Leveraging a Quirky Holiday to Drive New Menu Item Trial, Media Results

Linhart PR leveraged August’s National Zucchini Day as an “ownable” holiday and created a promotion where guests could substitute classic noodles for Zoodles without the usual upcharge. The team leveraged insights about Noodles’ key consumers to craft relevant messages, emphasizing the nutritional benefits of zucchini.

• Landed TODAY: For national broadcast, Linhart PR focused on the TODAY Show, the No. 1 national morning show. Linhart PR pitched a fun, visually-rich segment – a Guinness Record attempt to spiralize the most zucchinis in one minute by bicycle (which Noodles engineered and dubbed the “Zoodler”). Noodles partnered with Guinness on the attempt, allowing Linhart PR to deliver a packaged idea that included a Guinness spokesperson to guide the record attempt during the Wednesday Whaaat?! series with Kathie Lee and Hoda. Producers loved it!
• Leveraged Roundups: To circumvent the challenge of securing national features for a brand with a limited restaurant footprint, Linhart PR targeted national, consumer-facing food and lifestyle outlets that run monthly restaurant deals and special offer roundups. The Noodles “holiday” news fit naturally into existing deals/discount columns, and reporters were eager to add the Zoodles promo to other August holiday deals from national brands.
• Offered Food Deliveries: To drive local news in five focus markets, Linhart PR offered Zoodles deliveries, giving TV news stations the visual element typically required for on-air mentions. Plus, reporters could taste Zoodles for themselves, which helped tell the healthier menu item story and create positive media relationships.