• by Laurie Sullivan  @lauriesullivan, July 8, 2015

TGI Fridays' pay-it-forward promotion "Buy A Burger, Give A Burger" gives consumers a unique way to share a free burger through social media. After ordering a handcrafted burger at one of their restaurants, the campaign -- which is running across traditional and digital media -- allows consumers to send a code for a free burger to their social network.

The nationwide campaign began July 1, with social and digital, followed by television spots that will run through Aug. 23 on select network properties and national cable networks, including NBC, CBS, TNT, TBS and ESPN. TGI Fridays also created a spot for cinema.

The Boulder, Colo.-based digital agency Made spearheaded the digital efforts. Dallas-based The Richards Group led the ad creative, Manhattan-based Mindshare  television media buying efforts, according to Cindy Syracuse, VP of marketing activation at TGI Fridays.

The digital advertising media buy includes mobile, display, social, and search. The brand also will buy media through programmatic platforms to maximize reach while delivering the message to its core target audience between the ages of 21 and 49. The brand supports a search engine optimization strategy, complete with calorie counts that serve-up in search engine query results for its Jack Daniels' ribs, fried mozzarella, and Japanese Hibachi Tapa-tizer Skewers. 

Since the launch of the campaign, the number of burgers shared rose "double digits," Syracuse said. Even those heading into the restaurant to order a salad seem to change their mind once they see the burgers. "I always have good intent, but what I order might be different; I don't know about you," she said.

The brand will measure the campaign aimed at consumers between the ages of 21 and 49 through sales and traffic key performance indicators. The sharing, tracking and reporting of the promotion made possible through a platform from Evocalize. The platform directly integrates into the TGI Fridays' point-of-sale system. The data will connect consumers with their social friends and habits.

Here's how it works. Customers buy any one of Friday's handcrafted burgers and then enter the code on the receipt at jumpburger.com for a free burger. The site will generate a link to share on social networks like Facebook and Twitter, or email to friends. The first person to grab and use the code, one code per burger, gets a free burger at any Fridays' location.