Lu's idea portfolio
Dulce Tentación 2.0
For my thesis, I decided to work on a personal and professional project that I had started in my years as a student: Dulce Tentación. Dulce Tentación is an Argentine bakery in Madrid that seeks to enchant the Spanish market with its autochthonous delicacies. After doing extensive research, I found out that
Madrid is Spain’s main commercial and service centre, there are only 10 Argentine bakeries in the center of Madrid and there is countless proof of the success and interest of Argentine products internationally. All of these factors unveiled the immense potential this startup idea holds. Through that research I was able to narrow down the target audience onto two groups: Argentines living in Madrid and madrileños (people who are from Madrid) curious to expand their culinary and cultural experience.
Bellow you can see the actions I decided to implement for Dulce Tentación’s communication plan:
- #DulcesRecuerdos: Childhood memories
- #DulcesRecordatorios: Sharing words of wisdom
- Influencer invitation
- #DulcesDichos: Teaching Argentine slang
- Guerilla Marketing part of the campaign
- Media advisory
- Contest
- ASMR: #DulcesTentaciones
- Opening event: #DulceEncuentro
*Disclaimer: All of the copy was originally in Spanish, as both target audiences are Spanish speaking, but was translated to English for universal understanding of the brand’s communication plan*
#DulcesRecuerdos: Childhood memories
#DulcesRecuerdos or #SweetMemories is a social media initiative that shows the cultural and emotional significance behind Argentine delicacies by posting the personal memories Argentines have with them.
Knowing that there is an emotional bond between food and people, and that food acts often as a symbol of culture, I created the social media initiative called #DulcesRecuerdos, or #SweetMemories.#Dulcesrecuerdos would use the social media accounts of Dulce Tentación to share common experiences, stories and memories that Argentine people have of their country’s delicacies. The content would be sourced from the internet where multiple threads and information can be found and from the followers of the brand.
It pulls the emotional chords of the two target audiences, by triggering both the nostalgia of Argentine people living in Madrid and the curiosity of madrileños. It shows the emotional and cultural significance of Dulce Tentación’s products while nurturing the creation of a community surrounding the brand.
#DulcesRecordatorios: Sharing words of wisdom
#Dulcesrecordatorios is a social media initiative that would cultivate the relationship with Dulce Tentación’s followers by posting inspirational and motivational content. It would be a way for the brand to shine a light on who they are on a more personal level, and conversely, earn a spot in the hearts of their followers. This content would either be quotes or commentary that their target audience’s can find relatable, uplifting and even helpful in their day to day lives. Although not mandatory, some of the phrases would mention the products, as a fun way to incorporate Dulce Tentación more evidently into the message.
Influencer invitation
As Dulce Tentación strives to raise brand awareness, generate loyalty and promote their opening event, they need to optimize their efforts and maximize their reach. Food influencers or reviewers would pose an incredible opportunity for the brand to achieve this. Not only is their content centered on food _ which makes it an on-brand partnership _ but they have an audience which aligns with the audience Dulce Tentación is trying to reach that full trust.
Consequently, this TFG finds incredible potential in inviting food and travel influencers to the opening event for them to try the products and share their experience with their followers.The invitation would be sent to food reviewing accounts and Argentine group accounts. Two examples are @Momosfoodmadrid and @Argentinosporespana.
#DulcesDichos: Teaching Argentine slang
As a past colony, Argentina holds lots of similarities to Spanish culture and traditions. Nonetheless, their geographical distance and personal development has also brought some differences, like the way they speak.
So #Dulcesdichos is a social media initiative that would take advantage of the Spanish interest revolving around Argentine diction and pronunciation by teaching madrileños the Argentine slang. It imitates the idea of urban dictionaries, which have had massive success, and adapts it to Dulce Tentación’s strategy.
The structure of the content would be the following: word, definition and example. The example, or putting the word in a phrase for context, would be related to either the brand or its products. This would be a casual way to produce content that is both commercially and personally valuable. Through this initiative, Dulce Tentación establishes itself as a bridge between the two countries.
Dulce Tentación: El sabor de Argentina
The brand’s most valuable differential factor is its Argentine identity. Thanks to it, Dulce Tentación can be seen as special, unique, exotic, foreign and new in the minds of Spaniards. On the other hand, it can be seen as authentic, homely and emotionally charged for Argentines living in Spain. Therefore, in order to emphasize this quality and transmit it to both target groups, the communication plan for Dulce Tentación will have a campaign called Dulce Tentación, el sabor de Argentina (translating to Dulce Tentación, the flavour of Argentina). The campaign would be composed of a social media part and a Guerilla Marketing part.
By branding themselves as the flavour of Argentina, Dulce Tentación would be establishing themselves as a synonym to Argentina. This action would shine a light on the fact that the brand is a cultural and culinary experience, representing something bigger than good taste. Something that for Argentines living in Madrid will symbolize the taste of their childhood and for madrileños a taste of the unknown. Additionally, it would build anticipation for the opening event.
Social media part of the campaign
For the social media part of the campaign, Dulce Tentación would place its products next to famous and easily recognizable locations all over Madrid and in the copy state how far it is from Buenos Aires. The twist is that the distance affirmed wouldn’t be the actual distance between these two cities, but from the Madrid monument and the Dulce Tentación store. In fact, the distance doesn’t only have to be in meters, but it could be in minutes or metro stations, for example.
By doing this, not only would Dulce Tentación be notifying their audience where their store is located, but they would be placing in the viewers head the idea that if they ever miss Argentina or would like to get a trailer of what it is like, they can just resort to Dulce Tentación. Again, promoting the brand as a gastronomic experience that takes the public on a cultural, personal and unprecedented journey.
Guerilla Marketing part of the campaign
Although Guerrilla Marketing can be extravagant and disruptive, the one implemented for the campaign is much simpler. Guerrilla Marketing will take the message of the campaign _ Dulce Tentación being the flavour of Argentina_ one step further: Dulce Tentación is a piece of Argentina in Madrid.
The store of Dulce Tentación would have a street name sign in front of it reading “Buenos Aires.” Aesthetically, instead of being a simple street name sign on a post, it would be placed in a streetlight imitating the style of the ones that can be found in Caminito, Buenos Aires. This will not only make it more captivating for the public but will also bring some of the appeal of Argentine streets onto the city of Madrid.
This action would clearly transmit the message of Argentine authenticity and would contribute to earned media, word-of-mouth and making Dulce Tentación a memorable and personal brand. Its unique and surprising factor also makes the audience feel like they have discovered a “gem”, because there is no place like it in Madrid.
For Argentines living in Madrid, they could literally and physically see a place from their home country in Madrid. It would be something worth sharing with their followers back home as well as those in Madrid; like a funny anecdote. Buenos Aires is not close to Madrid, so for madrileños it would feel like the closest they will get to the Argentine capital without an airplane.
To help spread the news throughout the city and gain spontaneous attention, Dulce Tentación would have posters showing just how close they are to Buenos Aires. The witty and bold copy found in the posters would automatically catch the attention of Spanish citizens, especially those who belong to the two target audiences. That attention is planned to strategically be redirected to Dulce Tentación as a brand and experience, as well as its contact information. By placing a copy that sparks the curiosity of the audience, the posters would incentivize them to want to know more about the brand. It is also all centered around the store location so you are simultaneously informing the audience of where to go to find this mysterious brand.
Media advisory
Traditional media is important because it grants brands authority, gives them exposure and can help build or demolish the brand’s narrative. It is a good medium for Dulce Tentación to reach a higher amount of their target audience.
In order for it to be effective, the media advisory must interest, intrigue and benefit the media outlet. Dulce Tentación’s novelty to the Spanish Market, the growing interest and success of Argentine gastronomy and the cultural conquest of Argentina internationally, make Dulce Tentación’s opening event news-worthy. Additionally, the increase of Argentine migration to Spain, with Madrid as a hotspot, means that there would be lots of interested readers in the market. Potentially, they could even expand their readers, by gaining the Argentine sympathy.
Dulce Tentación should send out media advisories to the most known and read Spanish newspapers, the most known and read Argentine newspapers and food and travel related magazines. Two media advisories would be sent to each media outlet: One early, to notify them, and one closer to the opening event’s date, to remind them.
Contest
Contests are a small investment that brands do in order to rapidly expand their reach. In the case of Dulce Tentación, their contest would have an invitation to the exclusive opening event (with a plus one) as well as three meals in the bakery as the prize. In order to participate, the public would have to follow the brand’s account, like the post and tag one person they think would love their Argentine sweets and bakes (with a special bonus if they post it on their stories). There would be two parallel contests and a sole winner per contest: one on Instagram and one on Facebook.
The prize gives Dulce Tentación a strategic advantage because it serves both the opening event and the commercial goals of the brand. By one of the prizes being an invitation to the opening event, it introduces the opening event, creates buzz around it and paints the image of an exclusive _ and therefore thought-after _ event. Having a plus one, will make the winner feel more comfortable attending an event where they don’t know anyone, which in turn, would make for a more favourable experience all throughout.
The second part of the prize, the three meals for free, would have the condition that only the winner could reap the benefits and that they have to eat inside the store. A meal would entail a portion of whatever bake or treat they prefer together with a drink of choice. The winner would most likely bring at least one person to join them, as studies show that most people go to eat out with other people as a social experience (Epter, 2009). This would mean that the companion would also get something to eat or drink. Doing so, not only would they be impulsed to try Dulce Tentación’s products, but they would pay for it.
The contest would be active for three weeks, meaning that the public would have three weeks to participate before the winner is announced. By making it that specific duration, Dulce Tentación would be allowing enough time for the new followers to see the value of the brand and their content but not so much that they feel like it requires too much waiting.
ASMR: #DulcesTentaciones
The ASMR content would be posted on social media both prior and after the opening event. ASMR would be a strategic introduction to the catalogue of products hence luring people in and allowing them to identify the brand’s added value. By posting after the event, it would reinforce it as part of the brand’s communication identity and show consistency and coherence. It would also optimize the growth of followers and engagement in the social media platforms, procuring that they are persuaded to keep on giving their support to the brand as they are getting valuable and interesting content.
An example of how this technique could be adapted to Dulce Tentación is by showing the luscious dulce de leche, crumbly biscuits, chocolate dripping in an alfajor or the pastries puffing and browning with a medialuna. The videos would be fast-paced, to keep the attention of the viewers; include sequences of the most attractive parts of the products’ creation and assembly and have short, soothing and snap sound effects to guide the viewers auditory senses whilst the visual story unfolds.
By showing the procedure of the baked goods composition, one is not only justifying its gourmet calibre but emphasizing two out of the three Dulce Tentación pillars: Argentine authenticity and fresh, artisanal products.
Opening event: #DulceEncuentro
During the event, the public who was invited will get to meet the brand face to face. Every component, in its sole presence and in relation to the other components, has to transmit and embody the three pillars of the brand.
In order to create an immersive experience, the opening event would target the five senses. It would have Argentine music playing in the background, the smell of their sweets and bakes, the taste of their products, the touch and feel of the store design and the sight of people enjoying themselves in a hip, Argentine bakery.
The event will have most of their products displayed on a food table for all of the invitees to try. It will choose the most popular and easiest to eat options like medialunas, alfajores, chipás and cake portions like havanett, chocotorta and pastafrola. For drinks, it will have a bar where people can have different options to accompany their food: coffee, tea, smoothies, juices, mate or water. It is of extreme importance for the products to be displayed in an aesthetical way, so that the public feel impulsed to share it to their followers or readers in the case of influencers and press.
The goal is to create an intimate event with 50 attendees, that will generate a positive and strong memory in their minds and hearts. Its attendees will be the contest winners, members of the press, food and travel influencers, the owners, the employees, family and friends. By keeping it small, Dulce Tentación can have more control of the vibe and the owner can socialize more with the contest winners, press and influencers; laying the foundation for the construction of long-lasting, mutually-beneficial, close relationships.
By having the owners there, the brand will have more of a personable look. The attendees will, for the larger part, be a mix of Argentines and madrileños which are not only the target audiences but symbols of the essence of Dulce Tentación: the mix of these two cultures.
By feeling unique and personable, they will not only form emotional and experiential memories but be more likely to generate earned media. Part of the charm of social media is sharing the “highlights” of people’s lives. The fact that it is an invite-only, intimate, warm and inviting event with an extensive variety of delicious food and drinks to talk about, make it worth sharing with others.
The event would last three hours and would be set during the merienda time. The timing was decided based on two factors: the target audience and the brand’s essence. Setting it at merienda time (16:00 – 19:00) is excellent because in both Spanish and Argentine cultures, people habitually eat something between lunch and dinner. Usually during that time, people crave baked goods, which fits perfectly with what the brand specializes in. Then, the event lasting three hours makes for enough time for people to socialize, try different products, absorb the vibe and get into the experience.
Knowing that both Argentine and Spanish cultures have the custom of sobremesa (staying time after finishing their meals to enjoy other’s company and let the body digest the food) then it makes further sense for the event to last three hours.
