Dave’s Hot Chicken CMO on building on organic growth as brand levels up

Core Insights - The article discusses the marketing strategies of Dave's Hot Chicken, highlighting its unique position in the fast-casual industry and its approach to brand value without heavy discounting [4][6][8]. Marketing Strategy - Dave's Hot Chicken is exploring various marketing tools to enhance brand visibility and customer loyalty, with plans to implement more comprehensive strategies in 2026 [2][14]. - The brand has a strong social media presence, leveraging organic content and user-generated material for marketing, which has proven effective in building brand love [13][14]. - The company aims to maintain its reputation for quality and value, focusing on "bang for the buck" rather than discounting [7][9]. Brand Positioning - Dave's Hot Chicken is still in its early stages with only a few hundred locations, and has not yet engaged in major national advertising campaigns [3][6]. - The brand has been recognized for its strong customer loyalty, with over 3 million users in its loyalty program, indicating a solid foundation for future marketing efforts [18][19]. Future Plans - The company plans to test various marketing strategies in 2026 to determine what effectively drives customer traffic [14][15]. - There is an intention to enhance the customer relationship management (CRM) program to better reflect the brand's identity and engage customers meaningfully [20].