Brands spend a lot of time and money strategizing the best way to get our attention. Maybe it’s a Super Bowl ad. Maybe it’s a celebrity endorsement. Maybe it’s a seemingly nonsensical Stranger Things tie-in. And sometimes, maybe it’s partnering up with another brand in order to combine respective audiences and fans and provide an unexpected halo to each other. Supreme x the North Face. Spotify x Starbucks. Nike x Apple. Taco Bell’s had a massive hit with its Doritos Locos Taco collaboration with the Frito-Lay brand, not to mention the store-sharing that inspired an instant classic.
[Photo: courtesy of T-Mobile]Now Taco Bell is teaming with . . . T-Mobile? Yep, the wireless carrier and the fast feeder are collaborating on a trio of pop-up crossover stores called “T-MoBell,” which will be open in NYC, L.A., and Chicago from July 23 to 25. After Taco Bell launched its “free taco every week” giveaway with T-Mobile Tuesdays during this year’s Super Bowl, the two brands decided to kick things up a notch. The stores will be giving out free food, an exclusive, limited edition T-MoBell Freeze slushie, and other branded swag. For those who can’t make it to the IRL locations, you can still enter to win an assortment of phone gear or $500 worth of free tacos.
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[Image: courtesy of T-Mobile]In a statement, T-Mobile CEO John Legere said, “When we launched free tacos every week on T-Mobile Tuesdays, TacoBell.com had its highest online order day ever, and T-Mobile Tuesdays was No. 1 in the App Store. Since then, Un-carrier customers have snagged more than 14 million free tacos from the app! People love tacos. And they love their phones. T-MoBell is the ultimate fusion of those two loves, and we can’t wait to show everyone what we’ve cooked up.”
Obviously the business lesson here is never, ever, ever, ever underestimate humanity’s love for free tacos.
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