Final Sonic Media Plan

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Media Plan 2016
Presented By JAMMedia

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About the Agency
JAMMedia strives to provide our clients with the most up-to-date research
and media options available in the industry through extensive, compiled data
from various sources. This enables us to be a front-runner in the competitive
communications and media planning industry that is pivotal in our 21st century
society. From day one, we’ve been jamming it together to create an integrative
perspective on media communications to suit our clients’ needs.

Table of Contents
Executive Summary........................................................3
Situational Analysis.......................................................4
Brand Analysis..........................................................5
Competitive Analysis.............................................15
Target Audience Analysis.....................................25
SWOT Analysis.......................................................29
Media Objective and Strategies..................................31
Objectives..................................................................32
The Big Idea..............................................................33
Target Audience and Media Mix.........................34
Reach, Frequency & GRPS....................................55
Scheduling and Timing........................................56
Media Budget...........................................................58
Geography.................................................................60
References.........................................................................61
Appendices.......................................................................64
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Executive Summary
8 States
30 New Locations
This is how we Sonic
Sonic Drive-In is a quick service restaurant that is growing at a tremendous speed after having a banner year in 2015. It is currently the
largest chain of drive-ins in America with more than 3,500 franchise locations from coast to coast and growing! Part of what makes Sonic so
successful and unique is their atypical quick service restaurant menu. Sonic’s marketing strategy is intended to emphasize the customizable,
“made-to-order” options on their menu, as well as their unique and timely carhop service.
While Sonic has been a tough competitor in the quick service restaurant industry, they understand that no business is ever done growing. As
such, they have decided to open up 30 new locations in the northwestern and mid-northern states - an area in which they just recently began
putting locations in. In order to aid Sonic in growing their business in this area and nationally, we plan to conduct a combined national and
spot heavy campaign to increase brand awareness and loyalty throughout the northern front.
Based on our research and analysis, we suggest a target audience of men and women ages 18-34. Our male target market are “techy twenty-
somethings”, either almost out of college or just graduated. They highly value time spent relaxing with friends whether visiting amusement
parks, playing video games or watching comedy television. Our female target are “nostalgic newbies”. Whether they’re transitioning into
motherhood or just received a promotion at the office, they need to find ways to communicate, travel and of course, eat, in their busy lives.
These “newbies” are fitting into their adult lifestyle and look for ways to have fun, go on adventures as well as be different while also being on
a budget.
In raising brand awareness and loyalty in the northern front, JAMMedia will run a integrated campaign consisting of advertising placements
in medias such as television, online video, online radio, social media, and out-of-home. Beyond this though, we will also run several special
promotions to further promote the Sonic brand. This year-long campaign will achieve a reach of 75-80 and a frequency of 5-6 for a total of
375-480 GRPs during the peak pulsing months of this campaign.

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Brand Analysis - Sonic Overview
Sonic Drive-In is a quick service restaurant that is growing at a tremendous speed after having a banner year
in 2015. It is currently the largest chain of drive-ins in America with more than 3,500 franchise locations from
coast to coast and growing. Last year saw a total of 38 new franchises open around the country, with franchisee
commitments to open up close to 400 more drive-ins in the near future - making it the fastest pace of growth
seen since 2011. Adding to Sonic’s spectacular year, net income in 2015 increased 30%, with each franchise making
roughly $1.24 million per month.
Part of what makes Sonic so successful and unique is their atypical quick service restaurant menu. Of course
they have the usual hamburger and fries, but Sonic also offers items such as popcorn chicken, chicken strips and
footlong quarter pound coneys. Customers also are not restricted to french fries as a side for their meal, as Sonic
offers both onion rings and tater tots as possible substitutes. Their famous Cherry Limeade included as a drink
option only helps solidify the uniqueness of their menu even more. In terms of pricing for their products versus
their competitors, Sonic keeps up with the industry average, tending to be a little more on the expensive side
when directly compared to the competitors included in this book. Sonic does not necessarily compete by offering
low prices, but rather keeps with the average of its competitors and even tends to be towards the higher side. This
is because they view their product as better in quality and want it to be reflected in the price as well.

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Brand Analysis - Sonic Overview Cont.
Recently, Sonic has also seen an explosion of notoriety thanks in part to their marketing
efforts. The now famous “Two Guys” advertisements seen on television make them instantly
recognizable to viewers and helped launch them into the national spotlight. They also recently
signed All-Star and 2014 NBA MVP Kevin Durant to an exclusive marketing deal with their
company. In an effort to improve their restaurant even more, Sonic has signed an agreement
with Green Mountain Coffee to distribute their coffee a all franchise locations. It is their
hope that this will help them make improvements in their breakfast menu, and compete
with other fast food chains in that category. It is our belief that Sonic Drive-In competes in
the quick service restaurant category (QSR). The restaurants in this category are defined by
their ability to quickly produce food for an on-the-go consumer in an efficient way. As such,
it should be no surprise that the most successful companies in this category usually have the
most effective operations system in place coupled with equally effective marketing. These
restaurants also compete on the quality and service of their food and drinks. In the 2015 fiscal
year, this category generated over $570 billion in sales – bigger than the economic value of
most countries. In the United States alone, quick service restaurants combined to make $200
billion last year. Their sales are expected to grow at an average rate of 2.5% over the next few
years. Although a large portion of this industry (33%) is comprised of hamburger-focused
restaurants, the next two largest food types are pizza (15%) and sandwich shops (12%).
However, there are some very serious challenges currently facing this industry – the biggest
of all being the trend away from unhealthy foods. As consumers are becoming more aware
of what is in their food and what they put into their bodies, quick service restaurants have
received a lot of backlash regarding their unhealthy menus and ingredients. As such, quick
service restaurants have begun initiatives to make their menus healthier by adding options like
salads or wraps, and ensuring that their ingredients only come from the best possible sources.
Another major problem facing this industry are the poor working conditions, and low wages.
Many have tried to combat this by putting more money into their actual restaurants, and
raising their minimum wages.

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Brand Analysis - Current Market Trends
Since its founding in 1953, Sonic has secured 57 years of business and national
franchisee expansion. Sonic’s marketing strategy is intended to emphasize the
customizable, “made-to-order” options on their menu, as well as their unique and timely
carhop service. These are the main ways they differentiate from their fast food
competitors. Sonic typically boasts of its hundreds of thousands of drink combinations in
its promotions. Sonic typically promotes their franchises through the mediums of
television, radio, interactive media, and point-of-sale materials (Sonic Media Plan
Handout).
While the company has specific things that they work to promote to consumers, other
business strategies of Sonic include expanding the number of Sonic Drive-Ins throughout
the United States, as well as creating strong relationships between franchisees. Sonic’s
marketing strategy is now set to focus on publicizing its expansion into northern states like
Washington, Idaho, Wisconsin, etc.

Brand Analysis - Relevant Ecomomic Trends
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Lower Gas Prices
Prior to the recent decline in gas prices, prices
were so high that it deterred people from
doing excessive driving, and encouraged them
to carpool, or even avoid driving altogether.
According to research done by The New York
Times, “the cost of a barrel of oil has already
sunk this year to levels not seen since 2003”. This
means that more people have the financial ability
to drive further distances more often.
$
Low Entry Barriers
The economy being on the rise once again calls
for a resurgence of new business openings. One
does not need a lot of qualifications to purchase
a fast food franchise, but it requires having a lot
of liquid assets, and a high net worth (net worth
amounts vary per chain). Business Insider
reports that here are currently over 200,000 fast
food restaurants in the United States, over 30%
of which are hamburger-focused restaurants.
Because people have more expendable income
now, they are more likely to invest in things like
franchises. Because of the low entry barrier
of fast food franchises, more are being opened,
which in turn means a more diluted market, and
more competition.

Brand Analysis - Relevant Social Trends
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Healthy living
Over the past decade, a growing trend of healthy living and eating has rapidly spread
throughout the United States. Because of this, Americans are consuming fewer calories
and cutting back on cholesterol, fats, and fast food. In order to stay up-to-date with the
current trend, fast food and quick service restaurants have been adjusting their menus to
include healthier options like salads, and display the amount of calories per item. Even
with the added items though, this trend causes a problem for companies in the restaurant
industry that already have the reputation of being an unhealthy option.
The Hipster Movement
The artsy subculture of “hipsters” has been growing since the turn of the millennium. These
are people who are interested in buying and doing things that are specially crafted in a way that
the mainstream population wouldn’t typically bother with. For example, they typically enjoy
things like craft beers, alternative films and music, and vintage experiences. Though their
distaste for big names may appear to be a threat for Sonic, the vintage “drive-in” style of the
restaurant, as well as their sparseness throughout the country, could really be used to appeal to
this subculture.
Sharing Photos of Food
Along with the current boom of social media and photo sharing is the new trend of taking pictures
of food and sharing them via Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and more. Research has
shown that most of these photos are taken to be displayed on a published food diary or to document
self-creation (360i.com). Consumers tend to post photos of sweets or desserts more than any other
food due to its creativity and colorfulness. Over 90 new photos tagged #foodporn are uploaded to
Instagram every minute. Over the past few years this trend has rapidly grown and does not seem to
be slowing down.

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Since its opening in 1953, with one location in Shawnee, Oklahoma, Sonic now operates 3,526 locations in 45 states. In the past
fiscal year, 85 locations opened and the company plans for 30 more within the next fiscal year. These new locations span across
the states of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, and Michigan and will target 32 of
the designated market areas. According to MRI and Nielsen population data, most of this region demonstrates a high disposition
towards fast food options with an above average likelihood of visiting a quick serve restaurant, showing great potential for Sonic in
the region. For instance, in Traverse City, Michigan, people are 300% more likely to purchase fast food than the average American
(CDI=400) which supports Sonic’s decision to place 2 new locations in this market. Although, consumers in Wisconsin’s Green
Bay-Appleton market, where there are 2 existing locations, are 9% less likely to purchase fast food (CDI=91), consumers in this
area are 7% more likely to go to Sonic over other brands (BDI=107). This high BDI shows promise for Sonic to perform well in
other Wisconsin market areas as it expands throughout the state to locations such as La Crosse-Eau Claire, WI which is 132%
(CDI=232) more likely to go to a quick serve restaurant than the average American population and Duluth-Superior, MN-WI,
where consumers are 130% more likely to visit a quick serve restaurant than the average American (CDI=232). Overall, this region’s
combination of markets offers great opportunity for Sonic Drive Ins.
Geographic Sales Breakdown
Product Life Cycle
The product life-cycle of Sonic greatly varies depending on location. For their oldest stores, it has been a
staple in that community for decades. For the new ones, like the ones planning on being built in the “Northern
Front” would take time implementing itself into hat specific community. In order to experience all seasons
at least once, the maturation period for new locations would not occur until at least 12 months after its grand
opening. This will enable to local community to buy Sonic’s coffee on the cold, wintery morning and taste
their sweet slushies on a warm summer day.
Brand Analysis - Cont.

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Brand Analysis - 4 P’s
Price
Example prices from the Sonic menu:
Cheeseburger -$3.89, Combo $5.99
Chicken Club Toaster - $4.99
Chicago Dog - $2.39
Classic Chicken Sandwich - $4.49, Combo $6.79
6 Piece Mozzarella Sticks - $3.59
Large Tots or Fries - $2.39
When examining price for Sonic, it is imperative to look at it in comparison with competitors
with the QSR industry. Sonic prides itself on high quality ingredients, including 100% pure beef,
100% white meat chicken and Real Ice Cream used in their desserts. Because of this, prices would
naturally be higher than competitors who focus on other aspects of their brand. So as can be
observed from Appendix A, Sonic does not necessarily compete by offering low prices, but rather
keeps with the average of its competitors and even tends to be towards the higher side. This is
because they view their product as better in quality and wants that to be reflected in the price.
What also needs to be taken into consideration is Sonic’s diverse menu. It is expected that there
is a direct relationship between the cost of making the food with the options that customers have
when ordering.

Product
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Sonic, America’s Drive-In, is the largest chain of drive-in restaurants in America, with 3,526 locations in operations, with
455 company-owned Drive-Ins and 3,117 Franchise Drive-Ins located in 45 states, serves over 3 millions customers everyday.
Sonic’s history can be tracked to 1953 and a small, tin-roof restaurant called Top Hat. Six years later, Troy Smith and
partner Charles Pappe, after opening successfully a few more locations, changed the name to Sonic, based on their slogan,
“Service at the Speed of Sound.” Their Drive-In style of restaurant and unique menu of over one million possible slushy
combinations differentially positions this brand distinct from others within the quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry. In
addition to these frozen treats, Sonic’s menu consists of “classics” that are made to order to ensure high food quality and
continuous freshness. These items include chicken sandwiches, popcorn chicken, chicken strips, foot-long quarter pound
coneys, six-inch premium beef hot dogs, a full line of 100% beef hamburgers and cheeseburgers, onions rings, tater tots, a
breakfast menu, and a few others. Sonic also includes Wacky Pack, a build-your-own kids meal option, making this chain
kid-friendly and therefore, family-oriented. Sonic is more than just a place to buy food, some people come for the experience
even more than the actual food and drink items and options. Their unique use of the carhops (an employee usually on
roller skates delivering their food to customer’s cars) ensures the customers comfort and convenience over anything else.
Ordering through an intercom and having an order personally delivered to one’s car window enables consumers to enjoy
their company - making going to Sonic not only an experience, but also a memory worth holding on to.

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Sonic’s main website, sonicdrivein.com, has headings at the top including: Menu, Locations, Jobs, Kids and My Sonic, with links to investor,
corporate, and the like listed smaller at the bottom of the page. The comprehensive website demonstrates that Sonic prioritizes aiding
consumers in their effort to enjoy their product. Sonic is aware of its intense competition in the QSR industry and therefore takes its use of
social media very seriously. They have 269,000 followers on Twitter with a total number of clost to 31,000 tweets - an average of 4 tweets per
week being published. Tweets include user interaction by voting in polls like “Are you hot for tots or more of a fry guy? Tell us which ‘tater
team you root for below.” 3.4 million Facebook users “like” their page, which has over 2 million views. Sonic also have an Instagram account
and YouTube channel. Their social media platforms are used regularly and not excessive. All platforms have a unified image that portrays
familiarity and effectively communicates to consumers, utilizing both on-way and two-way channels.
In early 2010, Sonic made an important and noteworthy change in their promotional efforts by extending national cable advertising on a
year-round basis. This 12-month plan was more cost effective than the use of local advertising and continued to reach more and more poten-
tial Sonic customers than ever before. In addition to the “Two Guys” commercial series that are distinguishable and memorable, Sonic took
up a brand ambassador, Kevin Durant, NBA star and 2014 Most Valuable Player to further its marketing endeavors.
Recent promotional efforts, dating to February 2016, include partnering to enhance their breakfast menu with America’s #1Single Serve
Coffee Brand, Green Mountain Coffee. In order to celebrate this new partnership, Sonic invites guests to start their day right with a breakfast
burrito and a Green Mountain Coffee for only $3 and ready in two minutes guaranteed. Sonic is expanding their target to include not only
people who sit in their car and enjoy lunch and dinner foods, but also the busy folks who are on the go and need a reliable and delicious start
to their day.
In 2009, Sonic launched Limeades for Learning, a philanthropic campaign, in partnership with DonorsChoose.org. Since its launch, over
$5 million has been donated to public school teachers nationwide to assist in funding necessary learning techniques for future generations.
Thier program since its inception has impacted 283,000 students with 10,000 classrooms having been supported by these funds.
Promotion

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Sonic locations are currently in 45 states. Only Alaska, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont do not have one yet. They
are a franchisee-driven organization with support throughout the entire development process. Format variation and flexibility
include traditional drive-in model with dining stalls and drive-thru; conversions of pre-existing restaurants to create unique drive-
in experiences; the counter-service model allowing to fit in a variety of places; and indoor dining formats that increase the places
customers can enjoy Sonic.
Essentially and in most circumstances, people consume Sonic in their cars with their family and friends. Sonic an obvious and
necessary player in making these memories, but it encourages to be present with your loved ones; in their patio seating, inside the
actual restaurant or in the seat of your very own car.
Although their presence is felt most prominently in the southern United States, Sonic is attempting the open more locations
in what is called “The Northern Front” (See image). Management wants to open 30 new stores in the northwestern and mid-
northerns states where they’ve just been infiltrating within the last five years. New ‘focus markets include target states of
Washington, Oregon, parts of Northern Idaho, Wisconsin, North and South Dakota, Minnesota and Michigan. 32 markets are
going to be supported by the media plan.
Place

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Competitive Analysis - Competitors

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Competitive Analysis - Dairy Queen
Brand History
Dairy Queen is a top competitor to Sonic due to its similar frozen treats and
desserts.
Dairy Queen opened its doors for the first time in Joliet, Illinois in 1940.
After World War II the system took off and by 1955 there were 2,600 Dairy
Queen systems across the United States. Today, Dairy Queen has more than
6,000 independently owned and operated systems in the United States alone
making it one of the largest fast food systems in the world.
Dairy Queen was created from the idea of a new kind of dessert treat and
in the process developed into the foundation for the franchising industry.
They pride themselves on being a place where kids’ sports teams celebrate
a victory, business people take their lunch break and families take time out
to enjoy great food with soft serve treats. Their slogan states Dairy Queen is
“Fan Food not Fast Food.”
Current Marketing and Advertising Strategy
Dairy Queen’s most recent advertising launch includes a new slogan, “Fan Food
not Fast Food”. DQ partners with Grey in New York for its advertising campaigns.
It tends to do many “themed” ads, for example, advertising the “Singles Blizzard”
around Valentine’s Day, another ad specifically promoting its new “Rolo Minis
Blizzard”, and an ad promoting the “Jurassic Smash Blizzard” around the time of
the launch of the new Jurassic World movie.

Competitive Analysis - Dairy Queen
Geography
Dairy Queen is headquartered in
Minneapolis, Minnesota. It has more
than 6,400 stores in 27 countries.
There are over 1,400 locations outside
of the US and Canada. The largest
Dairy Queen in the US is located in
Bloomington, Illinois and the busiest
is in Rosedale, Maryland.
Past Sales and Data Trends
In 2011 Dairy Queen totaled $87,861,200 In total sales. Even with this high
amount ofrevenue, Dairy Queen only holds 2.61% share of voice in the Quick
Service Food and Pizza industries. For marketing and advertising tactics,
according to Dairy Queen’s overall media mix in 2011, it predominately spent
its allocated funding on TV ads. Its top focus was cable TV, followed by sport
TV and network TV.
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Competitive Analysis - Carl’s Jr./Hardee’s
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Brand History
The Hardee’s/ Carl’s Jr.’s conglomerate began as two separate entities on opposite sides of
the nation. Carl’s Jr. began as a hot dog stand in the streets of Los Angeles in 1941, in five
years developing into several Carl’s Drive-In Barbeque restaurants. Once the restaurants’
burgers took off, the company created the smaller, fast service burger joints we know
today, named Carl’s Jr. Wilbur Hardee did not open his first Hardee’s in North Carolina
until 20 years later, in 1961. Hardee’s business strategy was to franchise Hardee’s in small
towns throughout the South and Midwest which lacked competition, like McDonald’s. In
1997, Carl Karcher’s partnership, CKE Restaurants, was looking to expand into the east.
They decided to do this by acquiring Hardee’s for $327 million, and to keep the Hardee’s
name in order to retain already established customer loyalty. Hardee’s transition into Carl
Jr.’s parallel did not happen overnight. Hardee’s original menu and logo was kept until
the early 2000s.
Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr. run their own separate social media accounts yet focus on promoting
the same things. For example, both companies’ header photos on Twitter are of the
Hillshire Farm’s Smoked Sausage Biscuit. Both of their bios read, Home of the 100% Black
Angus Beef Thickburgers®, Hand-Breaded Chicken TendersTM and Made from Scratch
BiscuitsTM.

Competitive Analysis - Carl’s Jr./Hardee’s
Geography
Though the company mainly promotes their ads
towards various regions of America, both companies
have worldwide reach, mainly in the Indonesian
region. Carl’s Jr. has 1,475 restaurants worldwide, and
Hardee’s is now at over 1,900 franchisee locations.
In Australia, Brazil, Costa Rica, and Japan, all
franchisees have been converted to Carl’s Jr.
The company mainly focuses its promotions around its hearty, high quality meat
products, while still remaining innovative. In 2011, Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s became the
first national fast food chain to offer Turkey Burgers. Typically, the company promotes
itself as rather manly, recently using retired boxer Evander Holyfield in commercials.
Targeting the young male audience even more so, The Wall Street Journal reports
on Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr.’s commercials in 2015 boasted lots of bikini-clad models
promoting “The Most American Thickburger.”
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Competitive Analysis - McDonald’s
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Brand History
McDonald’s is the world’s largest fast food chain worldwide in terms of both revenue and brand value, with
over 36,000 locations in over 100 countries. This is an obvious competitor to Sonic because of their dominance
in the industry and similar menu items. More than 80% of McDonald’s restaurants worldwide are owned
and operated by independent local business men and women. To realize this commitment, they are focusing
on their customers and what matters most to them – hot and fresh food, fast and friendly service, and a
contemporary restaurant experience. In 1940, Dick and Mac McDonald open McDonald’s Bar-B-Q restaurant
in San Bernardino, California and it was an average drive-in featuring a large menu and car hop service. In 1955,
the McDonald’s corporation was created and two years later, their slogan was Q.S.C.V. which stood for Quality
Service, Cleanliness and Value. In 1965, the McDonald’s corporation went public and it was listed on the New
York Stock Exchange the following year. 1974 was the year that the Ronald McDonald House, a charity that
“create, finds and supports programs that directly improve the health and wellbeing of children” was created. In
1975 the restaurant opens its first Drive-Thru in Sierra Vista, Arizona and ever since, has been dominating the
quick service restaurant industry.
McDonald’s launched its all-day breakfast menu on October 6th, 2015 throughout the United States, seeing growth
in this meal area with a 5% increase in breakfast goers, but just a 1% increase with the lunch crowd, in June 2015.
In 2015, McDonald’s added to their I’m Lovin’ It to also include Choose Lovin’. Within the last five years, market
research has revealed that snacking is becoming more common in the lives of young people, while sitting down
to eat a full meal has decreased. People have become more health conscience, and are picking from the available
options of salads and wraps in conjunction with the fast food classics, like burgers and fries. McDonald’s diversifying
their menu at a time when these dietary changes are occurring is no coincidence.

Competitive Analysis - McDonald’s
Geography
McDonald’s is headquartered in Oak
Brook, Illinois and in the
United States they have14,350
locations with another 21,908 outside of
the U.S.
In the year 2014, McDonald’s was able to return $6.4 billion to their
shareholders in the form of dividends and share repurchase. According
to Statista, McDonald’s corporate advertising spend in the U.S. was $1.42
billion in 2014.
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Competitive Analysis - Social Media
Sonic McDonald’s Carl’s Jr. Dairy Queen Hardee’s
126,000 1,200,000 41,300 116,000,000 25,400
3,625,567 62,600,000 1,200,000 10,298,876 1,100,000
277,000 31,600,000 74,400 372,100,000 46,700
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Competitive Analysis - Summary and Trends
Given the amount of competition Sonic faces, they certainly have their work cut out for them. This is especially
true in terms of their television advertisements. As seen by the media mix presented for each company, a heavy
amount of their advertising comes for either spot or network television. This is also the media channel through
which Sonic uses fairly heavily. In order to break through all that clutter and information consumers are
receiving about fast food, a strategic and unique plan will have to be set in place for television advertisements.
However, there are also plenty of opportunities for Sonic to take advantage of in terms of media choices. For
example, magazine advertisements are not very commonly used by any of the listed competitors. This could
potentially be a place in which Sonic could grab a lot of attention due to the low amount of competition in this
kind of media. Another challenge will be the use of celebrity endorsers and tie-in sponsorships. As seen through
competitors such as Hardee’s use of Evander Holyfield to reach their target audience or Dairy Queen teaming
up with the release Jurassic World this past summer, it will be important for Sonic to strategically line it’s brand
up with relevant sponsors. However, the good news is that Sonic has already begun to this with their use of
Kevin Durant in their advertisements. There is a real potential for Sonic to take advantage of event/sponsor tie-
ins even more to reach their audience, whether that be through another celebrity/professional athlete or tie-in
with the release of a movie or product that is highly anticipated by it’s target audience.

Competitive Analysis-SOV&SOM
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Target Audience Analysis - Primary Research
JAMMEDIA conducted a survey in which 52 respondents answered.
The survey results concluded that the vast majority of participants had
seen Sonic advertised through the medium of television commercials,
followed by radio commercials, and then online commercials. When
asked what made Sonic stand out to them compared to other fast food
chains, the overwhelmingly popular response was the drive-in expe-
rience, and delivery of food to customers’ cars. Some buzzwords that
respondents associated with Sonic include milkshakes, drive-up, retro,
slushies, and roller skates (see Appendix C).

Target Audience Analysis - Consumer Insights
Our target audience, based on secondary research conducted through Simmons
OneView, is menages 18-34 and women ages 18-34. This age group, for both genders, are indexed
higher than the average customer to use fast food restaurants (men with 103 and women 105).
Nostalgic Newbies (Women 18-34)
Whether they are transitioning into motherhood or just received a promotion at the office, these women ages 18-34 need to find
ways to communicate, travel and of course, eat, in their busy lives. Women in this age range are 22% more likely than the average
customer to have eaten fast food 25-29 times within the last 30 days. These college-educated go-getters are aware of what they
put into their bodies (index of 111 for gym attendance twice a week). As with many others during this time, these “Newbies”
fitting into their adult lifestyle look for ways to have fun, go on adventures and be different while also being on a budget. They
come from middle class backgrounds and value hard work and high quality in what they consume. As with anyone embarking
on a new chapter in their life, Nostalgic Newbies are always up to try something new (171). These women indulge in both sweets
and relaxing entertainment in order to decompress after a long day, either driving the kids to practice or presenting to the CEO
of the company. In addition, these women never forget their roots and their supporters who have helped get them to where they
are now. Looking back on the good times will only help these young ladies move forward to the next page in their story.
Techy Twenty-Something (Men 18-34)
Either almost out of college or just graduated, these young men search for things both new and cool to have in their lives once
they are off their parents’ payroll and in “the real world.” They highly value time spent relaxing with friends whether visiting
amusement parks, playing video games or watching comedy television. Although they hide it, they are self-conscious and
seek validation from those closest to them. This leads them to stay in top physical shape by going to the gym 3-4 times per
week (18 year olds, 236 and 25-29 year olds 145). Because of a strong social media presence and contribution to it, this group
checks in on their platforms three or more times a day (198). Their schedules of either classes or work vary and they seek easy
and inexpensive meal options to accommodate this fluid lifestyle. They often go out and eat with friends, especially during
the workday (151). With their education background, they know what is healthy and what is not and choose to indulge with
friends for outings to fast food joints. They seek not what everyone is expecting in order to remain unique and original in these
competitive atmospheres where being different is essential. Either still enrolled as a student or recently graduated, these young
guys are motivated and have a sense of direction in their lives regarding careers and settling down, but equally value the journey
getting there and not simply the destination.
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Target Audience Analysis - Personas
Meet Kyle!
Kyle is a 20-year-old sophomore at the University of Michigan studying
business. Between classes, student organizations and intramural soccer,
Kyle typically has an action-packed day and doesn’t eat dinner until
around 8:00PM. Being a college student with limited time and budget,
Kyle will usually opt for fast food over home cooking. So on many
nights, he and a few friends will go out to one of the local fast food
places and then head back to campus. Throughout the day Kyle will
scan social media for news updates from his friends, his favorite bands
and celebrities, and from his go-to news sources. When he needs a bit
of relaxation, he turns to comedy and watches a few episodes of “Family
Guy”. Later on, he’ll tune in to Comedy Central and see what “The Daily
Show” has to say about recent events. On the weekends, Kyle likes to stay
up late hanging out with friends playing Call of Duty or at one of their
poker nights, and then will sleep in the next morning. During the football
and baseball seasons, Kyle and his friends enjoy drafting fantasy teams,
watching the games together and keeping track of players’ statistics. Once
school is out, one of Kyle’s favorite summer pastimes is to spend the day
at an amusement park and enjoy the rides.

28
Target Audience Analysis - Personas
Meet Elizabeth!
Elizabeth is a 33 year-old mother residing in Portland, Oregon.
She has a six year-old son named Addison with her husband
Brad. Elizabeth is a paralegal making a salary of around $65,000
a year. Elizabeth as well as her family are very progressive with
the healthy eating and healthier fast food trend that is booming
currently, but also strongly believes that there is nothing wrong
with indulging in fattening foods from time to time. So every once
and a while they enjoy treating themselves to a guilty pleasure
meal. Some of Elizabeth’s hobbies include cooking and baking
for kid parties and family events. She finds most of her recipes
while surfing her favorite website, Pinterest. Her favorite show
is The Big Bang Theory on TBS. Her and Brad enjoy watching
it after putting Addison to bed. When she has some alone time,
she catches up on some of her other favorite shows on her Hulu
account. When she is with Addison, she is usually watching his
favorite shows on the Disney Channel. Their favorite activity to do
outside the home is taking a trip to the zoo. She also loves taking
photos; specifically of her little boy Addison at the zoo, and on
other adventures they take together.

29
S.W.O.T. Analysis
S W
O T
-Variety of products offered
-Customizeable options
-Nationalized advertising/
frequent promotions
-Indoor and outdoor
facilites
-Rise of retro
counter-cutlure
(hipsters)
-Low gas prices
-Shareable experiences via
social media
-Seasonality, increase in
sales during the
summer months
-No global presence
-Requires a large plot of
land
-Does not prosper in all
climates
-Health movement
- “Buy local” as a sustainable
economic trend
-Low entry barriers-dilutes
share
-Rising beef prices
-Seasonality, lack of business
during winter months
-Prominence of competitors

Situational Analysis Recap
Key Challenge
With a myriad of Quick Service Restaurant options in the Northern
Front region, the key challenge Sonic faces is motivating purchase
intent of potential and current consumers.
Key Consumer Insight
The brand needs to motivate consumers to choose Sonic over the
multitude of other QSR options of the region and show the value of a
Sonic experience.
30

Media Objectives
and Strategies
31

Objectives
Target Audience & Media Mix
To drive purchase intent to Sonic and eventually gain brand loy-
alty for men and women ages 18-34 in the northern front. In order
to reach this target audience, we will advertise using television,
online, social media, as well as out of home advertising for specif-
ic DMAs in the northern front. Our plan will also utilize various
sales promotions as a fun way to increase consumer interaction
and brand preference.
Reach, Frequency & GRPs
To perform a campaign that will successfully achieves an average
reach of 75, a frequency of 5, and 375 GRPS during the peaks of
our pulsing campaign.
Scheduling & Timing
To utilize a 12 month pulsing campaign for Sonic’s seasonality
which will begin in March 2017 and pulse in our heavy-up months
throughout April, May, June, July and August. The campaign will
then plateau to continuity until the end of February 2018.
Geography
To implement a national and spot heavy combined approach, with the
spot markets being the DMAs in the northern front either adding a new
Sonic location or markets that currently have Sonic locations.
Budget
To carry out a media plan on a $28 million budget.
32

33
The Big Idea
Don’tjustdrivethrough,
drive-in for the
Sonic
experience.
Sonic is so much more than just another quick, grab-and-go, drive-through
restaurant. Sonic is an experience! At Sonic, you can customize your order to
make things just to your satisfaction and share the fun experience with friends
and family, in your car or inside our restaurant. The Sonic experience is always
guaranteed to be a “your kind of fun.”

Target Audience&Media Mix
34
Our Media Mix includes a variety of tactics to best reach our target audience. Taking into
consideration the many ways in which our target consumes media, what their daily schedule
looks like and the hobbies and pastimes they enjoy, we’ve created a schedule of media buys
that allows us to appeal to the interests of our audience. Our plan implements a combination of
television, digital, and out of home strategies amounting to a total spend of $27,716,353. We also
have recommendations for special promotions for the Sonic brand to consider.

Target Audience&Media Mix: TV
35
Strategy
Among Americans, television is a widely used media form - whether it be for news, entertainment, sports or
more. The variety of content available has something for everyone, which is why it remains such a vital tool to
advertisers. Our target market shows a tendency towards certain types of programming and channel options.
We took these preferences into careful consideration to create a well-rounded array of television advertising
options throughout the months of March, April, May, June, July and August.
Through ten television shows across Network TV, National Syndication, and Spot TV, we will reach our target
market across the country with a combination national network and spot market advertisements both 30 and
15 seconds in length. We will increase the frequency of Sonic ads in the Northern Frontier with heavy spot
network and cable ads in order to introduce and pursue our target market in the Northern Frontier to try out
the new Sonics coming to their area.

36
Media Mix: Sports Television
NCAA Final Four
The Final Four is the last round of the NCAA’s March Madness tournament. With a rating
of 16, these three games are an exciting time for basketball fans nationally and on college
campuses across the country. College basketball garners a lot of national media attention,
especially among our target audience. According to MRI data, Heavy Fast Food Users are
21% more likely to watch the Final Four than the average person, and current Sonic Users
are 27% more likely than the average person to watch the last games of the tournament. We
will run 30 second ads during these games to launch our campaign. Because our campaign
has heavy summer emphasis, we would like to be connecting our target audience before
the season to start off and catch the attention of viewers and show what’s to come for the
summer.

Media Mix: Primetime Television
Modern Family is an ABC sit-com centered around the Pritchett-Dunphy-Tucker clan and explores the lives of the
family members in a mockumentary style, airing Wednesday nights at 9:00 PM. The show is incredibly popular
among millennials and has a rating of 2.7. According to Broadcasting & Cable, the show draws 1.32 million viewers for
live-plus-same-day viewing, and bumps up to 2.5 million for live-plus-seven-day viewing. Because of the wide appeal
to our target audience, especially women, buying advertising space during this program will boost awareness of this
campaign both nationally and within our spot markets.
The Bachelor is an ABC reality television show which airs Mondays at 8:00 PM and features a man typically
in his late 20s who is looking for love. He usually has not had too much luck with relationships and has
experienced a few heartbreaks. This show is his chance to find “the one”. The show is rated at a 2.36 and
averages 1.46 million viewers within the ages of 18-34, with a 78% female audience. Heavy Fast Food Users show
an index of 130 for watching The Bachelor. Sonic Drive-In Users show an index of 133, meaning they are 33%
more likely to tune into an episode of The Bachelor than the average person.
Grey’s Anatomy is the first program of the infamous emotional rollercoaster TGIT (Thank God It’s Thursday) airing at 8:00 PM.
Thursday nights on ABC are dominated by the creations tv queen Shonda Rhimes. Grey’s Anatomy is the show that kicks it all
off, and with a rating of 2.38. The medical drama dives in deep for plotlines filled with love and romance as it follows the lives of
the doctors of Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. Similar to the other ABC shows described above, Grey’s Anatomy also attracts an
average audience of 1.4 million millennial viewers, with an unsurprising number of 1.1 million female viewers and 300,000 male
according to Broadcasting & Cable. The show also indexed well among Heavy Fast Food Users (119) and Sonic Drive-In Users
(145). Advertising during this show would be a definite boost to brand awareness because of its large viewership and prominence
in the tv landscape.
37

Media Mix: Primetime Television
The Big Bang Theory is a CBS sitcom which follows the lives of four brilliant, but socially awkward
friends living in Pasadena, CA and airs Thursdays at 8:00 PM. This is television’s most watched
sitcom with a rating of 3.78. The show has an average of 1.73 million viewers between the ages of 18
and 34 live-plus-same-day, and jumps to an average of 2.7 million viewers over a seven day spread.
The show achieves an impressive ratio of 900,000 female viewers to 800,000 male viewers each
week. Additionally, the program indexed 112 for Heavy Fast Food Users and 136 for Sonic Drive-In
Users. The Big Bang Theory is an incredibly high caliber show and prime example of great reach in
the multitude of sitcoms airing on primetime network television. Advertising in this show will help
us to share our message with many within our target market.
Family Guy is a FOX animated Seth MacFarlane creation that revolves around the adventures of
the Griffin family in all of its sick, twisted and politically incorrect glory. The show airs on Sunday
nights at 9:00 PM. Family Guy has a rating of 1.1. It averages 1.67 million viewers within our target
age range for live-plus-same-day viewing and increases to 2.6 million average viewers within
the 18-34-year-old range for seven day viewing. According to Simmons data, our target audience
is 87% more likely than the average person to watch evening animation, and according to MRI
Data, Heavy Fast Food Users are 29% more likely to tune in than the average person. The show
is also a popular tv option among existing Sonic customers with an index of 133. Placing Sonic
advertisements during Family Guy episodes will be a clever way to connect the Sonic brand with
its target consumer.
38

Media Mix: National Syndication Telvevision
The Simpsons is an adult, cartoon comedy, aired originally on FOX, and has a strong rating
of 3.6 as a syndicated program. The Simpsons indexed 117 for Sonic users and 136 for heavy
fast food users. From this data, we chose to advertise nationally and spot to reach the heavy
fast food users in the Northern Front. The Simpsons averages 1.9 million viewers ages
18-49, directly reaching our target age demographic. Sonic ads will run during syndicated
episodes of The Simpsons, which air on multiple networks including FOX and FX. Adults
ages 18-34 are 14% more likely to watch FOX and 28% more likely to watch FX than the
average person.
That 70’s Show is an American period sitcom that followed the lives of a group of friends
during the late 1970’s. The show originally aired from 1998 to 2006 on FOX. Syndicated
episodes, with a rating of 0.78, now air on IFC, POP and FOX, which is where Sonic
advertisements will run during the show. We chose this show because it indexed high for
a show that Sonic users watch (126) and also for heavy fast users (134). Along with those,
people ages 18-34 indexed 62% more likely to watch That 70’s show than the average person,
allowing us to conclude that it is a popular show with our age demographic and fast food
39

Media Mix: Late Night Television
Jimmy Kimmel Live! is ABC’s late-night talk show. It is known for bringing humor to national
and celebrity news. The show will also bring on famous guests ranging from Barack Obama to
Johnny Depp and Oprah Winfrey. The show is currently in its 13th season. It airs Monday-Friday
on ABC at 11:35 PM. Jimmy Kimmel is currently the third more watched late-night news show
with 2.4 million viewers so far this season and it was a rating of .66 with adults 18-49, according to
TV By The Numbers. We chose to run national and spot ads on Jimmy Kimmel Live! five days a
week during our heavy months because it indexed 119 for heavy fast food users and 125 for Sonic
Drive-In users, showing that it is a late-night show our market is likely watching.
The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon is NBC’s premier late-night comedy news show. Jim-
my Fallon took over as host of the show in early 2014. The show airs on NBC, weeknights at 11:35
PM. The Tonight Show is currently the most watched late-night show with 3.78 million viewers
so far this season, and holds the highest rating among adults 18-49 at 1.05. Along with being the
top late-night show choice, we chose The Tonight Show due to its high index of 127 among heavy
fast food users. We will be running ads on the show five days a week, national and spot, during
our heavy months.
40

Media Mix: Buying TV
We will be allocating 50% of our total budget to television during this campaign. This amounts to $13,767,968 out of $27,716,353.
By category, this may be represented as 55% ($7,575,086) towards Network TV, 39% ($5,306,664) towards National Syndication,
and 6% ($886,218) toward Spot TV. Our television buys are sustained throughout our heavy months. They begin in March,
increase in price and GRPs during April and May, then drop in price but increase in GRPs during June, July and August. These
buys will accrue a total of 784 GRPs and will generate an average reach of 72 and average frequency of 1.8.
41

Media Mix: From One Screen To Another
Our target market is an extremely tech-savvy one, as the individuals in the market have grown up
with modern technologies. This market tends to multi-task, and is more accustomed to taking in
multiple streams of information and media at once. For example, 59% of viewers utilize a laptop or
computer as a second screen while they are watching television (AdWeek). Between their smart-
phones, tablets, and laptops, they are almost always plugged into the internet. Digital streaming
and viewing of videos is on the rise, but is complimenting television viewing rather than necessarily
replacing it. As AdWeek reports, measuring an average audience rating per episode at live-plus-35
days instead of a live-plus-7 days measurement can increase ratings by 50% in the 18-34 year old seg-
ment. This goes to show that our market enjoys watching shows on their own time.
In 2015, adults spent an average total of five and a half hours watching video content per day, one
hour and sixteen minutes of that time being video from digital devices, which we can assume is
online streaming or viewing (eMarketer). Because our market indexes high for viewing TV, videos,
and movies online often (194), advertising on sites like Hulu.com, NBC.com, ComedyCentral.com,
and ABC.com is imperative for our campaign. We picked these specific websites because our mar-
ket also indexes high for watching shows on these networks during primetime and late night televi-
sion.
42

Media Mix: ABC.go.com
Strategy
Media Buys
We plan to utilize ABC.go.com for many of the purposes previously discussed regarding
our target market, mainly that they like to be able to watch what they want, when they
want. ABC.go.com offters live streaming, as well as episodes of previously aired shows. We
plan to focus our advertising buys on available episodes. Our market indexes at 127 for
visiting ABC.go.com 6-15 times in the previous 30 days. Many popular series for our market
are featured on the site, including Grey’s Anatomy,The Bachelor, and Modern Family, as we
have previously justified with high index numbers for our demographic.
We will be purchasing :30 second commercials mid-roll on episodes of various shows
on ABC.go.com to effectively reach our target audience. We decided upon mid-roll
advertisements because they have a better shot at retaining the attention of viewers than
pre-roll, and especially post-roll ads. People are less likely to walk away in the middle of
their program. In March - May, there will be 8.35 million impressions per month. In the
summer months of June - August, they will increase to 8.45 million impressions per month.
Finally, as it begins to cool down in the months of September - February, impressions will
drop down to 7.825 million per month. For this entire year, our media on ABC.go.com will
cost $2,141,700, which translates into 7.65% of our total budget.
43

Media Mix: Hulu.com
Strategy
Media Buys
Because of the past-paced lifestyles of our target market, they often often do not have the opportunity to
catch their favorite television programs at the time they air. Because of this, many tune into Hulu.com to
get their TV fix - either through free streaming, or the $8.00/ month Hulu Plus subscription. Hulu pro-
vides premium content from networks like Fox, NBC, The CW, and more. It also offers targeting of ads
to specific viewers, across multiple video platforms. Our market visits Hulu.com very often, considering
they index at 188 for going on the site six to fifteen times within the last thirty days. It is also reported
that a :30 commercial spot on Hulu drives a 61% increase at building top-of-mind awareness as opposed
to linear television (Hulu.com). With creative opportunities like choice-based ads and custom built cre-
ative sponsorships, advertising on Hulu will allow us to break through the monotonous media clutter.
We plan to place continuous mid-roll advertisements on Hulu.com every month. In total, our Hulu buys
will cost 7.65% of our total budget, amounting to $2,141,700. Beginning in March, our impressions will
be 8.35 million per month through May. For the summer months of June - August, our impressions per
month will rise to 8.45 million. Then, for the months of September through February, as the weather
grows cooler and consumers will not be attending drive-up restaurants like Sonic as much, impressions
on Hulu will decrease to 7.825 million per month.
44

Media Mix: cc.com
Strategy
Media Buys
Given that part of our target audience is men ages 18-34, ComedyCentral.com as a platform for Sonic’s advertising makes sense for many
reasons. The adults 18-34 target audience is a coveted market amongst virtually all marketers and is becoming increasingly harder to
reach given all the segmented channels there are to reach this audience in today’s society. This issue is compounded by the fact that even
when marketers do select an appropriate medium through which to reach this audience, they are often times distracted by other pieces
of technology and usually do not even pay attention to the advertisements given the amount of clutter they face everyday. However,
ComedyCentral.com provides Sonic with a online platform that more than adequetely adresses both of these issues. For instance, men
ages 18-34 indexed extremely high for Comedy Central at 159 as well indexed high for situational comedies (118) and evening animation
(187) - the primary types of shows that Comedy Central produces. Also, according to a study done by the Harvard Business Review in early
2015, consumers are more likely to pay attention to advertisements done on television channel’s streaming site as opposed to the actual
television channel itself. This is partially due to the fact that there is typically less commercial time on these sites, so people are more
willing to watch the advertisements. However, it’s also due to the fact that these types of advertisements usually allow the company to be
more creative and really capture the audience’s attention - thus creating a more memorable experience for the consumer. By addressing
these two main area of concerns, it gives Sonic the consummate platform through which to reach the target audience.
In terms of media purchases for comedycentral.com, we will buy mid-roll :30 second commercials across various Comedy Central shows. A
month by month breakdown of impressions for this vehicle show 8.35 million impressions in each of the months of March-May, 8.45 million
impressions in every month June-August, and 7.825 million impressions in each of the months of September-February.In total this will cost
$2,141,700, or 7.65% of our total $28 million budget. We chose mid-roll instead of the other type of advertisements associated with online
streaming services such as pre-roll because mid-roll advertisements are our best chance at retaining the consumer’s attention. During the
middle of their show, in between pivotal parts of the plot, we believe the individual is more likely to pay attention to the commercial as it is the
time they are most invested into the show. Thus, they’re more willing to sit through advertisements in order to quickly get back to their show.
45

Media Mix: NBC.com
Strategy
Media Buys
The choice to choose NBC.com, while also keeping in mind the information previously discussed about the
advantages of online advertising, mostly stemmed from our consumer’s index numbers for not only NBC, but the
individual shows on NBC as well. For example, according to Simmons OneView, our target audience visits NBC.com
roughly 1-5 times per week as well as indexed at 112 for the website. In terms of individual shows offered for streaming
on NBC.com, statistics show that individuals who eat at a Sonic Drive-In are 28% more likely than the average person
to watch Saturday Night Live. The numbers also show that these same Sonic eaters are 7% more likely to watch Law
and Order: SVU, another one of NBC’s most popular and streamed shows. Given the popularity of not only the site by
as well as the shows on the site in both our target audience as well as Sonic consumers, NBC.com will provide a wide
reach for Sonic.
In making sure that we are reaching our target audience effectively, we plan on buying mid-roll :30 second
commercials on NBC.com throughout every month of our media plan. Our impressions total 8.35 million impressions
in each of the months of March-May, 8.45 million impressions per month in June-August, and 7.825 million
impressions in each of the months of September-February. In total this will cost $2,141,700, or 7.65% of our total $28
million budget. As stated before, our target audience as well as Sonic Drive-In consumers indexed high for NBC.com
and the shows we will be running our advertisements during. During the months of the summer and heading into the
fall, our most targeted time for our schedule, impressions will be at an all-time high for this particular vehicle. Thus,
consumers will be repeatedly exposed to Sonic commercials during this time frame so as to keep the brand fresh in
their minds.
46

Media Mix: Social Networks
Strategy
Social media is extremely popular in the demographic of 18 - 34 year olds. We plan to place
promoted social media advertisements on four of the major social media platforms - including
Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, and the photo sharing application, Instagram. This demographic
enjoys utilizing social media for everything from sharing their personal news to acquiring new
craft project and cooking ideas. The 18 - 34 year old demographic indexes at a high 204 for utilizing
Twitter in the last month, and 139 for having used Facebook in the last month. In addition, utilizing
a product-based site like Pinterest is a strategic move - seeing as our demographic makes up the
majority of users. It is also the fasting growing website by overall member growth and drives
consumer buying, as 25% of consumers reported buying a product or service after discovering it on
Pinterest (JeffBullas.com). With 85% of top brands adopting accounts (hootsuite.com), it is vital for us
to have a strong Instagram presence.
47

Media Mix: Social Networks
Media Buy
We plan to reach the same number of impressions every month on each social media platform. Indi-
vidually, on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest, we will reach 5.75 million users per month
from the beginning of our campaign in March, through to May. From June - August, when drive-up
quick service restaurants like Sonic are most popular, impressions will increase to 5.85 million. Then,
in the months of September - February, our impressions will go down to 5.225 million every month.
In this way, we plan to hit when the weather is warmest, and take it a bit easier during the cooler
months of the year, when Sonic’s business decreases a bit due to its outdoor atmosphere. In this case,
we will be spending $529,200 on each platform, for a total spend of $2,116,800, equating to 7.56% of
our budget.
48

Media Mix: Internet Radio
Pandora is an internet radio site with 80 million registered
users which builds custom radio stations based on your
preferences. Once the user selects the radio station they
wish based on a certain artist (ex. Maroon 5 Radio), Pandora
utilizes the technology of the Music Genome Project to
continuously play similar songs. Users may also select
stations for different activities like, “Workout Radio” or
“Family Radio”, and may create up to 100 stations total
(statisticbrain.com). In order to use Pandora, users must
register an account, giving us the advantage of knowing a
little more information about the users we are targeting. The
free version of Pandora typically provides listeners with three
minutes of advertisements for every one hour of music (ehow.
com). If users desire, they may pay a monthly fee to access
Pandora One, an unlimited, advertisement-free version of the
site. For this reason, we will only advertise on the regular,
unpaid version of Pandora.
Strategy
Spotify is a music streaming service which has both free
and paid platforms. Much like Pandora, the paid version,
Spotify Premium, discludes advertisements. For this reason,
we would only advertise on the free version. Spotify is more
user-involved, as users can choose individual songs to listen
to, as well as browse through or create various playlists.
Spotify has a total of 46,925,000 users, a quarter of whom are
paid users (statisticbrain.com).
We plan to promote advertisements on both Spotify and Pandora every
month for the entirety of our campaign. Beginning in March and going
through May, impressions will be 5.75 million per month on each platform.
In the months of June - August, they will increase to 5.85 milion on both
Spotify and Pandora. Finally, from September - February, impressions will
decrease to 5.225 million per month. The total spend on each platform for
this campaign will be $529,200, totaling to $1,058,400 for our campaigns on
both Spotify and Pandora. This equates to 3.78% of our total media budget.
Media Buy
49

Media Mix: Social
Strategy
Youtube is a video sharing social media
platform which we plan to place video
advertisements on. The site boasts
over 1 billion users, which makes up
about ⅓ of all people on the internet.
The site reaches more 18 - 34 year olds
with its videos than any cable network
does (Youtube.com). In fact, the 18 - 34
year old demographic indexes at 152 for
having utilized Youtube.com within the
last month. On average, mobile users
spend about 40 minutes at a time in
one mobile viewing session. Facebook
has also become a massive outlet for
the sharing of Youtube videos, with 323
days worth of Youtube videos being
watched on Facebook every minute
(expandedramblings.com).
Media Buy
Because the average Youtube video
is on the shorter side at 4 minutes
and 20 seconds (minimatters.com),
we decided that our best option
for video advertisement placement
on Youtube is a pre-roll ad. Users
have become quite used to having
to watch an ad before viewing their
actual video, so the annoyance
factor of pre-roll ads in this scenario
is on the low side. With our pre-
roll advertisements, we plan to
reach 80.4 million impressions
every month in the months of
March - May. During the period
of June - August, impressions will
increase to 80.5 million, before they
take a dramatic decrease to just 6.3
million impressions per month from
September - February. In total, this
Youtube campaign will cost a total of
$1,150,500, accounting for 4.1% of our
total budget.
50

Media Mix: Out-of-Home
Strategy Media Buy
For out-of-home advertising, our plan is to buy
billboards across every spot DMA in the northern
front - including the ones that aren’t getting a
new Sonic Drive-In added to their respective
area. Billboards, and out-of-home vehicles in
general, are a medium that allow us to reach a
huge number of our target audience while they
are driving. We thought this was appropriate
because Sonic prides itself on being a drive-in
rather than a drive-through, so what better way
to reach our audience then when they’re already
in their cars? Furthermore, billboards will also
us to show extravagant images of Sonic food to
consumers that may be looking for a quick bite
to eat. We chose to put billboards in all spot
markets because even though they all may not be
receiving a new location, many of them already
have a Sonic, so the same benefits will still apply
to these markets. However, we also understand
the impressions may be a tad inflated, so it’s
important to take those with a grain of salt.
In terms of the actual media buy, we bought
25 show billboards across all twenty spot
DMAs for the months of April-October in our
media schedule. We chose only these months
as it goes hand-in-hand with our geographic
approach outlined earlier. Since we are doing
a national campaign with spot heavy in the
northern front DMAs, we decided to put
billboards up for the months we felt were
most important to heavy-up in. By running
these billboards in the beginning of Spring,
through the Summer, and into the Fall, it
allows us to keep the Sonic brand fresh in
the minds of the consumers when they are
most likely to be outside in the nice weather,
going on roadtrips or simply driving to work
or some other activity. Across this time span,
the billboards will cost a total of $1,540,819 - or
approximately 5.5% of our total budget. But
the OOH advertisements will also provide an
average reach of 82.9 and average frequency of
8 per month, for a total of 665 GRPs per month
as well.
51

Special Promotions
Sponsor Milwaukee SummerFest 2017 and WE Fest 2017
As a sales promotion tactic for Sonic, they will sponsor the Milwaukee SummerFest 2017 as well as WE Fest 2016,
both of which are music festivals that occur over the summer within the Northern Front Region - the section of the
United States that JAMMedia will be implementing spot markets in.
SummerFest is the world’s largest musical festival held usually at the end of June with over 800 acts and 1,100
performances over the span of 11 days. The music genre of the festival is diverse enough to target many subgroups
within our target market of men and women 18-34 years old. SummerFest already has big-name sponsors, so
concert goers will not be shocked when they see a Sonic tent available for a delicious meal between singers.
WE Fest is a country music festival held at the beginning of August in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. Many of the
same reasons to sponsor at SummerFest are reasons to sponsor additionally at WE Fest, including the favorable
geographic location. The concert goers for this event will be on the older side of the age demographic. These people
will most likely be young parents who are looking for something new, fresh and convenient to feed their families.
Once they see Sonic sponsoring the event with tents set up for purchase opportunities, they will return home with
good music in their soul and quality food in their stomachs.
52

Special Promotions
Sweepstakes Contest
A large part of our target market are youngsters with a passion for social media use. There is an increasing trend of counter-culture activities
and sharing photos of food with friends via social networking sites. In order to combine the two of these aspects, JAMMedia will implement
a Sonic sweepstakes contest. People will automatically be entered to win the following prizes when they tag a photo of their Sonic experience
with the “hashtag” #ThisIsHowISonic. There are over a million menu combinations that Sonic has to offer, therefore we want to encourage
customers to take pride in their personal order and to share it with their friends and family online. The contest will be promoted by sponsored
Instagram posts and the use of Sonic’s own social media accounts.
The two grand prize winners will have the option between two trips. The first trip is a Major League Baseball tour throughout the United States
during the summer months. America’s favorite pastime directly relates to the very American feel that Sonic provides to users nationwide. This
will also give Sonic some visibility throughout the Northern Front with the winner going to games for the Detroit Tigers, the Chicago White Sox
and the Minnesota Twins.
The second grand prize winner will have the opportunity for an all-expense paid trip to visit Mount Rushmore National Memorial in Keystone,
South Dakota. This will be titled Mount Slushmore because of Sonic’s famous drink choices. This national park has over three millions visitors
every year and one lucky Sonic winner could be one of them! This will highlight many wonderful American summer destinations in order to
once again highlight the American and patriotic feel that the Sonic brand has garnered since its inception.
53

Special Promotions
Win a Ford Escape With Entry at a Local Sonic
The third and final sales promotion tactic that
JAMMedia will implement in this media plan
is the chance to win a Ford Escape with entry at
your local Sonic. Potential participants will have
to enter in person at the checkout counter, which
will entice nonusers or light users a reason to stop
in for a meal. We chose the brand Ford for the
car giveaway because of its strong American ties,
especially in Detroit, which is also known as Motor
Town - or Motown for short. There will be one
grand prize winner and it will not cost to enter. If
this tactic is successful, there is potential for it to
be used every year and make the tradition last, just
like Ford and Sonic.
Eat your all-American food in your brand new
all-American car
54

Reach, Frequency&GRPs
To find an appropriate average frequency for this Sonic campaign, we utilized the
Ostrow model which determines campaign frequency based on the company and
campaign message, media and market. Using the Ostrow model, we concluded
that the campaign should have a minimum average frequency of 3.3. Including the
estimations from out of home, the campaign will reach an average frequency of
approximately 5. The reach of the campaign will round out at approximately 63.4.
This will deliver a total GRPs of 3,814 for the year-long campaign. The campaign
starts off with an average reach and frequency and then peaks during our heavy
months, May through August, climbing to a reach of 75.3 and frequency of 3.8 (not
including OOH). The campaign then declines and levels at a reach of 47.4 and
frequency of 2.3 (not including OOH) during the rest of the year, September through
February. This will allow Sonic to still be recognized and prevalent in the audience’s
mind after the heavy hitter months.
55

Geography
While we are doing both national advertisements, we chose to do advertisements across all spot markets in the northern front
either getting new Sonic locations added to their areas or ones that already have a Sonic location because of the goals and
information stated in Sonic’s original brief. We were able to calculate the CDIs for the markets who were getting new Sonic
Drive-In locations by taking percent of category sales in each DMA and dividing that number by each DMA’s population and
then multiplying by 100 (see appendix C). The sales and population figures were provided to us in the Neilson population
data and sales estimate by DMA excel sheets. Based on the data provided in Media Flight Plan, with these spot markets we
will be reaching approximately 9.7% of the total United States Population. If our spot market heavy advertising had reached
more than 30% of United States Households, then we could have just decided to go with a national advertising strategy only.
However, combined with our national advertising strategy, our spot heavy approach will allow us to really reach Sonic’s
desired consumers in the northern front.
In particular, the spot DMAs targeted will be: Alpena, MI, Billings, MT, Butte-Bozeman, MT,Duluth-Superior, MN-WI, Fargo-
Valley City, ND, Glendive, MT, Detroit, MI, Green Bay-Appleton, WI, La Crosse-Eau Claire, WI, Madison, WI, Marquette, MI,
Milwaukee, WI, Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN, Minot et al., ND, Misoula, MT, Portland, OR, Rapid City, SD, Seattle-Tacoma, WA,
Spokane, WA, and Traverse City et al., MI.

60

Brand Analysis
https://www.facebook.com/sonicdrivein/?fref=ts
https://twitter.com/sonicdrivein
http://files.shareholder.com/downloads/SONC/1959908293x0x866553/A02B8AEF-5EF7-44E7-A25B-F077237D6E57/Sonic_2015_AR.pdf
http://content.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1913220,00.html
http://www.businessinsider.com/cost-of-fast-food-franchise-2014-11
Competitive Analysis
http://www.fastfoodmenuprices.com/
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/business/energy-environment/oil-prices.html
http://content.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1913220,00.html
http://www.businessinsider.com/cost-of-fast-food-franchise-2014-11
http://www.carlsjr.com/
http://www.hardees.com/
https://consumerist.com/2015/05/26/how-carls-jr-hardees-became-one-giant-burger-chain-with-two-names/
http://www.ckr.com/about_profile.html
https://www.facebook.com/dairyqueen/?fref=ts
https://www.facebook.com/carlsjr/?fref=ts
https://www.facebook.com/Hardees/?fref=ts
https://www.facebook.com/McDonaldsUS/?fref=ts
https://twitter.com/DairyQueen
https://twitter.com/Hardees
https://twitter.com/CarlsJr
https://twitter.com/McDonalds
http://www.dairyqueen.com/
Sales Promotions
https://www.musicfestivalwizard.com/festivals/summerfest-2016/
https://www.musicfestivalwizard.com/festivals/we-fest-2016/
http://summerfest.com/sponsors/
62

Media Mix
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/upfront-central/mbpt-spotlight-18-shows-you-should-be-advertising-reach-millennials/139335
http://www.adweek.com/lostremote/accenture-report-87-of-consumers-use-second-screen-device-while-watching-tv/51698
http://www.marketingcharts.com/television/are-young-people-watching-less-tv-24817/
http://www.emarketer.com/Article/US-Adults-Spend-55-Hours-with-Video-Content-Each-Day/1012362
http://www.hulu.com/advertising/
http://www.adweek.com/news/television/millennials-are-watching-more-tv-hulu-fall-and-less-when-shows-first-air-168234
http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2016/04/29/late-night-ratings-april-18-22-2016-the-late-show-ticks-up/
http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/tag/modern-family-ratings/
http://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/the-big-bang-theory-season-nine-ratings-38076/
http://tvseriesfinale.com/tv-show/greys-anatomy-season-12-ratings-38156/
http://www.ibtimes.com/march-madness-2016-championship-ratings-down-37-percent-2015-2348827
http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2016/01/12/sunday-final-ratings-jan-10-2016/
Scheduling & Budget
http://www.fastfoodmenuprices.com/
Strategy
https://hbr.org/2015/10/when-people-pay-attention-to-video-ads-and-why
63

Appedix B
Target market profile index numbers
Within 18-34 yea olds, data derived from Simmons OneView
66

Appedix C
68
Primary research data-52 total responses

Appendix D
Brand Deveopment
Index (BDI) and Category
Development Index (CDI)
for selected cities
69

Meet The Team
Ashley Cohen is a sophomore at Ithaca College majoring in Integrated Marketing
Communications with a minor in Spanish. On campus, she is involved in the
American Marketing Association and is the marketing executive for the Women’s
Rugby team. She currently works as the Student Assistant for ICView, the alumni
magazine for the school. Her career aspirations include pursuing market research
and international consulting, in addition to working abroad.
Jake Ascoli is a junior Integrated Marketing Communications major with a Legal
Studies minor. On campus, he works in the sports department for 91.7 WICB
Radio and is Vice President of the Park Peer Mentor Program. Jake hopes to work
in the sports public relations field upon graduation and eventually get his law
degree to practice intellectual property/entertainment law around the country.
Marisa Nizzi is a senior Integrated Marketing Communications major with a
sport studies minor at Ithaca College. Her extracurricular activities on campus
include interning as a marketing and promotions intern with the athletics
department, working as an administrative office assistant in the Athletics and
Events building, and being a co-president for the women’s club soccer team.
Marisa is looking to obtain a career in marketing and promotions for an agency.
She hopes to also have the opportunity to travel around the world.
70

Meet The Team
Alisa Popple is a senior Integrated Marketing Communications major with a Communication,
Management, and Design minor. On campus, she is a member of the Public Relations Student
Society of America (PRSSA), the secretary and treasurer Ithaca’s chapter of the International
Association of Business Communicators (IABC) and also holds several crew positions across Ithaca
College Television’s (ICTV) productions. Following graduation, Alisa aims to be working in either
television, film or theater practicing public relations.
Jillian Weidner is a sophomore Integrated Marketing Communications major with a French minor.
She is the PR Chair of IC Women in Communications and is currently a marketing intern for So-
dexo USA as well as Ithaca College’s media literacy program, Project LookSharp. Jillian aspires to
eventually work in the public relations field in the realm of social responsibility and sustainability.
71

72
From left to right: Jillian, Marisa, Jake, Ashley, Alisa

Final Sonic Media Plan

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