Today’s unsuspecting brand, by request, isssss Taco Bell!

Love it or hate it, we all know Taco Bell.

Yep, the fast food restaurant who has been accused of serving genetically engineered corn not approved for human consumption, lettuce littered with E. Coli, AND “beef” that was 35% meat not meeting the US Department of Agriculture standard…who’s still in business.

Hear me out…despite all of that—I would categorize Taco Bell as a lifestyle brand. And here’s why…let’s take it back to the 90s…ahh, the good ole days.

Tagline Transformation & Repetition

Their tagline back then was “Spice Up the Night,” which told consumers that they were the place to go after the sun set…which kind of isn’t great messaging, in my humble opinion. That slogan didn’t last terribly long, I am guessing probably for that reason…

The tagline they used just after that was the Chihuahua who said, “Yo quiero Taco Bell.” Tell me you remember that…I was just five when this tagline was introduced and I vividly remember that little dog saying that phrase over and over and over again. This goes to show—repetition is key. And it doesn’t hurt if it’s catchy!

Lifestyle Branding

Now, remember that “Spice Up the Night” pushed consumers to only purchase at one time of day—after the sun set when they’re three sheets to the wind. Well, instead of narrowing the consumers’ purchase window, instead Taco Bell introduced the “fourth meal” campaign, which is genius because it adds a meal to the typical three-meal regimen. This concept of fourth meal is a meal that occurs between midnight and 4am. Fourth meal was introduced some time between 2006 and 2012, then the breakfast menu was introduced in 2014…now making them contenders in a whole new market and serving not only THREE meals, but FOUR and creating a whole new LIFESTYLE!

Fan Favorite Offerings

Okay, now, switching gears to fan favorites. Look, it was a sad day in my household when they took the Mexican Pizza off the menu. Once they announced the day it was coming back, I counted down the days…and then realized they only rolled it out in select stores. And I was devastated when Bardstown, Kentucky was not one of those. But look—they have created an entire business and brand around certain “all-star” menu offerings: Mexican pizza, Doritos Los Tacos, Baja Blast, Crunchwrap Supreme. These products have a crazy following and keep customers loyally coming back for me, despite the E. Coli and 35% meat beef.

Tangible Takeaways

Now let’s talk about how you can take these strategies from a BIG brand and apply them to YOUR small business:

1. Repetition. Repetition. Repetition. Use your tagline, your brand phrases, brand words over and over and over again. It will become familiar to your customers and potential customers, which warms them up to purchasing from you.
2. Introduce a concept that is brand unique. This “fourth meal” idea is a UVP or unique value proposition. It’s something Taco Bell can fulfill that no other fast food restaurant can. What is YOUR version of the “fourth meal”?
3. Look at your most purchased products or services. Poll your customers on WHY those are the favorites. Then make them even better. Use that knowledge to guide your future product/service offerings.

Alright, now that we have dove into a HUGE, 61-year-old brand, I’m not sure what you’re waiting on—but it’s high time you get out there and grow.

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If this peaks your interest and you want to grow your brand, but aren’t sure where to start, you should get a baseline by performing an audit on your business and brand using the Brand Audit Checklist! You can download that here.

If you know you are ready to dive in and want to book a complimentary consult call to see if we could work together to develop your brand, let’s do it! The link to schedule that call is here.