles as they are called in Guatemala, heavily armed elite troops that specialize in counter-insurgency and jungle warfare. While conventional military service in the country doesn’t pay very well, jobs in guerilla transport are plentiful and lucrative.

Radio ads recruiting former elite soldiers can be heard over the airwaves in Guatemala’s lawless northern jungle. “We invite all citizens who have served in the military and graduated as Kaibiles to work securing vehicles transporting merchandise to Mexico.”

Over the years, former Maroon Berets have found jobs as assassins and security agents for drug lords earning cash pay ten times the average army salary.

Sadly, opportunities for black market transport guards are not isolated to Guatemala. Mexican soldiers are also in demand for Los Zetas, a Mexican drug-running faction with a lesser advertising budget. Zeta recruitment ads typically entail banners strung across bridges near the US-Mexico border – not radio.

The drug economy is enormous across the Americas. Advertising techniques that we see daily across the U.S. are being used to recruit workers for the industry. How does this make you feel?

Photo Credit: Dr. Sabrina Segal