Dive Brief:

• Chipotle Mexican Grill launched an interactive game called Burrito Vault to dole out over $1 million in free burritos, per a press release. The activation is timed to National Burrito Day on April 4. 
• Consumers on April 2 and 3 who played the game online were challenged to guess two exact order combinations to unlock the bank, with buy-one-get-one free entrée codes available to the first 50,000 players who deciphered the vault code correctly each day. 
• The promotional codes can be redeemed exclusively on National Burrito Day. Additionally, all players who unlocked the Burrito Vault will be entered into a sweepstakes where 53 fans — representative of the over 53 fresh ingredients used by Chipotle — will be selected to win free burritos for a year. 

Dive Insight: 

When burritos are your bread and butter, the national day in which they are recognized is a no-brainer for a playful marketing moment. Such is the case for Chipotle, which has staged National Burrito Day promos over the last several years that often nod to cultural touchpoints, including sending text-to-win codes for free burritos via Twitter, using the metaverse to invite consumers to roll their own virtual burritos and giving fans a chance to be awarded “Burritos or Bitcoin.”

This year’s promotion is no different in its efforts to capture the brand’s most loyal customers on a day when they may be most primed to consider buying a burrito anyway. Consumers on April 2 and 3 beginning at 12pm P.T. each day could access the Burrito Vault and attempt to guess two exact order combinations, ingredient by ingredient, to unlock the bank, with the first 50,000 each day who crack the code able to score a promo code. 

The Burrito Vault game is inspired by current pop-culture hype around digital word games, like Wordle, that have become a key asset in many consumers’ daily routines. Additionally, the move allows Chipotle to showcase its more than 1.34 billion possible burrito combinations and versatile menu, which is made with over 53 fresh ingredients, per release details. The game, which allowed consumers four attempts each day, also required winners to input their phone number to receive their promotional code, allowing Chipotle to access valuable consumer data. 

In addition to the Burrito Vault game, Chipotle on April 4 is extending a $0 delivery fee offer to all of its Chipotle Rewards members ordering via the company’s website or app who use the code “deliver.” The chain will also be awarding 53 consumers who unlocked the Burrito Vault order correctly with free burritos for a year. 

Marketing around brand-relevant national days could be impactful for Chipotle as it looks to build its loyalty and rewards initiatives. Last year, the brand also offered free concert tickets through social platform Threads as part of National Avocado Day to help entice consumers to its brand and loyalty program and earlier added a “Freepotle” perk to its program that offered members up to 10 free food items throughout 2023. In a February earnings call, Chipotle CEO Brian Niccol outlined how these promotions are contributing to the company’s bottom line.

“From the Freepotle drops, we were able to learn more about our rewards members to improve our ability to deliver relevant experiences in the future,” Niccol said. “Going forward, I believe we are on a multiyear path to commercializing our customer data and insights into more targeted marketing campaigns and improving the overall digital experience that will drive increased frequency and spend over time.”