Lauren Johnson, a digital marketing reporter at Adweek said,"Social media and millennial marketing is an extremely tough area for brands right now," she says. "The agencies tend to be a bit older, so they're trying to understand what millennials talk about with their friends, and how that can be translated into marketing that feels that same way" (Cruz, 2016). One of the main lessons that we learned this week was: Understand what is important to your target audience. By using social listening tools you can see what your customers are talking about and use that information to build your online presence; Taco Bell has built a social media empire, with close to 11 million Facebook followers and over 1.8 million Twitter followers. Taco Bell used to be known for the slogan “Think outside the bun.” Within the last few years there has been a shift to more than just food; younger consumers in addition to a meal, demand the overall brand experience and, ultimately, a cool lifestyle. Taco Bell has social media channels that respond instantaneously with posts that "keep it real" creating the feeling that the brand is a friend.
Billy Cruz at NPR points out that Taco Bell prides itself on being a pioneer in engaging with consumers on social media platforms like Snapchat and Twitter (2016). This past November, taking advantage of the newly created taco emoji, the company launched a social campaign called #TacoEmojiEngine, consisting of 600 gifs and photos.A blog written by Sherilyn titled "Behind Taco Bell’s Social Media Strategy", points out that Taco Bell's social media channels are so successful because, "People use social media to connect and have fun, not to drown in posts that are selling products or services. Rather than accepting their position as the passive consumer, now, customers want businesses to feel like a friend; they want authenticity to shine through" (2016). This is why Taco Bell posts tweets like the one on the right - it sounds like a teen talking to a teen, which is exactly the audience that Taco Bell is after. Taco Bell blurs the traditional line between producer and consumer by encouraging social media accounts filled with content that is user-generated, which makes consumers feel appreciated and heard. In fact, there are multiple posts on Taco Bells social media accounts with teens eating Taco Bell on the way to Prom, or just hanging out on the couch. Taco Bell just started a mini series on YouTube titled The #TacoBellClipShow where Taco Bell brand ambassadors post things like Burrito beauty hacks, dancing tacos, and puppets in the drive thru. Taco Bell often posts GIFs (like the one below) to wish people happy birthdays.
If you are interested in seeing Taco Bells online presence for yourself, check them out!
Like: Facebook.com/tacobell
Follow: @TacoBell (Twitter) and Tacobell (Instagram)
Subscribe: YouTube.com/tacobell
Sources:
Cruz, Billy. (2016) Taco Bell's Snapchat Game Is Strong Among Teens, But Does It Sell Tacos? All Things Considered. NPR.http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2016/05/10/477336641/taco-bell-s-snapchat-game-is-strong-among-teens-but-does-it-sell-tacos
Sherilyn. (2016). Behind Taco Bell’s Social Media Strategy.meetsoci.com. //www.meetsoci.com/blog/behind-taco-bells-social-media-strategy/
