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Jack in the Box goes mobile-first for video campaign

Jack in the Box is betting big on mobile video with a new summer campaign that will showcase 101 videos on the Vine application.

The ?Go Big? campaign is using mobile and social video to highlight Jack in the Box?s newest menu additions, which include chicken and breakfast sandwiches and potato wedges. Jack in the Box?s digital agency of record Stuck worked with the brand on the campaign.

?We were tasked with a digital campaign that would serve as an umbrella for Jack in the Box's summer ?Go Big? overall campaign,? said John Gross, strategist and account director at Struck, Portland, OR.

?The products are huge, providing big value for the consumer's money, so we started thinking around ways to help consumers figure out crazy ways to manage the Jack's Big Stack or Really Big Chicken Sandwich combos,? he said.

?We came up with a dozen or so funny ideas, then it clicked: Vine was the perfect social content/creation platform for a ridiculous number of videos produced around the products and ?Go Big? theme.?

Mobile engagement
Each six-second Vine video includes a call-to-action that shows a menu item as well as the number of the video in the series.

For example, one video shows three brothers sharing a chicken sandwich. Another video tells the story of a woman going on an expedition to find a Jack in the Box sandwich.

To promote the Vine initiative, the videos will also be available on Jack in the Box?s Web site. The fast food giant will also leverage its mobile video efforts via Twitter and Facebook.

Paid media for the campaign will direct consumers to a landing page where they can learn more, and incoming visitors will see a marquee on Jack in the Box?s Web site that promotes the campaign.

The microsite for the campaign at http://www.jackinthebox.com/promotions/go-big aggregates all of the videos. It is optimized for mobile and also includes a call-to-action for consumers to download the Vine mobile app for either iPhone or Android devices.

Consumers can also sign-up to receive Jack in the Box emails and SMS alerts via the microsite.

Jack in the Box has been building up its mobile repertoire over a period of time, particularly in the past year and a half.

In 2012, the brand launched what it claimed was its deepest digital campaign to date with an effort that included mobile, Web, television and social components (see story).

Then earlier this year, Jack in the Box debuted a new mobile and Web site that included a store locator and menu information (see story).

Mobile-first video
Although Vine is still new, marketers have flocked to the platform to combine social media and mobile.

However, there are challenges with finding the right type of content on Vine. 

According to Mr. Gross, brands that choose to participate on Vine must sharpen up their storytelling skills to compete with other types of short, creative content that is already available.

Scale is, of course, also a challenge since brands want to reach as many consumers as possible.

In this case, Jack in the Box is aiming to tackle the scale problem with the microsite that showcases all of the campaign?s videos at once in addition to using its own Vine account for the campaign.

?We know our audience watches a lot of mobile video, and the ability to create content that can not only live and thrive within a native mobile app, but also reside on our brand page, made it a perfect fit,? Mr. Gross said.

?And because Jack in the Box's site is optimized for mobile viewing, the content works great, regardless of the screen our consumers are viewing it on,? he said.

Final Take
Lauren Johnson is associate reporter on Mobile Marketer, New York