Dive Brief:
- Burger King's latest marketing campaign targets consumers who are delayed while traveling over the holidays, per a press release shared with Marketing Dive.
- The "Delay Your Way" promotion will dish out free Impossible Whoppers to app users whose planes are delayed between Dec. 18 and 30. Participants must download the burger chain's app and input their flight details. If the flight is verified as delayed, Burger King will deliver a mobile coupon for the free menu item at participating restaurants across the country.
- Earlier this month, the fast food giant ran a similar campaign in Germany where it gave away Whoppers to diners willing to read aloud a spoiler of "Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker." The effort aimed to challenge how far people would go to show their love for Burger King's classic dish.
Dive Insight:
With its latest mobile campaign, Burger King aims to drive the number of app downloads in a playful way to connect with fans during the busy holiday season. The promise of a free meal may entice delayed travelers to install the chain's mobile app while at the airport and try the new plant-based Impossible Whopper. Once people have the app on their phone, Burger King can push future interactions that drive loyalty and encourage customers to continue using its mobile platform.
Mobile has been at the center of Burger King's strategy over the past year as it's deployed creative tactics to get its app on people's phones and push interactions. Last holiday season, the company ran a geofenced "Whopper Detour" promotion designed to cull customers from McDonald's to order ahead at Burger King. People near a McDonald's received a mobile notification offering a one-cent Whopper.
Later in 2019, Burger King Germany launched a similar mobile campaign that used geotargeting around horror movie "It Chapter Two" while taking aim at rival McDonald's. The effort encouraged McDonald's customers to "Escape the Clown" — a reference to the Ronald McDonald mascot — and opt for Burger King instead. Geotargeted ads on Facebook and Instagram urged people inside McDonald's locations to download Burger King's app and scan an article to receive a coupon for a one-cent Whopper.
The chain also tested a food delivery program with drivers stuck in traffic in Mexico City. "Traffic Jam Whopper" allowed consumers to use the app to order menu items for delivery to their car via motorcycle. The effort garnered a 63% lift in delivery orders during the first week of the promotion, as well as a 44-fold boost in app downloads.
