Dairy Queen® is on the move with new marketing strategy
'Something Different' is more than a slogan; represents major strategic shift for the brand and increased business despite low-carb trend.
April 25, 2004
MINNEAPOLIS, April 26 /PRNewswire/-- Dairy Queen®, one of the most iconic American brands, is undergoing a major shift in marketing strategy designed to strengthen its leadership not only as the premier treat destination but also to bring attention to new and existing hot food items. Dairy Queen is aggressively allocating marketing dollars to the campaign with the "Something Different" slogan to meet specific business, system unification and competitive goals. New strategic marketing initiatives include the company's first-ever national advertising campaign launched in April with new creative, and innovative food and beverage menu additions. All of this builds on a strong sales performance in 2003 and with same-store sales up 10 percent already year to date. "Even with all of the low carb news and trendy foods hitting the market, we are having a terrific year so far, significantly outperforming the average quick service restaurant in the industry," said Michael Keller, executive vice president of Marketing for International Dairy Queen Inc. "But we haven't ignored culinary trends, either. For those customers who want low carb and low calorie, we have always offered delicious salads, fat free dressing, grilled chicken, treats that are sugar, fat and gluten free, and our soft serve is just 35 calories per fluid ounce. We're in a great place with our brand and with what we have in the pipeline for 2004, the sky is the limit."National Advertising CampaignFor the first time in the company's 64-year history, Dairy Queen will be a competitive national advertiser with four new commercials airing throughout the U.S. in April, May July and August on 21 cable networks including MTV, Comedy Central, ESPN and USA Network, as well as local television affiliates including ABC, NBC and CBS. Four additional commercials will also air in local markets.The first national commercial entitled "Baby Bjorn," a humorous look at a dad with his infant son tucked in a Baby Bjorn trying to enjoy one of Dairy Queen's new CheeseQuake™ Blizzards®, has been so successful that Dairy Queen operators are reporting record breaking sales of the Strawberry CheeseQuake Blizzard. Demand for this new Blizzard is unprecedented, which Keller credits to a combination of factors including the product's great taste, the national ad campaign and nice weather throughout the country. Humor is the theme of the overall ad campaign, which is nearly triple in budget from last year. The commercials were created by True Grey, a division of Grey Worldwide New York, under the direction of Executive Creative Director and Managing Partner Jonathan Rodgers and directed by Baker Smith, voted 2003 Advertising Director of the Year by the Director's Guild of America (DGA). "Under Baker's direction, we've hit a home run with our creative again this year," said Keller. "The product-inspired spots tell a story with a comic twist in a fun, entertaining way. Through our commercials, we've succeeded in making our new menu additions incredibly cravable." According to Rodgers, who spearheaded last year's campaign that won two world medals in the recent New York Festival, the "DQ Something Different" campaign and commercials such as Baby Bjorn are about not taking life too seriously. "After all, we sell ice cream, burgers and chicken sandwiches," he said. "It's fun food, so they're fun spots. On a deeper level, it's all about 'the crave.' These are foods you just have to have. And the spots look in on human truths and moments that are comically exaggerated and illustrate people's intense craving for DQ products."Innovative Product DevelopmentNew food, beverage and treat products are also featured in the commercials. Over the last few years, Dairy Queen has introduced wave after wave of innovative new menu items including novel variations to the flagship Blizzard brand. "The new CheeseQuake line of Blizzards is a perfect example of how we've gone outside the box to bring our customers a unique twist to one of our most well-known, incredibly popular treats," said Keller. The new line of Blizzard® CheeseQuake™ Flavor Treats in strawberry, Oreo® and toffee debuted in April. Customers have already sunk their teeth into the Oreo® Brownie Earthquake and Popcorn Shrimp Basket, and according to Keller, some incredibly exciting products are coming out of the DQ test kitchen on the burger and beverage front in 2004. "Dairy Queen is a brand on the move," said Keller. "And we intend to keep the momentum going."About IDQ:International Dairy Queen (IDQ), headquartered in Minneapolis, Minn., develops, licenses and services a system of more than 5,700 Dairy Queen- stores in the United States, Canada and other foreign countries, offering dairy desserts, hamburgers, hot dogs and beverages. IDQ is part of the Berkshire Hathaway Inc. family, a company owned by Warren Buffett, the legendary investor and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway. In 2001, IDQ launched a new concept called DQ Grill & Chill that blends the best of the Dairy Queen brand's heritage with the most modern innovation in quick service food and design, featuring an all new expanded menu and newly designed restaurant interiors.
