Introduction to Grill’d

Answer

Introduction to Grill’d

Grill’d is a food chain specialized in preparing and serving burgers. It is an Australian brand founded in 2004 by Simon Crowe. It is headquartered in Hawthorn, in Melbourne. By 2005, the organization had five restaurants which increased to 35 in 2010 and currently, Grill’d operates 130 restaurants. Its target audience are tech savvy youthful millennial consumers in the age groups of 18 to 35 years (Magnum, 2018). The company prides in the slogan of being good, doing good and feeling good. It encourages its employees and customers to do the same too. The slogan guides its selection of an integrated marketing communication campaigns. For instance, to be ‘good’, it procures fresh produce from local farmers. To do ‘good’, Grill’d gives out to charities and local community groups through the Local Matters Program and to feel ‘good’, the firm serves the best burgers in the country. The Creative Agency (2018), described Grill’d as a master in using the integrated campaign after the launch of its Mother Loving campaign. It uses the website https://www.grilld.com.au/.

Reflection on Brand’s Campaign per Week

In week 5, it was notable that Grill’d had gone against its previous stance on the use of blogging, Tweeting, Instagramming, and Facebooking. The rand had previously decided to use an unorthodox approach to marketing after it launched a campaign declaring war on celebrity chefs and social media promoting menu offerings that were pretentious. This viral campaign which used signage written “Attention Foodies, please respect other customers. No blogging, No tweeting, No Facebooking, No Instagramming and absolutely, no cravats” (Castleford, 2012, para 2). This is because Grill’d it was evident that the firm was an ardent user of social media with a strong presence on Instagram where it has more than 38 thousand followers and 1,553 posts. It posted daily either showing faces of happy clients eating burgers while in some posts, it only used descriptions to capture the attention of current and potential customers on social media. The images were tantalizing and attractively delicious. Instagram users were treated to mouthwatering displays of foods with captions, which enabled them to tag their friends. Some of the followers expressed delight in the brand, with some stating how they would visit the restaurants for a bite. The sessions were not interactive since the Grill’d burger did not respond to the comments by customers. However, it managed to achieve its objective of creating desire among customers and leading them to the restaurant stores to sample the burgers. Evidently, this campaign integrates the element of visual brand communications through Instagram. The social media site is predominantly used for video and photo sharing. The site also encouraged its followers to make referrals to friends.

                In week 6, focus was shifted to other social media sites and analysis of outdoor advertising activities. Grill’d had an active presence on Facebook where it shared images and messages for its clients. The firm used Facebook to advertise its burgers, while citing price ranges and writing detailed descriptions of their products. It also provided links to external websites, thus creating leads articles that could positively influence customers to make a conversion. In their most recent post, they communicated how they had raised funds for charity through the Polished Man fundraising campaign (https://polishedman.com/). The campaign continues into November. Unlike Instagram advertising campaigns, Facebook was interactive and customers could give feedback, reviews and recommendations. According to Belch et al (2014), this approach to marketing capitalizes on the element of customer relationship marketing where a dedicated social media manager engages clients and makes a follow up regarding their reviews. This way, Grill’d has managed to improve its services and provide a superior value proposition for its customers. In addition to the social media campaign, Grill’d was listed and its red logo with white calligraphic inscriptions of the name Grill’d dominantly displayed as a platinum sponsor of the Polished Man fundraising campaign against the Bank of Australia. This public relations initiative was essential in promoting brand visibility for the Grill’d (Dawson, 2018). It showed the firms commitment to supporting community initiatives that touch on social welfare as part of its do good initiative. This amounts to free publicity and good will from customers. Because of positive PR, it is possible to nurture commitment and loyalty in customers.

                The seventh week predominantly focused on outdoor advertisements and use of digital media advertisements. According to Best Ads, Grill’d Burger has been investing in radio and television ads where it promotes its healthy burgers and offers coupons and other promotional pricing to entice customers. The sessions are not interactive, but the communication is made in a manner that it creates positive images of the brand. This creates a positive perception in the minds of customers. To add to this, Grill’d uses print media, such as in-store posters to reach out and communicate to its clients. In the past, the posters have been termed by advertising watchdogs as offensive but apparently, the firm uses this strategy to get people talking about it. In the long run, it has managed to turn such events into viral advertisements. One of the posters announced that the bunny burger had been reintroduced to their menu, and it even promised a delicious topping with carrots. Apart from these avenues, the integrated marketing initiatives were notable on print media where AdNews, Mumbrella and Magnum printed passionate stories about the brands latest campaign using the slogan “Be a Motherlover, not a Motherfaker” (Dawson, 2018). The use of the term motherfaker was intentional to keep people talking about the brand, since in some way, it is offensive. This inaugural campaign seeks to support the previous brand positioning campaign. Digital media also communicated to the clients on the introduction of a new takeaway service known as SwingBy and a new loyalty program. The membership program promises loyal customers within November and December, to be upgraded to foundational members by January, 2019. Valos et al, (2017) note that this approach to integrative marketing communication meets the element of informing customers and making irresistible offers that will keep them coming.

Conclusion

Integrated marketing communication has shown and continues to show much benefits for local and multinational firms. This is evident in the case of Grill’d which is a successful Australian fast food restaurant that serves burgers. The firm has launched aggressive campaigns through social media such as Instagram, and Facebook among others. It also sponsors community campaigns such as Polished Man Fundraiser. Through these initiatives, it manages to interact with customers and convince them into trying out and using their products. Its promotional advertisements on social media, traditional and digital media such as radio, television and posters, as well as newspaper advertisements contribute towards positive publicity. Apparently, these media also helps reach target customers, correct negative publicity, conduct public relations and entice customers into using their products. This is evident with campaigns such as Mother Loving, membership programs and introduction of new services for instance SwingBy.