Saturday, August 19, 2006

Arbys Online Marketing & Store Contests Suck

It's been a long time since I've gone off on someone or some company that has rubbed me the wrong way so please excuse my lack of objectivity. Today I took Piper and Finley to Arby's to pick up some food for lunch. The choice of Arbys over McDonalds was due to the fact that Shannon had a huge sheet full of Arbys coupons and I had McDonalds two days ago so I figured a change of pace would be good.

That's where Arbys it all started... the lack of integrity & real value in Arbys marketing plan. I assumed that because there was a page full of coupons, I'd actually be able to get a great price on a meal for myself, Shannon and the girls and I'd save some money... hah, boy was I wrong. After reviewing the coupons in the car while I was sitting in line, I realized that I didn't want 5 roast beef sandwiches (there was a coupon for 5 of them for $6), I would need a drink with my meal and with the girls' meals (no meal coupons were in there), and even the coupons for fries were for a small size (who orders small fries)!

You see, Arby's knows you're going to see this list of coupons and decide to go there instead of McDonalds or Burger King because everyone chooses those two fast food restaurants over Arbys. I am certain they purposely put these lame, invaluable, coupons in the weekly newspaper because they know you'll want a change of pace in your daily junkfood / fastfood diet and there's a good chance you'll choose them... without ever really looking at the coupons. So they get you to their restaurant and you order something off of the normal menu because there aren't any coupons that will meet your needs.

Part II of Arby's Ruthless Marketing Plot
After I ordered 4 meals at full price I see that they're having a contest of some sort. They've attached pull off tickets on every super duper large cup and you peel the tickets off in order to see if you won... or so you think!

What actually ends up happening after you pull the ticket off of the cup is you realize they're asking you to enter your code online to see if you won!!!

Are you kidding me? This has to be a joke right! Of course, at this point I'm pretty ticked off and that's why I'm getting upset (aka losing objectivity) because the truth of the matter is that this kind of marketing happens all the time. It's just like the mail-in rebates that I let lure me into Circuit City or Best Buy, only to lose a week later. Businesses are based on the people that don't follow through with mailing stuff in or with going online to enter their code and see if they won a free song from Yahoo! Music.

But Wait There's More
At this point I knew it was only going to get worse but I had also already decided I was going to rant about Arbys deceitful marketing on my blog anyway... Yes I did it, I went online and tried to enter my contest codes.

Then I realized they required me to register, just to enter a coupon code for a lousy song on Yahoo. But again, at this point I'm in it for market research cause I knew it was going to get ugly. So I registered using a fake name, my brother's cell phone, and my real zip code.

First You Register, Then They Collect Your DNA
Well they don't collect your dna but you can't log into Arbys.com and enter your contest codes until you fill out a survey regarding the frequency of your visits to fast food restaurants and your favorite delicasy on Arby's menu. No, I'm not kidding, they actually get you to fill out a survey, just for the chance to win a prize that's worth $1. Does anybody actually do this stuff?

But Wait, It Gets Even Better
Of course I didn't read the official contest rules because there was no need to do that. I mean, why would I need to read a 10 page document that tells me about how they're going to require a ton of data from me and that I would win nothing for prividing this valuable market research?!

So I finally enter the code off of my cup (remember I had two contest codes to enter because Shannon had a drink too) and it tells me I've won but that they'd email the details to me...

Ha ha ha, of course they're doing this to validate my email address (helps thwart spam attempts and gives them the ability to double-opt you into their email address without you realizing it. Of course it also ensures you put a valid email address in your registration form... Thank goodness for GMail ;)

So after it tells me I won I decided to enter the second contest code. Then I was informed that I am only eligible to enter a single coupon code in any given day. What kind of sense does that make? I mean, that's like saying I'm only allowed to purchase one meal from them per day. At this point I'm feeling that their contest and entire marketing plan was even more ruthless and one-sided than any company I've ever purchased something from previously.

Final Thoughts - Arbys Boycott
Honestly, I'm not going to redeem the first song I won, nor will I enter the code for the second cup.

Here are the emails Arby's sent me. The first was for registering online and the second is telling me how to redeem my song. What a racket!

"Hey Sixty!

Thanks for taking the time to create/update your profile! It's nice to know we've got people like you thinking Arby's.

If you need to update your profile in the future, feel free to do so by clicking the link below."

Arby's Music Contest Email Telling Me I Won

"****************
Congratulations!
****************

You're the winner of one Yahoo! Music song download. To redeem your song just log onto to Yahoo! Music and enter the following code:
Yahoo music >> http://www.arbysmusic.com/_CT/
A.1022.14270.1922.962314033
Yahoo download code >>
CGPQKKAHKCPGNHS2

In order to download a song your system must meet these requirements:

• Microsoft Windows XP or 2000
• Internet Explorer 6.0+
• Windows Media Player 9.0 or higher
• Pentium III 300 MHz processor
• 128MB RAM
• Broadband connection for streaming and
buying music
• Latest Windows Service Packs


Don't forget to keep collecting game pieces from 44 oz drinks at Arby's for more chances to win!
http://www.arbymusic.com/


Thanks.


***************************
This email message advertisement was forwarded to you from the servers at www.arbys.com on behalf of and at the request of the sender while participating in the "Instant Win Sweepstakes" section of the Arby's website. Any information collected by Arby's in connection with the forwarding of this email was for a one-time use and was not retained by Arby's Company. Arby's does not participate in unsolicited email.

If you have any question you can contact us at:

Arby's Support Center
Arby's Restaurant Group, Inc., 9th Floor
1155 Perimeter Center West
Atlanta, GA 30338
1-800-487-2729"

Posted By Jason Dowdell at 04:33 PM
Permanent Link: Arbys Online Marketing & Store Contests Suck | Comments (24)

(24) Comments on Arbys Online Marketing & Store Contests Suck

Any 20 oz soda does the exact same shit... boycott

Comments by Capt Obvious : Saturday, August 19, 2006 at 06:54 PM

44oz drinks? My kidneys hurt thinking about that much soda.

The whole thing is poorly thought out. They deserve your ire.

Comments by Kevin Dugan : Saturday, August 19, 2006 at 08:47 PM

Yeah, I wasn't expecting the 'OL 44Ouncer soda. I think I drank about 4 oz of it.

Isn't it amazing though, how this kind of marketing has become the norm? I mean, I think every person living in America with common sense knows they're not going to get anything from Corporate America for free.

I firmly believe Corporate America needs to take a step back and learn from the most successful online companies & influencers. They'd realize that you have to give something away that's worth value (doesn't have to be physical) and that you have to connect with your customer, not leach off of them.

Comments by Jason : Sunday, August 20, 2006 at 08:45 AM

So, I decided to claim your free song. I mean, I didn't want all your hard work to be in vain and my computer did meet all the specs.

I go to the Web site specified and the annoying-ness just continues.

TO REDEEM YOUR FREE SONG, JUST FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS BELOW: Get the free Yahoo! Music Jukebox and then begin exploring for your free download. Less than one minute on broadband; registration and credit card are NOT required.

Yep, you've made it this far, now you have to download some otherwise-useless software so that you can get that $1.00 prize.

Um, no thanks. Can this promotion possibly be any more customer-hostile?

If you successfully download the song, perhaps someone from Arby's follows up by coming to your house and punching you in the nose?

Comments by annulla : Monday, August 21, 2006 at 01:54 PM

Are you hoping for the same response Chainsaw got when Mr. Shoop encouraged him to write that letter of complaint to the sunglasses company? A big box of roast beef?

Comments by Brent Brandow : Tuesday, August 22, 2006 at 02:39 PM

No, actually I'm just being a responsible netizen and trying to keep big business in check.

Comments by Jason : Tuesday, August 22, 2006 at 02:41 PM

well if you end up getting a big box of roast beef...hook me up:-)

Comments by Brent Brandow : Tuesday, August 22, 2006 at 05:52 PM

The Pepsi promotions have really got me upset. They used to give you a "buy one get one free" cap under every 6th or 12th bottle cap depending on the promo. Now it seems they have gone almost completely to the online "enter your code" junk that you talked about. One note about the so called free song you won... It probably is copy protected and you will only be able to listen to it via that particular software only, with no chance of burning it to a CD. WOW that's quite a deal for a 44oz drink that was already marked up approx 400% of what the syrup cost to make that drink. At least it was that high a few years ago when I worked in the food industry.

Comments by Matt S : Tuesday, August 22, 2006 at 09:04 PM

hmmm, the purpose of a system is what it does...

1. Customer alienation
2. Prove to Arby's management that on-line marketing is crap ('cos of the low response rate to their supremely well thought out campaign)
3. Short term gain in customers coming through the door - followed by less than ever?
4. They had a warehouse full of roast beef about ready to expire so they needed to shift some inventory - and fast!

Any other suggestions?

Comments by grasshoppermind : Wednesday, August 23, 2006 at 12:14 PM

You know that there is an Arby's in Warrensburg, Missouri & I found both McDonald's & Arby's very good food choices. We ate there weekly & found real good deals at Arby's. McDonalds had Specials, Free Coffee & handed out Free Coupons for Breakfast, too. No Complaint here. We went to Missouri and found it friendly people. Some people are never HAPPY. They wake up Miserable!

Comments by Paul : Thursday, August 24, 2006 at 12:52 PM

I think it sucks that you have to use a computer to play these contests. A majority of people do not own or do not know how to use a computer. So it is discrimatory. Thanks for allowing me to air my opinion.

Comments by Edward Nelson, Jr : Tuesday, September 19, 2006 at 12:12 AM

i have been going to the pekin il arbys for years they are kind and friendly great place to eat food is very good i have not had a bad experience great job arbys hats off to ms stoneburner she does agreat job.

Comments by sherry evans : Tuesday, September 26, 2006 at 08:57 AM

Arby's advertising sucks.
Their present ad connotes that people are stupid and cannot even think or reason if they are thinking about Arby's. Maybe their next ad will have people walking of cliffs or some other stupid thing that would kill them just to get their Arby's food.

You would think that they might want to make people think that eating at Arby's would make them smarter not stupid.

Comments by Robert Hill : Sunday, October 15, 2006 at 01:50 AM

the arbys contest where you win a free download sucks. it wont allow you to enter the code. arbys can go to hell.

Comments by mike h : Tuesday, October 17, 2006 at 06:55 PM

me and my family was at arby's on 9-10-06 at 730 at night when we went to the arby's in front of walmarts in alexander city ala.
1) it taken seventeen mins. to get to the window to get my food
2) when i got there it still taken nine mins. to pay then another eights mins to get my food.
since i was from out of town i went back to the hotel room.
when i got back i went to eat my sandwich . i was wrong. not what i order.
i called back the manager said that the only cash register wasn't working and with addition to this he stated that he did not have time to listen to me. the manager stated if you want another you can go by your arby's in lagranger ga. i (manager)will call then.
when i went by arby's they
1) did not know what i was talking about
2) they do not call other stores to do this.
to the owners of this store in atanta ga. you have showed me and others that we are not there to serve you but we give you what we want you to have. like an old saying " put that shit in your mouth and you enjoy it.

Comments by steven k. preston : Thursday, October 19, 2006 at 10:06 AM

I had to comment on this one..I have worked at arby's for too long now and today I was told to "lie" to a customer if they asked me what my favorite sandwich is? I will not lie to anyone for marketing purposes and the mighty dollar. This company has been going down hill for so long now and this is pathetic.They used to care about the employees/customers but now it's all about the money!

Comments by alana : Wednesday, January 17, 2007 at 01:07 PM

As an Arby's Employee, I am shocked to see people commenting this way. At our store, we are always happy and upbeat. I have only had a few real complaints in the two years I have worked at my Arby's store. Many people don't mind that they have to wait, especially because at our store, we focus more on Fresh Food. We drop most of our Fried products to order, and all sandwiches are made to order. The coupons are a great deal, especially our new special, the Pick 5. I have talked to a few people about that special and they prefer it over any value menu at any other fast food chain. I can't see how you can single out Arby's with the Online Marketing, when the majority of contests are now ran in that form. We are also re-inventing and introducing new items almost monthly to keep a fresh taste.

Comments by Schuyler : Monday, May 07, 2007 at 02:52 AM

It really dosn't matter much to me. I only get by there every four or five years or so. Their cardboard flavored roast beef is not that tantilizing......

Comments by Richard C Woodworth : Friday, October 05, 2007 at 01:07 PM

As a 13yr Arby's veteran at #870 and with 40 yrs in the restaurant business I've learned you cannot satisfy every guest. You can bend over backwards and it still wouldn't do any good with some. As for coupons they are great for multiple orders and Arby's has always been an upstanding company to be employed by. Those that are unhappy are more than likely unhappy with life itself. Had it not been for my disability I would still be there training new hires and taking care of all the guest like I'd want to be treated. Thank you Arby's, ARG.

Comments by Darlene Paul : Tuesday, October 09, 2007 at 11:03 AM

This has nothing to due with the marketing aspect of Arby's. I just wanted to share the lack of service Arby's has and help advertise the real Arby's aspect of customer service! THERE ARE TONS OF RESTAURANTS THAT OFFER A REAL ROAST BEEF SANDWICH WITHOUT MOLD AND DO GIVE YOU THE FOOD YOU PAY FOR VS. FORGETTING IT AFTER YOU WAIT 10 MINUTES FOR MOLDY FOOD!!! Here's the response from Arby's...Hello Melissa,

"My name is Mario Milianti; I’m an Area Director for Miracle Restaurant Group, a franchisee of Arby’s. I’m emailing you in regards to the poor guest service and poor food quality you were given at our McHenry location on 10/3/07; I want to apologize to you and to let you know that I will be addressing this issue with the General manager of the restaurant, I take these matters very seriously and steps will be taken so that hopefully this issue doesn’t happen again. I want to thank you for bringing this matter to my attention so that I have the opportunity to fix it; I do have your mailing address and will be mailing you some complimentary combo meal cards for you to use at an Arby’s of your choice, again I’m very sorry that this happened and if you would like to discuss this matter further I can be reached at 847-971-6244." SO HOPEFULLY THIS ISSUE DOESN'T HAPPEN- not too confident there are we. Maybe mold is a new spice other fast food restaurants don't offer.
HERE'S MY REPLY- "Hello,
I appreciate your response but to be honest I was expecting to have this issue resolved with just contacting the restaurant directly and not having to waste time reporting the issue this way. Since I had a bad experience that can't be resolved, I won't eat at another Arby's again and I'll be happy to share my experience with friends, and family who don't already know. The fact that I paid for food I didn't receive, and didn't receive a receipt, only entitles me to receive food vouchers(?) This shows a lack of customer service to me. Maybe that's why you don't see that many Arby's restaurants anymore. Most restaurants now will actually pay you $5 if you do not receive a receipt that shows they are confident they will provide the right service. Then there's Arby's who won't refund money that they shouldn't even have. Even if it was $.50 it shows you don't care about your customers. Even if you would offer to refund my money now I would just say keep it, as obviously you need it more than me. I also just wanted to clarify that I am not directing my anger towards you personally, it's just odd that the smallest thing to resolve my problem won't be done."

Comments by Melissa : Thursday, October 11, 2007 at 11:51 PM

I just typed in Arby's sucks on Google and found this website because I just went to Arby's and frankly, It sucked. I don't eat lunch out much and thought I would try a Toasted sub. Maybe I didn't take the time to sit in line and read the menu but I got the impression that I would pay $5.49 for a Italian Toasted sub combo. Well, the cost for the fries and drink total was $8.90! For a drive through lunch combo! I didn't even get the kind of fries I wanted and the receipt was not detailed so I could dwell over my expensive lunch! Where do they get off charging so much for a sub, curly fries that were too burnt to eat and a Pepsi!

Comments by Lauren : Monday, November 19, 2007 at 12:03 PM

I also just found this website through Google and felt it necessary to post my distaste for Arby's. My biggest complaint is their complete contempt they have toward their customers, particularly here in Canada. And unfortunately, they also follow the Canadian Business mould of spit on the customer as no matter how poorly we treat them, there will always be suckers who will patronise us, no matter what. Well, here is my story and why it will be a cold day in H*ll before I ever patronise any Arby's. On Arby's website this year (2007), they advertised a promotion called "Matt's Mondays". Basically, if NASCAR driver Matt Kenseth won a race on the previous weekend, whether it was in his Arby's sponsored Busch Series car or not, Arby's was offering one free order of curly fries with a coupon that you had to print off their website. Now, admittedly, I guess I should have known that this was only intended for the U.S. Market. After all, the managers and employees at any Canadian Arby's are totally unaware that their company is even involved in this particular sport. Can you imagine! They work for a company and have no idea about anything their company is involved in! Anyway, this past Monday evening (November 19th), I printed out my coupon and took it to the Arby's located at the Limeridge Mall in Hamilton, Ontario. As soon as the young man and young lady who were working there saw me with the coupon, they immediately told me, without even letting me ask if they would honour this coupon, that their manager gave them specific instructions not to accept any U.S. coupons that day, and if anyone tried to use one, to tell them to go away! Well, just to let you know, I wasn't only going to get the curly fries, but I was going to order two full combos! Then the young lady who was working there told me that if I didn't leave, she would call the Mall security on me! I didn't even get a chance to ask and they attacked me this way! I didn't say a word and just left, though not before going to another fast-food outlet (Harvey's) and ordering combos that they had to offer. While waiting for my order there, the young lady working there and I started talking and she noticed something. I was wearing an Arby's Racing tee shirt. She asked me about it and I told her about what had just happened over at the Arby's there, and she couldn't believe what I told her. She said that there was no way they would ever treat a customer like that!

Anyway, that evening, I did register a complaint with Arby's through their website, but as of today (November 22nd), I still have not heard a response from them. And I don't expect one. They just don't care! Well, neither do I! I don't care if I ever go to an Arby's ever again, especially that one!

Comments by Ken : Thursday, November 22, 2007 at 08:34 PM

DEAR ARBY'S MANGER HI MY NAME IS LATIA FLOWERS AND I WAS REALLY INTERSTED IM WORKING FOR YOU GUYS. I REALLY WANT TO BECOME A CHASHIER THE REASON I WANT TO BE A CHASHIER IS BECAUSE IM GOOD AT WORKING WITH MONEY. I HAVE GOOD SKILLS I GET ALONE WITH OTHERS AND I RESPECT OTHERS TOO. I FILLED OUT AN APPLICATIONS FOR YOU GUYS AND TURNED IT IN AND IM WAITING TO HEAR FROM YOU I HOPE TO HEAR FROM YOU SOON ON SOME GOOD NEWS LATIA FLOWERS

Comments by LATIA FLOWERS : Friday, December 14, 2007 at 01:19 PM

Ok, I am an Arby's veteran of about 6 years now. I was also an employee about 9 years ago when my store was owned by a franchisee. I'll post two environments, and which one do you think is better? I work at unit 1119 in Warren, Ohio.

As I stated before, 2004 we were a francised unit. Our core values were solely aimed at customer satisfaction. We replaced orders without a reciept!!!! So you can knock all franchised Arby's. They are actually privately owned and operated by contract through ARG.(Arby's Restruant Group). Our employees even got cash bonuses for good service report from "secret shoppers." Our family members were allowed to come in and get our 50% employee discount, if they came in while we were on shift.

ARG bought our franchise out in 2004, formerly the Arby's name was owned by a company called Tri-Arc. Since the hostile takeover, all of RTM's upper management have been phased out. We have lost our discount privileges to once a day, and we can only order one sandwich, a curly fry or potatoe cake, and a soft drink. We can't even order Large size items on that. Our prices go up by $.10-.20 cents an item EVERY 3 months. My district manager told me not to discount a customers order one day, because it took extra time in the drive-thru to re-ring the order to save him some money. Our prices are RIDICULOUS. People only bring coupons in because they CAN'T afford our normal prices. Come on it cost 2 bucks at my location for a Junior. It is 1.5 oz. That is like saying you paid $10.67 for a lb of roast beef!!!!!! I'd rather drive my 1980 Chevy Malibu with it's Carbuerated V-8 and a 23 gallon gas tank to Speedway and fill up with PREMIUM 92 octane, cuz it is cheaper than a family meal at Arby's. For Crist's sake ARG only cares about their bottom-line. When Ohio's minimum wage went to 6.85 and hour, a state law, I was at 5.90 from my performance revies over the years and pay increases. Those cheap &^%$&*'s couldn.t even honor my pay increases. I went to the same 6.85 that eery other part-time employee was at, and I had 4 years in. ARG only cares about money. If any Arby's employee wants to post on here about how "PERFECT" their restraunt is, they ARE FULL OF FECAL EXCREMENT. I'll shoot down any Arby's employee who think ARG is a good company to work for. ARG suck, like every other publicly traded corporation in the stock exchange, they are nothing but a bunch of greedy rich people who will do anything and sacrifice anyone for their precious profit margin. I hope some of those greedy shreholder's see this blog as well....oh maybe I'll e-mail to my area supervisor.......she'd really like that.(sarcasm)

Comments by Joshua Howard : Friday, April 25, 2008 at 12:49 AM

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