The Cheesecake Factory intercepted the NFL playoffs conversation by noticing the striking resemblance between their distinctive take-out bag and the pre-game outfit worn by Travis Kelce, the most talked about football player.
A perfectly timed post comparing the player’s turtleneck with the brand bag instantly went viral, turning the Cheesecake Factory into one of the most talked about brands in the post-game coverage and conversation.
Through an always-on social listening strategy, we quickly identified an opportunity to leverage the buzz around what Travis Kelce was wearing before the NFL divisional playoff match between his team, the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Buffalo Bills.
The biggest challenge was to quickly produce and approve the idea, guaranteeing it was posted while the conversation around his outfit was still relevant.
The execution involved swift communication by the agency with the Cheesecake Factory CMO and marketing team to quickly develop and post the content.
The post was designed using a pre-existing layout, quickly approved by the marketing team, and then distributed on X and Instagram platforms.
The entire process, from content creation to approval, took less than 4 minutes, highlighting the importance of agility and timeliness.
Headlines swirled around this unexpected social media sensation, capturing the attention of national media giants like USA Today, People Magazine, Yahoo!, Page Six, US Magazine, and Fox, as well as entertainment hubs like Parade, Delish and Perez Hilton. Even NFL star Travis Kelce couldn't resist commenting about the post.
By posting a timely observation on social, in real-time, with $0 investment, The Cheesecake Factory became one of the hottest topics around the NFL playoffs, driving over 2.6 Billion earned media impressions with a $24.7 Million earned media value.
