KiwiYo is not a yoyo that the cast and crew from the Lord of the Rings trilogy played between takes, but a New Zealand based yogurt store with just two outlets at this time which has made a momentous splash on the social media circuit which belies its relatively small size. KiwiYo has adopted a very unusual approach to engaging their followers on social media platforms as well as building an enthusiastic community and it is a strategy worth emulating for any brick and mortar business seeking to differentiate itself among the social network crowd of competitors.

Customers’ yogurt creation photos are instantly posted

KiwiYo provides its customers with an opportunity to create masterpieces out of frozen yogurt. They can select specific product flavors from the ten rotating choices available as well as adding on any (or all) of more than 50 toppings ranging from chocholate fish to gummi bears to lychees to jelly beans to… of course… fresh kiwi fruit. The sky is the limit for these customized creations as they are paid for by weight, not by the individual elements. The company capitalizes on the artistic aspects of their customers’ frozen yogurt creations through the installation of a flat screen panel in the stores which is set up to automatically take photographs of each yogurt aficionados and their frozen magnum opus. These photos are then instantly posted onto Facebook for the world to see. This unique social media tie in has created what could be termed a frenzy on the company’s social media presences with thousands of customers commenting and sharing ad infinitum.

Stunning social media success in just over a year

Just over a year ago KiwiYo was nothing more than a glint in their founders’ eyes, and it seems difficult to believe that just two frozen yogurt stores could have accumulated a community nearly 20,000 strong in just a short time, but the proof of the yogurt is always in the eating, and if you’re not sufficiently convinced of their success by the social media posts that are overflowing their Facebook page, just drive by their Mission Bay store next time you’re in Auckland to check out the queues which regularly stretch out through the parking lot. The reach of this social media strategy has been nothing short of spectacular. It is not unusual to come across posts from followers in other languages, proving that KiwiYo is striking a chord around the world. However the strongest positives come from the lucky New Zealanders who are able visit the store regularly. KiwiYo’s Facebook page is filled with posts such as:

  • Okay I HAVE to go this week
  • Someone please take me to KiwiYo
  • First time at KiwiYo! Had so much fun!
  • Can’t wait to get the KiwiYo Experience under my belt! YummmO!

There are also endless requests from followers for the company to open a store in their neighborhood with Facebookers literally pleading for stores in Whangaparaoa, Pukekohe, and many other New Zealand locations.

The deified All Blacks tweet their love

The All Blacks are the national New Zealand rugby team and they evoke among Kiwis the adulation which Americans dole on Super Bowl, World Series, Stanley Cup and NBA Championship winners combined and multiplied by a hundred. The All Blacks are literally considered as deities on Earth in the double island South Pacific nation, so when they tweet about how much they love KiwiYo, it is a ringing endorsement which literally can have no equals for the company’s local customer base.

KiwiYo’s innovative and consummately successful social media strategy has borne fruit and not just of the fuzzy skin green pulp kind. More than 600 entrepreneurs have already expressed an interest in becoming franchisees, not just in New Zealand but in widespread nations such as Australia, India and China. The company is on the way to opening a total of eight corporately owned stores throughout New Zealand and with franchisees pawing at the doors to get their share of this burgeoning and soon to be international yogurt empire, it seems that KiwiYo will be spreading its yogurt “culture” around the world.