Marketing & Growth Articles

Chick-fil-A at 80: Inside the Biggest Marketing Push in the Chain's History

Chick-fil-A is marking its 80th anniversary with a yearlong campaign the company calls the biggest promotional push in its history. Behind the retro cups and Golden Fan Cups lies a calculated strategy to defend its position as McDonald's most dangerous competitor while addressing its first growth deceleration in over a decade.

The CEO Burger War: How a Viral Video Turned Into Fast Food's Biggest Marketing Moment

McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski posted a promotional video for the new Big Arch that promptly went viral for all the wrong reasons. What happened next became a masterclass in competitive marketing opportunism, and somehow the burger still beat sales expectations.

Burger King Fires Its Mascot, Admits Past Failures, and Bets $700 Million on a Brand Reset

QSR Customer Loyalty: What Actually Drives Repeat Visits

Beyond apps and points. Research-backed insights on convenience, consistency, value perception, and why most loyalty programs miss the mark.

How TikTok is Changing QSR Marketing

Menu hacks going viral, employee content, the algorithm's impact on sales. Real case studies of what drives revenue and what flops on TikTok in QSR.

How Wendy's Won Twitter and What Other QSR Brands Can Learn

The snarky social media strategy that turned Wendy's into a Twitter powerhouse. Real engagement numbers, failed copycats, and the disciplined execution behind the roasts.

QSR Social Media Marketing Playbook 2026

What's working on TikTok, Instagram, and Twitter for fast food brands in 2026. Viral campaigns, UGC strategies, influencer partnerships, and the tactics driving real sales.

QSR Loyalty Program Rankings 2026: Which Programs Actually Drive Repeat Visits

Taco Bell loyalty members visit 76% more often. Starbucks Rewards hit 68% positive sentiment. McDonald's app wins on simplicity. Chick-fil-A uses tiers for premium customers. Wendy's confuses everyone. Chipotle frustrates with slow accumulation. Here's what separates programs that drive repeat business from those that sit unused on phones.

Geofencing and Location-Based Marketing: How QSR Brands Are Driving Foot Traffic in 2026

From competitive conquesting to predictive targeting, proximity-based promotions are becoming a core QSR marketing strategy

QSR Loyalty Programs That Actually Work

McDonald's loyalty participation jumped 18% in Q3 2025, driving 12% digital sales growth. Chick-fil-A One members show significantly higher retention rates. Starbucks Rewards generates billions in prepaid float. The economics of points vs cash-back, what drives repeat visits, and why the best programs focus on retention over acquisition.

Limited-Time Offers: The High-Stakes Game Driving QSR Traffic

McDonald's $5 Meal Deal drove immediate foot traffic spikes. Starbucks saw similar lifts. The pattern is clear: LTOs work. But are they driving profitable traffic, or has the industry created an addiction it can't escape?

QSR Sustainability Initiatives: Greenwashing vs Real Progress

McDonald's pledged 100% renewable packaging by 2025. Sounds ambitious. But 'renewable' can mean almost anything. This is the sustainability challenge in QSR: big commitments, vague metrics, and real progress buried under layers of marketing.

Gen Z's QSR Spending Doubled in 18 Months. Here's What Changed.

Between Q4 2024 and Q2 2026, Gen Z's share of QSR transactions jumped from 18% to 34%. This isn't about TikTok menus—it's about refusing to tolerate friction.

QSR Catering for Corporate Events: A $50B Untapped Market

Why B2B catering represents the industry's biggest growth opportunity

Why Five Guys Charges $18 for a Burger and Fries - And Why Customers Keep Paying

Five Guys has become a lightning rod for fast food sticker shock. But the pricing isn't accidental — it's the entire business model.

The Psychology of QSR Branding: Why Some Chains Feel Premium and Others Don't

An analysis of the subtle and not-so-subtle brand signals that determine whether customers perceive a QSR as premium, value-focused, or somewhere in between, and what operators can learn from these psychological mechanisms.

QSR Loyalty Programs Ranked: Which Chains Are Winning the Rewards War?

A comprehensive analysis of the most successful QSR loyalty programs, comparing earning rates, redemption value, app experience, and actual customer behavior data to reveal which chains deliver the best rewards.