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Greg Kilstrom
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Guto Araki
Welcome to season seven of the Agile Brand where we discuss the trends and topics marketing leaders need to know. Stay curious, stay agile and join the top enterprise brands and martech platforms as we explore marketing technology, AI, E commerce and whatever's next for the Omnichannel customer experience. Together we'll discover what it takes to create an agile brand built for today and tomorrow and built for customers, employees and continued business growth. I'm your host Greg Kilstrom, advising Fortune 1000 brands on martech, AI and marketing operations. The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by Tech Systems, an industry leader in full stack technology services, talent services and real world application. For more information, go to teksystems.com to make sure you always get the latest episodes, please hit subscribe on the app you listen to podcasts on and leave us a rating so others can find us as well. Now onto the show. Super bowl ads are often the pinnacle of advertising creativity and cultural relevance. But. But with Taco Bell's return after a three year hiatus, how do you craft a campaign that doesn't just capture attention, but also becomes a moment fans will never forget? Joining us today are two creatives reshaping the way we think about food, culture and branding. Guto Araki, Founder and CEO of Bite, and Alex Jacobs, co founder and coo. Together they've been at the forefront of some of the industry's most groundbreaking campaigns, including Taco Bell's much anticipated 2025 Super bowl ad and Rezzy's brand campaign. Bite began as a platform for limited edition collaborations with Chefs and restaurants and has evolved into a powerhouse agency creating unforgettable campaigns for some of the biggest brands. Welcome to the show.
Alex Jacobs
Thanks. Thank you. It's great to be here, Graham.
Guto Araki
Yeah, looking forward to talking about all of this with you and, you know, definitely excited to work. See that. We'll see the, the Taco Bell ad in a couple days here. So we'll get a sneak, a little bit of a sneak peek at least here. But why don't we start before we dive in with both of you telling a little about your backgrounds and what inspired you to create Byte?
Alex Jacobs
Yeah, I'll start. I lived my, you know, I spent my entire life in, in big network agencies. You know, in the past, I'm, I'm. I worked at TBWA Chia Day on the Adidas account and then Gatorade. Then I moved next door, worked for Apple, and then I moved two blocks down to Deutsch and I stayed there for a long time, worked on several brands, including Taco Bell. Taco Bell is a relationship that, you know, that we have for over 10 years. And yeah, Alex has like a similar story too. So like, you know, like, maybe, maybe he can continue.
Yeah, absolutely. No long time advertising sort of professionals, both of us. I've been on both the agency side over the years, but also on the client side. I've worked on Taco Bell, running social content for Digitas at the time on the brand, while Gutto was ECD on the brand at the time. And, you know, I've sort of run the gamut. But as far as bite is concerned, it began actually, as, I guess you could say a little bit of a departure from that. And Guto and I are both major longtime food eaters and food lovers, decent cooks, I think, as a hobbyist. And you know, when we started, it was very much and still is a consumer brand where we collaborate with culinary creatives. This is chefs, restaurants, and other people who sort of have something to say in the space and bring them together almost like you would do like a sneaker drop. But the limited edition elements that we are selling are food items and experiences. We did it for several years. We still do it almost every week. And over the course of that time, you know, we always had, at least in our mind as marketers, two audiences. We had the food lovers and we had the food makers, and we would, you know, sell the items to the food lovers and we'd work with the chef and culinary community to create these experiences. And over that time, a third audience sort of emerged and it was brands. And brands would approach us and just sort of say like, hey, what you're doing is pretty cool. We try to do stuff in this space all the time. It's actually kind of tricky. And it is, it's definitely a unique community that doesn't necessarily operate on the same wavelength as, let's call it like corporate culture or large brands. And then we suddenly said, you know what, like, guess we're an agency now. All the roads led back to agency life and you know, that's how Byte Agency was born. And we've really only been doing that for just over a year now. And you know, you can think of Byte Agency as sort of at the center of a Venn diagram. On one side you have food culture and on the other side you have sort of best in class creative agency services. And we sit right in the middle and you know, having the surface area that we have through the byte platform, the consumer brand where we work with chefs, restaurants in this community every single day, truly gives us sort of insights, relationships and just an understanding of this space that I think really only comes from working in it. And we found that to sort of give an unfair advantage to our clients who, you know, are looking for that type of insight and edge.
Yeah, yeah. Just to, to add to that, what's interesting about the, the platform itself is that when we came up with the idea was actually driven by creativity. Like when you think about restaurants, it's a tough business to be in. It's hard to stay afloat. So what ends up happening, what restaurants offer to the audience, not necessarily is what the chef creatively wants to put out in the world, but it's more of like, hey, what made sense from a business perspective. So when we create bite, as Alex was saying, as this idea of the drop culture of food was like, hey, let's design it in a way that is risk free. Therefore these chefs, they can do whatever they want because it's a limited edition and then we are going to pre sell it so there's no risk. And it's one and done. Now, fast forward, where we are still very much so driven by creativity. But what happened is that I think that by just giving the community the ability to be creative, I think almost as an organic reward is our knowledge and our relationship with the community, which Alex just pointed out, it becomes an unfair advantage when you're creating advertising and marketing for food brands.
Guto Araki
Yeah, I love it. And we're going to talk a little bit more about, about the agency too. But I mean, I love that you know, it combines both a deep knowledge of the industry as well as this, you know, the creativity to co opt things that work. In other, you know, you mentioned the shoe drop analogy. You know, it's co opting some of those things that wouldn't have been thought of otherwise in the food industry. So it's, it's, it's a great and plus just, you know, creativity in general from, from both of your experience in the marketing and advertising world. And one of those certainly, you know, thing I want to talk about first here is the Taco Bell super bowl campaign. So you know, super bowl is coming up in a couple days here. We'll get to see it in a couple days. So we're, you know, we won't get too spoilery here, but you know, just to talk about, you know, Taco Bell took a three year absence from the super bowl and decided to come back and work with you guys on this. So, you know, what were some of the key objectives for the campaign and how did you approach delivering on them?
Alex Jacobs
Here's the interesting part Greg, is that in 24, Taco Bell actually opt out of the super bowl to do something completely different. Which was something that we did with them was the live Must Live. Must Live was a textile keynote. Much like the WWDC from Apple where Taco Bell basically just like a tech company would do, they released everything that was going to happen throughout the year. And that came from this notion that in fast food, in QSR in general is this one up kind of mentality. Like throughout the year these brands are trying to one up each other with the new hottest item, menu item. So our insight there was like, hey, instead of making a Super bowl spot, let's use the same day. Because super bowl was happening in Las Vegas. So there's so many celebrities, so many incredible people there and let's throw this keynote and basically let's just kneecap the competition by starting the race from the finish line. Let's just tell the world everything that we're going to do, you know, the entire year. And we did that and that was like incredibly successful. Like Taco Bell is doing that again this year. But then now we are doubling down with the Super Bowl. One thing that came up when we did that in 24, that if must Live was that Taco Bell really is all about the fans. Like it's incredible that you know, we're talking about a fast food brand that people tattoo their, the logo in their bodies, you know, like that, you know, they wait for menu items much like they wait, you know, for a new pair of Jordans to drop. Like, it is an incredible loyalty to the brand. And, and also like there is this code. Alex, Alex always says like, you know, this idea that only Taco Bell could do it. And I think that, you know, like, there's a lot to unpack from that statement. But I think that Livema's Life kind of, I have to say I was very skeptical before Livma's Life was like, who's gonna go to like a keynote presentation of Taco Bell? Turns out that was, I think that was the most organically the most view brand action in 2024 across all brands. So this time around in the super bowl, we came back to the client, which by the way, Sean Tresvan, Taylor Montgomery, Ashley Perlamonte, like shout out to them because they are visionaries. And then we put them in check. We walk in a room and we're like, hey, when you say that this brand is all about the fans, do you actually mean it? Is that true? And they look at each other and they're like, it's absolutely true. And then we said, well, if that's. So here's what you're going to do. You're going to buy the most expensive media buy and you're going to put your fans in it. And that was the beginning of this entire journey that now we are close to get to the conclusion. But that triggered us developing the drive through cameras where, you know, we captured like thousands of fans across America. It also triggered like, wait, so if we're going to put, you know, real fans in the spot, then we need to say something to the celebrities that we already have signed. So that triggered the entire conversation about Taco Bell with Spain celebrities to not be in the super bowl ad and and so on and so forth. So yeah, like the super bowl spot is here. I think it's going to be, if anything, a very generous thing. I don't think that the brand talking about putting your money where your mouth is. This brand said, hey, Rob, all the fans. And that's exactly what we're doing.
I would just say it really is amazing. Taco Bell has some of the most interesting unique devverse fans you could possibly imagine. So extremely passionate. And one thing we talked a lot about in this campaign was sort of like, if Taco Bell is the party where we celebrate diversity, then the drive thru is the red carpet. And so it wasn't just a matter of how are we going to find a way to like capture fan content, et cetera. I mean we know with fast food and QSR in general, the drive thru is a huge sales channel. It's a major business goal to send people to the drive thru. But more than that, there was actually a tweet that was read on stage by Sean Tresvant, CEO of Taco Bell, formerly CMO of Jordan Brands. And this in a lot of ways was a real inspiration for this. And it's obviously kind of a joke, but there's so much truth in it and maybe I'll just read it. This is from Christy Yamaguchi, Main amazing handle. The Taco Bell drive thru at 1am will have a 200k Mercedes S65 waiting right behind a 96 Cavalier that's never had the oil change followed by a moped ridden by all three people all craving the same thing to Live Moss. Truly the last great melting pot of class in this country. And if you think about it, you just have a camera there and people are coming through the drive through. The incredible diversity of people, walks of life, styles, menu items is incredibly diverse and interesting. And knowing that sort of the fans are what make the brand what it is, that's where this idea of the drive Thru cam was born. So it's funny like if you think about what are the tropes in common super bowl ads like the celebrity ensemble spot is the thing. Like you have Martha Stewart with Lil Wayne and you know, Arnold Schwarzenegger and it's a State Farm ad somehow. And so we thought wouldn't it be funny if we did the exact opposite. And of course we have amazing celebrity relationships with the brand and of course celebrities factor in in a big way. But what if we turned it on its head? So the whole idea here is sorry, LeBron James, all time scorer, Olympic gold medalist, sorry Doja Cat, one of the biggest artists in the world. This one's all about the fans and the entire lead up campaign is basically them pissed that they were fired from the super bowl spot, on the phone with their agents complaining, whatever else. Or in the case of the teaser that just dropped and ran in the AFC NFC games, it's Doja Cat photobombing people in the drive thru trying to sneak in because she insists she's a fan. It's a really funny sort of exchange but so you know, celebrity factors in heavily in the promotion. But I guess we'll have to see what the actual spot looks like on February 9th. But of course it is a celebration of the fans that did come through those drive thru cams that we, you know, took from city to city across the country.
Guto Araki
Definitely looking forward to seeing it. And, you know, I saw some of the teaser, you know, teaser things that you mentioned, and definitely building anticipation there.
Greg Kilstrom
Wouldn't it be great if you could ask your data anything at any time, like, how are sales this quarter? How's the new marketing campaign performing? What does the overall health of the company look like? And actually get answers right away with charts and graphics and actionable information, you can with Domo's AI and data products platform. Domo lets you channel AI and data quickly, securely, and innovatively to deliver measurable insights wherever and whenever you need them.
Guto Araki
And anyone on your team can use.
Greg Kilstrom
Domo to easily prepare, analyze, visualize, automate, and distribute data, all amplified by AI. Domo goes beyond productivity. It's designed to transform your processes, helping you make smarter and faster decisions and drive real growth. All powered by Domo's trust, flexibility, and years of expertise in data and AI innovation. The world's best companies rely on Domo to make smarter decisions. See how Domo can help transform yours. Learn more@AI.domo.com that's AI.domo.com.
Guto Araki
You know, you mentioned finding a way to not only create buzz and excitement, but also, you know, it's. It's got to tie back to beyond vanity metrics and tie back to the business as well. How do you look at measuring success of a campaign like this?
Alex Jacobs
I think that there are definitely hard metrics, and someone in the media department is crunch the numbers to get to some sort of ROI and whatnot. But what I like to tell the clients is, hey, we all want our brands to break into culture, and usually you do that by borrowed interest. So there's a reason why super bowl spots are this ensemble of celebrities, because it's almost the hack the quickest way. Right. But what just happened this week, I think is one very positive metric. I don't know if you picked up on that, Greg, but Colbert talked about our campaign and the cameras and, you know, on his show.
Guto Araki
Yeah.
Alex Jacobs
And any moment he mentioned the name of a celebrity. You know, funny enough, he was like mentioning another commercial that had Orlando Bloom, and he made a joke about that, and then he moved into Taco Bell. And obviously it's. He's a comedian. Right. So, like, we knew we're gonna, we're about to be roasted. But what he talked about, it had nothing to do with celebrity, but just the brain and what we were doing. And at least for us, this is the most important KPI. Are we breaking into culture? Prior, I was working on another agency where we created the Hulu has Live sports campaign. And that it gives me familiar vibes. When we get to the level where people see it as part of culture, then we know that we're doing something meaningful.
Guto Araki
Yeah. Yeah. Love it. So another campaign that actually launched earlier this month is Resi. And I had the opportunity to great spot and really resonated. Can you talk a little bit about. For those that haven't, we can put a link in the show notes to the Spot. But can you tell us a little bit about the creative vision behind it and how is the approach here different than from what we were just talking about with. With Taco Bell?
Alex Jacobs
Yeah, for sure. I mean, look, this opportunity to work with Rezi as a client is an absolute dream from where we come from as advertising professionals and from what we do with Byte, it is literally a dream client. And to all of our clients, thank you for. For bringing us into this.
It's.
It's been an unbelievable experience. So, yeah, just a little background on the campaign. And it got really interesting with the way things sort of unfolded in the first. I mean, I can't believe we're still in January right now. It's been the longest month ever. But this has actually been in the works since the summer. And what a lot of people might not know is that January is a really tough month for restaurants. So for. The reality for a lot of restaurants, unfortunately, is that it's razor thin margins and you could be one bad week or month away from maybe having to close. And December is very much a boom time for some restaurants where people are out for holiday spending or holiday parties. People are just in general indulging. And that holiday boom can be followed by a holiday hangover. And you go to January and people are doing Whole 30 and resolutions and dieting and they're broke from holiday spending. And the dip in sales can be really severe. And so since the summer, we've been planning this campaign all about trying to get people out to show up for restaurants in this time where they really need that support. We were about to hit the button like, everything's ready to go. We're about to launch it. And please do. If you're listening, have a look at the link and watch the film. But it was shot on location in Los Angeles with a bunch of unbelievable real Resi partners in restaurants as the talent in the spots. And we're about to launch this thing. And then BL wildfires break out. And, you know, despite the realities of the seasonal Slowdowns. And now the acute crisis posed by these fires. In the true spirit of hospitality, of caring for one another and sort of showing up for your community, restaurants sort of like leapt to the front lines and sort of became the first responders to the first responders. And without any provocation or prompt, no one asked restaurants, because this is just the spirit of hospitality almost like instantly mobilized to turn their restaurants into kitchens and basically units in a network to feed this effort. And we have byte, we've been working with World Central Kitchen and there's a ton of organizations all involved. But if this campaign was about trying to create empathy and show just how much restaurants show up for us every single day, then suddenly with this response to these fires, we had a demonstration of that beyond what we ever could have picked up on film. And it was truly extraordinary. And so we ended up launching the campaign, but making sure to be sensitive to what's going on with the fires. But if anything, it underscores the message that restaurants show up for us now more than ever. And here in LA and everywhere else, how can we show up for them in this time and all year round? And the film is beautiful. The other elements of the campaign are working in concert to sort of mobilize diners everywhere and they'll continue to roll out over the course of the quarter. And this is not just a winter or, you know, quarterly thing. This is a, you know, RESI is a value driven brand. This is a directive all year long. And it's amazing to see the response we've gotten so far. It's been just truly inspiring.
I think that this one is, is definitely a special one for us. It's two things that, that it's. They're super interesting about this campaign. Specifically one. Another shout out here to Hannah and Allison and the entire marketing team at resi. But these incredibly smart people, they crunch the numbers, Greg. And they realized that in Q1, in the beginning of the year, if anyone made one extra reservation, that could solve the problem of the industry altogether. Wow. So apparently from a business perspective, that deep into business in the beginning of the year becomes something that the restaurant as a business drags over the year and end up being one of the causes why some of these restaurants fail. So the brief was incredibly interesting. Very business driven. Like, hey, how can we compel people to make one extra reservation? Very cold, you know, like, very mathematical. But, you know, like, because Alex and I were just so deep into this community, we're like, hey, there's something, you know, an anthem for the unsung heroes. You know, like people have no idea how much effort and sacrifice goes into running a restaurant. There's a quote that we like. Like, you know, for someone to walk into a restaurant at 7 and have a nice dinner, someone else Woke up at 4 and went to fight for, you know, like the freshest fish with the fishmonger. Right. So like, if we told this story, it's an empathy play. It's a business, it's a very hard business, KPI, but it's, but it's executed through an empathy play. And then the fact, like Alex was saying, that as we're about to launch, this happened and the community itself mobilized to help fellow competitors. You can even say it was really incredible. And hopefully the campaign does what it's supposed to do and encourage people to make an extra reservation in Q1.
Guto Araki
Yeah, no, definitely. And definitely encourage people to watch it. Yeah, it was impactful. I know a little bit about the, the restaurant business myself, but it's still, you know, it impacted me and, and was, yeah, was moving.
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Guto Araki
Before we wrap up here, I want to go back a little bit to your agency to Byte. And you know, one of the things you both mentioned in the beginning was, you know, not only do you have this, you have this close relationship to the food industry, which I think informs a lot of the work, but you also have broader experience from the agency world and, you know, so tying those, those two things together, there's a lot of. Synergy is an overused word, but there's, there's some synergy there. Do you think that other agents, like, are niche agencies that are, have deep knowledge in an industry like food? You know, is that the future? Is that, is that something that More agencies should be paying attention to, more brands should be paying attention to, you know, what are your thoughts? There's.
Alex Jacobs
Yeah, I think the word niche is an interesting word. I don't know that it's the word I would use. People in creative agencies often talk about insight driven creative. It's become one of these almost throwaway types of terms. And in the case of Byte, we have really deep insights about food and food culture and that help inform the work. But if you think about it, niche kind of implies focused, small, and not necessarily mass or broad. And if you think about food as an interest area, I mean, Nike has that campaign. If you have a body, you're an athlete. Well, if you're a human, you eat. And in the case of food as a niche interest, it is, it helps us focus in a really specialized way to break through with individuals, but that appeal on a mass scale. And so I don't know that niche is necessarily the future, but certainly having a point of view and a level of understanding and access to really deep insights that help you connect and break through on any given subject matter, that's sort of always been the key to really great breakthrough creative. And certainly in the case of Byte helps us develop programs and campaigns and creative that do connect, but also can connect on a mass scale.
Yeah. And just to add to that, there's several interesting things, you know, like in the beginning when, when we start like, you know, philosophying about culture itself, I have two kids when it's 12 and the other one's three. At that time my oldest one was like around seven, eight. And I asked him like, hey, you know, what's Italian culture? And he's like, pizza, spaghetti and what's Japanese culture? And he's like jiu jitsu and sushi. So it's like, if it's not the first thing that you think when you think about, like describing a culture, it's definitely the second most likely is the first thing. And, and obviously because, you know, like what, what Alex just said, like, you know, if you're, if you're a human, you eat, right. Like, and, and even, you know, like, we have, like, our head of account is it's heading to Japan, I think in a week or or so. And you know, like, of course she's excited about being there, but guess what she's the most excited about. It's definitely like the gastronomy of the place.
Guto Araki
Yeah.
Alex Jacobs
So I, I agree with Alex. Like, you know, I don't know if it's niche. I, it's almost Something that it's been overlooked. I, I feel like in Brandy, you know, like the importance of it. But another thing that it's super interesting, Greg, is like how we inherited like things that we observe into the, the industry and apply to advertising. Right. Like as I said, like we came from big network agencies where you know, there was a time that was, I was commanding 12 creative teams, meaning each team's two people. So it's 24 people and obviously not all of them were super senior. Some of them were junior. And that requires a lot of time to guide them through, to give them feedback to coaching and whatnot. But then when you go to a high end Michelin star restaurant in the kitchen, they don't have 200 people in the kitchen, they have like 10. They're killers. They're like veterans, right? Like they know what they're doing. They have thick skin, they know, they're incredibly self aware, they know how to get out of the way. So we run our agency using the same mentality, like in this somewhat an unpopular like opinion. But we think that because obviously we're small, like we don't have the luxury to not have only veterans in our team. So our team ended up being like, much like a Michelin star restaurant, quite small. The other thing that is interesting too that we like to tell our clients is like, you know, like I think that in advertising there is this tradition of like pushing back or creatives that are arrogant and they think that the client doesn't know anything. But when you look at the hospitality industry, it doesn't matter, you know, like they're in the service business and when you're a service business, you need to serve them the best possible way. We like to tell our clients that we, you know, we, we, we talk to them as if they were on a Michelin star restaurant. So like even the way we communicate with, with our clients, which, you know, clients, customers, basically the same thing, right? Like it's inherited from the food industry, which is like really, really cool.
Guto Araki
Yeah, yeah. I love how holistic that approach is. It's not just like tacking on, oh, we know a little bit about this one little industry or whatever, but it's really kind of embracing a lot of aspects of it. That's really powerful. Well, Guto and Alex, thanks so much for joining. One last question I like to ask everybody before we go here. What do you do to stay agile in your roles and how do you find a way to do it consistently?
Alex Jacobs
Ooh, that's a good one. Alex, you go first.
I'll go first. I will say this, the easiest way for us to stay agile is continue to take on more and more ambitious projects. You have no choice but to adapt and adapt quickly and it doesn't hurt. As a matter of fact, I don't think we'd be able to do it if we weren't passionate about it and we didn't love what we did. So I stay passionate about the work and we always continue to take on bigger and bigger challenges and that leaves not much room to not stay agile.
Yeah, that's a good one. I would say. Like there's a person that I admire a lot. His name is Jeff Kleen. He's one of the most awarded creatives in advertising. He created Nike Ride the Future Most Interesting man for the Sakes and many other campaigns. And once he told me like, you know, anyone who can preach about the new is lying because the thing about the new is that it has never been done before. So like chasing, you know, what's new in an industry that with so many incredible minds who are creating new things all the time is a very, very interesting chase for life philosophically. And I think that that's a lot what guides us as well.
Guto Araki
Love it, love it. Well, thanks again. Thanks to Guto Araki and Alex Jacobs from Byte for joining the show. You can learn more about Guto, Alex and Byte by following the links in the show notes. Thanks again for listening to the Agile brand brought to you by Tech Systems. If you enjoyed the show, please take a minute to subscribe and leave us a rating so that others can find the show as well. You can access more episodes of the show@theagilebrand.com that's theagile brand.com and contact me. If you're interested in consulting or advisory services or are looking for a speaker for your next event, go to www.gregkilstrom.com that's G R E G K I H L S t r o m.com the Agile brand is produced by Missing Link, a Latina owned, strategy driven, creatively fueled production co op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. Until next time, stay curious and stay agile.
Alex Jacobs
The Agile brand.
Podcast Summary: The Agile Brand with Greg Kihlström®
Episode #635: Taco Bell's Return to the Big Game and Creating a Successful Niche Agency with Guto Araki and Alex Jacobs, Byte
Release Date: February 7, 2025
In Episode #635 of The Agile Brand with Greg Kihlström®, host Greg Kihlström engages in a compelling conversation with Guto Araki, Founder and CEO of Byte Agency, and Alex Jacobs, Co-founder and COO of Byte Agency. Byte Agency has emerged as a powerhouse in creating innovative marketing campaigns, notably Taco Bell's highly anticipated 2025 Super Bowl advertisement.
Guto Araki and Alex Jacobs delve into the origins of Byte Agency, highlighting their transition from running Byte as a consumer-facing platform to establishing it as a full-fledged agency. Initially focusing on limited-edition collaborations with chefs and restaurants, Byte evolved to cater to brands seeking specialized marketing strategies within the food industry.
Alex Jacobs explains:
"Byte Agency is positioned at the intersection of food culture and top-tier creative services. Our deep immersion in the culinary community provides us with unique insights and relationships that offer our clients an unfair advantage." [04:11]
After a three-year hiatus from Super Bowl advertising, Taco Bell partnered with Byte Agency to create a memorable and culturally resonant campaign. The primary objective was not only to capture attention but also to honor and engage Taco Bell's passionate fanbase.
Greg Kihlström poses the question:
"With Taco Bell's return to the Super Bowl, how do you craft a campaign that becomes a moment fans will never forget?" [05:00]
Alex Jacobs responds:
"Taco Bell is all about the fans. We decided to put the fans at the center of our Super Bowl spot by leveraging drive-thru cameras to capture real fan interactions across America." [09:07]
The campaign strategically eschewed the traditional celebrity ensemble often seen in Super Bowl ads. Instead, Byte Agency focused on showcasing genuine Taco Bell enthusiasts, highlighting the brand's deep-rooted loyalty and cultural significance. This approach was inspired by Taco Bell's prior success with the "Live Must Live" event, which creatively diverged from conventional Super Bowl advertisements.
Alex Jacobs elaborates:
"We challenged the client to embody their commitment to fans by investing in the most expensive media buy and featuring real fans instead of celebrities. This not only celebrated the community but also differentiated Taco Bell from its competitors." [09:07]
Measuring the success of such a culturally driven campaign went beyond traditional metrics. The team focused on the campaign's ability to penetrate and become part of broader cultural conversations.
Alex Jacobs shares:
"Our most important KPI was breaking into culture. When Stephen Colbert mentioned our campaign on his show, it validated our approach to creating something meaningful and culturally relevant." [18:36]
Transitioning to discuss another significant project, the Rezzy campaign, Guto and Alex highlight the challenges and triumphs of launching during unforeseen circumstances.
Alex Jacobs states:
"The Rezzy campaign was developed to support restaurants during January, a typically slow and critical month post-holiday season. However, the outbreak of wildfires added an acute crisis, leading restaurants to become first responders. This real-world context enriched the campaign's narrative, emphasizing the resilience and community spirit of the restaurant industry." [20:20]
The unforeseen wildfires underscored the campaign's message, showcasing restaurants as pillars of support within communities. This alignment of real events with the campaign's objectives amplified its authenticity and emotional resonance.
Alex Jacobs reflects:
"The community's rapid mobilization to support those affected by the wildfires perfectly mirrored our campaign's intent to highlight how restaurants show up for us every day." [20:20]
The discussion pivots to the concept of niche agencies, with Guto and Alex advocating for deep industry specialization as a pathway to creating impactful marketing strategies.
Alex Jacobs explains:
"Having a specialized focus on food culture allows us to develop campaigns that resonate deeply with both consumers and brands. It's not about being small; it's about having a profound understanding that enables mass appeal." [29:02]
They argue that niche specialization fosters unique insights and innovative approaches, which are crucial for crafting campaigns that break through the noise.
Drawing parallels between Byte Agency and Michelin-starred restaurants, Guto and Alex discuss their operational ethos inspired by the culinary world.
Alex Jacobs shares:
"Our agency operates with a mentality similar to a Michelin-star restaurant kitchen. We maintain a small, highly skilled team that collaborates seamlessly to deliver exceptional results. This approach ensures efficiency, creativity, and a commitment to excellence." [30:11]
They emphasize the importance of teamwork, resilience, and a service-oriented mindset, treating clients with the same dedication as top-tier chefs treat their diners.
In the final segment, Guto and Alex discuss strategies for staying agile in the fast-paced marketing landscape.
Alex Jacobs advises:
"Continuously taking on more ambitious projects forces us to adapt quickly. Our passion for what we do drives us to embrace challenges that keep us agile." [33:04]
Additionally, they highlight the importance of embracing new ideas and maintaining flexibility to respond to evolving market dynamics.
Greg Kihlström wraps up the episode by appreciating the insights shared by Guto Araki and Alex Jacobs. He underscores the significance of niche expertise and cultural resonance in creating successful marketing campaigns. Listeners are encouraged to explore more about Byte Agency and their innovative approaches through the provided show notes.
Notable Quotes:
Alex Jacobs:
"Byte Agency is positioned at the intersection of food culture and top-tier creative services. Our deep immersion in the culinary community provides us with unique insights and relationships that offer our clients an unfair advantage." [04:11]
Alex Jacobs:
"We decided to put the fans at the center of our Super Bowl spot by leveraging drive-thru cameras to capture real fan interactions across America." [09:07]
Alex Jacobs:
"Our most important KPI was breaking into culture. When Stephen Colbert mentioned our campaign on his show, it validated our approach to creating something meaningful and culturally relevant." [18:36]
Alex Jacobs:
"Having a specialized focus on food culture allows us to develop campaigns that resonate deeply with both consumers and brands. It's not about being small; it's about having a profound understanding that enables mass appeal." [29:02]
Alex Jacobs:
"Our agency operates with a mentality similar to a Michelin-star restaurant kitchen. We maintain a small, highly skilled team that collaborates seamlessly to deliver exceptional results." [30:11]
Alex Jacobs:
"Continuously taking on more ambitious projects forces us to adapt quickly. Our passion for what we do drives us to embrace challenges that keep us agile." [33:04]
Learn More:
For more insights and to explore Byte Agency's work, visit the show notes provided in the podcast or follow them on their official platforms.
This summary captures the essence of Episode #635, providing a comprehensive overview of the discussions on Taco Bell's Super Bowl campaign, Byte Agency's niche expertise, and strategies for maintaining agility in the marketing industry.