Church’s Wants to Make Your Day
A new female buddy comedy is playing in theaters, and Church’s Texas Chicken not only has a cameo role, but a marketing tie-in.
“One of Them Days” stars SZA, who had her own star turn in Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl half-time show earlier this month, and Keke Palmer (“Akeelah and the Bee)” playing roommates who are in a race against time to make their rent.
Enter the chicken. And the and Honey-Butter Biscuits™.
On a day when everything goes wrong, the women seek relief at a Church’s Texas Chicken drive-through to use an apple pie voucher. Then they see the biscuits, which sets them on another series of adventures.
The Atlanta-based QSR is located in 27 states, mostly across the southeast, and it, too, goes the extra mile to make its customers lives easier with a marketing sweepstakes tied to the film.
Members of Church’s Real Rewards™ loyalty program can enter a sweepstakes for the chance to be one of five winners to receive $2,500 to put toward their rent. The campaign started on Feb. 14 and runs through April 24.
Even if you’re not one of the lucky winners, just by signing up for Church’s Real Rewards, you can redeem for a two-piece leg and thigh order or a three-piece chicken tenders order with your first purchase.
Sarah Minton, SVP, Brand Strategy, Media and Activation Marketing at Church’s Texas Chicken®, sat down with StreetFight to discuss the program in more detail.
How did you come up with the idea of a raffle to pay the rent of Church’s Real Rewards Members?
The sweepstakes was created to help spread the word about Church’s Hollywood debut alongside its legendary hand-battered fried chicken and Honey-Butter Biscuits™ in TriStar Pictures’ comedy, “One of Them Days.”
In the movie, best friends and roommates Dreux (Keke Palmer) and Alyssa (SZA) navigate an unforgettable day after discovering Alyssa’s boyfriend has blown their rent money. We felt it would be a fun promotion with a natural tie-in to the movie’s premise while also reflecting our dedication to giving back to our guests in a creative and meaningful way.
How will you pick the five winners? Is it a random drawing?
The Church’s Rent’s On Us sweepstakes consists of five entry periods and after each entry period, Church’s will select one winner in a random drawing of all entries received during that entry period. The odds of being selected depend on the number of entries received for the relevant entry period.
How many entries are you anticipating?
The sky is the limit, but we have already had a tremendous number of entries since the sweepstakes launched.
Can you describe how you’re marketing this campaign, “Church’s Rent’s On Us” to local markets and which media channels you’re using?
In addition to the sweepstakes itself, we are promoting the campaign through public relations, social media, restaurant signage and merchandising and bag stuffers.
Does the campaign differ depending on the region in which the ads run?
It is a national campaign.
How did the movie tie-in come about with “One of Them Days?”
We collaborated closely with our entertainment agency, Stone Management. Our executives are very excited about entertainment properties that are interested in our iconic brand. With a 72-year history and world-famous fried chicken, we were thrilled to learn that Sony Pictures had the perfect opportunity to feature one of our locations in Compton. Working with Sony Pictures and the crew was a fantastic experience, allowing us to showcase our brand in a hit movie and reach global audiences.
Are you working with an advertising or marketing agency for this campaign? IF so, which?
We are working with Brunner for advertising and K Squared Group for Public Relations.
