Casual dining chain Chili’s Grill & Bar has appointed Boulder, Colorado-based Fact & Fiction as its social media agency of record.
“In a rushed and oversaturated world where you have milliseconds to capture someone’s attention, we realized that telling our story through social media was an area where we could reinvent ourselves,” Chili’s chief marketing and innovation officer Steve Provost said in a statement. “We needed the right partner to challenge us, energize us and give us the production chops to be able to tell our story at the speed of social.”
“Social should be fun – it’s the perfect avenue to articulate a brand’s personality and voice strategically, yet fearlessly,” added Fact & Fiction partner Kyle Taylor. “The Chili’s brand has a strong heritage for a reason, and I’m thrilled that we get to help tell the story of what they do best: connecting friends and family over burgers, ribs and fajitas.”
Back in May, Chili’s parted ways with longtime agency partner Hill Holliday. At the time, the chain said it would move to working with agency partners on a project basis for future broadcast and digital campaigns. Hill Holliday had worked with the brand since winning the account away from GSD&M, an incumbent of some two decades, back in 2007. Chili’s subsequently launched a review which it concluded by awarding a project assignment to O’Keefe Reinhard & Paul.
Chili’s spent a total of around $129 million on measured media in the U.S. last year, according to Kantar Media.