Bon Appétit- the Taco Bell Ordering App
With its ordering app, Taco Bell is setting a new benchmark in digital marketing. Its development and promotion serve as a prime example of best practices.
On October 28, Taco Bell set its social media accounts to "black and zero". White in black, they announced: "Taco Bell #OnlyIntheApp". News of the social media blackout spread quickly and it soon became clear that the digital media innovator with the bell in its logo had heralded a new trend with its #OnlyInTheApp call: brands should increasingly lure users back into their own territory. In technical jargon, this is known as owned media. Incidentally, the social blackout did not last long. But the message got through and the launch of the "Taco Bell Ordering App" with a top-notch user experience offers us a lesson in the latest trends.
Motivations and insights
Taco Bell is now the fast food favorite of millennials in the USA - the generation of 18 to 35-year-olds. This is no coincidence, but the result of a clear strategy. As early as 2012, 20 percent of the 280 million dollar advertising budget was invested in digital media. "You have to go to these other screens," Taco Bell President Brian Niccol told AdvertisingAge in 2012. Thanks to this early advertising move to smartphone screens, the company is now a long way ahead of the competition in terms of experience and creation in mobile digital marketing. Two examples: Inspired by a user Instagram post, Taco Bell created Instagram-ready packaging with the slogan "Right now I am eating a Waffle Taco and you are not." Taco Bell was also one of the first brands to use Snapchat as part of a marketing campaign. In tweets and Facebook posts, followers and friends were asked for Snapchat adds as follows: "We are on @Snapchat. Username: tacobell. Add us. We are sending all of our friends a secret announcement tomorrow!
#Shhh". Brilliant! But there are other reasons than millennials and the mobile boom to bring self-hosted digital platforms back into play. Jordan Kretchmer, CEO of Livefyre, writes with reference to the Taco Bell campaign: "The era of free social marketing is over." Kretchmer's statement is based on the realization that the now publicly listed network operators Twitter and Facebook have begun to monetize their services with advertising offers. This affects companies that operate pages and profiles. This is because it is now virtually impossible for them to expand their networks or supply the existing network with content without spending money. In concrete terms: if a company posts or tweets a post on its Facebook or Twitter page, it will only be displayed to its own fans and followers in the newsfeed if these posts are purchased as "sponsored content".
A second reason is the massive oversupply of content. Today, there are seven times more users on social media networks than there were just five years ago. Moreover, the number of posted content is breaking records every month. The sobering conclusion for the operators of social media profiles is that supply is outstripping demand, with negative consequences for price development and impact quality. A third reason is the big data problem. According to a recent study from the USA - also reported on by the Tages-Anzeiger - 91% are of the opinion that consumers have lost control over the amount of information they give out. 64 percent are now of the opinion that the use of data for advertising purposes should be more strictly regulated. And 60 percent doubt the benefits of information disclosure. In such a climate, confidence-building measures and added value in return are indispensable. After all, 55% are willing to disclose data or share content under the right conditions.
The new Taco Bell app
For Jeff Jenkins, the ordering app is the greatest invention since the introduction of the "drive through". Back then, customers could buy menus and take them with them without having to leave their car. Today, customers can put together, pay for and order menus to their own taste in advance via the app. When they arrive, the tacos, burritos or combos filled with the best ingredients are ready for instant pick-up. Tressie Liebermann, Senior Director, Digital Marketing & Platforms: "We want to give them the opportunity to customize and personalize the way they never could before." Jeff Jenkins, Director Digital Experience and New Concepts: "One of the key benefits of the app is the ability to skip the line in a restaurant. So you can place your order at your own terms." The most valuable indicator in app development was and is customer behavior. 70 percent of all purchases are made via "drive through" and 30 percent via "dine in". Of the dine-ins, 50 percent are takeaways. In other words, very few portions are consumed on site in the restaurant. This is where an ordering app offers the perfect added value. The centerpiece and current favorite of consumers is the "Rotator Reorder" function. When the smartphone is rotated by 90°, the user's own favorite menus appear and can be ordered immediately. We humans are creatures of habit and gamers. This feature serves both. The current functions are the beginning of a series of further functions, always with the aim of making the user experience simpler and richer. The most valuable indicator here is customer feedback. But according to Lieberman, trends from other markets also provide inspiration for innovations.
The campaign for the Taco Bell app
With the social media blackout, the fast food pioneers from California landed a creative coup. But there was a second lever that contributed to the rapid spread of the app customer. Kaleb Nation has 252,000 followers on Twitter. Brian Logan Dales is a celebrity on Instagram with over 77,000 followers. And Shane Dawson is a video producer and musician with over 2.25 million followers on Twitter. All three are ambassadors for Taco Bell. #Friendsgiving is a campaign based on the idea of Thanksgiving. And #Friendsgiving is part of the Ambassadors program, in which Taco Bell invites influential social media activists to its headquarters for a feast. Taco Bell plays the keyboard of impact drivers perfectly. Activities with influential Twitter, Facebook and Instagram celebrities are part of the advertising strategy. The efforts to build up influential ambassadors are now bearing fruit, as they are spreading the message of the new app in their networks. Ordering from the turntable for after the gig. A tweet from DJ twins @perrytwins live from the mixing desk "Can Dj and order for after the gig" with the hashtag #OnlyInTheApp is getting lots of retweets and favorites. I don't know anything about the taste of a Taco Bell menu due to lack of experience. But this campaign tastes great to the advertiser. Because it lives the viral dream. Bon appétit!
Beat Hürlimann
Is "Back to Owned Media" currently the most important trend in digital marketing? Are there alternatives to the mobile app? Answers to these questions and opinions on the article can be found on www.huerlimanncc.com welcome. You can also find in-depth analyses and information here
