Taco Bell Brand Presence
Presence on social media has become a key in marketing for many brands today. It has been proven that brands who participate in social media for marketing purposes see a 133% increase in revenue. In my opinion, Twitter is now the perfect platform for brands to interact with their users while promoting their brand because of the specific aspects of the website. Brands can post videos and photos with hashtags relevant to their own company, post polls to get direct feedback from their followers, reply to customer’s tweets, and even make posts of their own that users of Twitter can follow.
Taco Bell’s presence on Twitter is very strong, with a whopping 1.91 million followers, however this is less than both Wendy’s and McDonald's. All three food companies use their famous color schemes in their Twitter themes, which is customizable for any user. Taco Bell uses purple in their icon, text color, and header photo. It is interesting that they chose the color purple for marketing, as purple usually gives the feeling of being “royal.” This may have been done so that the cheap, American-Mexican fast food can feel more high-end to consumers.
Also, their header image is a photo of Taco Supreme’s, which is surprising since this is not a new product. I wonder why they did not choose to advertise a new product, like the Nacho Fries. They have 790,000 tweets that have been accumulated since they joined in July 2007, 740,000 of which are media related posts.
Unlike many brand pages, Taco Bell is anything but your standard professional page. They post about almost everything, from new breakfast and lunch/dinner products, to a couple that did a Taco Bell pregnancy shoot, and to short replies to customers. Their usual types of marketing are what would be considered “organic advertising,” as they are not what many would consider as ads.
Taking advantage of pop culture and Twitter hashtags, Taco Bell created the “Belluminati,” which was created from pop culture memes, the Illuminati, and their $1 cravings and breakfast menus. The Illuminati’s famous eye is found on the $1 bill, which is where I assume Taco Bell made the connection with their menus and the #Belluminati. Not only did they create a hashtag for customers to post photos to, they added a page to their website with merchandise consisting of clothing, a book, and a candle with the Belluminati symbol (triangle with Taco Bell bell), but also this motto at the top of the page:
Congratulations. You’ve discovered the secret world of the Belluminati where the dollar truly gets you more. Any one of these exclusive Belluminati items can be yours while supplies last — for the price of just one dollar. Decadence. Take it, it’s yours.
Taco Bell’s take on social media presence is definitely a modern marketing strategy, as they make sure their brand is associated with the feelings of inviting, sassy and casual. Their tone is that of a consumer, rather than a large corporation. They use emojis and slang in their tweets and replies, just like anyone with a smartphone would do. Brands take advantage of this “organic marketing” by posting things that normal users would post, to make advertising seem more casual. When you tweet at Taco Bell, you can assume their reply will be nothing less then a smart remark or welcoming reply. They clearly hired the right person, or people, to control their social media.
People tweet at Taco Bell, by either directly mentioning them in a sentence or by looking for a reply, or by tagging them in a tweet that was originally meant for a friend. Taco Bell does their best to make sure everyone is accounted for in their replies. They even ask some users to use their tweet on their website, which to some could be considered exploiting of creative posts for profit. However, I’m sure many people accept to the offer, as it could give them their 15 minutes of fame.
Overall, their tone and way they interact with their customers reflects positively on their brand. They are open to engaging with consumers, even taking care of problems that their costumers have with specific branches. I would pick to eat at Taco Bell over previously mentioned McDonald's and Wendy’s not only because of the steep price difference, but also based on how they treat their customers on social media.
