BY Rachel Cagle
Full-service dine-in restaurants are opening back up. So, fast-casual restaurants will be back to facing their full range of competitors. More consumers will be craving the food and experiences they couldn’t get during lockdown. How can fast-food restaurants stay competitive and top-of-mind in the post-pandemic market? A recent article by QSR Magazine recommends using out-of-home advertising.
Why Fast-Food Restaurants Should be Using Out-of-Home Advertising
Think about it for a moment. Digital ads are becoming increasingly popular and effective. However, your client’s ads are still in competition with messages from countless other companies. Their email ads get lost in cluttered inboxes. Social media ads get lost in the fray while consumers quickly scroll through the latest updates. Your fast-food restaurant client wants to invest in ads that will guarantee their brand is the sole focus. Out-of-home ads are the answer.
Out-of-home ads aren’t just billboards along the highway. There are a variety of formats to choose from, including digital billboards in crowded downtown areas, bus benches and shelters, vehicle wraps and stickers and entire wallscapes. Fast-food restaurants can use out-of-home ads wherever they want in their market in order to drive traffic to their local location.
Additionally, QSR says that 70% of fast-food consumers said that they remember seeing out-of-home ads within the last month. Why is this important? 85% of consumers who plan to eat out will choose the restaurant they’ll order from on the day they plan to dine out. With out-of-home ads, that could be your client’s fast-food restaurant.
Other Benefits of Out-of-Home Ads
Many American consumers have not gotten out much over the course of the past year. They stuck to their local bubbles and did most of their food ordering online. “People are rediscovering their surroundings post-COVID,” says QSR. “This is where big brands go bold with high-dollar campaigns blanketing key markets. But even on a smaller scale, independently owned restaurants will benefit from a brand standpoint when building a name in their community and promoting new offerings.” Out-of-home ads let consumers know that your client’s fast-food restaurant exists, as well as what it offers, even from blocks and miles away. If the images in the ad can get them craving the food your client offers, they will seek out the restaurant.
That being said, one of the most popular benefits of fast-food restaurants is that they dish out food quickly. So, when consumers see out-of-home ads for fast-food restaurants, they’re probably wanting that food in a hurry. The closer in proximity to your client’s restaurant their ads are, the more foot traffic they are likely to drive. “These should be leveraged in key places like along highways and within a close radius to their locations so consumers can find them, even if off the beaten path,” says QSR.
If your fast-food restaurant client doesn’t want to put all their eggs in the out-of-home basket, you may want to suggest a multichannel campaign. Check out the Fast Food Lovers and Fast Food Breakfast Lovers profiles on AudienceSCAN on AdMall by SalesFuel to learn what to pair with out-of-home ads for your client’s next campaign!