Field Marketing
Boston Market Local Traffic Promotion:
Situation: Boston Market, a famous casual restaurant brand, was experiencing a decrease in customer visits and declining brand awareness. While data showed that guests still rated their food quality and taste as high, close competitor KFC was gaining notable market share with the introduction of their new grilled chicken option.
Objective: Boston Market wanted to increase customer visits to their stores, raise awareness of their locations, and serve more food to remind guests of their exceptional menu.
Concept: Weinstock Marketing decided to use the competition’s success to Boston Market’s advantage by creating a promotion centered on KFC’s heavily marketed “UNFry Day” campaign. Rather than fighting the market leader, a Boston Market combo-meal was invented to coincide with KFC’s “UNFry Day” and the following week. The “$1 Real Chicken Meal” offered Boston Market customers either white or dark meat chicken, mashed potatoes, and cornbread for just one dollar. The combo-meal was expected to position Boston Market as an equal to KFC and raise awareness of the brand among consumers.
Details: The offer was communicated heavily through:
- Boston Market’s guest database of over 400,000 contacts
- Coupons on popular websites
Results: During the promotional period, Boston Market transactions rose 40% as guests lined up outside the doors of many locations. The transaction bump continued in the weeks following the promotion end and employee morale reached levels higher than it had been for many years.
