Carl's Jr. has truly joined in the burger wars. After a year of emphasizing its stance against deep discounts, the company has launched a value-priced version of its Six Dollar Burger. The Six Dollar Cheeseburger, with marketing aimed straight at McDonald's, sells for just $2.79.
The company's promotional materials describe the Six Dollar Cheeseburger as "nearly twice as big as the McDonald's Quarter Pounder with Cheese, for a lot less money." The Six Dollar Cheeseburger features almost a half pound of charbroiled, 100 percent Black Angus beef, two slices of American cheese, onion, dill pickles, ketchup and mustard on a seeded bun.
Brad Haley, Carl's Jr. executive vice president of marketing, said the new mid-tier burger is not a deep discounted product but a stripped down version of the Six Dollar Burger. The Six Dollar Burger, which retails at $3.99, contains cheese as well as lettuce and tomato.
"This is not a cheap burger," he said. "It's a basic cheeseburger, just a really good one."
Also part of the promotion, Carl's Jr. has launched the Big Carl Combo Rewards Card promotion. With the purchase of any size Big Carl Combo (Big Carl, fries and a drink), starting at $4.49, customers will receive one rewards card valued between $1 and $100 to be used for any food purchase on their next visit. The promotion runs Nov. 18 – Jan. 5, or while supplies last.
Most of the coupons will be valued at $1, with increasing increments available in fewer quantities, adding a contest-like atmosphere to the promotion.
Like many quick-serve chains, Carl's Jr. has seen sales of combos and a la carte sides and drinks suffer during the recession. The combo rewards program is a direct effort to address that, Haley said.
Carl's Jr. launched its premium burger battle this summer after McDonald's Angus Third Pounder debut. The company took the premium burger entry as an attempt to copy the sit-down restaurant-style Six Dollar burgers pioneered by Carl's Jr. eight years ago. In response, Carl's Jr. launched its Big Mac knockoff, The Big Carl, priced at $2.49 or less. Sister chain Hardee's followed with The Big Hardee. Both burgers, with three Angus beef patties, promote their lower priced, higher quality and beef.
Hardee's already has a similar burger to the Six Dollar Cheeseburger, so the company has no immediate plans to follow the Carl's Jr. launch with a new promotion, Haley said.
The Six Dollar Cheeseburger, The Big Carl and The Big Hardee are all supported by advertising campaigns that compare each burger to its McDonald's competitor. The ads, created by Mendelsohn Zien Advertising, can be viewed on the brands' YouTube channels (www.youtube.com/carlsjr and www.youtube.com/hardees).
