Case Analysis 1- Chili’s PDF

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Anthony Kadunce Dr. Sciulli MKTG 445 Social Media Marketing 4 Feb. 2020 Case Analysis 1: Chili’s 1. SWOT Analysis: a. Strengths: Chili’s has one of, if not the most brand loyalty of all restaurant chains. This is something they have been capitalizing on b. Weaknesses: Chili’s has a bad reputation online when it comes to the quality of their food and service. This is evident on the glaring rating they have on Facebook. They also currently have one of the smaller social media audiences; whom might be loyal, yet they are dwarfed by main competitors’ online audiences. c. Opportunities: Chili’s has an opportunity to expand its online presence through more engagement through social media channels. They can start expanding their reach into new niches and outlets to expand their audience. I believe they have the ability to market themselves as a place where businesses can hold luncheons and so forth. One of their biggest opportunities is one I highlight later, that is to make these Mother-son or even Father-Daughter nights something they push, allowing audiences young and old to build an emotion attachment to their restaurants as a place they went just with their mom or dad for a special dinner. d. Threats: Chili’s biggest threat comes in the form of its biggest competitor, Applebee’s; who just like Chili’s is a Tex-Mex restaurant with a prominent bar selection. This is a very easy substitute to the Chili’s brand as the restaurants serve very similar dishes as well as offer similar deals.

2. Chili’s Facebook: The first thing I noticed when logging onto Chili’s Facebook page was its banner; which highlighted it $5 margarita (which was noted in a couple of the articles). This

shows that they have a continuity about their marketing style. Rather than change up what they’re pushing they’re sticking with what has already been working; a kind of if it isn’t broken don’t try to fix it mentality. The next thing that caught my eye was their rating, a disappointing 2.5 stars out of 5. Unfortunately, this isn’t something that can be fixed overnight nor can marketing alone change that. Next I began to scroll through their timeline; whilst doing this; two things began to pop up a lot: 1: They’re totally committed to pushing their $5 margaritas; which is blatantly apparent by the mass photos of tequilas, margaritas and other liquors. 2: They love to incorporate their dishes into famous works of art, even going as far to give them catching names such as, The Bedroom with Steak. The last thing I noticed were the interactions; on most margarita posts they’d receive an average of 8,000 interactions, but on their paintings only a measly average of 90. I also got into reading comments which goes in line with their ratings; many displeased customers ranting about the terrible food and/or service they had received; the good news is Chili’s PR team is active and responding to some of these comments showing they care about their customer’s experiences. However, Chili’s got an unintentional emotional reaction out of me from a comment that read “When is the mother-son night. Thank you.”, as an only son and an admitted mama’s boy this touched me, especially since Chili’s reached out to the mother asking helping her find out when this was happening. I am unaware if this is an event happening only at select locations or if it’s brand wide, but I believe it’s an opportunity for the brand to make an emotional connection to its customer.

3. How Chili’s compares to their competition: Chili’s main competitors, according to the article from FSR titled What’s America’s Most Frequented Restaurant Chain?, are Applebee’s, Olive Garden, Outback Steakhouse and Red Lobster. According to that same article Chili’s saw 26% of the visits compared to the other 4 restaurants, with Applebee’s coming in second and Olive Garden in a close third. Also, Olive Garden and Chili’s are competing for the lunch

crowds while Applebee’s is competing with Chili’s for customer loyalty. Comparing these three restaurant chain giants’ Facebooks, right off the bat we see that Olive Garden has the most page followers with 6.2 million, in second is Applebee’s with 5.95 million and in last is Chili’s with a shockingly low 3.75 million. The next thing I noticed was that, unlike Chili’s, Olive Garden and Applebee’s do not have a rating system on their Facebook page. This gives them a more appeasing entrance as 2.5 out 5 stars doesn’t greet you when you click on their pages. Next, I noticed was, just like Chili’s, Applebee’s was pushing their wide alcoholic beverage selection, however, I could not find a recent post from Olive Garden highlighting their drink selection. The last thing I noticed that I hadn’t before was that on Chili’s page there is a shop now button; that when clicked takes you to their online ordering; this set Chili’s apart from the other two and highlights the topic discussed in the video. Overall, I believe there is definitely room for Chili’s to kick it up a notch on their social media.

4. How has Chili’s been successful and how can they continue to be successful: Chili’s has been successful in a multitude of ways, from shrinking their menu to redefining their brand image (or as their CMO calls it, their brand DNA). The biggest way they’ve been successful is by offering their deals such as their 3 for $10 or their $5 Margarita of the month. These promotions have redefined Chili’s as a place to get a nice meal at a very affordable cost. It has also allowed Chili’s to go from a dinner restaurant to a lunch hotspot almost overnight, by simplifying their selection. With all this said I believe Chili’s needs to continue with these promotions but change up what’s included in them every once in a while, or these promotions may become stale to potential consumers. Lastly, I believe Chili’s should begin to expand on their loyalty program to make it more enticing for consumers to sign up encouraging them to eat at their locations more often thus turning into loyal consumers of their brand....