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September 16, 2014

Delucchi Plus’ First Brand Voice All Star: Denny’s!

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Welcome to Delucchi Plus’ new feature: Brand Voice All Stars! As brand identity fanatics, we love giving kudos to brands that really “get it” in terms of speaking to their audiences. Once a month, we’ll feature a spotlight for a brand that really kills it. In successful branding, brand voice is:

  • Original, unique to the brand

  • Aligns with the brand’s mission, vision and target audience

  • Strategically employed to gain and retain key audiences

Our first Brand Voice All Star is a tone of voice trailblazer, and one of the first brands to successfully leverage internet and meme culture. Congratulations, Denny’s Twitter Feed, @DennysDiner!

Denny’s zany, culturally relevant tweets have resulted in massive success: According to a Marketing Land interview with Kevin Percer, senior vice president at digital agency Erwin Penland and head of Denny’s social media strategy, in the past twelve months Denny’s has increased its Tumblr audience by 253 percent and upped its Twitter audience by 132 percent to nearly 95,000 followers.

Denny’s is turning its its not-so-hot reputation into opportunity for brand allegiance. This breakfast mainstay has a reputation as a roadside pariah, a diner only patronized on grim road trips and only out of utter necessity. However, you wouldn’t know it from its Twitter account: Instead of trying to falsify a sterling reputation and bore the world with a string of vaguely pleasant tweets, Denny’s is leveraging its accessibility by tapping into internet meme culture and the trend of “newsjacking.”

1. Internet meme culture

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Reminding the world of the simple pleasure of pancakes and bacon makes people remember that you don’t always need designer brunch. Sometimes a simple platter of eggs, bacon and pancakes is all you need, and for only $5.99, what’s not to love? By weighing in on national holidays, popular songs, and meme culture in a funny, entertaining way, Denny’s is incentivizing followers to stay tuned.

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2. “Newsjacking”

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Newsjacking is defined is weighing in  on breaking news via social media in order to garner coverage. Some of the most beloved tweets are born from the comic instinct to mock canned “news report” tweets. For instance, when Apple announced its acquisition of Beats by Dr. Dre in May 2014, the following tweet went so viral that Mashable published an article about it. Talk about buzz!

9.16 denny s Apple Beats Tweet is a Grand Slam

Denny’s social media presence is successful because as a brand, it mimics how individuals use social media. A lot of people don’t think brands have a place in social media, and oftentimes brand presence is mocked. Denny’s has successfully circumvented this, and in doing so, won the hearts of breakfast and social media lovers everywhere. Many marketers are quick to point out that social media success does not always impact brand’s bottom lines. However, in this case, it seems to be having a demonstrable effect: Last spring, Denny’s reported its strongest same-store sales growth in seven years. 

Well done, Denny’s!