How to Give Away a Million Burgers with Mobile Coupons

Recently, the fast food chain Jack in the Box announced it was giving away one million of its new double-stacked, buttery-bun hamburgers. The “Declaration of Delicious” giveaway announcement came in the form of a Superbowl 50 commercial, and was designed to promote the restaurant chain’s new menu. 

Coupon Fun … And Fraud?

Consumers had one week to claim their free burgers. Doing so required making a visit to the Jack in the Box website and signing up to receive a mobile coupon for a free Double Jack or Jumbo Jack burger. 

However, coupon fraud is an issue that isn’t going away anytime soon, so how was it possible for one of the biggest burger chains in the United States to give away one million burgers without more than a few people claiming more than a few coupons? 

The Mobile Coupon Solution

In the old days, print coupons would have made the Jack in the Box giveaway a prime target for fraud. Today’s mobile coupons have all but eradicated the issue, with Jack in the Box combining online and offline tools to sidestep fraud-related problems. The restaurant chain sent redeemable codes over text or email to those who signed up to receive the coupon; the codes featured expiration dates. Guests had to either bring the printed versions of the online coupon to the restaurant, or show the codes to a staff member on a mobile device. 

What Consumers Preferred

Unsurprisingly, guests overwhelmingly favored the mobile version of the Jack in the Box coupons. Research by CodeBroker noted 70 percent to 80 percent of emailed coupons are viewed on mobile phones, while 20 percent to 30 percent of said coupons get printed. Overall, pulling up a coupon code is considered to be much easier than taking the time to print it.

In terms of email and SMS, consumers generally prefer receiving coupon codes via SMS. The percentage of those who indicate SMS as their favored methods for receiving deals and discounts has continued to rise over the past few years, something that’s very likely to continue. 

A Few Suggestions

The Jack in the Box promotion offers several lessons for marketers looking to refine their mobile tactics. For example, it’s been suggested that the restaurant chain emphasized its mobile app as a means of obtaining mobile coupons directly, as higher redemption rates come from app coupons, according to CodeBroker. Another suggestion marketers might consider for their own mobile marketing campaigns is one-time-use coupons at checkout. Generic promo codes generally result in more fraud.

Jack in the Box also missed a golden opportunity to collect information on consumer behavior throughout its burger campaign, starting with issuance and followed by redemption, location, and expiration. One-time-use coupons provide the chance to collect such analytics, and allow for tailored demographic segmentation and new campaign re-targeting. 

What’s the moral of this mobile marketing story? Jack in the Box did a fine job with its mobile marketing campaign, but failed to capitalize on a few key avenues. Mobile marketers would do well to fill in these holes in their own efforts.