This story about Dairy Queen from Brandchannel (which I found out about from Agenda's Live Feed at news.agendainc.com) is an interesting look at how to grow a brand that is entrenched in an industry with flat sales: brandchannel.com | Dairy Queen Brand | Fast Food Restaurant Brands | Retail Branding
We probably pile into the car once a month for strawberry shakes (for my son and husband, who insist they're better than you can get anywhere else) and a double Snickers Blizzard for me. But you couldn't get me to buy food in that place on a bet. I have no interest in whatever food DQ has to offer unless that food is made from cream and sugar and is -16 degrees C (the typical serving temperature of ice cream, in case you were wondering -- and yes, I had to look that up).
According to the piece at Brandchannel they've introduced a Grill and Chill concept, which I must say just doesn't work for me. What I found more intriguing was this:
The company is working on a revision for its more than 1,000 locations that only serve treats called "Project Cornerstone." ... It will feature a significantly modernized look, a larger menu and an expanded "experiential" component of what customers see, smell and watch in the restaurant.
Experiential component. There's that word again. I'm wondering what they have up their sleeve. I hope it's really experiential, and not some simulation of experiential, like simply adding aromas to the restaurant or providing a back-of-the-house view of bored teens working ice cream blenders.
If you were going to reposition Dairy Queen, or DQ as I understand they now prefer to call it, what would you do?
Tag: marketing
i know exactly what I'd do. I'd follow your lead and emphasize:
DAIRY QUEEN: Where the Food is Now as Tempting as the Dessert!
Because what everybody already believes is: the Dairy Queen ice cream products are the main reason for going there.
Yet it's true that their BBQ sandwiches and fries and chilli dogs in particular are very tasty, in my hungry opinion.
So every company should take whatever positive quality is *already* well known, and stress it in creatively varied ways.
This is my Mentally Correct Marketing position on Dairy Queen, after thinking about for 5 seconds. If DQ paid me, I'd put more thought into it.
Hey, when you have a moment, check out my post on a nice marketing concept, the new Earthlink TV commercial featuring women:
http://streightsite.blogspot.com/2004/10/earthlink-scores-big-tv-web-core.html
This post fits in with your Decent Marketing values, especially see the core values of Earthlink, who is giving me nothing to praise them. Darn it.
Posted by: Steven Streight aka Vaspers the Grate | October 03, 2004 at 04:39 AM
Not to be mean, but first I would improve the image of my stores.
Admittedly their target market may not be here in the midwest, but come on people -- cleanliness is friendliness!
Posted by: Jonathan | October 06, 2004 at 11:25 PM
Conversely, (as opposed to Reebokly,) I would just cut the food entirely. They aren't very good at it so they should just stop doing it to make more room for the things they are good at. As part of this restructuring I would try to move to a more modular menu. Consider multiple base ice cream treats (blizzard, split, sundae, misty freeze, etc.) all designed in the manner of the blizzard (or the coldstone ice cream scoop) with a variety of component add ins available (fruit, nuts, candy, red meat, foreign currency) to each base model. I don't think its advisable for DQ to move much further than that down the XM corridor, because they really don't have anything exciting to see, but it wouldn't hurt to staff the window and counter with peppy people to guide you through the frozen novelty construction process (and pay said peppy people a little better, perhaps on a pay-for-pep basis.)
- Scott Lewis
Tippie SoB
Posted by: Scott Lewis | October 14, 2004 at 10:57 AM
Today around 2 PM I visited the DQ in the Beaufort Plaza Shopping Center in Beaufort, NC. I was pulled in by the special they had advertised on the marquis outside (2 CB for $2 with the purchase of a drink). I went through the drive thru and ordered 2 regular HB (with mustard and lettuce only)and a medium drink thinking this was the equivalent of the special. Cars were backed up in the drive thru line so when I was charged $5.08 for this I questioned the girl saying I thought I was getting the special, took my food and drink and drove around to the parking lot and went in to see the manager, The manager was not there and the waitress did not know when she would be back, and even though I felt I was being cheated, the waitress would not return my payment for the order. I went back an hour later and talked to the manager. She said I did not order the special and they charged me $.70 for the lettuce without telling me that the lettuce was extra. I left my food and drink there (untouched). so I am out my money and my food. What kind of piracy do you call this. I am totally dissatisfied with the service and plan never to shadow the door of a DQ again. My wife and I live about a block away from the DQ in Beaufort and have been patronizing this facility about twice a week. If this is what you call "repositioning" I am confused. In my business I do not take payment from dissatisfied customers. When I asked the manager for a superior I could complain to she told me she did not have a number and that I would have to go to the internet. This is the closest link I could find that might render me the opportunity. Please consider posting a sight just for complaints and then you will see what you need to do to "reposition".
WILLIAM DANIELS (cheated by DQ).
Posted by: WILLIAM DANIELS | November 05, 2004 at 03:35 PM
Mr.Daniels ,I am truly sorry you feel you've been cheated. However, I would like to know what business (including yours) allows the customer to change any sale or promotion to suit their whims. The answer is...none. You didn't order our special, you ordered something else. You got exactly what you ordered and were charged the same price as everyone else who has or would order the exact same thing. So just exactly how did we cheat you? (How could we have known what you meant to order?) I am confused why you didn't know the "manager" you talked to is my wife Sheryl or that you didn't ask for me personally. We know at least by sight if not by name anyone who comes to our store twice a week. We take great pains to know and be known to our customers. As far as the waitresses not giving you a refund, where have you ever gone where a regular employee was allowed to issue refunds? Nowhere I've ever been. I wasn't there that day but I trust my employees and my wifes decision to deny you a refund. She is an intelligent person who conducts our business in an ethical and professional manner. Of course, I would have preferred that things hadn't happened as they did and we could have resolved this face to face. If you stop by the store one evening (and see me personally) I will get the 800 you requested and you can lodge this complaint directly with the home office. Sincerely, Don Share (owner,Beaufort Dairy Queen)
Posted by: Don Share | November 12, 2004 at 04:21 PM
DQ's problems go way deeper than simple repositioning. My experiences with DQ, of which there are fewer and fewer all the time, have led me to believe they suffer from some serious problems with customer service and consistency. New concepts are fine, but if you can’t get the basics down pat – then new concepts will simply turn into a new disaster to contend with.
I loved DQ as a kid, but today I see filthy stores, horrible service, inconsistent delivery of service and products and store that seem to simply exist just to make a buck. They make me feel yucky just to deal with them.
DQ needs to hire and empower someone to clean up that mess. Someone who can affect change at any store they enter – to bring them up to corporate and franchise standards – then they can focus on new offerings and concepts. They need to remember that branding is EVERYTHING you do!
Posted by: Darrin Dickey | December 06, 2004 at 04:40 PM
Ahhhh, to Brazier or NOT to Brazier. Who the heck was the one to decide that "brazier" was the right way to decribe grilled food to the general population anyway? I'd say fire his butt.
I agree with most of what was said already. Their first challenge is execution. Beyond that I'd say Grille and Chill is fine but I'd want to look into returning Dairy Queen to ice cream desert specialists. The brand has slipped but is still recognizable for ice cream. I repeat: Brazier food! What the heck IS that anyway?
- Bruce DeBoer
Posted by: Bruce DeBoer | January 25, 2005 at 01:18 PM
I'm an investor (small time) that has the opportunity to purchase a Grill and Chill Restaurant here in the Midwest brand new located in front of a WalMart in a small midwest town at a 10% cap rate; I will own the bldg fee simple title with general warranty deed. The cost is $1.7 million (which includes $~450k in equipment). My chief concern is will it survive financially for the people who are going to lease it from me? I've learned there are some large consortiums investing in large numbers of the stores nationwide (big time). Anyone have any comments or questions to suggest on how I try to answer this question? I'd really appreciate it!
Posted by: Robert Miller | January 31, 2005 at 11:03 PM
Where do oyou keep coming up with these sickening ads? Do you think this kind of thing is FUNNY?!? I stopped going to DQ with the tupid ad- guy gets his toungue stuck in hand mixer. I GUARANTEE that this one about the woman and the electricity is the final straw! You have the worst marketing of any business that is still IN business!!!!
Posted by: njguinn | March 25, 2005 at 12:06 AM
Mr. Share states perfectly today's complete lack of customer satisfaction and lack of training.
Any valued business that has decently trained employees allows them to offer refunds to the customer.
You have saved yourself seventy cents of lettuce but have royally ticked off a local customer. I will also think of your attitude whenever I see a DQ way over here in Arizona.
The old adage of "the customer is always right" is absolutely correct even when the customer is totally unreasonable. This customer was reasonable and misunderstood your offer. It appears that he bought a lesser product, an HB rather than CB, than you were offering but was charged more!
Go ahead and keep that adversarial customer attitude and you'll have a nice clean empty store.
Posted by: A Reader | March 25, 2005 at 01:15 PM
the notion that dairy queen "return to its roots" by focusing on what it is known for, i.e. soft serve ice cream, makes sense to everyone but the one who counts, i.e. franchisor berkshire hathaway. as long as royalties are based on a percentage of sales there is absolutely no incentive to rid themselves of the baggage of low margin food products. the grill and chill concept, in fact, is designed specifcally for benefit of the franchisor...not the franchisee. think of it from the franchisee's vantage point....double the investment cost and sell lower margin products in which you have no competitive edge. only a franchisor who foots no investment costs and derives profits based on gross sales would find that scenario appealing.
don ellis
Posted by: don ellis | April 10, 2005 at 04:54 PM
Clean up the stores! copy sonics and A & W drive ups before it to late!!
Posted by: Ashley | June 21, 2005 at 05:19 AM
I RECENTLY CAME THREW THE DRIVE THRU OF A DAIRY QUEEN IN TOMAH,WI AND ORDERED TWO BLIZZRDS AND TWO CHEESEBURGERS. ONE OF THE BLIZZARDS I ORDERED WAS THE NEW DOUBLE CHOCOLATE FUDGE COOKIE DOUGH BLIZZARD THAT IS BEING ADVERTISED ON TV, WHEN THE FOOD CAME EVERYTHING WAS RIGHT EXCEPT FOR THE BLIZZARD WAS NOT MADE CORRECTLY. WHEN I ASKED WHY IT WAS MADE DIFFRENTLY THAN ADVERTISED THEIR RESPONSE WAS THAT NOT ALL DAIRY QUEENS MAKE THEM THE SAME. I EXPLAINED THAT WE WERE FROM THE LACROSSE,WI AREA AND THAT WE ORDER THIS BLIZZARD QUIT FREQUENTLY SO WE KNOW HOW IT IS MADE. I ASKED FOR THE MANAGER ,WHEN SHE CAME SHE TOLD ME THE SAME THING THAT THIS WAS HOW THEY MADE AND NOT ALL DQ'S ARE THE SAME. I SAID FINE AND ASKED FOR MY MONEY BACK FOR THE PRICE OF THE BLIZZARD( THEY HAD ALREADY TAKEN THE BLIZZRD BACK FROM ME AT THIS POINT),SHE THEN TOLD ME "TOO BAD THIS IS WHAT YOU ORDERED AND IM NOT GOING TO GIVE YOUR MONEYBACK" AND SHE SHUT THE DRIVE THRU WINDOW ON ME. I WAS VERY MAD AT THIS POINT FOR BEING TREATED SO POORLY, SO I HONKED MY HORN UNTIL SOMEONE CAME OUT TO THE WINDOW. A COUPLE OF SECONDS LATER A MAN CAME TO THE WINDOW AND TOLD ME IF I DIDNT LEAVE THEY WOULD CALL THE COPS,I RESPONDED WITH "GOOD" YOU STOLE MY MONEY. I SAID I WAS NOT LEAVING UNTIL I GOT MY MONEY BACK OR SOMETHING EQUAL TO THE AMOUNT OF THE BLIZZARD($2.50),HE TOLD ME TOUGH THEY WERE KEEPING THE MONEY AND GIVING ME NOTHING WHEN I ASKED HOW HE THOUGHT THAT WAS FAIR HIS RESPONSE WAS DO YOU LIVE IN TOMAH, I SAID "NO",HE SAID WELL THATS HOW WE DO THINGS HERE.I SAID YOU MADE THE BLIZZRD WRONG,HE RESPONDED WITH THATS HOW WE MAKE THEM IN TOMAH SO IF YOU DONT LIKE IT THAN GO BACK TO LACROSSE.EXTREMELY ANGRY AT THIS POINT I CALLED THE LOCAL COPS .WHEN THE OFFICER ARRIVED HE TOLD ME THAT I WOULD HAVE TO GET AHOLD OF THE CORPORATE OFFICE HIS EXACT WORDS AT THIS POINT WERE AND I QOUTE WITH WITNESS"THE DAIRY QUEEN IN THIS TOWN SUCKS INFACT THIS WHOLE TOWN SUCKS" SLIGHTLY SHOCKED THAT AN OFFICER WOULD SAY THAT ABOUT HIS OWN TOWN,I AWS LEFT NO OTHER OPTIONS BUT TO LEAVE, AFTER DONATING MY MONEY TO THE DQ. I AM VERY DISPLEASED WITH THE SERVICE,THIS WILL NOT STOP OUR FAMILY FROM VISITING DQ WE ARE REGULARS AT OUR DQ IN ONALASKA,WI(RIGHT NEXT TO LACROSSE,WI)BUT I HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO GET AHOLD OF ANY SUCH CORPORATE OFFICE TO COMPLAIN ABOUT HTE POOR SERVICE IN TOMAH,WI . IF ANYBODY COULD ASSIST ME I WOULD GREATLY APPRECIATE THEIR HELP. EMAIL [email protected] SINCERELY,
MATT WELCH
Posted by: MATT WELCH | August 14, 2005 at 03:10 PM
How can you show the commercial that you do on TV? It is very gross and shows little respect.
First, the father could care less about feeding his baby. So what if the milk squirts all over the baby's face. He could care less. The most important thing is his hamburger from DQ. No respect from the parent.
Second, the police officer could care less about the public. It is more important for him to eat your hamburger, not pay attention to the criminal.
Now, last but not least, the doctor is going to give the patient a physical. He reaches for the patient's crouch with the fake hand. He is too busy to pay attention to the patient, his DQ hamburger is more important than his patient.
This commercia is quite gross and shows how DQ could care less for the public, only the hamburger.
I will black ball DQ forever and I will point out this commerical to all of the people I know and just talk to the public about it.
It looks like you could care less about the public, the faulgerity first.
Sincerely,
Thomas L. Manino
Posted by: Thomas L. Manino | October 03, 2005 at 10:26 PM