Clucks to Command: Learn how this brand embraced digital marketing in the early years of the Internet!

Happy Thursday, everyone!

Guerrilla marketing is all about breaking the mold and capturing the attention of a target audience in a unique and engaging way.

This is why campaigns of this type hold a special place in my heart.

Today, I’m excited to share another example of a successful marketing campaign.

Continue reading to know how this brand created an unforgettable and interactive experience for its customers during the early years of the Internet!

Clucks to Command: Learn how this brand embraced digital marketing in the early years of the Internet!

Imagine this: It’s 2004—a time when the Internet was still in its infancy.

Social media hadn’t existed yet and websites were mostly static, held together by blocks of text and grainy images.

In some cases, users can stream videos, but this wasn’t a common thing back then.

Simply said, interactive web experiences were a distant dream.

Given these technological limitations, almost no one would have thought of launching a digital marketing campaign that was both interactive and flashy.

However, that didn’t stop Burger King from pulling off such a campaign.

A Subservient Chicken

In 2004, Burger King created a new menu item called the TenderCrisp Chicken Sandwich.

While this was a good offering in itself, the fast food chain had to come up with a way to promote the product.

Burger King’s answer?

The Internet!

While the Internet was still in its infancy in 2004, that didn’t deter the fast food chain leveraging it to promote its new product.

Realizing that it cannot turn its vision to reality on its own, Burger King partnered with Crispin Porter + Bogusky.

Here’s how the digital guerrilla marketing campaign played out:

A dedicated webpage was created where visitors could directly interact with a “Subservient Chicken” that obeyed their commands in real-time.

… but wait, this was back in 2004, so how did Burger King and Crispin Porter & Bogusky achieve this?

The digital guerrilla marketing campaign used footage from a two-day shoot that featured a person in a single costume responding to over 300 commands.

As a result, website visitors were made to think that the “Subservient Chicken” was obeying their commands real-time.

It may sound silly today, but watching a chicken mascot perform an audience’s commands was revolutionary at the time and captured the attention of millions.

So, was the campaign a success?

Yes!

The “Subservient Chicken” guerrilla marketing campaign was more than just unique—it became a digital phenomenon. Its blend of humor and interaction grabbed people's attention in a way only a few campaigns had done before.

Upon its launch, the website saw an astonishing 20 million hits in its first week alone, showing the public's immediate fascination with this quirky, innovative experience.

This initial surge was only the beginning.

Over time, the site attracted 450 million hits, with visitors spending an average of 10 minutes per visit.

That’s not all…

The guerrilla marketing campaign made an impact on Burger King’s sales of the TenderCrisp Sandwich, with an average weekly growth of 9%.

This figure underscores the campaign's effectiveness in not just engaging consumers, but converting that engagement into sales.

By 2007, Burger King reported double-digit awareness growth for the TenderCrisp Chicken Sandwich, further solidifying the campaign's role in boosting product visibility.

The campaign’s success did not go unnoticed by industry observers, as it received numerous accolades from award-giving bodies like The One Show Awards in 2010 and Viral Awards in 2005.

Crispin Porter + Bogusky, the creative minds behind the campaign, also won an award from Clio Awards in 2005.

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By putting a creative spin on its promotion for a new product, Burger King was able to create a fun, memorable, and interactive experience at a time when digital technologies were still at its infancy.

So, when you plan your next guerrilla marketing campaign, take a page from Burger King's playbook and don’t be afraid to put a creative spin on your brand or your offering!

I hope you’ve found this week’s guerrilla marketing insight interesting and helpful!

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