Chipotle serves up a BeReal launch with real success

Chipotle is one of the early adopters of BeReal – the new social media app that is all about authenticity.

This anti-filter social media platform is designed to ‘keep it real’ in the truest sense possible. How does it work? In a nutshell, users receive a notification at a random time once a day, saying ‘Time to BeReal’. This opens a two-minute window for the user to post a picture of what they are currently doing. Founded in 2019, it’s only now that BeReal is gaining popularity, especially among GenZ users. BeReal downloads have skyrocketed this year—with 7.5+ million in 2022 so far.

A general rule of thumb for brands on social media is to typically plan out content in advance, follow a calendar and schedule it. In times of scheduled, carefully curated social media feeds that brands adhere to, BeReal challenges every aspect of what we know and are used to.

So, how is Chipotle experimenting with this BeReal? Since Gen Z and millennials make up half of Chipotle’s consumer base, the brand figured it would be worth giving the app a try. Chipotle’s first campaign focused on boosting its profile: It posted a reusable promo code where the first 100 people who used it would receive a free entrée. “The response was incredible the first day,” Candice Beck, Chipotle’s director of social and influencer, told Retail Brew. “All of our codes were gone in about 30 minutes, because it was new. And we’re still gaining followers. We just told people, and then every day after that, it was under a minute.”

The strategy was to give the customers some sort of an incentive, encouraging engagement and traction, thus helping with sales. However, the brand is aware of the random nature of the platform and is testing out ways to stay consistent with it. Think organic content, contesting with gratification, employee-focused content and more. New apps always have the potential to get big,” Beck said. “We are going to prioritize it in terms of places to play and test new content just in the same way we did with TikTok a few years ago.”

Our hot take? BeReal is definitely a platform to watch out for!