Arby’s ‘Good Burger’ collab—the fictional meal comes to restaurants as the sequel hits Paramount+

Arby’s is looking to make its limited media budget work harder than the typical TV commercial through a co-branded campaign with the sequel to “Good Burger” that will allow fans of the cult classic to experience a meal from the fictional fast food chain. The sequel to the 1997 Nickelodeon movie will stream on Paramount+ beginning Nov. 22, with Kenan Thompson and Kel Mitchell returning as loony fast food workers devoted to preserving the fictional chain restaurant. Arby’s saw “Good Burger 2” as an opportunity to serve up its own burger to a younger consumer demographic. Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs The “Good Burger 2” meal features Arby’s Deluxe Wagyu Steakhouse Burger, which debuted in spring 2022 and has since made intermittent limited runs, with crinkle cut fries and a new strawberry shake that pays homage to the numerous “Good Burger” shenanigans that involve the fictional restaurant’s own dessert. The effort is a way for Arby’s to make its media spend more impactful by aligning the return of its burger with a specific moment in culture rather than running a typical TV campaign, said Ellen Rose, chief marketing officer for Arby’s. Check out more Gen Z news “We don’t have the largest media budget of anybody out there in the QSR landscape,” Rose said, referring to quick-service restaurants. “We compete with some pretty big behemoths in that way, so we’re always looking for ways to do something that’s breakthrough.” That makes it particularly important for Arby’s to strike partnerships and create campaigns around pop culture to “punch above our weight when it comes to media and advertising,” Rose said. The co-branded campaign will also include traditional media elements, such as a collection of ad spots, social assets and out-of-home creative, as well as exclusive merch and a takeover of one of Arby’s Atlanta locations on Nov. 16. The location will be revamped to resemble the restaurant from “Good Burger,” including its sign, decor and employee uniforms. Employees will even welcome customers with the film’s iconic line: “Welcome to Good Burger, home of the Good Burger. Can I take your order?” (The meal will be available at over 3,400 national Arby’s locations.) The creative was a collaboration between Arby’s, its agencies Fallon and Inspire Media Engine as well as Paramount Brand Studio. Arby’s burgers and merch launches have been case studies for efforts to create moments of hype, often targeting niche audiences rather than broad awareness. In September, the restaurant chain erected a pop-up location in the Colorado Rockies to promote its Big Game Burger. Locals had to hike more than four miles to reach the restaurant. Limited merch drops such as meat-scented loungewear and fry-flavored vodka have drummed up a flurry of fandom around the brand. Arby’s will also run TV spots to support the campaign. The ads meld the worlds of Arby’s and “Good Burger,” putting Arby’s ad narrator Ving Rhames alongside the trippy fast food puppets from the world of “Good Burger 2.” The paid media campaign will run for three weeks. More from Ad Age: Top 5 food and beverage marketing ideas The combination of nostalgia for millennials who watched the original Nickelodeon movie in 1997, as well as the Gen Z craze for ’90s and ’00s style are reasons Rose found the partnership appealing, particularly as brands battle to win over young, hard-to-reach consumers. Arby’s only recently added burgers to its menu, after long being known for its roast beef sandwiches. For this reason, Rose said, there was a clean slate to create an association with “Good Burger.” Rose said that if a competitor with a long history in burgers were to do the same partnership, it would stand out to consumers more as a familiar burger with a new logo. “I can’t imagine the other big burger competitors taking one of their flagship burgers and slapping a ‘Good Burger’ name on it,” said Rose. It would be similarly inauthentic for Arby’s, known for roast beef, to do this partnership with its longtime staple beef ’n cheddar sandwich. Rose said Arby’s was cautious about the partnership because the brand could risk being overpowered by the “Good Burger” branding. Dario Spina, CMO at Paramount Brand Studio, said the partners needed to determine the right balance between the brands, and that some of Arby’s initial ideas had to be reworked to better fit the “Good Burger” IP, particularly around the upcoming sequel. Paramount took the lead on developing social assets as well as striking influencer partnerships. The assets that will run on platforms like Instagram and Snapchat flow naturally with the TV creative, centering the quirky puppets speaking directly to the user. Spina said that co-branding and branded content opportunities are becoming more important to advertisers as it becomes increasingly harder to grab consumers’ attention. “Brands are no longer solely buying spots—they want to be integrated into IP,” said Spina. “Content companies could help shape that narrative … consumers are demanding messaging in different ways from brands, and that requires [brands] to publish more on their own behalf and have more of a direct conversation with consumers.” For Arby’s, that will continue to take shape through aligning with specific events in TV while investing more money in digital media, where buys can be more targeted and curated toward specific audiences. For example, Arby’s alongside fellow Inspire Brands chains Buffalo Wild Wings and Dunkin’ signed a three-year sponsorship deal with ESPN’s College Game Day. Arby’s Rose said this deal was made possible through the three Inspire Brands advertisers’ combined media budgets, and that the chain continues to seek TV events that amass simultaneous audiences. Inspire Brands’ media is handled by Inspire Media Engine, a dedicated team within Publicis Groupe. Recent NFL and college football marketing news Meanwhile, Arby’s is increasing its emphasis on streaming and social. Through Inspire’s own media optimization modeling, Arby’s has seen that these forms of digital media are driving the highest return on investment for the brand. “We’ve increased our investment in digital this year, and we’ll continue to go that way,” said Rose. “We know [streaming and social] are really important places to be, particularly as we start to age down the brand and get more connected to younger audiences.”

Arby’s ‘Good Burger’ collab—the fictional meal comes to restaurants as the sequel hits Paramount+

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