Spinning the Web

Say goodbye to static sites: Top 400 restaurant chains learn to harness the Internet’s interactive powers.

By Allison Perlik, Senior Editor -- Restaurants & Institutions, 7/1/2007

CKE Restaurants has designed the ideal bachelor pad for its 18-to-34-year-old male demographic. The modern, comfortable space includes a big-screen television, video games, tasty snacks and a sexy young companion. There’s just one catch: The dream environment is online only, at the Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s Web sites.

"First and foremost, we use the Internet for communication, but secondly, it’s an interactive, image-building tool," says Executive Vice President of Marketing Brad Haley. "That’s why we designed it to be the dream environment for our target of hungry, young guys."

Multimedia Web sites from Carpinteria, Calif.-based CKE and a growing number of Top 400 chains show how far restaurant companies have come in capitalizing on the Internet’s potential. Beyond providing menu, location and nutrition information, standout sites drive restaurant traffic and sales (of merchandise as well as food) by engaging customers, differentiating concepts and stirring up buzz.

Visitors to Carl’s Jr.’s and Hardee’s sites not only watch video-game trailers and play games, but they also print coupons, sign up for e-newsletters and interact with dreamgirl spokeswoman "Ashley." At the Web site for Atlanta-based Arby’s, visitors can strive to beat top scorers in a bull-riding game, enter contests or keep up with the latest news on sponsored Nascar driver Matt Kenseth. Those who surf to the Web site of Irvine, Calif.-based casual-dining chain Yard House can purchase songs played in the restaurants by linking to a digital-music provider.

The common purpose of these online components and of the interactive blogs and forums that are just beginning to find a presence on chain Web sites is to keep customers engaged longer online and entice them to return often. Especially for chains seeking to establish their brand with teens and young adults—notoriously difficult to reach through broadcast and print media—the Internet has been a marketing godsend.

Bouncing Back

"People will come to your site, see what you have and then not come back unless you have something of interest," says Arby’s Senior Vice President of National Advertising Debra Mager. Arby’s regularly adds new contests, coupons and games to its site.

Quick-service Mexican chain Del Taco, based in Lake Forest, Calif., recently created a site (www.allnightlongbaby.com) to promote the fact that most of its restaurants are open 24 hours. Customers were invited to submit photos relating to the brand’s "All Night Versus Late Night" theme and rate others’ submissions.

Columbus, Ohio-based White Castle also created a site to deepen its Web presence. At www.truecastlestories.com, the QSR’s customers share stories about their dedication to White Castle’s signature square "Slyder" burgers. Visitors also create user profiles and share Slyder-based recipes.

At www.steakology.com, the Web site for Rocky Mount, N.C.-based Texas Steakhouse & Saloon, visitors can learn how to choose meat by cuts, appearance and grading; read up on grilling tips; and find recipes for marinades, rubs and sides. The site’s Butcher’s Blog covers topics such as Texas wines, types of wood chips and the gas-versus-charcoal grilling debate.

"It benefits us as a company to make people more aware of steak from pasture to plate," says President Mayo Boddie Jr. "Hopefully they will look at us as the steak experts."

In January, Columbus, Ohio-based Bob Evans launched a blog to tout the chain’s new Stacked and Stuffed Hotcakes and promote a charitable effort through which customers could bid on eBay for the chance to meet founder Bob Evans. The blog now includes interviews with Senior Development Chef Brian Murphy, video of hotcakes being prepared and more.

"People might not think of Bob Evans as a leader in new media, but this is what we’ve been doing since the company started: having that one-to-one conversation across the counter or at the table," says Jamie Chabra, Web-site administrator. "It’s a similar concept to what we’ve done with the blog."

Totally Tubular

The camera work may be shaky and the lighting could be better, but when customers post self-made videos featuring their favorite restaurant brands on YouTube, they garner for chains publicity that money just can’t buy. Case in point: A clip of one customer rapping his order at a McDonald’s drive-thru has been viewed more than 240,000 times since December, and a video of a person dancing in front of various quick-service chains wearing a mask of Burger King mascot “The King” had more than 185,000 views.

Recognizing YouTube’s power to deliver brand messages to a valuable audience, some chains have developed promotions around the red-hot site. Earlier this year, Dallas-based Pizza Hut asked customers to create videos illustrating why they should be named the chain’s “VP of Pizza” and posted entries on YouTube as well as on its own site. Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Domino’s recruited the video-sharing site to spread a series of videos created in conjunction with its “Anything Goes Deal” promotion; the first video alone received more than 126,000 views.