Greggs utilises dark social with exclusive Whatsapp group for VIPs - but will they come?
Greggs has launched an exclusive festive WhatsApp group where fans of the brand can benefit from insider news on launch dates, exclusive content and competition opportunities.
Greggs festive bakes are one of the incentives for joining the group
The ‘Festive Bake Lovers’ WhatsApp group went live this week (2 November) and is inviting fans via Twitter and Facebook to join before the limited number of 250 places are full.
The campaign has been created by creative agency Splendid Communications and will serve as a direct line of communication offering announcements on new ranges before anywhere else.
Lucinda Blencowe, account director at Splendid Communications said:, “The Greggs Festive Bake is a firm favourite amongst pasty fans and we receive queries about the date of its in-shop arrival from as early as July.
“Our brief was to engage and generate conversation around the Festive Bake, giving something back to our loyal pasty fans. 77% of all UK content sharing is happening via “dark social”, such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, than anywhere else so it seemed a perfect opportunity to serve customers exclusive content in the way they like it most.”
The WhatsApp group will run until Christmas, with the Festive Bake available in Greggs shops from 8 November.
The move follows on from the company's transformative journey over the last few years as it attempts to become a leading 'food-on-the-go' brand.
Gregg's dark social strategy will help give it a truer insight into the kind of intimate conversations it can potentially have with customers and follows on similar moves from the likes of Adidas which believes it can be the 'most social brand' by utilising one-to-one messaging opportunities through the likes of Whatsapp.
Last year the bakery chain's Christmas marketing took the form of a mince pie air freshener.