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In-N-Out Burger Trolled in New Ad Campaign. Is This Brilliant Marketing?
October 3, 2024
In-N-Out Burger has been targeted in a new ad campaign by local competitor Habit Burger & Grill. The two burger chains have been competing with each other for years. But is Habit’s latest strategy a brilliant marketing move, or is it driving traffic to its competitor? Let’s take a look.
In-N-Out ‘Shaded’ by Habit
According to USA Today, Habit Burger & Grill is claiming the glory of topping a burger rating poll — more precisely, for placing higher than In-N-Out Burger.
Residents of Los Angeles have observed that Habit Burger appears to have mocked the well-liked West Coast restaurant with a billboard that says, “Congrats on #2, In-N-Out.”
The billboard references a July USA Today 10Best survey that ranked fast-food businesses’ top burgers. Readers voted for their favorites after 10Best editors, and a panel of burger enthusiasts, suggested the top options. The Double Char from Habit took first place, followed by the Double-Double from In-N-Out.
“There’s so much emphasis on winning in today’s society. Let’s take a beat to celebrate the silver medalists. The runner-ups. There are hundreds — if not thousands — of burger options out there. And yours was just voted #2,” Habit wrote in a letter displayed in an Instagram post. “That’s pretty darn good. So, here’s to you, In-N-Out. Congrats on #2. Your friends, Habit Burger & Grill.”
As expected, In-N-Out fans took to the comment section to defend the honor of their beloved burger chain. “Man this ad is really making me crave a double double,” wrote one commenter. “That’s funny. Meanwhile In-N-Out is slammed packed and has a drive through line around the corner at every location,” wrote another.
This all suggests that Habit’s plan may have backfired, thus driving more people to its competitors’ already-jammed drive-ins.
Limited Expansion Plans
Fans of the Double Double, however, may have to accept that their beloved burger chain’s expansion might not extend to the Eastern Seaboard.
Back in August, In-N-Out Burger extended its expansion into the Midwest, with sources revealing that Oklahoma will be one of the next states to enjoy the juicy burgers.
According to The Oklahoman, the fast-food juggernaut is eyeing great real land in Oklahoma City, where it will face competition from Steak & Shake, Bojangles, and Pizza Ranch.
In-N-Out Burger’s announcement to develop and build several sites across the nation pleased fans of the well-known fast-food company, who are often miffed that the brand is hard to find outside of California.
Fans in New York and the surrounding Tri-State region, however, won’t be able to purchase an In-N-Out Burger very soon, if at all.
PopCrush reports that the 400+ sites of the massive fast-food chain are spread across the states of California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Idaho, Texas, Oregon, Colorado, New Mexico, and Washington.
Unlike most fast-food establishments, this one is privately owned and not a franchise. It also uses food that is never frozen and is always fresh, exercising extreme vigilance to prevent overspending while keeping costs lower than competitors.
Given that In-N-Out does not pre-package, freeze, or microwave any of its food, the restaurant must be 300 miles from a plant that makes hamburger patties or a location where one can be opened.
Tennessee would likely be the farthest east that Lynsi Snyder, the current owner and the granddaughter of the burger chain’s founders, opens an In-N-Out while she’s in control, she stated in an interview with NBC’s “Today,” according to Allrecipes.
“As long as I’m around, I’m probably saying never,” she said, referring to expanding into the East Coast.
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