Dairy Queen’s recent efforts to become a year-round food brand, competing with outlets like McDonald’s and Wendy’s, are showing early signs that it may be working, albeit modestly.
Back in May 2013, the Berkshire Hathaway-owned chain switched its tagline from “So good, it’s riDQulous” to “Fan food, no fast food” to convince consumers they were more than ice cream. This time, Dairy Queen dramatically overhauled its menu to include chicken sandwiches, BLTs, and chicken melts to win them over during the normally slower winter months.
Normally, given the seasonal nature of ice cream focused chains, Dairy Queen’s perception metrics dramatically rise in the warm weather and fall back substantially in the winter.
Entering December, Dairy Queen’s Purchase Consideration score – YouGov BrandIndex’s key measurement of potential revenue – has taken a slightly milder decline than usual and is tracking a little higher than this time last year.
At the same point one year ago in December 2014, 31% of adults 18 and over who were aware of the brand considered Dairy Queen when making their next fast food purchase. The percentage is now up to 33%. Compared to the rest of the competitive field, the current average Purchase Consideration score for the fast food dining sector overall is 22%.
