The average American eats over 100 pounds of chicken each year. In the South, one of the most popular ways to prepare this poultry is chicken salad. In 2008, entrepreneur and mother of three, Stacy Brown, launched Chicken Salad Chick to share her family’s chicken salad recipe with the world.
Starting off with word-of-mouth sales and door-to-door delivery in her local community, Brown’s chicken salad soon became so popular that she opened a restaurant. In 2012, Brown and her business partners began franchising. Today, there are over 225 Chicken Salad Chick locations – and counting! – boasting a hearty menu of 15 chicken salad flavors, signature sides, sweet treats, and more.
The Challenge
Chicken Salad Chick approached Bloom Ads to increase conversions at each stage of the consumer journey. They sought to reach new and existing customers to drive sales online and in-restaurant.
It’s no secret that the food service industry is highly competitive. If you’re looking for a bite to eat in the United States, you have almost 750,000 restaurants to choose from! According to one estimate, restaurant and food service sales will top $1 trillion for the first time in history by the end of 2024.
So how could Bloom Ads help Chicken Salad Chick truly come out of its shell and beat its competitors to the other side of the road?
The Solution
To answer this challenge, we looked to a classic American pastime: tailgating.
Our messaging positioned Chicken Salad Chick as crave-able, made-from-scratch favorites perfect for game day. From croissant sandwiches and fresh fruit to creamy mac ‘n’ cheese, we knew Chicken Salad Chick’s offerings would appeal to sports fans who are hungry for an alternative to wings and pizza.
After landing on the creative, we developed a custom media mix that was optimized for store locations and online orders. Our strategy utilized a full suite of digital advertising platforms alongside tried-and-true traditional channels.
Google is a powerful ally in any marketing campaign. Our PPC advertising team used Google to drive lower funnel conversions based around tailgating keywords and related content. Our team executed placements for YouTube and search engine marketing, as well as Google Performance Max. Performance Max leverages new AI technologies to seamlessly promote a single campaign across the entire Google Network, automatically scaling campaign assets and audience signals.
Although Pinterest only ranks as the 15th most popular social media platform, its user base is highly engaged and generally results in strong conversion rates. In 2023, Pinterest generated over $3 billion in revenue. For Chicken Salad Chick, we used Promoted Pins and Idea Pins to spark inspiration among our target audience. Our Pinterest content featured ideas for game day catering as well as keywords to drive engagement around prominent sports moments and interest groups.
Meta
Meta is the platform for reaching consumers on Facebook and Instagram. Given the social nature of tailgating parties, we knew it was vital to leverage these key social media channels. Through targeted Meta ads campaigns optimized for reach and conversions, we developed placements for Facebook and Instagram. These placements highlighted the vibrant, playful social messaging of Chicken Salad Chick’s tailgating assets to drive awareness and boost sales.
Display
Next, we optimized for display ads. We used first party (1P) data to establish lookalike profiles for targeting new customers and executed a strategic retargeting plan. This allowed us to capture both users unfamiliar with the Chicken Salad Chick brand, as well as users who had previously engaged with Chicken Salad Chick but hadn’t made a purchase or other conversion actions. Through these display ads, we increased reach and frequency across premium publisher sites.
Streaming TV
Most sports fans use streaming TV, so it was only natural to bring the client’s brand to livestream broadcasts. We promoted Chicken Salad Chick’s tailgating commercials on premium content across numerous Full Episode Player (FEP) Live Sports programming. This proved to be a valuable tactic for increasing brand awareness among sports fans across the region.
Out-Of-Home (OOH)
Out-Of-Home, also known as OOH, refers to advertising platforms like billboards, bench ads, and more. For Chicken Salad Chick, we placed static and digital OOH ads within a 1-5 mile radius of specific restaurant franchise locations. This generated additional brand awareness as well as foot traffic and in-store purchases.
Audio Ads
For a full suite campaign, we targeted our audience’s ears as well as their eyes. We placed audio ads for Chicken Salad Chick on both streaming audio platforms as well as traditional terrestrial radio stations. These strategic ads included special promotional offers based around the campaign’s game day theme as well as general sports, news, and music content.
Direct Mail
Finally, we took a page from Stacy Brown’s own playbook and went straight to the customer’s door – or at least their mailbox. After narrowing in on the demographics most likely to yield high returns, we sent premium quality plastic mailers to specific households near Chicken Salad Chick restaurant locations. These mailers included custom offers enticing the recipients to visit the restaurant.
The Results
Chicken Salad Chick’s tailgating campaign was a touchdown! Thanks to our campaign, the client saw results surpassing our expectations:
- 201% Increased Impressions
- 235% Increased Clicks
- 33% Return on Ad Spend
- 140% Revenue Lift
Conclusion
Bloom Ads helped Chicken Salad Chick become a go-to tailgating brand and introduced more new customers to this delicious regional franchise. We call that a win-win.
Wondering how we can take your business to the championship level? Get in touch now to learn more about our full suite advertising and marketing services.
