Challenge: Hijack the super Bowl!
Arby's and Fallon tasked 4 teams for ideas on how to bring Arby's to the Super Bowl besides the traditional TV ad.
But really, how do we create a moment that gives Arby's a disproportionate amount of attention as one of the big brands in the game – without spending the $5MM it costs to get a 30 second spot?
Read on to check out the winning pitch:
Background
With quality ingredients and transparency in demand by consumers, Arby’s chose to glorify protein. A significant portion of sales growth can be attributed to increased traffic with current customers visiting more frequently and new customers coming in. However, despite Arby's increase in sales it still keeps a low profile compared to competitors McDonald's, Burger King and Taco Bell. Arby’s Brand President and Chief Marketing Officer Rob Lynch said, "In our specific situation, we are the underdog. We can’t outspend, so we have to be better at making unique, memorable, and inspiring connections.”
The Brand
Arby’s has many quality meats. Arby’s loves meat. Arby’s is absurdly obsessed with meat and sandwich craft.
Insight
For Super Bowl fans - securing the best seat in the house has an enormous impact on the Super Bowl experience.
Opportunity
Arby’s must continue to take risks to uphold its distinct personality, showing up in unexpected places and saying unexpected things.
Strategy
Arby's sandwiches deserves the best seat in the house.
I wanted to understand how people were talking about the Super Bowl on social media.
What was really interesting is this tradition of establishing your seat before the game starts.
I was able to find hilarious advice and conversations about how to protect and prepare for the best seat in the house at Super Bowl parties.
Our target is meat-loving fast foodies who view Super Bowl Sunday as a major holiday. Today’s new generation of fast foodies can’t afford to purchase expensive Super Bowl tickets. Instead, they cherish the Super Bowl party, attracting football and party lovers alike.
If Arby's wants to be a part of the Super Bowl spectacle - why not have Arby's establish their own seat at the game? After all, Arby's has the meats - and they pride themselves on having the best meat in the house!
We might not be able to afford Super Bowl commercials, but we can definitely afford a $3,000 seat.
With that being said: we’re going to the Super Bowl and we’re going to send Arby's best representatives:
Rationale
At it’s core this idea stays true to what Arby's represent, a brand supremely devoted to their meats.
A brand so obsessed with their meats that you’ll buy them a seat at the biggest sporting event of the year.
We have the seats is an idea that generates conversation. It’s also an idea that’s unique to Arby's absurd personality.
Arby's wants presence at The Super Bowl? Well, now they can have it...literally!
A total of 5 sandwiches will be escorted into the stadium with two Arby's chaperones on each sandwich.
They keep an eye on the juicy pieces of meat, but more importantly - manage its live stream, invite people to take pictures, and hand out Arby's coupons.
For the sandwiches that went to the game, they will be cast in bronze and sent to select Arby's locations in the U.S.
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By snapping and uploading a picture with the bronze sandwiches, fans can enter to win tickets to an all expense paid trip to the following year's game!
Live Stream
The chaperones will oversee the live stream of the sandwich during the game. This way Arby's can track the reaction from fans, start a fun conversation, and ultimately connect with Super Bowl fans during the game!
Social Media
What we envision the chatter on social media to sound like.
Uh oh!
What if our sandwiches get kicked out? These juicy sandwiches could create so much attention that they get removed by the NFL, but that's okay because being the center of attention is never a bad thing. ((wink))
Strategist: Robin Greenbaum
Creative Brand Manager: Connor Miranda
Copywriters: Will Bareford, Conor McFarland
Art Director: Samantha Jolley
Experience Designer: Dan Cotting