The Fruits of Bojangles' Brand Evangelism...

A Bojangles' T-Shirt & a $10 Gift Card, overnighted via FedEx


First of all, I want to preface this blog post by saying that I am in no way an official representative nor promoter of Bojangles', though many of my friends may say otherwise. I am merely an individual that believes in evangelizing brands in which I believe in, and that I actually use in real life (both online and offline).

Bojangles is one of those brands that I fully evangelize whenever I can, because I truly love the way that they manage and promote their brand. If you're not aware of what Bojangles' is, I am proud to say that they are a North Carolina original. Bojangles' is a restaurant which is famous for their Cajun Fried Chicken, mouth-watering seasoned fries, "dirty" rice, and award-winning sweet tea (among a menu full of other tasty entrees).

So why would I bother myself with evangelizing a fried chicken restaurant? Well why not? Isn't that the point of Social Media and Marketing? As a consumer, I truly enjoy not only the food at Bojangles', but the level of service and professional courtesy that they give my friends and I each and every time we visit one of their restaurants. I frequent Bojangles' in Raleigh, Apex, and Durham weekly, and have always been given exceptional service (with a smile too!).

Bojangles' is one of the few "fast food" restaurants that actively tells you that "sure, it's okay to leave your tray on the table, we'll clean that right up for you..." Of course, being that I have worked fast food in my "younger" teen years, I never leave my tray at the table. Instead, I gladly clean up after myself and take my tray up to the trash receptacles, where an attendant almost always greets me with a "Oh, you didn't have to do that. I was going to get it for you."

Most importantly to my line of work, Bojangles' is a true pioneer in the Social Media realm of advertising, marketing, and promotions. Not only has Bojangles' invested resources into their website, but they have invested enormous time and effort into building large groups of fans on various websites.

Bojangles' has "home grown" a fan base of over 27,000 fans on Facebook, which is an amazing feet for a Fried Chicken restaurant. They have User Generated Content (UGC) like photos on Flickr, and videos on YouTube which loyal Bojangles' fans have created to show their appreciation for a brand that is important to them. They have even amassed over 300 followers on Twitter, where they engage directly with their followers.

Bojangles' has successfully engaged and incorporated their customer's opinions into their recent launch of their Fish Fillet sandwich in select markets, by posting questions and listening to their fans.

Bojangles' has even tapped into their fan-base by utilizing small but effective contests on their Facebook and Twitter channels. Just yesterday, Bojangles' posted the following post on their Bojangles' Fan Page:

"OK, we hope everyone is ready! First, thank you for loving Bojangles' so much. We couldn't have any better fans than you guys:) So with that...... The first 20 fans that tell us why they love Bojangles' will get a Bojangles' T-shirt and $10 Bojangles' gift card. Thanks again for being the best fans ever!!"

There were over 150 comments made under that Facebook post! Of course, as a loyal Bojangles' Fan, I had to comment on that Facebook post with "It's all about the Yellow Box! :)" ...and sure enough, along came Mr. FedEx this morning with a package from that company with the delicious yellow boxes, Bojangles'! Enclosed, as promised, was my free T-Shirt and a $10 Gift Card, courtesy of my friends over there at the Boj'! LOL! Thanks! :)

So, what is the lesson to be learned here?

Regardless of whether or not you are a Fortune 500 Corporation, or a small "mom and pop" shop, or even a Cajun Fried Chicken restaurant; if you're not utilizing Social Media channels to grow Brand Reputation, promote Brand Ambassadors/Evangelists, expand your Online Properties, create and manage Conversations about your Brand, or to simply reach out and LISTEN to your customers (and potential customers), you need to take a look at Bojangles' and see what you could be missing out on.

In today's economy, social media is opening the eyes of large and small companies alike. Businesses are no longer telling their customers who they are anymore... Businesses are what their customers SAY THEY ARE.

In my opinion, Captain D. Michael Abrashoff says it best:

"Since, by definition, new ideas don't have metrics, the result is that great ideas tend to be stillborn in major companies today... Stasis is death to any organization. Evolve or die: It's the law of life..."