After a Super Bowl ad starring Andy Warhol and a Whopper deal that used geofencing technology, there’s really no limit to what Burger King will do to get the attention of customers these days. And use the new BK app.
Now the burger chain is in the subscription business. And no, it’s not for Whoppers, but for another popular BK menu item—coffee.
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On March 15, Burger King announced customers can sign up for the subscription service through the BK app. For $5 a month, subscribers can sign up for BK Café coffee subscription and get a hot cup of coffee every day. Each day customers can open the app and find the coupon for their small cup of coffee.
“We continue to leverage technology to enhance our guests experience in our restaurants,” said Chris Finazzo, president, North America, Burger King Corporation, in a statement. “We are proud to launch our own subscription service where guests can now enjoy a hot cup of coffee every day for just $5 a month.”
Burger King’s recent forays into edgy marketing tactics seem to be paying off.
At the end of 2018, same-store sales at Burger King were up by 1.7 percent compared to last year, and restaurant growth (net unit count growth) increased by 6 percent, as reported during a recent earnings call with parent company Restaurant Brands International (RBI).
The eyebrow-raising promotions, like the Whopper Detour deal, are driving these results said José Cil, RBI’s new CEO, on the February 11 call. The Detour deal translated into over 1.5 million downloads of the BK app and for a few days in a row in December, the Burger King app was the No. 1 most downloaded app in the Apple Store.
The small boost in same-store sales over the last quarter is something that the brand hopes can be sustainable in the long run. Through an innovative pipeline of products, a balanced menu structure, and strong marketing, the brand will be able to steadily increase comparable sales in the future, Cil said.
“We’re a fundamentally brand-led company, and we’ve demonstrated this through impactful, edgy marketing campaigns including the Nightmare King, the Whopper Detour, and most recently, our Eat Like Andy ad during the Super Bowl,” Cil said.
The new subscription service is just another innovative component of Burger King’s creative marketing and technology strategy.
