Restaurants

Domino's Scores in North America
WARC | December 30, 2011
The transformation in fortunes of Domino's, the pizza chain, featuring an apology from senior executives and a pledge to improve, was the most read case study among Warc's North American clients in 2011.
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Regional Chain Uses TV To Take On Big Pizza Brands
MediaPost Marketing Daily | November 16, 2011
The key on the media side was the franchisees’ willingness to spend most of the year’s budget on running the television in a concentrated flight period (fourth quarter 2011 and first quarter 2012) - using the medium’s ability to achieve much greater reach, but also much greater targeting than OOH.
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Killing the 'King' Looks Positive For Burger King
MediaPost Marketing Daily | September 21, 2011
According to YouGov BrandIndex, which tracks major brands' social buzz on a daily basis, since the first of the new ads appeared about three weeks ago, perceptions of Burger King have improved notably - even giving McDonald's a run for its money.
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How Medieval Times Delivered Reality TV's Most Memorable Product Placement in July 
Advertising Age | August 18, 2011
Medieval Times doesn't exactly have a headquarters on Madison & Vine: Aside from an appearance on "Millionaire Matchmaker" in June, the theme restaurant chain hasn't done much with branded entertainment this year. But now Medieval Times has delivered the most memorable branded integration across broadcast TV's reality shows in July, according to Nielsen research.
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Study: Pizza Hut Ads Most Effective Among Pizza Brands
Restaurant News | July 26, 2011
“Pizza Hut and Domino’s just killed it,” said Jack McKee, vice president of sales and marketing for Los Angeles-based Ace Metrix. “Pizza Hut had seven ads in the top 10, six of them calling out low prices, so that was big. I also was surprised that Domino’s highest-scoring ad wasn’t a pizza ad; it was going large with their chicken.”
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Canadians Double Down on KFC's Controversial 'Sandwich'
Toronto Star | October 29, 2010
“When (a product) is talked about in the media and it’s not just an ad, consumers connect with it differently; they see it as more credible. People are starting to recognize that a marketing strategy needs to include not only a paid media, but also an unpaid media.”
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Popeyes' Taste Test Campaign Lifts Brand Against KFC
MediaPost Brand Marketing | October 05, 2010
Popeyes' "Love that Chicken" ad and event campaign that touted a taste test in which its Louisiana Kitchen fried chicken bested KFC's Original Recipe had a significant impact on how consumers perceive the quality of the brand.
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Coke, McD Use Olympics To Recharge Canadian Viability
MediaPost Daily News | September 22, 2010
"Canada is a great success story for us ... we were literally able to reverse all those [negative] trends" as it was able to motivate stakeholders throughout its system from bottlers to retailers.
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Community Marketing Feeds Papa Murphy's Success
MediaPost Marketing Daily | July 28, 2010
The chain encourages franchise owners to get local/designated marketing area TV spots that emphasize its differentiating message of "value, quality and freshness" - prepared when the consumer/family wants to eat, rather than being determined by delivery services or pick-up times - onto the air as quickly as possible once a new location opens.
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Television is Key For Soaring Domino's UK
TVBR.com | July 13, 2010
With sponsorship of a top amateur talent television show, and with people absorbed by television coverage of the World Cup in football-mad Great Britain, the UK operation of pizza deliverer Domino"s enjoyed a spectacular first half of 2010.
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Sales Improve as Domino's "Gets Real"
Adweek | July 13, 2010
"When you"re taking a shot, your right hand pushes it and your left hand guides it. Right now, we"re kind of the left hand...You guide it by talking about what consumers want you to talk about." The approach seems to be working: Q1 same-store sales rose 14 percent and when second-quarter results are announced they would prove that "we"re not a one-trick pony."
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National Cable Gets Fuelled by Fast Food
Advertising Age | June 28, 2010
"This is a definite trend in the industry," said Dairy Queen CMO Michael Keller. "You can see in the data more and more medium-size competitors in our market have moved to national [buys] using cable as their springboard because it's national and much more affordable."
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Red Robin Expands 'Yummm' Campaign
MediaPost Marketing Daily | June 15, 2010
Unaided brand awareness levels increased by five percentage points in Q1 2010 versus the same period last fiscal year. In addition, the campaign also helped add 30,000 new Facebook fans during the period, doubling the fan base.
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Goodfella's Grabs a Pizza Sales Action
Thinkbox | June 08, 2010
In the first two months of rollout, product purchase of Goodfella's Solos increased by over 50%, and sales remained high throughout the seven months of the campaign.
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Domino's "We Stink" Strategy Pays Off
Chicago Tribune | May 31, 2010
Despite rumblings in the marketing world about another New Coke-style flop in the making, sales at domestic stores open more than a year soared 14.3 percent in the first full quarter after the new recipe debuted. Domino's marketing push helped lift the pizza market as a whole, and the halo effect appears to be continuing into the summer.
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Domino's Illustrates Power Of 'Rational' Appeals
MediaPost Marketing Daily | May 14, 2010
Domino's Pizza's recent sales surge is one compelling reminder of the power of a clear benefit appeal and intelligent execution, as opposed to advertising that entertains but falls short on results.
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Domino's Reports 14 % Same-Store-Sales Hike for First Quarter
Advertising Age | May 04, 2010
Last year, Domino's told customers that its pizza had been bad - really bad. And the company went to great lengths to show the great lengths it had gone to make it better. Today, the company reaped the benefits of the massive ad blitz, reporting historic same-store-sales gains, up 14.3%.
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KFC's Stunts Make Nightly News but Don't Stop Sales Slide
Advertising Age | April 19, 2010
While the series of stunts drove buzz and the introduction of grilled chicken spiked short-term sales, the moves also contributed to a lack of consistent brand positioning and a distraction from KFC's flagship product - both of which have hurt the chain and allowed competitors to creep in and carve out share.
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Denny's: Another 2 Million Free Gland Slams Served
MediaPost Marketing Daily | February 11, 2010
Denny's reported that its Web site has gotten about 49 million hits since its late January announcement of this year's giveaway day - including nearly 24 million since its Super Bowl spots promoting the event. The chain was also a top 10-trending topic on Twitter during the Bowl's fourth quarter and yesterday's Grand Slam promotion.
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KFC Grilled Was Most-Recalled '09 Launch
AdWeek | December 13, 2009
Some 66 percent said they watch TV and surf the Web simultaneously - with 85 percent of those online while watching TV, searching for something they just saw on the air.  That combination worked for Yum! Brands' KFC.
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Pure TV Brilliance from McDonald's
Thinkbox | November 2009
Judge Laurence Green, chairman of Fallon, said: "It"s everything a great TV ad can be: engaging, insightful and gently persuasive.  Here"s a brand that not only knows its audience but likes it too."
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Rising Loyalty Scores Good News For QSRs
MediaPost Marketing Daily | October 27, 2009
This rapid rise appears to have been driven in part by aggressive, post-Labour Day advertising focused on new menu items, such as Wendy's Bacon Deluxe, Burger King's $1 double cheeseburger, Taco Bell's Black Jack Taco and KFC's grilled chicken, says BrandIndex SVP and Global Managing Director Ted Marzilli.
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Kraft Goes Back to Cheesy TV
Marketing | September 08, 2009
Kraft Canada is returning to television to continue the successful promotion of its shredded cheese products.
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Consumer Perceptions Of QSRs Improving
MediaPost Marketing Daily | August 21, 2009
The QSRs' general upswings in overall brand health "are probably due to a combination of brand-specific marketing, advertising and promotional activities, as well as consumers trading down in these challenging economic times from high-end and casual-themed restaurants to less formal and less expensive dining experiences."
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El Pollo Loco Burns KFC With Taste-Test Challenge
Advertising Age | July 22, 2009
El Pollo Loco launched an aggressive campaign against KFC in April, as the chicken giant released Kentucky Grilled Chicken...Chief Marketing Officer Karen Eadon said the spots have not only "disrupted" the Kentucky Grilled Chicken launch in Southern California, they have netted El Pollo four or five market-share points in the region.
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Want to Boost Sales? Tell Consumers to Dress Like Cows
Advertising Age | July 09, 2009
Whether its through grassroots marketing or giving away meals to customers, stunts by Chick-Fil-A, a growing fast-food chain known for its lightly breaded chicken sandwiches, appear to be paying dividends.
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Burger King Wins Effie Grand Prize For 'Freakout'
MediaPost Marketing Daily | June 04, 2009
What if your product simply disappeared?  Would anyone care?  Burger King's clever campaign by Crispin Porter + Bogusky, which effectively dared to ask that question, has won the 41st Grand Effie.
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Mac Attack: McDonald's Ups Ad Reach
MediaPost Daily News | May 29, 209
President-COO Ralph Alvarez said "a drop in media rates" is allowing the restaurant chain to garner more gross rating points or added media weight this year for core offerings, such as Big Macs and its dollar menu.
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Grilled Chicken a Kentucky Fried Fiasco
Advertising Age | May 11, 2009
KFC's grilled-chicken launch was to be the biggest in the chain's history.  Now it might also go down as a marketing case study in what not to do.
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Burger King to Boost Ad Spending
Advertising Age | April 23, 2009
As many marketers cut back in the downturn, Burger King is just beginning to turn up the heat.  The burger baron plans to ratchet up spending by double digits for its fiscal year beginning this August - and TV will be the biggest beneficiary.
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Television's Evolution Drives Pizza Sales
Thinkbox.tv | March 25, 2009
Over ten years, Domino's pizza used television's evolution to drive pizza sales and build its brand.  It's a story of a gold-standard sponsorship, but it also encompasses spot, interactive advertising, on-demand pre-rolls and a range of other liberating TV technologies.  This case study from Arena BLM and Domino's deservedly picked up the Grand Prix at the Thinkbox TV Planning awards 2008.
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Marketing Strategy Pays Off for A&W
Marketing | February 4, 2009
Sales at A&W restaurants grew 13% in the fourth quarter as the expanding burger chain continued to target the nostalgic baby boom generation, many of whom are turning to lower-cost meals in the recession.
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Denny's Grand Slam Giveaway a Hit With 2 Million Diners
Advertising Age | February 3, 2009
Score one for beginner's luck. Denny's first Super Bowl spot, which offered free breakfast to America, seems to have put bums in seats.  The restaurant claims it surpassed its estimate that it would serve up to 2 million people during today's eight-hour Grand Slam giveaway. And all for the low price of $5 million. 
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New Domino's Campaign Moves The Needle
MediaPost's Marketing Daily | January 06, 2009
Domino's is the clear underdog in their sub battle with Subway, but their new campaign seems to be moving the needle for the chain that is much better known for pizza, according to BrandIndex, which tracks consumer brand perceptions on a daily basis.
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McDonald's wins Canadian Olympic recall
Marketing Daily | September 11, 2008
Canadians were noticin' it during the recent Beijing Olympics. "It" being McDonald's, which garnered the highest unaided recall among Olympic sponsors and advertisers in a post-Olympics survey by Toronto's Solutions Research Group.
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Applebee's Taking Cues From IHOP's Successful Turnaround
MediaPost's Marketing Daily | July 9, 2008
CEO Julia Stewart pins IHOP's success on "better ads that resonate with the guest, media buying that has really made a difference, a marketing strategy using limited time offers, and then literally having better food in the restaurant."  Advertising is now in sync with the "Come Hungry, Leave Happy" strategy, and franchisees are pooling media dollars instead of "doing their own thing."
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Economy, Rivals No Match for BK's Marketing
Ad Age Daily | May 6, 2008
Burger King is giving rivals a solid thrashing, and marketing is getting the credit.  While other fast feeders fault the recession and housing crisis for tepid sales, Burger King posted a healthy same-store-sales gain of 5.4% in its fiscal third quarter.
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An Advertising Heavyweight
Marketing | Mar 10, 2008
Believe it or not, but Jared Fogle and Subway have been a couple for ten years now, and it still seems like they can't get enough of each other.  After some 50 commercials and four different ad agencies, he still regularly tops likeability and recall ratings.  And now he's touring with his former fat pants.
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Hey, No Whopper on the Menu?!
The Wall Street Journal | Feb 08, 2008
Depriving Whopper fans of their favourite burger turns out to be a surefire way to get them to buy more.
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