Sonic Guys :: Love em or Hate em?
 

ADVERTISING & MARKETING 2-23-05
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Sonic ads drive reaction

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By JENNIFER MANN
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Columnist
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Never in memory has an award-winning ad campaign generated such feedback as the one Barkley Evergreen & Partners produced for the Sonic Drive-In chain of restaurants.

E-mails and phone calls started coming in early Tuesday after the marketing and advertising column mentioned that the campaign featuring two guys sitting in a sport-utility vehicle discussing Sonic's food won a slew of awards at the Omnis, including Best of Show for the second year in a row and Best of Radio.

The communications continued through early Friday afternoon. Interestingly, all callers and e-mailers were men and all were pretty passionate in their contempt for the spots.

A sampling of one e-mail, this one from area resident Ken Jennings: “The two guys in the ad are whiny and brainless in their attempts at being pointedly funny. They miss the point and are just plain irritating and chafing.”

Another one, this from Mitch Eagan from Olathe: “I too, along with a lot of my friends, agreed this was the worst, most stupid, dumbest of the dumber commercials of the year. Wow … this commercial should be fined by the FTC for insulting, bad influence to the TV watchers in the area.”

The phone calls were more pointed, including one in which the caller wanted to know why anyone would want to watch two homosexuals sitting in a car at Sonic talking. When queried as to why he thought the two characters, Pete and P.J., were homosexual, he said: “Just look at them — they're bickering like a husband and wife.”
Greg Haflich, vice president of marketing and brand development at Sonic Industries Inc. headquarters in Oklahoma City, has heard it all before.

“There is a group out there that really don't understand what two guys would be doing in a car at a Sonic by themselves without a girlfriend or a wife,” Haflich said. “They're part of what I call the polar edge of the lunatic fringe.”

Haflich said there's another edge to the fringe: people who call and want compact discs of the commercials to give as gifts.
“And then in the middle, there's a whole group of consumers who respond to the ads,” Haflich said.

The proof, he said, is in the numbers.

“Since we introduced the campaign, same-store sales are up more than 10 percent. We've had advertising-awareness increases in the markets where we compete, exceeding both Burger King and Wendy's, and they outspend us 2-to-1.”

“We're starting to get up to where McDonald's is in terms of recognition, and they spend $2 million a day on advertising,” he said. “I don't have a business reason on behalf of our stockholders to make a change.”

Brian Brooker, chief executive officer and chief creative officer at Barkley Evergreen, said the two characters are sometimes polarizing, “but it's scary sometimes the way people perceive advertising,” he said.

The two actors work in comedy and are given an idea for the spots, and then improvise.

“When you look at fast-food advertising, there's really nothing that's consistent, and here we are starting to develop these icons,” Brooker said. “I take these comments with a grain of salt.”
ADVERTISING & MARKETING
http://www.kansascity.com/images/common/spacer.gif
Sonic ads drive reaction

http://www.kansascity.com/images/common/spacer.gif
By JENNIFER MANN
http://www.kansascity.com/images/common/spacer.gif
Columnist
http://www.kansascity.com/images/common/spacer.gif
Never in memory has an award-winning ad campaign generated such feedback as the one Barkley Evergreen & Partners produced for the Sonic Drive-In chain of restaurants.
E-mails and phone calls started coming in early Tuesday after the marketing and advertising column mentioned that the campaign featuring two guys sitting in a sport-utility vehicle discussing Sonic's food won a slew of awards at the Omnis, including Best of Show for the second year in a row and Best of Radio.
The communications continued through early Friday afternoon. Interestingly, all callers and e-mailers were men and all were pretty passionate in their contempt for the spots.
A sampling of one e-mail, this one from area resident Ken Jennings: “The two guys in the ad are whiny and brainless in their attempts at being pointedly funny. They miss the point and are just plain irritating and chafing.”
Another one, this from Mitch Eagan from Olathe: “I too, along with a lot of my friends, agreed this was the worst, most stupid, dumbest of the dumber commercials of the year. Wow … this commercial should be fined by the FTC for insulting, bad influence to the TV watchers in the area.”
The phone calls were more pointed, including one in which the caller wanted to know why anyone would want to watch two homosexuals sitting in a car at Sonic talking. When queried as to why he thought the two characters, Pete and P.J., were homosexual, he said: “Just look at them — they're bickering like a husband and wife.”
Greg Haflich, vice president of marketing and brand development at Sonic Industries Inc. headquarters in Oklahoma City, has heard it all before.
“There is a group out there that really don't understand what two guys would be doing in a car at a Sonic by themselves without a girlfriend or a wife,” Haflich said. “They're part of what I call the polar edge of the lunatic fringe.”
Haflich said there's another edge to the fringe: people who call and want compact discs of the commercials to give as gifts.
“And then in the middle, there's a whole group of consumers who respond to the ads,” Haflich said.
The proof, he said, is in the numbers.
“Since we introduced the campaign, same-store sales are up more than 10 percent. We've had advertising-awareness increases in the markets where we compete, exceeding both Burger King and Wendy's, and they outspend us 2-to-1.”
“We're starting to get up to where McDonald's is in terms of recognition, and they spend $2 million a day on advertising,” he said. “I don't have a business reason on behalf of our stockholders to make a change.”
Brian Brooker, chief executive officer and chief creative officer at Barkley Evergreen, said the two characters are sometimes polarizing, “but it's scary sometimes the way people perceive advertising,” he said.
The two actors work in comedy and are given an idea for the spots, and then improvise.
“When you look at fast-food advertising, there's really nothing that's consistent, and here we are starting to develop these icons,” Brooker said. “I take these comments with a grain of salt.”
To advance the campaign, Sonic recently introduced three new spots featuring a married couple, Molly and Brian.
“We're doing it to give the campaign more legs, because the Sonic guys have been exposed a lot and we don't want consumers to get fatigued,” Haflich said.

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To advance the campaign, Sonic recently introduced three new spots featuring a married couple, Molly and Brian.


“We're doing it to give the campaign more legs, because the Sonic guys have been exposed a lot and we don't want consumers to get fatigued,” Haflich said.

I don't know some, of their stuff is some really lame shit, but some is really good. The two I like are about the taste buds in the morning and the hotdog rulers.

I really cracked up at the one where they just got done playing basketball. And he is working on suggestions for his smack... then the other dude is putting a tater-tot in his mouth, and the dude blocks it, and yells "Get that WEAK tot action OUTTA HERE!" That one is my fav of the bunch.

I find it interesting that Sonic stores have increased sales 10% in year to year comparisons since the ad campaign was launched.

Colontard on the loose...

Where is the option for "Wish death upon them"?

I've been amazed how horrid most commercials have been lately...

Second.

Most annoying fucking commercials on TV.

I think they are generally pretty funny. And unlike many memorable commercials, I can actually remember what brand these guys are pimping so I think it's a pretty effective commercial campaign.

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I thought some of them were funny, and others were pretty annoying.... I like the new one above though.... "I didn't enjoy it. You were talking..."

You know what a great commercial would be? Those two guys make some smartass comment into the speaker, then the carhop comes and drags them both out of the car, savagely beating them both with her coin dispenser until they are marred beyond recognizable human beings. I'd definitely go order some friggin tator tots or whatever they serve there after that.

And I'll bet you'd be polite to the drivethrough person, too.



It's great that these ads are effective, but they're just another boring, wannabeclever ad to me. I think maybe if they were cast differently, I'd find them a little more interesting, but the two guys just aren't likeable in my opinion.

I am always polite to them actually :D

Obviously, the ads are doing a good job of raising their visibility if their same-stores are up 10 percent. I just think these ads are dumb. The two guys are not a bad idea, it's just that the jokes are not funny.

And they need more of the ads... I frequently listen to the Royals on radio, and by the end of the season last year I bet that I had heard the "we'll trade you burgers and fries for tickets to a game" spot about ten million times.