Crisis Marketing in the Food and Restaurant Industry
During times of crisis, marketing teams are forced to rethink strategies. In this series, we examine how brand leaders across the food service industry are responding to new consumer patterns and quickly shifting social strategies to connect with their target audiences around the world.
Marco's Pizza: #DeliveringMemories
Marco's Pizza recently launched a national ad campaign, Delivering Memories, which goes against the typical “unprecedented times” strategies many brands are implementing.
Marco's celebrates the smaller, meaningful memories that did happen like family dinners (and pizza) and shares, “the moments that didn't happen will be remembered forever – but so will the little moments that did happen.”
Marco's refreshing approach focuses on creating comfort and optimism by living in the present – appreciating the little moments that make life more meaningful.
Taco Bell: #AtHomeWithTacoBell
Taco Bell is offering a new at-home Taco Bar food deal, which launched in time for Cinco de Mayo. For $25, the limited-time menu includes eight flour tortillas, 12 Crunchy Taco shells, nacho chips, beef, lettuce, refried beans, nacho cheese sauce, cheddar cheese, tomatoes, reduced-fat sour cream, Hot Sauce packets, and napkins.
Taco Bell has also unveiled a “Taco Bell Test Kitchen” online, which provides recipe tutorials for some of the restaurant's signature dishes and beverages.
#GreatAmericanTakeout
To help charities supporting restaurant employees and their families, The Great American Takeout launched a hashtag campaign on social media. #GreatAmericanTakeout encourages people to get food to-go from local restaurants on Tuesday during the quarantine – and offers incentives (like $50 gift cards) for people who share their meals.
Takeout Tuesday also coincided with Cinco de Mayo – encouraging users to order food from a Mexican restaurant, and share pictures of their meals.
Kraft Heinz: #WeGotYouAmerica
Kraft Heinz began using #wegottyouamerica internally as its teams worked diligently to fill the increasing demand for food supplies. Today, that line — and company employees — are the stars of a one-minute ad produced by the team themselves. The video features workers across the U.S. with the voiceover of a fellow line operator.
Burger King: Stay Home For the Whopper
Burger King released a new ad, “Stay Home of the Whopper,” to promote free delivery during social distancing. While the ad was shot last fall for a different concept, execs decided to repurpose it during the pandemic. With patriotic music in the background, Burger King shares our country needs people to stay indoors because "staying home doesn't just make us all safer, it makes you a couch potatriot.”
Chipotle: #ChipotleTogether
Chipotle Mexican Grill is offering #ChipotleTogether virtual hangouts on Zoom, where fans can connect virtually with celebrities in online chats and score free Chipotle. From The Bachelor, Colton Underwood to Luke Bryan and Kaskade, Chipotle fans can get a “front-row” ticket to their favorite shows.
H-E-B: #TexansHelpingTexans
In their latest campaign, #TexansHelpingTexans, H-E-B encourages people to share “everything from an amazing pantry meal, tips to keep the family entertained, or even stories about neighbors helping neighbors.” The hashtag generated heavy usage, including 2.5 billion TikTok views, and garnered the support of many prominent celebrities and politicians.
We will update this list as the future unfolds. If you spot a campaign worth mentioning below, please share it with us on social or via e-mail at futureofmarketing@TrueLoyalup.com.
