Restaurants
/Case Study
We Are There For You
Taco Time
Challenge
Although TacoTime had a respectable 225 franchises up and running, it was still dealing with the challenge of competing with the larger, higher-spending players in the Mexican QSR category like Taco Bell and Del Taco. Same store sales were flat, franchisees were loooking for a change in direction, and there was a modest marketing budget, compared to their largest competitors, available to help move them up the food chain.
After an extensive agency review, Moses Anshell was selected as the new agency for TacoTime.
Our first key insight: Fast-food is fast, but food quality is often secondary in the Mexican quick-service segment. The conventional wisdom is that most customers (especially the core target of men 18-49) will eat what you give them... so why bother to deliver a better product?
However, our research showed that many men were in fact tired of mediocre Mexican food created with not-so-fresh ingredients. Their taste buds hungered for freshly prepared, tastier food.
Our new, mouth-watering "Tempting ... but not a good idea" campaign announced the higher quality food offered by TacoTime - and also squarely positioned TacoTime as a much better idea, versus the same old Mexican food still being offered by competition.
Results
TacoTime's franchisees actually cheered when they first saw the new campaign. Same-store sales began to grow almost immediately. And, in one of the most interesting results we've ever helped generate for a client, TacoTime franchisees were scared of running out of taco meat when the campaign first went on-air. More meat on the way! Vamos a comer! ("Let's eat" to you gringos.)
What it takes to succeed in the restaurant business today
Here's some of what we think it takes to succeed in building the businesses and brands for restaurant chains today:
Agencies and their restaurant clients must remember that this is often a "New news" business... and act like it. No matter what segment of the restaurant category you're in, it's changing faster than ever and fickle customers demand more than ever. Right now. So you need to keep the pipeline filled with new products, new tastes, new promotional ideas and new operational enhancements.
Don't forget about the food. No matter what your price points may be, people still want to eat food that tastes good and is presented well. From the lowliest taco to a three-course dinner with wine, remember that people eat taste... not price. Make sure that product development, operations, service and employee training always deliver on adequate appetite appeal.
Stay focused. Whether it's your menu, core customer, guest experience, geography, pricing, convenience... stay strategically focused. Throw everything you've got at the right niche for you. Stay nimble. Don't fight it out face-to-face with the top national chains. If you do, you'll probably lose.
