Subway vs Quiznos - War of the Subs
Companies are looking more and more towards the internet to build and enhance their brands. User Generated Content is one of the ways some brands are looking at to try and get their consumers to engage with their brand.
Quiznos wrote out a competition in which they asked consumers to sent in a home made video explaining why their subs are better than those from Subway. What may have seen like a good idea is turning into a bit of a nightmare. Subway has decided to sue Quiznos as they hold them responsible for the content which was created for its contest.
As Subway forced Quiznos to take down the content, the videos have migrated to Youtube - where they probably got a lot more views than they would have had on Quiznos’ site. B.L Ochman has written an excellent piece about this and shows how both these companies have failed to grasp the core concepts of new media.
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Quiznos doesn´t really practice the honest communication that new media evangelists preach.
But honesty compels me to say that I’ve never heard from Quiznos before I read this post. Maybe this is because I’m not from the States. But I guess that Subway is amongst the worlds biggest sandwich chains and that they are dominant in the American market as well.
By suing Quiznos, Subway generates a lot of free publicity for Quiznos - and Quiznos have more to gain from it. Why this defensive behaviour?
As a market leader, Subways should have stood tall and not indulge itself in these mudslinging practices.
“He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
Funy thing is that user generated content is getting hotter more and more.
The Super Bowl (Go Giants!) was reason for many brands to step into user generated content, for example:
KFC:
http://www.showusyourhotwings.com/
Upperdeck
http://upperdecksweepstakes.magnify.net/
Coors Beer:
http://www.coorslight.com/superbowl/index.aspx#/en/home
Doritos
http://myspace.com/DoritosCrashTheSuperBowl
Quit remarkable if you ask me…