Analyzing the Marketing Strategy of Jollibee

McDonald’s is the most well-known fast-food restaurant in the world. McDonald’s had a 20% share in the US fast food market which is 3 times higher than its competitor, Burger King. However, Jollibee was a leading company for more than 2 decades in the Philippines. Though Jollibee was not well known globally, its four brands:  Jollibee, Delifrance, Greenwich Pizza, and Chowking dominated the Philippine market.

The reason the Marketing Strategy of Jollibee is successful is a major factor covered in this case study. Marketing is one of the most important functions of a business that engages in promotion and marketing activities such as market research and advertising for products or services; this is especially true in today’s context where marketing innovation has accelerated exponentially and adoption of these techniques can be a make or break factor for the companies.

JOLLIBEE: THE EARLY YEARS

Tony Tan Caktiong and his brothers opened two ice cream parlors in Manila in 1975. They later expanded their menu by including fast food such as burgers, sandwiches, and spaghetti. After realizing the popularity of burgers they decided to focus on fast food.

This gave birth to a new brand, “Jollibee”, giving quality food at affordable prices. The food was created by keeping in mind the Filipino palate and employing friendly and efficient employees.

Jollibee quickly gained popularity in the Philippines. Along with burgers, the restaurant also included a variety of other Filipino dishes such as the Ice Crazein buko pandan(cocunut and jelly) and maiscon yelow (sweet corn with milk and crushed ice), Other traditional Filipino breakfast rice meals and options such as the Tuna Pie and Pies-to-Go were also offered by Jollibee.

Jollibee gained popularity in all age groups because it offered food that catered to each category.

After operating for 2 decades, Jollibee Food Corporation gained a market share of 57%. While coming towards the end of 1998, Jollibee successfully planted 302 company-owned and franchised stores in the Philippines as well as 27 franchised stores around the world. 

In this case study, we will cover the Marketing Strategy of Jollibee, including its, digital presence, advertising campaigns, competitors, failed campaigns and much more. We’ll also go over the four Ps of the marketing mix. So, without further ado, let’s start by learning about Jollibee as a company.

About Jollibee

(Credit: Spot. ph)

Jollibee is a Filipino multinational fast-food restaurant chain owned by Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC). JFC had approximately 1,200 Jollibee outlets worldwide as of April 2018, with a presence in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, East Asia (Hong Kong, Macau), North America, and Europe (Italy, UK).

In 1975, Tony Tan Caktiong and his family established a Magnolia ice cream parlour in Cubao, Quezon City. Customers who requested hot meals and sandwiches were later served at the outlet. When food became more popular than ice cream, the family decided to convert the ice cream parlour into a fast-food restaurant, which became the first Jollibee outlet in 1978.

Manuel C. Lumba, a management consultant, advised the family on the change in strategy. Jollibee was originally called “Jolibe,” but the name was changed to “Jollibee.”

Its core business is the development, operation, and franchising of its quick-service restaurant brands. It serves a wide range of affordable and delicious dishes, as well as great tasting food, to customers of all ages and from all walks of life.

What is new about Jollibee?

Learn about the latest news that keeps Jollibee the talk of the town:

• Jollibee is planning to increase its coverage by opening 600 new-owned and franchised stores this year.
• The fast-food giant provides food aid to the affected families in ALBY. This was done by partnering with 2nd District Representative Joey Salceda in Bicol so that 31,000 meals could be provided to the victims of the Mayon Volcano’s outburst.
• Jollibee which made Phillipene’s food go global has been accused of exploiting their employees by terminating those who demand better wages and working conditions.
• Jollibee and Coca-Cola, who are known for serving some of the best food and beverages decided to strengthen their partnership on the occasion of celebrating Jollobee’s 45th anniversary.
• Opening Wings Alliance claims that the fast-food giant sources more than 586 million eggs in a year from factory hens that are living in very cruel conditions.

Let us now understand the target audience of Jollibee by taking a look at the buyer persona.

Buyer Personal of Jollibee

Marketing Strategy of Jollibee

Jollibee Food Corporation’s marketing strategy is attractive and highly commercialized, using various media such as TV, radio, newsprint, and more; they must have spent millions of dollars to stay on top of their customers’ minds, particularly among Filipinos.

It relies on high customer traffic and efficient operations management. It provides excellent service to the large number of people who visit its outlets by operating like a well-oiled machine that keeps close tabs on daily operations.

The Unique Selling Proposition ( U.S.P ) of the Jollibee brand is :

1) Fast, Good, Clean, Cheap food

2) Caters to local needs( Spicy patty)

3) Consistency, and reliability over all its outlets.

So, now that we’ve learned about Jollibee’s marketing strategy, let’s look at its marketing mix.

Digital Marketing Strategy that are adopted by Jollibee

Here is a list of the latest strategies that were adopted by Jollibee

1. A campaign titled, “A Message from the Future”

About

This is one of the marketing strategies of Jollibee during pandemic in which campaign tries to raise the importance of family by taking the scenario of a pandemic. This campaign narrates the story of a migrant Filopinno’s family in the United States. The film shows a harsh start but has a happy ending because the family learns to value each other more. 

The film premiered on May 16, 2021, with the aim to educate the importance of family who will always be there for each other no matter what.

Mission

Jollibee’s new campaign aims to focus on the importance of family relationships that got stronger during the time of the pandemic. This campaign shows that even during the darkest time such as the pandemic, there is always hope when you have the support of your family.

The campaign focuses on the importance of how spending more time with your family can make your relationship stronger.

Results

The audience could completely resonate with the thoughtful message portrayed in Jollibee’s marketing campaign. They were able to understand the importance of expressing gratitude to their families. 

People appreciated the efforts that Jollibee had taken. This helped the brand to re-establish a strong image in the minds of its customers.

 

2. The launch of JolliKids fun camp

About

Jollibee has launched a new summer camp for kids who were aged between 5 to 12 years. This camp named, “Jollikids Fun Camp”, is basically a half-day program that involves fun and educational activities.

The camp was recently launched on 29th July 2023 at Jollibee’s BCG Triangle Drive branch.

Mission

The objective of this camp is to create a fun and educational experience for the kids. Kids will be able to live and experience the lives of Jollibee’s crew members and create some amazing memories with them.

Results

JolliKids Fun Camp was a complete success, that had more than 10,000 participants in the first trial of the program. Beloe are some of the marketing strategies that were used to promote the event:

• The brand created a website that was completely dedicated to the camp, including all the information regarding the activities, pricing, and registration.
• A series of social media campaigns were conducted by using hashtags such as #JolliKidsFunCamp and #Jollibee
• A Traditional approach was adopted which included partnering with local media outlets such as newspapers, magazines, and radio stations.
• A contest was conducted on social media platforms encouraging the parents to win free tickets for their children.

            

3. Through Facebook and Instagram Reels and Ads

 

About

In order to promote its new chicken sandwich by using a puparl reels format, a reel was created by featuring the sound of someone taking a bite of the chicken. 

In order to launch their campaign, Jollibee worked with Mediacom. 

Jollibee wanted to use the popular Reels format to promote its new chicken sandwich. The company created a Reels ad that featured the sound of someone biting into the chicken.

With the objective of increasing the views of the video, the video ad was optimized and placed on Facebook and Instagram Reels to reach the broader audience of Filipinos aged between 20-65. The same video was targeted to the same audience for both campaigns.

Mission

Jollibee, being a well-established brand, wanted to create a good image in the minds of the younger audience.

Results

This campaign helped to increase the brand awareness metrics which include:

• There was an increase in ad recalling by 16.5 points compared to the usual video ads.
• There was an increase in ad recalling by 17.5 points for the audience of age group between 18-24.
• There was an increase in brand awareness by 3 points by reel campagins as compared to the usual video ads.
• There was an increase in mid awareness bt 2 points by reel campaign as compared to usual video ads.

Marketing Mix of Jollibee

The marketing mix refers to the four Ps of marketing: product, price, place, and promotion. However, because Jollibee is a service marketing brand, it has 3 additional Ps: People, Process, and Physical Evidence. These are the key components of marketing a product or service, and they interact strongly with one another. So, let’s look at the 7 Ps of Jollibee’s marketing mix below.

 

1. Product Strategy of Jollibee

(Source: Thrillist)

• Jollibee Foods Corporation maintains high product quality.
• Produces and sells products that are relatively simple to use.
• Its diverse portfolio enables it to reach a variety of market target groups.
• Jollibee Foods Corporation also promises that psychological needs will be met as a result of product consumption.
• The company has used various SKUs to increase market penetration.

 

2. Place Strategy of Jollibee

• Jollibee Foods Corporation has greater control over operations, as well as store layout and design, in company-operated stores.
• Successfully launched an online order placement and tracking website.
• Their products are also available in supermarkets and hypermarkets across the country.
• Jollibee Foods Corporation contracts with partner agents in other countries and markets to ensure quality control and terms of negotiation for its product placement.

 

3. Promotion Strategy of Jollibee

• Uses its social media presence to engage with customers directly.
• Customers can use the loyalty card to exchange points for products or other exciting gifts as directed by the company.
• Uses community influencers as part of its on-the-ground promotional efforts.
• Hoardings increase Jollibee Foods Corporation’s visibility while also assisting in the development of stronger brand recall.

 

4. Pricing Strategy of Jollibee

• Jollibee Foods Corporation encourages favorable brand and product perceptions in target consumer groups by using premium pricing for some of its product lines.
• It successfully adds more value to its products from the perspective of customers by employing psychological pricing.
• Geographic pricing also allows Jollibee Foods Corporation to cover shipping and customs costs for offshore locations.
• The company is also known to use a popular bundle pricing strategy for some product lines.

 

Jollibee Marketing Campaigns

Customers can learn and experience more about a company or a product through advertising strategies. These are some of the company’s actions aimed at influencing customers. Let’s take a look at Jollibee Advertising Campaigns.

• ‘Kwentong Jollibee’ Campaign

While the primary goal of the Kwentong Jollibee campaign is to “strengthen brand love and affinity” among their millennial target market, Arline Adeva, JFC brand communications head, told The Manila Times that it has also boosted sales in a big way during the launch of the new videos titled “Signs,” “Homecoming,” and “Status.”

On Facebook and YouTube, the first batch of heartfelt “Kwentong Jollibee” videos, which included “Vow,” “Crush,” and “Date,” racked up over 40 million views.

JFC global brand chief marketing officer Francis Flores declared Kwentong Jollibee to be “setting the benchmark or gold standard for digital marketing” as a result of the remarkable results.

But, more than reach and views, JFC considers interaction to be the most important factor in the campaign’s success.

• LDR Campaign

Jollibee’s 2021 Valentine’s Day campaign, LDR, was their first instalment that was released on Feb 4. The video shows how the COVID situation has created emotional and physical distance between people, but there are ways to bridge the gap, which may include delivering a burger drenched in the secret sauce of imagination and love.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AaYzV5tokG4&ab_channel=JollibeeStudios

• “First Date” Campaign

The second instalment, First Date, came out on Feb 8. The ad featuring one main character teaches everyone that it is not necessary that love comes from a partner but from the person who is looking back at you in the mirror.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9sXtUA_AXU&ab_channel=JollibeeStudios

• “First Love” Campaign

First Love, a touching story of a father and a daughter. The ad is dedicated to the man who taught her daughter what true love is, who always took care of her, who always knew how to make her daughter feel better. 

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-NihAJHN314&ab_channel=JollibeeStudios

This ad beautifully depicts how a father’s love affects daughters’ perceptions of relationships.

In a year, they publish content several times, their purpose is to make the audience feel like they are getting a hug, they are embracing themselves from inside out, coming from their heart and spreading through their fingertips, just like the feeling they get after a satisfying meal.

Let us now have a look at the digital presence of Jollibee in the coming section.

 

Jollibee Digital Presence

Consumers can easily browse through your portfolio if you have a digital presence. It allows you to interact with your customers while also putting you ahead of your competitors. Jollibee is a frequent user of social media platforms. Let’s take a sneak peek at some of them:

Facebook

• 8 Million+ Followers

Instagram

• 400 K+ Followers

Twitter

• 550 K+ Followers

Jollibee’s social media activities include:

• Launch of new products
• New advertisements
• New Campaigns
• Its achievements
• New schemes & offers

So now that we’ve peeked at their digital presence and activities, let’s take a look at Jollibee’s SWOT analysis to better understand the brand’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Top 5 Competitors of Jollibee

Below is a list of the top 5 competitors of Jillibee:

1. McDonald’s – The company offers a wide variety in their menu catering to a wide range of customer. This has helped achieve a loyal customers around the world including Philipines. Thus it is a major competitor of Jollibee.
2. Mang Inasal – The fast food chain is known for serving grilled chicken at affordable prices. Price combined with Jolibbee customer service strategy has made it popular among family and young people.
3. Chowking – It is a Filipino fast food chain that is known for delivering delicious Chinese cuisine such as noodles, dim sums, etc. at affordable prices. Their specialty in creating amazing Chinese dishes has made them popular among people.
4. Greenwich – It is a pizza chain in Filipino that offers pasta pizza dishes, and desserts. Greenwich is known for using high-quality ingredients in pizza. This company is preferred when one wants to relish casual meals with friends and family.
5. KFC – It is a global fast food chain that is known for its fried crispy chicken and its signature sauces. It is a popular choice among people who are craving a quick and affordable meal.

 

How to create a better campaign?

Creating more unique campaigns

Jollibee can launch a campaign that celebrates Filipinos, by creating stories that show how this campaign has been a source of comfort during bad times and how their food has got people together. The campaign can also be used to place focus on the Filipino ingredients and the unique flavors they produce.

Work on making them engaging

Jollibee can make its campaign more engaging by including humor or music in the campaign. For instance, they can explain the challenges of being a Filipino by creating some funny videos or creating a song that highlights the importance of a family. The companies can also feature some famous celebrities in their campaigns.

Promotion using Social Media

Jollibee can launch various campaigns on social media platforms by posting videos, photos, and stories showing the Filipino experience, or can also run contests to interact and engage with its followers.

Promotions through other channels

Along with social media, Jollibee can also run promotional campaigns by resorting to traditional channels such as  TV and print advertisements. 

Jollibee should focus on creating a campaign that highlights the Filipino experience so that the target audience can have a memorable experience. This will help Jollibee to establish a strong brand image as the company encourages the audience to be proud of its country’s heritage.

 

Traditional Marketing Campaign

By using traditional marketing strategies, Jollibee has successfully become the largest fast-food chain in the Philippines.

The company’s marketing strategy is built on the following pillars.

• Family: Jollibee has always created campaigns that cater to all the members of the campaigns which feature children and families relishing their food together.

• Reasonable:  Jollibee offers food at a very affordable price which makes it very popular among a larger section of the target audience.
• Filipino Culture:  Jollibee has always highlighted Filipino culture in its marketing campaigns. For instance, the Jollibee’s logo presents a bee that is dressed up in Filipino traditional costume, the barong tagalog.
• Humor: The company includes humor in its campaigns to connect with its target audience. For example, one of Jollibee’s most popular commercials showcases a group of children who use different ways to pronounce the name, “Jollibee”.
• Celebrity Endorsements: Jollibee works with celebrities to endorse their products. This helps to boost the brand’s popularity and expand its reach.

•  

Below are examples of how Jollibee has used the 4 Ps in its marketing strategy:

Product:   The company has introduced a number of new items in its menu such as the Yumburger with Chees, the Chickenwich, and the Mango Float. Along with this the brand is also partnered with popular celebrities to introduce and promote their new products in the market.

Price:  Jollibee is consistent in offering discounts and promotions to lure new customers. For instance, the brand uses many times the buy-one-get-one deals to promote and sell its most popular menu items.

Place: Jollibee has started opening up new stores in recent years, some in different locations of the Philippines and some in other countries. The brand is increasingly focusing on establishing a good e-commerce platform to make it easier for customers to order food online.

Promotion: Jollibee leverages a variety of promotional channels to ensure maximum reach to its target audience. The brand has created a strong presence on social media platforms, as well as partnered with Filipino celebrities to promote its products and services.

Failed campaign of Jollibee

Issue: The quality of food offered was inferior.

Backlash:  Jollibee faces a Backlash after its customer received a Deep Fried Towel instead of a Fried Chicken

What happened: A customer Alique Perez placed an order for chicken from Jollibee in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, Philippines. While trying to open the chichen, the chicken was so hard that when opened, turned out to be a deep-fried towel. After having such a disgusting experience, she shared the incident on Facebook, where it quickly went viral

How did the brand respond: Jollibee apologized for its mistake and closed the store for three days to investigate this incident and take strict action against the staff involved.

Jollibee declared that it will continue to produce high-quality food as it has been doing over the years.  

This incident has triggered dissatisfaction amongst Jollibee’s customers. People are no longer confident when it comes to the safety measures taken by the company. Jollibee will have to work really hard in order to instill trust and confidence amongst its customers.

 

The Jollibee brand has been able to stay at the top of its game thanks to an excellent marketing mix and strategy, advertising campaigns, digital presence, and SWOT analysis, and with this, we have concluded the Jollibee case study. 

Conclusion

To summarise, Jollibee is the market leader in the Philippines. It has been able to influence its home-based position to the top by incorporating basic global tactics, excellent service, a friendly atmosphere, and an enticing menu. Apart from this, Jollibee supported many social causes in the Philippines. It is quite active on social media. It has grown to be so well-loved that whenever a new store is opened, especially overseas, Filipinos form long queues to the store without fail. 

Want to learn how you can create such strategies? Their are many Online Digital Marketing Courses in India where you will be trained to make such digital marketing campaigns.

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