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Carly Adams

EN 112

Dr. Bruce

16 April 2015

A Snapshot of Dunkin Donuts: Visual Marketing throughout the Decades

When people who are not from Massachusetts think of Boston, they usually think of

Harvard, MIT, Boston sports teams, and seafood. Boston foreigners tend to forget the fact that

Massachusetts was the birthplace of the renowned breakfast and coffee food chain, Dunkin

Donuts. The first ever Dunkin Donuts opened in 1950 in Quincy, Massachusetts by Bill

Rosenberg, and since then has been through many changes and has had worldwide success. Since

1950, Dunkin Donuts has become a very competitive franchise, and ultimately it is recognized as

the world’s leading baked good and coffee chain. There are several reasons behind this success.

Of course the taste of Dunkin Donuts products and the price of their products are a big

contributing factor to their success, however the way Dunkin Donuts has used visual marketing

to build their brand since 1950 has been a crucial component to their achievements over the

years. Branding is very important for all companies, but it is especially important for restaurant

franchises because it gives potential customers a desire to go to that franchise based on the

picture of the food product they happen to see on television or other forms of media. Through

analyzing different advertisements throughout different decades, it can be shown that visual

marketing had a significant impact on the overall business of Dunkin Donuts.

The first advertisement used by Dunkin Donuts in the 1950’s was a picture of a donut

figure in a teacup, carrying a tray of donuts, and the franchise continued to use this ad throughout
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the 1960’s as well. (See Figure 1). The donut figure is portrayed as if he is on the move,

delivering the tray of donuts. He is also winking at the plate of donuts, indicating that the Dunkin

Donuts products are appealing and tasty, and really driving home the aspect of the importance

and abundance of donuts. This advertisement can be clearly recognized from the 50’s and 60’s

era because of the coloring and overall quality of the image. The donut figure is almost choppy

looking, and it is overall somewhat simple. However, this was most likely the intentions of

Dunkin Donuts at the time, to make a simple and friendly ad that puts emphasis on their

products.

There is a strong focus on how the images in advertisements influence consumers desire

to buy a certain food, and Marlene Keller’s article, “Advertising and Consumerism in the Food

Industry” further explains what exactly makes the food in certain ads so appealing. For example,

Keller states “The role of advertising is most important to a product or food item when it is first

being put on the supermarket shelves or on a restaurant menu. Companies must put extreme

amounts of effort into finding the best ways to attract attention to their products and effectively

spread awareness among the consumers in the target market, trying to prove to them that they

need and want to buy their product.” (Keller, 12). Since the donut figure ad was the first

advertisement Dunkin Donuts developed, they tried to sell their product by overselling their

product. The donut figure represents the variety of donuts that Dunkin Donuts carries, and the

fact the figure was pictured in a coffee cup also shows that the franchise sells coffee. Customers

seeing this visual advertisement of a new breakfast and coffee franchise in the 1950’s and 60’s

would make them eager to try this new place, which is what initially brought in sales. After

Dunkin Donuts developed this visual marketing advertisement, they made a brand name and logo

for themselves, which was the beginning of their success.

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Figure 1

Throughout the 1970’s and 1980’s, the Dunkin Donuts franchise utilized television by

developing several different commercials. In the 70’s, Dunkin Donuts introduced a character

known as Fred the baker (see Figures 2-4), who appeared in the majority of commercials

throughout the 70’s and 80’s. The first commercial that Fred appeared in showed him getting out

of bed very early and saying, “time to make the donuts.” Then, the commercial goes on to show

the process Fred uses to make the “perfect” donuts. Not long after this, “time to make the

donuts”, became a popular phrase when referring to doing a task early in the morning. Since this

phrase became so common, so did the overall business of Dunkin Donuts. Every time someone

used the phrased referring to Fred the baker, they were also referring to Dunkin Donuts.

Near the end of the 80’s, Dunkin Donuts expanded their franchise by introducing the new

“Dunkin Donuts Cereal.” In the commercial, Fred the baker is depicted showing how they make

the cereal in the different donut shapes, and how they can be bought in a chocolate or glazed

version. Even though Fred is depicted cutting out the donut cereal holes one by one, they are

surely made in a factory, and less personally. Dunkin Donuts used a personal aspect to their

commercials to insure the customer that they are buying the best possible product that is

developed carefully and with care. Potential customers are more drawn to a product in which

they know is being developed with care because the brand builds a sentimental relationship with
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the customer, setting it apart from other restaurant franchises. They are ultimately saying to their

customers that this is not some regular breakfast franchise, this is Dunkin Donuts, where you can

have a donut and cup of coffee made especially for you. The cereal was developed as an option

for a “healthier breakfast choice.” A healthier choice was important for customers because it

takes away the feeling of guilt by having a donut. Instead, Dunkin Donuts decided to make donut

shaped cereal, as a healthier option for breakfast, which also further expands the brands

relationship with the customer by catering to their needs. In Brian Wansink’s article, “Does Food

Marketing Need to Make Us Fat”, he describes the different marketing techniques used by

companies to get their product sold. For example Wansink states, “Branding is the creation of

names, symbols, characters, and slogans that help identify a product and create a unique positive

associations which differentiate it from the competition and create additional value in the

customer’s mind.” (Chandon, Wansink, 12). Fred the Baker represents the quality and care of

Dunkin Donuts products because he is always shown working hard making the donuts, showing

how the donuts are made, or getting up early in the morning to make the products so they are

fresh for customers. Developing Fred the baker as a character for the Dunkin Donuts brand

helped their franchise because it differentiated itself from competition, and attracted customers

because Fred represented additional personal value to their customers.

Figure 2 Figure 3 Figure 4

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After Dunkin Donuts outgrew Fred the Baker in the 1990’s, they followed a different

path for visual marketing. The main focus of Dunkin Donuts advertisements were on their food,

showing actual and simple pictures of their donuts and different types of coffee. (See Figure 5).

By just showing the products Dunkin Donuts was selling instead of using a fictional character to

promote it, it showed that the franchise wanted their brand to be associated in a more simplistic

and somewhat of a laid back kind of way.

According to Sherri Liberman, being laid back and simplistic goes along with the food

trends of the 90’s. For example, In Liberman’s book, “American Food By the Decades”, she

states, “Fast food was a staple in American diets, especially with low-income families or with

families too busy to have a home-cooked meal every night. It seemed that the 1990’s were

continuing trends towards fast food and packaged foods that originated in earlier decades.”

(Keller, 217). Although Dunkin Donuts mainly serves breakfast items and coffee, it can still be

considered fast food because it is food you can get while on the run or a quick fix for hunger or a

sweet spot. Since the advertisement simply showed the image of a donut and a cup of coffee, it

connected with customers of the 90’s because in their minds the ad says, “It’s just a cup of coffee

and a donut, what’s the harm in that?” The Dunkin Donuts brand wanted to let customers know

that there is nothing wrong with taking a quick stop to get your daily donut and coffee, due to the

fact it is so easily accessible and it’s only a donut and a cup of coffee, so there is really no harm

in that. Dunkin Donuts’s visual marketing in the 90’s was so successful because they connected

with the customers of that time by following food trends to make their ads more successful and

impactful.

Figure 5
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After Fred the Baker was gone, so was the catchphrase “time to make the donuts.”

However in the 2000’s Dunkin’s came up with a new slogan that is still around today, which is,

“America Runs on Dunkin.” (See Figure 6). This slogan caught on with customers very fast, and

could be seen on coffee mugs, cups, and napkins. Essentially, anywhere Dunkin Donuts has its

name the slogan seemed to follow, and became increasingly popular. It became so successful that

people were using the slogans as spin offs for many different things, and is still used today. Since

the slogan was so popular, Dunkin Donuts was able to use this to even more of an advantage by

getting celebrities or famous athletes to endorse their products and repeat the slogan. (See

Figures 7-10)

“America Runs on Dunkin” is a slogan that suggests Americans gets the fuel they need

only through Dunkin Donuts coffee and products, which gives customers the ability perform to

their fullest potential, and ultimately have a good day. Along with promoting customers’ ability

to work to their potential, the slogan also promotes physical activity, as opposed to the fast food

trends of the nineties. Not only was this slogan a hit with customers, but it was a hit with athletes

as well. Athletes such as Rob Gronkowski of the New England Patriots, Ray Allen of the Boston

Celtics, Tyler Seguin of the Boston Bruins, and several baseball players of the Boston Red Sox

have all endorsed Dunkin Donuts coffee specifically. In Marie Bragg’s article, “Athlete

Endorsements in Food Marketing”, he discusses why athletes have such a large and successful
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impact on brands when endorsing their product. For example, Bragg states, “One study also

revealed that parents perceive food products as healthier when they are endorsed by a

professional athlete and are more likely to purchase those products. (Bragg, 2). Dunkin Donuts

utilized their slogan to promote physical activity and represented their coffee as the fuel to this

activity. Having athletes endorse their “fuel” through different visual marketing advertisements

with different athletes, Dunkin Donuts has managed to increase the success of their franchise

tremendously.

Figure 7 Figure 8 Figure 9

Figure 10

In the film Ghost World, directed by Terry Zwigoff, Zwigoff bases his story off the plot in

the novel Ghost World, by Daniel Clowes. In the movie, Zwigoff adds a character known as

Seymour, who eventually starts regularly hanging out with Enid, who is the main character. After

hanging out with Seymour, Enid sees a poster of a fast food franchise that Seymour works for,

known as Cook’s Chicken. However, the poster Seymour had displayed was a characterized

picture of an African American man, and it read “Coon’s Chicken.” (See Figure 11). Later in the

movie, there is a scene in which Enid meets Seymour at Cook’s Chicken, and the differences

from the poster to the new establishment were dramatic. The new Cook’s Chicken establishment
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appeared to any normal burger restaurant, and the old poster of Coon’s Chicken compared to the

new establishment showed how their visual marketing effected and changed their overall brand

and franchise. Similar to Cook’s Chicken, Dunkin Donuts drastically changed throughout the

years. Comparing Dunkin Donuts advertisements throughout different decades shows the

different visual marketing techniques and the impact they have left on customers, and ultimately

shows their success.

Figure 11

Change is inevitable, and Dunkin Donuts managed to develop their advertisements and

brand throughout decades of change by utilizing their visual marketing skills. Since Bill

Rosenberg founded Dunkin Donuts in the 1950’s, the franchise has developed and grown into a

household name, thanks to all their clever advertisements. Visual marketing in the food industry,

especially Dunkin Donuts, has proved that their advertisements always connect with their

customers on a personal level, despite the decade. From starting with a choppy drawing of a

donut figure in a cup, to Fred the Baker’s catchphrase, and to athletic endorsements, Dunkin

Donuts has mastered the visual marketing of their overall business, which is why they are so

successful. Although Dunkin Donuts is a worldwide franchise, it will always be the backbone of

Massachusetts.
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Bibliography

Bragg, Marie. "Athlete Endorsements in Food Marketing."Http://pediatrics.aappublications.org.

American Academy of Pediatrics, 7 Oct. 2013. Web. 30 Apr. 2015.

Chandon, Pierre, and Brian Wansink. "Does Food Marketing Need To Make Us Fat? A Review

And Solutions." Nutrition Reviews70.10 (2012): 571-593. SPORTDiscus with Full Text. Web. 24

Mar. 2015.

Keller, Marlene. "Advertising and Consumerism in the Food Industry." Johnson & Wales

University ScholarsArchive@JWU. Johnson and Wales University, 19 Feb. 2012. Web. 9 Apr.

2015.

Liberman, Sherri. "1990's." American Food by the Decades. Santa Barbara, Calif.: Greenwood,

2011. Print.

Zwigoff, Terry. Ghost World. Perf. Thora Birch, Steve Buscemi. United Artists ;, 2001. DVD