September 12th, 2021
I have chosen Chips Ahoy! as the product for my project. We all know what this company does, they make cookies! Understanding this helps understand their marketing strategies, what they appeal to, etcetera. This past week Chips Ahoy! has been involving themselves in Tik Tok trends, which is a social media app. They have joined a trend where the main concept is smiling at a significant others’ text or message. Chips Ahoy!, instead, used an Oreo cookie and one of their own cookies to convey that Chips Ahoy! cookies make you happy when you eat them.
Other than the Tik Tok trends, they tend to strictly market their cookies as the best cookies, taking an approach of showing how their chocolate chips are the best out of all cookies. People respond to these posts and affirmations by the company with pure joy from what I have seen. The comments range from heart emojis to faces of pure satisfaction, reinforcing what the company was conveying to their customers and followers.
September 19th, 2021
This week Chips Ahoy! has taken a similar approach to marketing to their clients as they had done the week prior. However, this week they took a couple of polls on their stories and in an actual post I’m assuming as an attempt to interact with their customers and followers. They did this successfully I should add. Lots of people responded to the posed question (see picture below) which only really had one answer to it. It seems there is a very strong sense of loyalty between this company and their customers. For whatever reason it is, the customers of Chips Ahoy! love their cookies and no one else’s.
Similar to the previous weeks, they have also been using very appealing pictures of cookies melting and the organization of cookie packaging in their most recent post. They tend to appeal to people’s love of colors, assortment, and most importantly taste buds. I am curious to see that if in the near future they will take a different approach when it comes to appealing to their customers.
-Colby
September 26th, 2021
This has been a fun week for Chips Ahoy! The past couple of weeks that I have been reporting on this brand’s social media pages, they have generally been focusing in on trends set by other social media influencers and companies on Tik Tok, Instagram, and so forth.
Though there was still one of these posts this week, they did something interesting where they posted the bottom right photo with a black center circle, meant to act as sort of a mirror for the obvious intent posed: “Zoom in on someone who needs a cookie break.” I laughed out loud when I saw this a few days ago because I knew it would be the perfect angle to take when writing this week’s blog post. This post got a lot of positive feedback in the comment section to the point where I was about to leave my dorm and head to Walmart because I was so motivated to eat one of these cookies. I almost want to send them a thank you letter…
The most recent post, which I will touch on for a minute, was brilliant in its own little way. It was a Finder on an Apple computer that was packed full of images of Chips Ahoy! cookies. Each of these images was named something witty or named something catered to the love of these cookies. I would assume that this was made by a fan of this brand or by someone in marketing. Regardless, hell of a job Chips Ahoy!, you made social media fun for me this week.
-Colby
October 3rd, 2021
This week was similar to the previous ones regarding interactions with customers and posting in general. As you will see in the screenshot of their Instagram feed below, they used a method which they had in previous weeks, giving you limited options on which chocolate chip cookie to pick from. All of these cookies were from Chips Ahoy! so the results of the decision were obvious. The best thing about this post and ones like it is that even though they are corny and really simple, people actually respond to these questions in the comment sections. For example, with the post I had just mentioned, numerous followers of Chips Ahoy! were talking about their favorite type of Chips Ahoy! cookies, chewy, regular, etcetera.
The media for this company took a slightly different approach on one of their posts this week as well. Since the NBA is beginning their season again, Chips Ahoy! took this opportunity to remind their followers that they have a new partnership with NBA 2K, which is the video game that is associated with the actual NBA organization. This brings together those who love basketball, those who love the video game, and obviously those who love Chips Ahoy! cookies. Also, if followers of Chips Ahoy! like basketball already it builds a much stronger relationship between follower/customer and the cookie company itself. Isn’t that what marketing and trust between customers and businesses is all about? Making and maintaining strong connections?
-Colby
October 11th, 2021
A change in marketing from the Chips Ahoy! social media team has been in the works this past week. I am becoming convinced that this team has people who scroll through new trends on both Instagram and TikTok all day, nonstop. I say this in large part due to the timing of their content being produced right as the trend hits its most popular point of existing.
Now, the post this week about horoscopes or your astrological sign was flat out brilliant. The amount of people who follow their sign somewhat religiously is astounding. The social media team at Chips Ahoy! embraced this fact and used it in their marketing. As you will see in the most recent post on the screenshot posted below, it factors in their brand to the common behavior of someone who aligns with this sign. What better way to access the demographic of people who believe, with a passion, in the horoscope or astrology concept? Kudos.
In other news, Chips Ahoy! came out with a chocolate shake! They advertised this by adding an exercise or weight-lifting aesthetic to highlight the nutritional benefits in the drink, mainly for post-workout. Knowing the other brands who already make these (Hershey’s), they have competition, but also a head start. They get this lead because they do not have to do a lot of the original thinking behind making this drink. The company knows what people want in a drink like this, who buys them, how much they should be, etc. The only real thing this company has to put effort into is the mixture of the drink itself.
Anyways, here’s the picture:
-Colby
October 17th, 2021
Chips Ahoy! had somewhat of a repetitive week with regards to social media posting. These past few days have been similar in advertising and it can be seen in their most recent post of one of the popular types of Chips Ahoy! cookies. All this post included was a type of their cookies and a clever caption that may lead one to purchasing some. The reason I mention that this week was not too much different than others is because I have been surprised almost every other week with their posting. I almost wonder if something is going on at the company this week that may not occur very often, or if they have some sort of conflict they needed to take care of.
Since there is not much interesting content to discuss here this week, I will mainly focus on my hopes for next week’s posts. Ideally next week, Chips Ahoy! could take a Tik Tok approach like they have for other posts. It seems that whoever is in charge of the Chips Ahoy!’s social media pages really keeps up with the latest trends on the most popular apps. They even put a creative twist on the trends to cater it to their products and advertising. I expect, but mostly hope to see more of this next week.
-Colby
October 24th, 2021
This is a very exciting week for Chips Ahoy! along with a lot of other food manufacturers and fast food restaurants. Why? It’s October! Autumn is upon us and every single seasonal food that comes around at this time of year are back. Pumpkin spice latte’s, pumpkin flavored donuts and other snacks, and cider flavored foods and drinks. This part of the year is huge for a few brands who release the same products every year around this time, the products being those that were mentioned previously. These companies use this season in their marketing. One can argue that this is the best time of year for seasonal foods. Compared to spring and summer, the foods showcased in this season are perfect for the climate and the overall feelings that reside in this season.
Now, Chips Ahoy! has jumped on this season by releasing a new cookie that is pumpkin spice flavored. This cookie is a spinoff of their original cookie in the common blue packaging, just with a different spice. PSYCH! Chips Ahoy! actually played a trick on their followers by posting a picture of what a package of these cookies would look like, but added a caption saying, “The spookiest thing about the post is realizing this flavor isn’t actually real…” If I cared about this type of cookie the way that a lot of their followers do, I would be pretty hurt. Thankfully I do not. This is nonetheless a brilliant marketing technique that the company used to draw attention to their brand in the midst of a season that is vibrant with pumpkin spice foods and drinks.
-Colby
October 30th, 2021
The week that has just passed has been a pretty normal one for Chips Ahoy! and their social media pages. Two out of the three posts from them this past week have been consistent with other posts in weeks prior. These images and captions are generally associated with their customers and everyone’s apparent and common reaction to Chips Ahoy! being present. These kinds of posts work well for the company to interact with their followers and really to solidify that their cookies are better than all other cookies.
The post that I did not talk about in the previous section was much different than these posts. The post was about McDonald’s ice cream and their routine affiliation with Chips Ahoy! cookies to make a great vanilla based ice cream with Chips Ahoy! chunks mixed in. This is a limited time offer that McDonald’s has. The caption of the post about this promotion stressed going as soon as possible to get one of these since they will not be around forever. I was wondering why Chips Ahoy! does not just have a full-time ice cream of their own with this fast food restaurant like Oreo and M&M do. You will be able to see the images the company posted this week in the snippet of their Instagram page below.
-Colby
November 7th, 2021
Chips Ahoy! posted five times this week and they had a great variety in the mix! As always, the account on Instagram posted a couple of “normal” photos reminding their customers and followers just how good their cookies are, and to remember to treat yourself every once in a while. Quickly, one of their “normal” posts this week was interesting to me. The photo was of one of the Chips Ahoy! cookies in a glass of ice cream, it looked delicious and it certainly had me enticed.
The heart of the account’s postings this week was in their stories and one of their main photos. Chips Ahoy! is coming out with a big announcement and their company is building suspense through marketing, but specifically their social media accounts. The Instagram account had a post this week with a multiple choice question about their up and coming news (seen in picture below). The options on this question could gage the interest of many different groups of their followers. I think this was a smart move, intentional or not, by the marketing team at this company. All of the multiple choice answers on this post cannot be correct, so they are trying to excite everyone, even if their thing is not picked.
All in all, it is always nice to see Chips Ahoy! interacting with their customers in creative and honest ways.
-Colby
November 13th, 2021
As I was looking through the Chips Ahoy! social media page on Instagram this week, I did not find many unique marketing strategies. What I did find was a couple of relatable posts, almost to a fault. As seen in the picture below on the rightmost side of the screenshot, there is a picture of some Chips Ahoy! Chewy cookies on top of some old milk containers. The caption of this post read, “Comment if you’re eating Chips Ahoy! right now!” The messed up part of this was that I actually was. Though my roommates and I have not bought any cookies this year for our apartment, we ended up purchasing some this past week, specifically on the day that this was posted. I sat there eating my Chips Ahoy! Chewy cookies and I almost felt ashamed of myself, ashamed because I was absolutely called out for the unhealthy thing I was doing.
With regards to other posts this week, the content was pretty basic. The other two postings from this week were a tweet from the company’s Twitter page and a Tik Tok post about the overwhelming love that one may feel for some of these cookies. Something that I am still sort of surprised about is that they have not come out with any Christmas (among other holidays) specials. Knowing our country and all of its businesses, it is more than typical to start celebrating the holidays at the end of the year a little prematurely.
On a separate note, I am seriously hoping that Chips Ahoy! picks up some of their slack with the social media posts as the year comes to an end. I am going to be keeping a close eye on Instagram, which I have been, and Twitter, seeing as they reposted something on their Instagram page from their Twitter page.
-Colby
