Situational Analysis – Applebee’s
Executive Summary
Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar experienced problems with competition and negative customer perceptions. Since DineEquity, Inc., bought the franchise in 2007, it has worked to improve the perception of customers and relations with customers and the community in which it operates. A total remodel of each restaurant and the “See You Tomorrow” campaign were developed to achieve this goal. Its top franchisee, T.L. Cannon Companies takes extra measures to involve itself in the community by donating to and sponsoring local fundraisers and charities.
The campaign led to increased social media interaction with customers and a greater amount of followers on each social media outlet. This increased interaction makes customers and the community feel like they are all part of “a neighborhood” – part of Applebee’s mission. They offer a casual feel to appeal to the average person in the neighborhood.
The fundraisers Applebee’s and T.L. Cannon Companies participate in are especially effective because of what they target – children and military service members. These topics are
“newsworthy” because they appeal to human interest and the heart of Americans.
Overall, Applebee’s was able to improve its customer and community relations after suffering losses of sales, customers and the closing of its restaurants by implementing these strategies and tactics.
Situation Analysis
Applebee’s, the leading restaurant in casual family dining (18), is an international franchise with more than 2,000 locations (5). The parent company, DineEquity, Inc., purchased

Applebee’s Neighborhood Grill & Bar in 2007 and began to revamp the entire company’s brand
(19). It started first with remodeling the restaurants, and then in 2012, started the “See You
Tomorrow” campaign (10). Applebee’s vision is laid out on its website; Applebee’s prides itself in offering “a friendly, welcoming, neighborhood environment for both the staff and guests that makes everyone enjoy their Applebee’s experience” (5). However, Applebee’s must compete against other restaurants in this category such as Ruby Tuesday, Chili’s, Olive Garden, etc., which in combination with the economic troubles the casual dining industry has faced during the economic recession has caused the closing of many Applebee’s restaurants. To make matters worse, Tracie McMillan went undercover and showed her viewers of The American Way of
Eating just how many foods at Applebee’s are microwaved (9). These factors led Applebee’s to revitalize the business’ brand through offering menu items that contained new fresh food, seasonal ingredients and flavors (9) and maintaining a competitive advantage through community and customer relations. Many former-customer views were still shaped by the bad experiences they had at Applebee’s before DineEquity, Inc. purchased the franchise and remodeled the entire brand from aesthetics of the restaurant, down to the food, flavors, and employee relations. Applebee’s started the “See You Tomorrow” Campaign in order to improve customer’s and the community’s perception about the company. Today, Applebee’s implements a strong and effective customer relations program by being interactive with customers through multiple outlets of social media, and more specifically, Applebee’s franchisee, T.L. Cannon
Companies, goes the extra mile to also focus on community relations by participating in and sponsoring local fundraisers and charities.
Research Summary

For this analysis, secondary research was primarily used from multiple websites. Google search engine was used to obtain a general understanding of Applebee’s and its mission.
Information about promotional events and promotions within the restaurant were obtained from
PRNewswire.com and BusinessWire.com. To assess Applebee’s customer relations through social media, each social media site was surveyed to draw conclusions about the company’s interaction with customers. The major social media sites assessed were Facebook, Twitter,
YouTube and Vine. While researching, T.L. Cannon Companies was discovered as one of the top franchisees of Applebee’s based on the awards they have won within the company such as
Applebee’s Neighbor of the Year Award (2007, 2009, 2012 and 2013) as well as national awards such as The Good Neighbor Award by the National Restaurant Association for nine consecutive years (16). T.L. Cannon’s awards were due to its community-based programs and its involvement in the communities in which they operate.
Target Audience
Applebee’s target audience includes customers, the community in which it operates, employees, media and each franchisee of Applebee’s. Applebee’s primary customer target is families. They incorporated the theme “eatin’ good in the neighborhood” to appeal to young families since many families live in neighborhoods and can relate. Most recently, it incorporated
“see you tomorrow” to create a friendship-like relationship between the company and customers.
However, since they extended bar hours until 1 a.m., it appeals to a greater audience of young singles, especially in college towns. It is important to target these customers so that Applebee’s can show them why they should choose this restaurant over other competitors. It should target the community in which it operates to prove that it is a good “neighbor” to the community.
Employees should always be targeted in order to produce employee satisfaction, which will lead

to customer satisfaction. By keeping employees informed about promotions and cultural/social values of Applebee’s, employees will be able to spread the word and communicate to the local community. Media relations are important for Applebee’s to consider so that the media can present the publics with facts and set the agenda for a positive attitude toward the company. Last, other franchisees of Applebee’s should be informed so that all Applebee’s restaurants can be on the same page in regards to having one clear voice and brand that supports the overall mission and vision of Applebee’s.
Goals and Objectives
After analyzing and researching Applebee’s, a conclusion can be made that its goal is to maintain a competitive advantage through customer and community relations. First, the company had to increase customers, which is measured through sales and social media likes/followers.
The company strives to interact with customers and potential customers through social media.
Additionally, the franchise communicates to its franchisees that community relations is an important aspect of Applebee’s cultural expectations. T.L. Cannon Companies, a franchisee of
Applebee’s, is committed to being a part of the communities in which it operates by participating in and sponsoring community fundraising events. The franchisee owns 61 Applebee’s in the New
York and Connecticut area and states on its website, “As a company, we strive to be a good neighbor in our communities while delivering the highest quality products and service to our guests” (16).
The first goal, interaction with customers through social media, will be measured by the number of likes, shares and comments on the Facebook page, the number of Twitter followers and retweets, and the number of views on each video. These likes, shares, follows and views need to be tracked in order to measure the rate that the number is increasing to see how many

new customers are being reached. For example, Applebee’s has 4,774 Vine followers now (6).
They have started a new campaign called #Beefamous which will likely lead to gaining more followers. By measuring the starting number of followers and tracking it each week, they will be able to see if the campaign was effective in generating more followers. This can also be tracked by how many people have used the hashtag #Beefamous.
The second goal, to participate in community fundraising events, will be measured by how many dollars are raised for each fundraiser. This will likely lead to positive publicity for the company as being a good corporate citizen, so the number of news stories produced by the fundraiser can also be measured.
Strategies and Tactics
When McMillan’s show aired about Applebee’s food, Applebee’s wanted to prove to its customers that it would change to better serve them. The company launched a defensive public relations campaign to rebuild relationships with customers through the tactic of the “See You
Tomorrow” campaign (9).
In order for Applebee’s to improve customer relations, they also focus on interacting with customers through social media. The overall strategies for accomplishing this are to reply to comments on the Facebook page, share things that are most likely to be retweeted, shared or liked, and retweet, favorite and reply to relevant tweets. Applebee’s posts daily to Facebook and
Twitter and encourages customers to interact with the company. One tactic it is using to strengthen involvement with customers is the #BeeFamous campaign on Vine (1).
The #BeeFamous campaign was specifically chosen for Vine after administering focus groups to try the “Under 550 Calorie Menu” and seeing the reactions when people found out the

meal was only 550 calories (1). The company chose Vine as its tactic since it only allows six second videos and can easily be shared to Twitter (13).
In addition to this campaign, Applebee’s maintains constant communication with customers on Facebook and Twitter. It replies to each Tweet and Facebook comment posted about the company (7, 8). This allows customers to feel engaged and involved with Applebee’s and to feel like they as customers matter to the organization.
T.L. Cannon Companies’ mission, in addition to the one provided by Applebee’s and
DineEquity, Inc., is to “strive to be a good neighbor in our communities while delivering the highest quality products and service to our guests” (16). They go the extra mile to be involved in the community in order to stand out from other franchisees. The strategy for the goal of improving community relations for T.L. Cannon Companies is to be involved with the community. The company implements fundraisers that benefit the community in which they operate as well as national nonprofit organizations (16). Most fundraisers are geared toward children in school and the education program.
Specific tactics include Flapjack Fundraisers, Dining to Donate Fundraiser, School
Programs, Tip-A-Fire Fighter and partnerships with Make-A-Wish Foundation and the Special
Olympics (17). They encourage the community in which they operate to host events and fundraisers at their local Applebee’s by local advertisements and social learning; if someone sees a fundraiser being held there, they might look into how they can use Applebee’s to sponsor or host their own fundraiser or event.
Key Messages, Discussion, Results
The target audience is important in analyzing Applebee’s customer and community relations strategies. By creating an environment and slogan that feels “homey,” they attract their

primary target market: families. Families are also more likely to go to one place over a similar competitor if they know the company as part of the community. Applebee’s uses this mindset to their advantage by making sure franchisees involve themselves in the community in which it operates by participating in and sponsoring local fundraisers as well as donating to well-known national organizations.
By using a friendship-like feel through the “See You Tomorrow” campaign and social media interaction, they appeal to its secondary audience: younger singles. Applebee’s restaurants appeal to “casual” people. The way the company talks on social media is casual. Jason Sudeikis, who stars in Hall Pass and somewhat mocks Applebee’s, became the spokesperson of the commercials. Applebee’s allows movies, such as Talladega Nights to make fun of it (11). It shows that Applebee’s isn’t concerned with the jokes and appeals to people because they seem laid back and casual – like a friend.
It also wants to be an active and involved member of the community in which it operates.
Applebee’s does this by using key messages such as “Eatin’ good in the neighborhood” and “See you tomorrow.” It establishes a connection with customers and the community through these phrases. People can feel like they are neighbors and friends of Applebee’s rather than seeing it as just another casual dining restaurant.
The “See You Tomorrow” Campaign was launched with the revitalization of the new fresh food menu items (12). Although, Applebee’s would like to see its customers everyday, or at least their wallets, the slogan is meant to imply that with the new menu items, customers could come in every day to try one of its many new different menu items. Applebee’s wants to promote that 85% of their menu has changed to be made with fresher ingredients (12). The advertisements stress the freshness of the new food items. With this new campaign, Applebee’s hopes to see

repeat guests in each location. This will allow them to get to know the community better, become more involved in the neighborhood and also encourage customer loyalty. However, sometimes, fresh food restaurants have a “snobby” connotation. Applebee’s focuses on making its advertisements continue to appeal to the average family, but in a healthy way.
Applebee’s used social media to interact with its customers about the campaign as well as promote it by sharing YouTube videos of commercials and Facebook posts and photos.
Customers had many positive things to say about Applebee’s newest campaign in the Facebook comments when the campaign launched and still do post positive comments (7). Many of the negative comments were responded to such as when Stephen Phillip Howard Frakes wrote,
“Why does everything have to have shrimp on it?” Applebee’s responded with “Stephen, you can substitute the shrimp with chicken if you like that better” (7). Its response on Facebook not only defends the company, but also lets customers know there are additional options available.
The results of this campaign are seen on social media. Applebee’s has more than 5.5 million likes on Facebook (7), almost double what it was since the campaign started the summer of 2012 (10), more than 299,000 Twitter followers (8), up from 22,500 when the campaign started (10), and 1,479 subscribers on YouTube.
Another Applebee’s campaign that is currently taking place solely on social media is the
#BeeFamous campaign, where the “most over-the-top fans” are targeted to be featured on
Applebee’s “Under 550 Calorie Menu” commercial. The participants upload a video to Vine with the chance at being chosen to appear in the commercial (1). There are only a few tweets per day with the hashtag #Beefamous (8); most of the interaction takes place on Vine (6), a growing social media site that not many restaurants take part in yet. Mike Archer, Applebee’s president, commented on the campaign and said, “Applebee’s has millions of fans on social media. If

you’re one of them, you know we love to interact. #Beefamous is about capturing the spirit of that first bite of our Unbelievable Great Tasting and Under 550 Calories Menu items” (1). By involving the president of the company, Applebee’s shows how committed it is to customer relations. This is the first campaign the company has used to involve customers by integrating social media with broadcast marketing (1). The company invited customers to http://www.vinethebees.com
for directions on how to be a part of the campaign.
The results of this campaign were successful in improving customer relations. By commenting on Vines, following users and “revining,” they were effective in finding six videos to use for the commercial as well engaging with customers through social media
(Vinethebees.com).
As a franchise, Applebee’s Service Inc., presents a Neighbor of the Year award to one of the franchisees. T.L. Cannon Companies was recognized in 2007, 2009, 2012 and 2013 as
“Applebee’s Neighbor of the Year” for its involvement in the “neighborhood” in which it operates (16). For nine consecutive years (2005-2013), T.L. Cannon Companies won the
National Restaurant Association’s “Good Neighbor Award” for its community-based programs
(15). It achieves effective community relations by participating in local fundraisers as well as partnering with and donating to national organizations. Most fundraisers are primarily targeted toward children, schools and the education programs in the community.
The donation programs include Bookworm Reading Club, A is for Applebee’s, Cool
Credit, and Restaurant Tours (15). Bookworm Reading Club encourages children to read 10 books to receive a free kid’s meal. In 2012, more than 250,000 kid’s meals were provided to local students, valued at $280,000 (17). To extend this program, T.L. Cannon Companies partnered with the Salvation Army to encourage kids to “give and get” an appetite for reading,

which donated one ton of books to less fortunate children (17). A is for Applebee’s is an award program in which teachers can reward students with a free Applebee’s kid’s meal. More than
10,000 rewards were redeemed for a value of nearly $11,000 (17). Cool Credit is similar to the previous program but targets ages 13-18 with a free appetizer. In 2012, more than 5,000 rewards were redeemed (17). School restaurant tours are also offered for elementary schools
(Kindergarten through 5 th grade) to learn about the restaurant, job duties, teamwork and the importance of a clean work environment. They are offer a lunch at a fixed price and the children receive a coupon for the next visit (i.e. to bring back their parents and families) (17).
Local fundraising is also a part of T.L. Cannon Companies community relations strategy.
The Flapjack Fundraiser is its most successful fundraiser (2). It is offered exclusively to schools, youth sports or youth service organizations. Applebee’s provides the venue, food and beverages, while the organization participating sells tickets and volunteers to cook and serve breakfast.
More than 2,200 Flapjack Fundraisers took place in 2012 and raised more than $1.9 million for the programs (17). Applebee’s takes a small portion of the profits ($1.50 per ticket) to go toward other programs.
The company also offers a Dining to Donate fundraiser, where guests can bring in a voucher (distributed by the nonprofit organization participating) and donate their check back to the nonprofit organization. This raised more than $25,000 in 2012 (17).
The franchisee also partners with national charities such as Make-A-Wish Foundation,
Special Olympics, and the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life (17). It donated $2.42 million to nonprofit organizations in 2011 alone (2). T.L. Cannon Companies partnered with
Make-A-Wish Foundation in 2008 (3). Various fundraisers such as “wish dinners,” selling star magnets and Breakfast with Santa are held at Applebee’s to benefit Make-A-Wish Foundation,

specifically the local chapters in New York and Connecticut. More than $193,000 was donated to the children’s wishes at Make-A-Wish Foundation (17). In total, $650,000 has been raised, providing 130 children with their wishes (3).
The community relations messages are delivered through the “neighborhood website” to find out which particular programs are going on at that time (15). Organizations can even book events through the website. T.L. Cannon Companies also has a blog containing press releases of each event (14). The press releases are also mailed to schools, libraries and media. The Flapjack
Fundraiser, however, is promoted through word of mouth (2).
In addition to T.L. Cannon Companies fundraising efforts, Applebee’s implements a promotional campaign called “The Thank You Movement” aimed at soldiers and veterans. At first, the company began by offering free meals to current and former military service members on Veteran’s Day but has recently partnered with the veteran’s service organization The Mission
Continues, which helps veterans transition to civilian life (20). The partnership promotes customer service to veterans year-around (20). The Thank You Movement, established in 2011, collects messages of appreciation to send to the Armed Forces. Applebee’s has received more than 4.5 million thank you messages (20). The number of thank you messages are tracked at each location, and the community with the most thank you messages will be awarded the Most
Thankful Neighborhood and wins a concert to see Gavin DeGraw in the city. This not only reaches out to veterans, but also invites the local community to participate and be involved in winning the award. The movement is also linked to social media through the hashtag
#ThankYouMovement to submit thank you messages.
The tactic of aiming fundraisers and programs at education and charities for children and veterans is extremely effective for T.L. Cannon Companies and contributes to the Applebee’s

brand of being part of the neighborhood because there are very few people who don’t want to support children and service members, especially if it’s in their own community. Applebee’s used the situational theory to its advantage by choosing topics that are more likely to generate interest and an active involved public, and was successful in doing that. The customer and community relations of Applebee’s and T.L. Cannon Companies improved, and their reputation is maintained positively as a helping hand and a part of the neighborhood.
Conclusion
By targeting specific markets with specific slogans, the company tailors the message to each public. Additionally, by being more active in social media, customers can be more involved and feel like they have a stake in the organization. This is especially present in the #BeeFamous campaign.
Applebee’s top franchise in community relations, T.L. Cannon Companies, sets an example for other franchisees to follow. It is an active member of its local community. T.L.
Cannon Companies implements fundraisers for local education and children, veterans and national charities – three major things that touch Americans’ hearts and show that Applebee’s is a committed neighbor of the community in which it operates.
By a combined effort of DineEquity, Inc., Applebee’s International Inc., and T.L. Cannon
Companies, Applebee’s was able to improve the perception of Applebee’s brand by implementing the “See You Tomorrow” campaign, interacting through social media, and becoming involved in each community through fundraisers. Each of these factors contributed to the improvement of its customer and community relations.

PEST Analysis
Political
• FDA regulations
• Complying with Obamacare (major cut in hours for part-time employees - as a part-time employee, they only allow you to work 28 hours, so a lot of times, servers would work off the clock) – they only hire a few full-time employees
• Labor laws
• Servsafe Alcohol training
Economic
• During the economic downturn, they did a major revitalization to create an environment different from other restaurants (new menu items, new kids menu, promotional offers and deals)
• A lot of closing of restaurants due to competition in the economic downturn
Main competitors = Ruby Tuesday, TGI Friday’s, Chili’s
• Parent company (DineEquity) is publicly traded
• Seasonal issues – busiest times are between Thanksgiving and Easter
• High turnover rate
Social
• “Casual family dining”
• Healthy living
• Block parties every few months – offer promotional deals
• Fundraisers
• Targets middle-class families
• The bar side is open until 1 a.m. and targets late nighters
• Research consumer attitudes and opinions
• Media coverage
• Fundraising – giving back to the community (arms length?)
• Wide range of meal at low prices = broad range of customers
• Offers Carside to go, weight watchers to cater to more customers
Technological
• Tablets in restaurants to replace menus (research – is this a trend in other restaurants?)
• Online training program

SWOT Analysis
Strengths
Variety of reasonably priced quality food
Broad target market
Established customer base
Leading restaurant in casual family dining
Promotions
Helping, fundraising, donating to children and veterans
WeightWatchers and healthy menu items
Weaknesses
Maintaining a competitive advantage
Experiences prior to the See You Tomorrow campaign are negative. The framed expectations of dining are difficult to change.
Opportunities
Additional fundraising opportunities
Appealing to casual “average” people
Low economy, people choose Applebee’s for cheaper dining out
Healthy food fad
Threats
Competition – Applebee’s is very similar to other casual dining restaurants
Fast-food competition now offering healthy options at a cheaper price
People choosing to eat at home

Works Cited
(1) Hindes, K., Smith, D. (2013, Dec. 30). BusinessWire. Retrieved from: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20131230005364/en/Applebee’s®-Invites-Fans-BeeFamous-2014-
TV-Commercial#.U1kuLV5U1g0
(2) Baltazar, A. (2012 July). FSR Magazine. Retrieved from: http://www.fsrmagazine.com/corporate-responsibility/community-focus-tl-cannon
(3) National Restaurant Association (2012). National Restaurant Association . Retrieved from: http://www.restaurant.org/Industry-Impact/Giving-Back/Restaurant-Neighbor-Award/2012-Winners/TL-
Cannon-Companies
(4) #BeeFamous (2014) Twitter.
Retrieved from: https://twitter.com/search?q=beefamous&src=typd
(5) Applebee’s International, Inc. (2014) Applebee’s. Retrieved from: http://www.applebees.com
(6) Applebee’s (2014) Vine. Retrieved from: https://vine.co/applebees
(7) Applebee’s (2014) Facebook.
Retrieved from: https://www.facebook.com/applebees?fref=ts
(8) Applebee’s (2014) Twitter. Retrieved from: https://twitter.com/Applebees
(9) (2012) Huffington Post.
Retrieved from: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/02/applebees-see-youtomorrow_n_1643373.html
(10) Lukovitz, K. (2012). Media Post. Retrieved from: http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/178028/newapplebees-campaign-see-you-tomorrow.html
(11) Paynter, B. (2013) Fast Company. Retrieved from: http://www.fastcompany.com/3004335/applebees-finds- serious-success-keeping-casual
(12) (2012) USA Today. Retrieved from: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/money/industries/food/story/2012-06-
29/applebees-president-mike-archer/55965814/1
(13) Weissman, S. (2014) Digiday. Retrieved from: http://digiday.com/brands/applebees-vine-commercial/
(14) T.L. Cannon Companies blog. (2014) Pitch Engine.
Retrieved from: http://new.pitchengine.com/brands/7bccfacc-c8eb-42d9-94c7-b4f1cbb515d5?display=list
(15) T.L. Cannon Companies (2014) Retrieved from: http://www.tlcneighborhood.com
(16) T.L. Cannon Companies (2014) Retrieved from: http://www.tlcannon.com
(17) T.L. Cannon Companies. (2013) PR Newswire.
Retrieved from: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/tlcannon-companies-supports-local-organizations-with-more-than-245-million-receives-state-and-nationalrecognition-for-community-programs-202313201.html
(18) (2011) National Restaurant News. Retrieved from: http://nrn.com/us-top-100/top-100-chains-us-sales
(19) DineEquity (2014) Dine Equity.
Retrieved from: http://investors.dineequity.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=104384&p=irol-irhome
(20) Strohm, A., Smith, D. (2013) Business Wire. Retrieved from:
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20131010005377/en/Applebee’s-Servicemembers-Free-Meals-
Veterans-Day#.U1nNg15U1g0