T.G.I. Friday’s Restaurant Database Gathering Campaign

Posted by New Media Philippines in Case Studies May 31st, 2009 | 3 responses

I’m an avid fan of Permission Marketing. Coined by Seth Godin, Permission Marketing is all about having the prospect “volunteer” information that you can use to build a relationship with them. The goal here is to make it easier for the prospect to give communication channels like their e-mail and mobile number so that you can deliver direct messages to them later on. It’s like direct mail without paying for stamps. TGI Friday’s, a popular restaurant chain here in the Philippines, is mounting their own campaign. I saw the ad above on the Inquirer Website just tonight. Insights and ideas about this campaign after the break.

Permission Marketing Needs Good Incentives
If you’re launching a banner ad campaign, better make sure that your message is clear, direct-to-the-point, and visible. This ad pretty much addresses most of the elements I said but the problem here is that I don’t really think they spelled out and made the benefit more “juicy”. I have no idea how much the discount is. What if it’s just 5%?

The incentives for me to give my personal information shouldn’t just be okay – they should be fantastic. Otherwise I’ll be too lazy to input all the information you’re asking. The initial benefit is a trade-off for the e-mails and the SMS’s that I’ll be getting from your company. TGI Friday’s is a bit vague with the discount. Strongly suggest they make the benefit clearer (put a number or make the ad focused more on the discount).

UPDATE (May 31, ‘09): Just found out that this is a two-part ad. The initial banner ad has the copy “Register Now and Get P250 discount from your next P750 meal” or something to that effect. Would suggest to the agency who made this to put that copy in the 2nd part of the ad because it only takes like 1.5 seconds before the 1st part disappears completely.

Database collection and building long-lasting relationships with your consumers is at the pinnacle of internet marketing. Kudos to TGI Friday’s for going beyond the usual banner ads and blog marketing campaigns. They won’t get returns that quick but imagine if they have the mobile numbers and e-mail addresses of more than 50,000 prospects. They can easily communicate with these prospects to turn them into customers and eventually to repeat sales and maybe even brand ambassadors? Grow your database, come up with compelling messages, and watch your sales skyrocket.

I’ll write more about Permission Marketing in the coming days. It’s actually one of my favorite books and marketing strategies.

UPDATE 2 (May 31, ‘09): After some trial-and-error, I’ve found out that the ad runs on the Inquirer.Net Entertainment section. If you want the DC, then head on over and register, haha!

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