Popeyes Increases ROAS by 680% With Programmatic Strategy
Reaching the Right Customers at the Right Price
Since entering the UK in 2021, Popeyes—the quick-service restaurant chain specializing in Louisiana-style fried chicken—faced intense competition and struggled to reach customers. They partnered with StackAdapt and used a strategic bid optimization and targeting strategy to boost awareness and drive in-store traffic, resulting in over 45K conversions and an award-winning campaign recognized for its innovation in AI-powered advertising.
Serving Up Awareness and Conversions
Although Popeyes had the right creative assets, they needed a programmatic partner to serve ads to the right customers. To drive conversions, Popeyes leveraged StackAdapt’s full menu of features, allowing them to fine-tune their targeting and ad placements for maximum engagement. Here are some of the tactics they used:
Custom Targeting
Used StackAdapt’s Browsing Audiences and Page Context AI to target users interested in relevant topics, such as “fried chicken.”
Bid Optimization
Implemented strategic bid goals and made real-time adjustments to maintain a CPC of £0.91 and improve campaign effectiveness.
Pixel Tracking
Leveraged StackAdapt’s proprietary pixel to track online sales, assess ad performance, and measure return on ad spend (ROAS).
Award-Winning Programmatic Strategy Delivers Affordable CPC for QSR
Through its partnership with StackAdapt, Popeyes cooked up a data-driven programmatic strategy to deliver ads to the right audiences. The campaign’s AI-driven approach helped StackAdapt earn the 2025 Programmatic Impact Award for Best Use of AI in a Campaign by AdExchanger.
Celebrated for its creative use of targeting, the collaboration between StackAdapt and Popeyes is a testament to how AI-powered programmatic can drive meaningful growth, even in the most competitive markets.
CPC
£0.91
Impressions
22 million
Conversions
45,000
ROAS
+678%
David Carey
Chief Technology Officer
Popeyes
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