The Queso Awaits?
Is this a display of local advertisers battling it out with their clients? My close friend and I were driving to Duquesne after a shopping trip and she pointed out these two, hysterically similar, queso advertisements on Fifth Street. Historically these two have been major competitors since Moe's debuted in 2000 (Chipotle opened its doors in 1993). In Pittsburgh, Market Square is home to both. Even the students here on Duquesne's campus are divided, "Moe's or Chipotle," when it comes to their local downtown hotspot eats.
The one on the right is for Chipotle. The one on the left, however, seems to be poking fun at the idea of a "queso" product at Chipotle. Whether or not this is a direct callout, it has been clear that there are some things people would change about the newly added Chipotle queso. Moe's seems to agree on this too. They took a this opportunity to highlight they are queso experts and quite literally mock the idea that Chipotle has released their own version. Moe's has some ground to stand on with this claim since Moe's has been making their queso since 2001 (based on what the advertising image above). It's almost as if Moe's doesn't believe Chipotle can call their new product to be the recognizable, cheesy dip, but it is done in a clever and subtle way.
The Moe's ad is very clever, it took into consideration both its audience and audience proximity, media buying, and message when creating their advertisement. I wonder if more dueling billboards are out there in the city for these two companies, or if any will appear in the future.
I haven't noticed these before, these are fun ads poking at each other. Moe's adding the "Queso Experts" copy is a very clever way to assert dominance over Chipotle's product.
ReplyDeleteI always knew Moe's and Chipotle's were rivals, but I didn't know it had been going on for this long. Also I agree that the Moe's "Queso Experts" was a neat way the separate themselves and at the same time make themselves seem like the better option. That is, even though neither are very different from each other.
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