For the longest time, we’ve been hearing the same tagline from Subway: Eat Fresh! Since its inception in 1965, it’s what the brand wants us to associate with when consuming their footlong subs: only the freshest and the healthiest ingredients are used to make them. And it works! After all, we can’t help but cave into the enticing idea that we can eat fast food that’s at the same time, good for our bodies too. The customization factor is the cherry on top.
It’s the reason why over the decades, the total number of Subway outlets very quickly exceeded that of McDonald’s: a sure sign that this “healthy fast food” concept is a hit with everyone around the globe.
Of course, the infamous entrance of Jared Fogle and his heavily marketed 200-pound weight-loss story by solely eating at Subway only served to cement the brand as a prominent leader in this growing trend. And when I say trend, it literally paved the way for household favorites such as the iconic Chipotle burrito bowl and Chick-Fil-A’s grilled chicken wrap.
So yeah, Subway’s marketing has been a phenomenal success, to say the least.
Now, why am I rambling on about the sub-making food chain’s marketing tactics/brand angle? Well, that’s because the brand recently had a massive overhaul, bringing in dozens of changes and even a new slogan to boot.
However, this has not come without intense public dissent, which you’ll read about in just a bit. But for now, let’s dive a little more into Subway’s new “Eat Fresh Refresh” campaign.
Just last month, Subway announced that it was going to be making pivotal changes to its brand with its campaign launch, simply titled “Eat Fresh Refresh”.
Extending its all-familiar tagline this time, the “Refresh” part stems from having a complete relaunch of its menu items and ingredients (yes, even their secret seasoning), coupled with a revamped mobile app alongside physical dining experience.
Some of these new ingredients include sliced ham and turkey, hickory-smoked bacon, and will you believe it, parmesan vinaigrette.
They’re even debuting never-seen-before sandwiches, such as the Turkey Cali Fresh, Steak Cali Fresh, and All-American Club. Talk about big changes!
According to Subway CMO Carrie Walsh, this entire revamp has been been in progress for the past two years, but the main objective is that they want to give the customers something robust and exciting for a change.
It’s one of their largest campaigns to date. Roping in renowned agencies such as Dentsumcgarrybowen and Proof Advertising, the large investment will mostly be channeled to creating and boosting a wide range of unique creatives across all social media platforms.
So what are some of the things that come with this campaign?
First up, Subway has recruited big names such as Serena Williams, Megan Rapinoe, Tom Brady, and Stephen Curry to help promote their new brand direction.
Mainly focused on sports-related celebrities, their goal is to spread the word that these celebrities too, can enjoy the new Subway food menu items while staying fit at all times.
The promotional video above features the celebrity athletes sharing animatedly about the new sandwiches launch, alongside going in-depth about the quality of ingredients that they’ve upped since the campaign.
This one is still in the works, but essentially, the app will feature a new dashboard, improved ordering flow, and even show real-time out-of-stock items.
In addition, Subway will be even extending nationwide delivery to select areas, with orders that can be made straight from the app.
Probably the part everyone is most excited for: as a celebratory gesture for the launch of “Eat Fresh Refresh”, Subway is giving out 50 free Turkey Calis in every participating outlet, which basically adds up to a total of a million free subs.
Sadly, the campaign has been met with mixed to negative reviews since its launch, with many claiming that they’re just not seeing the actual changes.
An in-depth review by the Washington Post claims that in their trips to the physical stores since the campaign launched, they’ve been sorely disappointed by the lack of difference in everything, from the menu to service.
For example, even though Angus beef is one of the advertised new ingredients, it will not actually appear on the menu until the latter half of the year.
That’s quite a let-down, considering that the menu items are part of the core changes in this campaign.
Moreover, food preparation was a hot mess, with many of the workers simply not knowing how to create the new subs and creating a lot of unnecessary waiting time.
And this isn’t just exclusive to the Washington Post. A quick YouTube search reveals a number of reviews that signal their obvious discontent/confusion at this new change.
I have to confess that prior to reading about this campaign, I’ve not noticed any prominent differences in the food nor the eating experience in my visits to my local Subway. So the question has to be asked: Is this campaign a hit or miss? New delicious-sounding food items. Upgraded mobile app experience. A-list celebrity endorsements. And one million free subs? Come on, that’s impressive.
Even the campaign objective sounds wholesome and genuine: giving better and tastier ingredients to the customers to keep things exciting. But that’s the thing: campaigns don’t just have to sound good, they have to actually be good.
If we take a step back and access the campaign, there’s one thing that stands out like a sore thumb: most of the changes haven’t actually been implemented. And it’s not because they’re doing something strategic on purpose — the timing is just simply bad.
If you announce that you will have new food on the items, they should be available when people order them.
If you say that service will be completely revamped, at the very least get your staff familiar with the changes before the launch.
If you say that you have a better app for people to use, it should be ready by the time they download it.
Otherwise, people are just going to be extremely disappointed/kept waiting for your brand’s campaign.
And I’m not saying that “Eat Fresh Refresh” is bad — if anything, it has what it takes to be an excellent campaign. But the learning point here is: good timing is extremely essential for any effective campaign.
A few days of difference can make the difference between success or failure in any campaign.
Hopefully, Subway will be able to recover from this initial setback and give its customers the changes they’ve all been waiting for.
Do let me know if you have come across similar campaigns such as this one — I’d love to read more about them!
