George Felix, CMO of Chili’s, joins us to tell the story behind one of the most impressive brand turnarounds of recent years. From iconic menu items like chips and salsa and the famous margarita to viral social media moments and creative partnerships, George explains how Chili’s became culturally relevant again and reignited growth.
Before Chili’s, George played a key role in the legendary Old Spice turnaround, and in this episode he shares the lessons he's learned from transforming legacy brands. We discuss the power of nostalgia, making the most of your agency relationships, influencing product and pricing decisions, and why the customer experience often drives more value than advertising alone.
Timestamps
00:00:00 - Start 00:02:07 - The famous Chili’s chips and salsa 00:03:39 - The famous Chili’s margharita 00:06:32 - Why Chili’s has signature items 00:08:01 - How Chili’s became one of the biggest brand turnarounds in history 00:10:51 - The importance of working with people you trust 00:12:26 - George’s role in the Old Spice turnaround 00:18:10 - How to build the case for increased brand investment 00:21:16 - The power of nostalgia for a legacy brand 00:25:57 - How George pitched an idea to his creative agency and they bought it 00:29:03 - The System1 data for the Chili’s ad 00:30:45 - Fostering a great client / agency relationship 00:38:19 - How experience drives better ROI than marketing 00:42:43 - The viral cheese pull trend 00:45:45 - How can a brand create cultural relevance? 00:48:45 - Chili’s brand collaboration with Tecovas Boots 00:51:19 - How George has influence over the Product “P” in marketing 00:54:51 - How to leverage the Pricing “P” 00:57:43 - The concept of “barbell pricing” 01:00:27 - What is the most important attribute for a successful CMO?
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