The encyclopedia · Marketing & Brand · Marketing decision · 2018–2019
IHOP renamed itself IHOb to announce burgers, sales quadrupled
A fake rebrand to 'International House of Burgers' generated 36B impressions and 4x burger sales; 2019 Effie Gold.
IHOP
The solution
IHOP was a breakfast icon, which made it hard to own the dinner daypart where burgers live. Launching a burger line with normal advertising would fight the brand's pancake identity for attention.
Instead, IHOP temporarily renamed itself IHOb — International House of Burgers — in June 2018, teasing the change across social media before the Ultimate Steakburger launch. The guessing game over the 'b' became national entertainment: Netflix, Wendy's and even Burger King joined in, and the reveal itself made the point that IHOP was serious about burgers.
The stunt generated more than 20,000 media stories and 36 billion impressions, quadrupled burger sales, and lifted dinner daypart mix by 200 basis points — all without eroding breakfast, whose sales stayed roughly flat.
Why it worked
- The ambiguity of 'b' made guessing the new name the entertainment
- Rival brands and celebrities amplified the stunt for free
- The name flip embodied 'we're serious about burgers' better than any ad
- Burger sales quadrupled and dinner mix rose 200 bps, keeping breakfast intact
What can be applied
For a relaunch, make the announcement itself the content: a reversible, newsworthy provocation earns attention a paid campaign would have to buy.
Aftermath
IHOb generated 20,000+ media stories and 36 billion impressions, lifted same-restaurant sales 0.7%, and won 2019 Effie Gold (Restaurants) and Bronze (Carpe Diem); IHOP flipped the name back but kept the burgers, which sustained half their new sales.
Sources
- IHOP's burger sales jumped 4x following controversial name-change stunt
- IHOP's burger sales quadrupled after its controversial IHOb name change
- Five Effie Winners Featured in 2019 Effie U.S. Series with MediaPost
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