2. ConceptApplication(Due May 16, 2016)
Taco Belland its SocialStrategies
Everybody knows the importance of building brand awareness through social
media nowadays. So, some trademarks try to differentiate from others creating profiles
in new and engaged social media, to reach their target market.
3. For Taco Bell, who has its target consumers focus on Millennials and Generation
Z (more online than older generations), creating profiles on Twitter, Instagram and
Snapchat are helping them to figure their clients’ preferences and the subjects they are
involved in sharing. As they are focused on recognition from their “youthful
demographics”, they are trying to explore their direct connection with the clients through
social media and creating real relationships, since they have access to 20 million digital
conversations a year. This way, they see directly what their target market looks for,
what they are engaged in, what they
do in their leisure time, etc. (Whiteside,
2015).
One example of engagement
with the customer happened when
Taco Bell realized, in 2015, that in
apps like What’s App or Kik, they had
many food emojis as pizza, cakes,
etc., but not a “taco” emoji. Thus, Taco
Bell created a campaign to develop
this new taco emoji. They covered T-
shirts, stickers and a petition on
Change.org as well. The result was
almost 33,000 signatures in seven
months, and the emoji was accepted in June 2015. The result of this campaign was a
significant recognition for the brand (Whiteside, 2015).
4. To arrive on this trendy campaigns, Taco Bell prefers to hire staff for its social
team who are nearby by age to their audience. Then again, this age arrangement has
brought good returns, as being the first brand on Snapchat, as an example. Now, they
have over 200,000 followers. They also have a “Millennial word of the week” in its
headquarters, decide by those 20ish staffs, another strategy to better understand its
public and to help them to create their advertisements based on the audiences’
preferences (Marketing Magazine, 2015).
Furthermore, Taco Bell’s 5 de Mayo’s campaign in 2016 within Snapchat was
viewed 224 million times in just one day in the U.S. and “was the top campaign in the
app’s history”. The social strategy team spent six weeks working straight with Snapchat
team to develop the lens, which created a "taco-shaped head" and also played the
famous "Bong" sound from Taco Bell's ads (Johnson, 2016).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YTg61vCGyUc
Personally, as being a Millennial as well, these social media strategies can
quickly bring significant results in sales, and it helps to create brand awareness. I have
a Snapchat account, and I see it couple times every day. When I start following some
brands that I like, it makes me be engaged with them and to recognize shared interests
between me and the brand itself. In conclusion, those advertisements through social
media can comfortably achieve their targets if the label can identify its audience's
preferences and if they can be involved with them as Taco Bell does.
5. References
Whiteside, S. (2015). Taco Bell serves up a new social strategy.
Retrieved in May 15th 2016 from
http://www.warc.com.ezproxy.humber.ca/Content/ContentViewer.aspx?MasterCo
ntentRef=f399e757-accb-4b89-b35f-
603f7b69a7c3&q=taco+bells&CID=A105136&PUB=EVENT-REPORTS
Marketing Mag. (2015). Taco Bell Studying Slangs to Better Understand Millennials.
Retrieved in May 15th 2016 from http://www.marketingmag.ca/consumer/taco
bell-studying-slang-to-better-understand-millennials-148833
Johnson, L. (2016). Taco Bell’s Cinco de Mayo Snapchat Lens Was Viewed 224 Million
Times. Retrieved in May 15th 2016 from
http://www.adweek.com/news/technology/taco-bells-cinco-de-mayo-snapchat-
lens-was-viewed-224-million-times-171390
