Costa Mesa-based El Pollo Loco Inc. is doing less cable TV advertising due to a decline in viewers, according to the Mexican chicken chain’s marketing director.
“Cable viewership, particularly in the greater Los Angeles market, has declined dramatically,” El Pollo Loco’s Mark Hardison said. “We’ve had a harder time finding a return on investment in cable.”
The majority of the chain’s marketing has been television advertising. El Pollo Loco spends an estimated $10 million on advertising each year.
Spending for ads on cable TV is down this year compared to a few years ago, Hardison said.
Fewer people are watching cable TV as satellite and alternative services such as AT & T; Inc.’s U-Verse and Verizon Communications Inc.’s Fios grab customers.
El Pollo Loco also has been shifting marketing to the Web, e-mail and social networking sites.
“We aren’t spending a lot of money, but we’re spending more resources posting videos on YouTube and twittering on our Twitter account,” Hardison said.
The price is right for social networking, Hardison said, but it still has its costs.
“There is no price to participate but it does take a fair amount of resources internally to keep them active,” he said.
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| Hyundai gas ad: offers buyers set gas price for a year |
Gas Pitch
Fountain Valley-based Hyundai Motor America Inc. and Brea-based American Suzuki Motor Corp. have started promotions offering free or fixed prices on gasoline for vehicle buyers.
Oil prices have been slumping of late, but many predict them to rise again in the long term. The automakers hope the gas deals will spur sales of fuel-efficient models that are part of the promotions.
Other automakers have made similar moves.
Chrysler Group LLC did its Let’s Refuel America program last year. It lured more than 17,000 buyers into dealerships.
Hyundai and Suzuki are hoping for a similar effect amid declining sales.
Hyundai, part of South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Co., is hoping its Assurance Gas Lock promotion will spur sales as did its Hyundai Assurance program, which offered buyers the ability to return their vehicles if they lost their jobs.
Hyundai’s gas price guarantee locks buyers into a year’s worth of gas estimated to 12,000 miles at $1.49 a gallon on autos purchased through August.
Most of Hyundai’s lineup is covered under the campaign excluding its luxury Genesis sedan and coupe.
The gas giveaway comes on top of other offers that have helped Hyundai boost its share of the U.S. auto market from 2.9% to 4.2% so far this year, as its sales haven’t fallen as fast as other automakers’.
Hyundai saw another drop last month versus a year earlier, declining 24%. Sales were up 3% from May.
Suzuki, which has seen a big slide in sales, is looking to give away gas for the summer for buyers of its SX4 sport utility vehicle lineup.
The Suzuki Free Gas for Summer promotion kicked off last week and is expected to run through the end of August.
Suzuki plans to give consumers a debit card for fuel purchases.
The automaker, part of Japan’s Suzuki Motor Corp., saw June sales decline 78% to 2,149 vehicles from 9,784 vehicles last year with overall sales for the year down 60%.
Taco B-Ball
Irvine-based Taco Bell Corp. is getting broadcast time and other marketing as part of its four-year deal to sponsor the National Basketball League.
The Mexican fast food chain, part of Louisville, Ky.-based Yum Brands Inc., is getting spots during basketball games on ABC, TNT and ESPN.
Taco Bell also is set to do NBA-themed promotions and ad-vertising at its 5,600 company-owned and franchised restaurants.
The chain will be the title sponsor for 2010 All-Star Saturday Night Skills Challenge and an associate sponsor of the All-Star Jam Session, events that are part of the league’s annual All-Star Game held each year in late winter.
Taco Bell also be-comes an associate partner of the NBA Draft.
The deal ends the NBA’s 20-year pact with McDonald’s Corp. Terms of the deal with Taco Bell weren’t disclosed.
Taco Bell has spent about $95 million on advertising through April of this year, excluding online, according to Nielsen Co.
The company always has been big on sports, with ads at baseball games, motor sports races, wrestling matches and extreme sports events.
Taco Bell is set to have a big presence at baseball’s All-Star Game this week.
