Nabisco, formerly called the National Biscuit Company, is a well known brand consisting of a wide range of cookies and snacks such as Oreos, Ritz Crackers, Wheat Thins, Ginger Snaps, and many others. As with any company showcasing their products online, Nabisco employs several strategies to direct traffic to their
webisite.
One can see that the site is flash dependent and designed primarily for experiential users, specifically gamers. However, there are some aspects of the site geared toward task oriented users. Users can, for example, get nutrition information on every Nabisco product as well as sensible snacking tips, including great recipes which incorporate many of the company's offerings. The homepage contains links to create a profile for new users as well as one for returners to sign-in; this strategy is very effective at both generating new users for the database and ensuring that users return to the site. Once users register at the site, they can enter promotions, post their high scores, and also receive news and promotions from Nabisco.
There are several types of games to appeal to a wide spectrum of gamers- arcade, puzzle and cards, sports, and multi-player. One interesting finding on the site is that many of Nabisco's products are integrated into the actual games. For instance, users can play
Toasted Chips Poker Macthup, or
Wheat Thins Sudoku. Not only does this provide entertainment for users but also promotes the company's products during play. Multi-player games are great for driving many people to the site at one time since friends can meet online and participate in a virtual tournament. On a side note, Nabisco must be given kudos for warning gamers, specifically children, of 'ad breaks', which are commercial messages seeking a purchase from the user. The warning reminds underage users to get a parent's permission before submitting personal information.
Nabisco does not sponsor any links at major search engines like Google or Yahoo! A keyword search for Nabisco will reveal in excess of 20 pages for the company and its branding names in other countries. One example of this is the Christie brand in Canada or Kraft foods in other parts of the world. Meta-tags on the homepage attest to the gaming nature of the site and the integration of the brands into these games. One such meta- tag reads: "
Free web games and online sweepstakes at NabiscoWorld. Try the many varieties of Nabisco cookies and crackers." Title tags change slightly with navigation to the various pages of the site, but always contain some portion of the brand name.
In conclusion, the company is not conventional in its approach to driving traffic to its site but users return to play games, check out recipes and promotions, and subconsciously view Nabisco's products through their integration in the many games on the site. The company does a great job with customer retention through required log-in to play games but it also simultaneously takes advantage of its database by way of providing information to users on new products, recipes, and tips on Nabisco products via email. As mentioned earlier, some techniques Nabisco uses to drive traffic to its site are:
- Search engine registration with Google and other major search engines
- Contests and Giveaways
- E-mail marketing through promotions and news
- Loyalty and Continuity programs-with the ability to post high scores.
These are excellent strategies to help Nabisco promote their products and drive and retain traffic to their site.
Turn your lights down low, Google
