The last few years have been rough for Chipotle. The fast-causal chain was hit by a food-safety scare when customers became sick after eating meals contaminated with E. coli bacteria/noroviruses. The scandal resulted in a sharp drop in sales, stock price, and brand perception.
Shortly after rolling out a plan to repair its image, the brand was rocked by another scandal. Mark Crumpacker, Chipotle’s chief creative and development executive in charge of the new marketing initiatives, was arrested on drug possession charges.
According to the recent Ad Age article Chipotle’s Marketing Menu for 2017: Biggest Campaign Ever, Fewer Promos, the remainder of 2016 was spent promoting “everything from free entrees and buy one, get one offers to a summer loyalty program and an animated short film to remind people why they loved Chipotle.” (For the romantics out there, the short is pretty cute, and apparently 9 million+ other people thought so too.) Sales did improve, but not to the profit levels the company enjoyed before 2015.
Plans to win back customers and gain loyalty
Naturally, winning back customers is a 2017 priority and Chipotle has lots of plans in the works, including:
- Launch the largest campaign in its history, focused on taste and ingredients
- Rely more on brand message and less on deals
- Promote digital ordering and catering capabilities
- Explore new menu items, including a new dessert item
- Produce a new scripted TV series for kids
- Increase the number of fundraisers
Like their burritos, this is one overstuffed marketing plan. While these ideas all sound great on paper, the execution might wear the company thin—especially if they don’t have the manpower to see it through.
Does your company need to overhaul its image?
If so, we have the marketing talent that will help you put those big ideas into motion so you never have to worry about overstuffing your plan. Contact us today to get started.