Varejo Digital
07/14/2010 Papa John's social media recipe
America's No. 3 pizza chain, Papa John's, has traditionally been a pioneer when it comes to the digital space, allowing consumers to order online. The chain has continued to innovate on the digital platform with a social media marketing campaign that sparked activity from more than 12,000 fans, reports Brandweek.

The Specialty Pizza Challenge encourages Facebook fans to submit pizza recipes via the social networking site. The winner's pie will be become a permanent addition to Papa John's menu. The victor will also receive a cut of the sales and a chance to appear on television to promote the ad.

The campaign has been a huge success so far, with more than 12,000 recipes submitted. The Specialty Pizza Challenge is in its final stages, with competitors narrowed down to the top three.

Besides promoting the brand, the contest also provided Papa John's with insight on their current consumers' tastes. Papa John's CMO Andrew Varga told Brandweek the company now has ideas for new ingredients for its pizzas.

Additionally, Varga advocated the use of social media as a digital marketing platform, telling the source "it's an inexpensive way to get [people] talk[ing] and drive your messaging in a powerful way without having to spend enormous resources."

With more consumers browsing social networking sites for longer periods of time, marketers are increasing their social media marketing budgets. According to a recent report from Nielsen, the average internet user spends six hours per month on social sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

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