Case Study: Jack’s Line NFL Pick’em Game

Project Overview

The combination of beer, food, TV, and sports sounds like a sure thing – a “winning combination.” Taking this mix and adding a fun, online NFL game takes fun to the next level.  Jack Astor’s and Budweiser teamed up to help drive sales during NFL games and more effectively track those people coming through the door. Tenzing Interactive was integral in making this plan come alive.

Background

Previous to utilizing mobile applications and online interactions, Jack Astor’s, in partnership with Budweiser, undertook an in-restaurant, paper game card contest to coincide with the 2009 NFL season. The gamecards were allocated by hand and contestants signed up and entered their picks for the busy Sunday and Monday night football schedules. The paper gamecard  system, although effective, was laborious and cumbersome.

Objective

The paper gamecard system was a good start, but the administrative component to the game was heavy and Jack Astors’ wanted to evaluate the success of the overall program.  The next step was generating measurable, sustained traffic and new users to Jack Astor’s restaurants through an online game, offering fun and unique content and offers to NFL fans, a vital demographic to both Budweiser and Jack Astor’s.

Tenzing’s Solution

In preparation for the 2010 NFL season, Jack Astor’s wanted to take the successful paper gamecard promotion from the 2009 NFL season and bring it to life online, including through mobile devices. Tenzing’s proposed online and mobile devices plan was a way to streamline and automate the initial paper gamecard campaign.

“Eliminating all of the administrative paperwork of Jack’s Line from the previous year was one of the big bonuses of Tenzing’s Jack’s Line online game,” notes Jenn Dey, Business Manager for SIR Corp. She adds, “By taking the game online this year, we increased participation and further enhanced the NFL game-day experience in our restaurants by adding a fun, easy-to-play online component.  Jack’s Line drove people into Jack Astor’s, and even provided a regional component to track customer activity within regions.”

Jack’s Line Program Overview

For this particular project, Tenzing designed and built a customized game application of the Jack’s Line game for Jack Astor’s.  Customers register online (eliminating the need to distribute cards) and provide basic information (e.g., name, address, gender, email, opt-ins, etc.).

Once registered, customers login and make five weekly selections for 4 highlighted NFL games, combined from Sundays/Monday Nights.  For each of the games, the guest chooses which team will end up with most:

• Rushing Yards
• Passing Yards
• Defensive Sacks
• Defensive Interceptions
• Turnovers
• Tie breaker question when necessary

Customers enter their selections and can then follow the national overall standing, My Jack’s standing (local Jack Astor’s) and weekly standing.  The player with the highest points total at the end of the 17-week season is the grand prize winner and wins a Trip for 2 to Super Bowl XLV. As well, a $100 Jack Astor’s gift card is awarded to the weekly winner, with the highest total for each given week.

Incentive for Customers

Another component of the game was the opportunity to earn bonus points by visiting a Jack’s location, purchasing select menu items and then inputting a PIN code included on the receipt. Customers also received communications from Jack Astor’s featuring various offers and rewards (i.e., mobile coupons).

Other mobile application software used – QR Code Coupons

In addition to using the mobile game application, Tenzing also incorporated QR Code technology into the project. For this campaign, Tenzing leveraged SIR Corp.’s 2D bar code scanning technology at the POS terminals.  By including unique QR codes in Jack Astor’s promotional communications, it created the ability to track those customers going into Jack Astor’s.

Outcomes and Project Scope

Participation in the game dramatically increased this year.  Jack Astor’s and Budweiser increased their brand loyalty, and were provided with a great portfolio of this particular target audience and their preferences.  The bonus point feature of the game drove more new and existing customers into the restaurants on game-days.

Let’s face it, NFL fans are some of the most passionate sports fans in the world: creating a fun, easy-to-use mobile game application with great bonuses and incentives is a great way to engage these customers and feed off their passion.