Campaign Imminent: Marco's Pizza taps PR AOR amid spend increases, expansion (Score 26)
To fuel brand awareness and relevance, Marco's Pizza selected a new consumer PR AOR, MWWPR. The agency will now offer earned media relations and creative integrated consumer marketing. There wasn't a formal RFP process; instead, Marco's and MWWPR started talking last August and officially started working together in Q1. There was also not an incumbent AOR. MikeWorldWide has already been busy. Since it was behind Marco's Pi Day campaign, we should see additional new work drop sooner rather than later. We also may see additional agency reviews.
Marco's is working on its expansion, planning to hit $1b in annual systemwide sales in 2022 and to reach 2k locations by 2026 and 1.5k by 2023. Specifically, the company is planning to open 46 new stores in the metro Phoenix area over the next six years.
Finally, Marco's team has grown within the past year with hires such as senior field marketing manager Leslie Bryant and development marketing manager Albi Kadiu. Both Bryant and Kadiu joined the company in November 2021.
According to iSpot, Marco's has spent approximately $11.5m on national TV commercials YTD, up 25% from the approximately $9.2m it had spent by this point last year. The company ended up spending approximately $24.3m on this channel last year, up 46% from the approximately $16.6m it spent in 2020. Marco's 2022 commercials have targeted millennials watching shows such as Friends, Family Feud, Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, The Office and Law & Order.
So far this year, Pathmatics reports the company has allocated roughly $1.1m toward digital ads, more than double the roughly $447.9k it allocated within the same 2021 timeframe. Marco's estimated full-year 2021 spend of $2.5m reached more than 3x that of the $660.5k in 2020. The company has earned ~135.2m digital impressions YTD via Facebook (54%) and Instagram (46%) ads.
As I briefly mentioned, Marco's is especially focused on growing its brick-and-mortar presence in and around Phoenix; this leads me to believe it's advertising locally in and around the city. Per Kantar data, the company also invests in radio, OOH and local broadcast. Sellers able to offer high-ROI strategies among Marco's target demographic of Gen-Z and millennials will have an upper hand with securing ad dollars.
Agency & martech readers - As you know, PR hires often lead to additional agency reviews; I suggest getting in touch soon to see what work you can secure. Along with MikeWorldWide, Marco's works with creative and media AOR MERGE IL and digital AOR Mediaura. Focus on ways to differentiate the company from competing pizza chains such as Papa John's and Domino's.
