Summary
Del Taco announced that seafood items
will be promoted again in order to bring more customers during the Lenten
season. New items include the Crispy Shrimp taco and burrito and the Guacamole
Fish Taco. These items will be available for a limited time and guests can buy
two shrimp tacos for $4.50 and fish tacos for $4 also for a limited time.
Communication
Strategy
Del Taco is leveraging a seasonal
opportunity to introduce an alternative to its beef and chicken items as most
people choose to give something up and/or choose not to eat meat during Lent.
As the article mentioned, Del Taco is reintroducing the crispy shrimp taco
because it is a “fan favorite that is sure to lure guests in during the
upcoming Lenten season.” The promotion of the crispy shrimp was popular in the
past and both new items will also have a price promotion where the customer can
buy two tacos for either $4.50 or $4.00. The article also does have a news peg
as Lent is officially observed on February 15, 2015.
Challenges
·
In
order to potentially appear in newspapers, the article text needs to emphasize
the promotion. Saying that ‘guests will be lured in’ has a negative connotation
and should be changed to a promotional style of writing.
·
Since
the promotion has just launched, the title is misleading and needs to be
changed. Here are no figures mentioned as to how the shrimp tacos are ‘making
waves.’ Although the pun is appreciated, it is not factual.
·
The
article is missing several tenets of being newsworthy for media platforms.
o Significance- the article
does not specify the number of people affected by the story. The article could
include the number of people who observe Lent as well as the number of people
who had a positive opinion of the shrimp tacos the last time they were
promoted.
o Proximity- Del Taco is
not well known in multiple states. Towards the bottom, Del Taco could mention
the states where the restaurant chain is located. Another option is to create a
link to the Del Taco website so that readers can find the closest location.
o Human Interest- Emphasis needs
to be placed on the fact that the promotion serves as an alternative for meat
during Lent. As the Lenten season is for 40 days, people who observe it need to
find alternatives. The article fails to convey that not only will the tacos be
a good alternative, but also that they can be purchased for a lower price.
Opportunities
There
are multiple opportunities across media platforms for this article. Overall:
·
The
article is newsworthy as Del Taco is a well-known chain in several states
across the country.
·
The
promotion focuses on unique products that serves as an alternative that only
Del Taco produces at low prices. Although Taco Bell does have fish tacos, it
does not carry four varieties of seafood burritos and tacos nor does it have a
promotion for any of its fish or vegetarian products at the moment.
·
The
promotion is taking place during Lent when most people substitute fish for
other meat. Since the shrimp taco has proved popular in the past, this will attract
audiences to the promotion. The low prices could potentially attract a larger
number of customers.
Within
the traditional media outlets:
·
Newspaper-
the article can effectively appear in the news section of any paper as it talks
about a new promotion coming specifically for the Lenten season that begins in
a few days. Due to the timeliness of the article, it can even appear in papers
as a main story. Furthermore, the article can appear in both print and online
newspapers as well. However, since Del Taco is not a well-known brand in
certain states, the article is restricted to newspapers distributed in
locations where the restaurant is known. The article could also come in
religion-centric newspapers in regions where Del Taco is present.
Within
the tradigital media outlets:
·
Food
Blogs: The article could appear on food blogs as the guacamole fish taco is a
brand new item being introduced. All four seafood offerings have individual
descriptions of what each consists of within the article as well.
Religion Blogs (Christianity/Catholic
Blogs): The article could appear on blogs with Christianity as the promotion
provides an alternative to eating meat during Lent.
·
Online
News Blogs: The article could appear in online news blogs that are state
centric as Del Taco is not available or well known in some states. Blogs that
focus on California news could feature this article throughout the Lent season.
Owned
Media
·
The
article does have the potential to be shared on personal websites and blogs.
People could include those who are participating in Lent and who go to Del Taco
to replace eating meat.
Social
Media
·
The
article can be amplified on all social media sites and religious websites.
Making the article likeable and sharable is also a good strategy. People who go
to Del Taco can share the fact that they had the seafood options there or
people who are looking for alternatives to meat would be able to look up the
detailed menu options of seafood offerings. There is no age demographic to
either of the products which is an additional benefit.
Client
Assessment
Although
the release is clear and concise and written in AP style, there are several
changes that should be implemented.
·
Along
with describing the food items, multimedia items (images at the very least)
need to be added for all items mentioned. This will add more appeal and bring
more audience interest in the article.
·
The
article needs an image of the guacamole fish taco. There is only a single
picture of the shrimp taco on the top which is rather unclear and does not make
the product look, as the article mentions, ‘succulent.’
·
There
are no links added in the entire article. A link to the Del Taco website should
be present. A link to each of the food items should be included.
·
The
title makes is misleading and does not make sense. What does ‘makes waves’
mean? The promotion has just begun and the success of the promotion to date is
not at all mentioned except for the fact that the shrimp taco is a ‘fan
favorite.’
·
More
information should be added in the article especially since the shrimp taco is
being reintroduced. How successful was it in the past. Was there a promotion
for the last Lent season and if so, how much revenue came from the seafood
items?
·
Multimedia
content should be added. Two of the seafood items are part of the core menu and
must have some type of television ad or even an image. This needs to be
included for each item and especially for the items that are being promoted. It
is surprising that an image of the Guacamole Fish Taco is not included at all.
·
An
infographic could be added on the nutritional aspects of seafood items. Fish is
generally healthier than beef and this could be secondary data, but effective
if true. Otherwise, an infographic with statistics on how popular the shrimp
tacos have been in the past as compared to the other seafood items could bring
more interest to this article.
·
The
last part of the article looks like a jumble. The achievements, milestones and
accolades of Del Taco should be put in bullet points and should look clean. In
this case, the section can even be omitted from the article as it has no real
relevance to the news peg of the story.
