Whataburger

Jumpstarting the New Year for Whataburger with a Digital Campaign

Challenge

January is typically a slow month for QSR brands (and pretty much everything else). When the Texas-based company Whataburger came to Material to figure out how to overcome the January slump, it didn’t have to convince us that there’s no better way to beat the January blues than with a scrumptious burger. Our goal was to launch an engaging digital campaign that would win over occasional and disengaged guests and help both brand and customers start the new year on a tasty note. To accomplish that, we had to create custom segmentations for different customer groups based on their purchase histories. We collaborated with our technology partner Braze to overcome limitations with a POS system that initially hindered our ability to use real-time data for targeted communications.

Approach

Used order data to build segments for each audience based on set criteria.
Built a robust segmentation journey based on five segments to enable targeted messaging.
Concepted an ordering streak challenge to drive sales.
Sent out webhook offers awarding prizes and congratulating members on completing the challenge.

Outcomes

The numbers speak to the success of our strategy: Whataburger jump started the new year with a 28% digital penetration lift and a 42.5% messaging open rate. That resulted in a +25% increase in participation from occasional customers, which in turn led to millions of dollars in incremental sales. The burger brand also enjoyed a significant lift in overall digital sales for the four-week test period. What a great result for Whataburger!

We were thrilled that this highly impactful campaign was recognized with a 2023 ISG Paragon Awards North America in the Innovation category, which recognizes service providers that demonstrate “imagination and entrepreneurial spirit in helping organizations future-proof their businesses and better serve clients.”

The award reflects Material’s status as a leading digital experience and loyalty partner for the quick service restaurant (QSR) industry.