--- title: "Monday Buzz: IHOP’s Masterful Zeitgeist Takeover" id: "42974" type: "post" slug: "monday-buzz-ihops-masterful-zeitgeist-takeover" published_at: "2018-06-11T20:46:09+00:00" modified_at: "2026-11-09T16:03:51+00:00" url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/06/11/monday-buzz-ihops-masterful-zeitgeist-takeover/" markdown_url: "https://associationsnow.com/2018/06/11/monday-buzz-ihops-masterful-zeitgeist-takeover.md" excerpt: "Even if you don’t like the idea of the International House of Burgers, you have to admit that we’re talking about it. Also: Some thoughts on how to tackle that thing that’s stressing you out." taxonomy_category: - "Marketing / Communications" taxonomy_post_tag: - "AssociationsNow" - "Business" - "Marketing" - "rebranding" - "Social Media" taxonomy_content_format: - "Article" taxonomy_role: - "Association CEO / Executive Director" - "C-Level" - "Director" - "Executive Team" - "VP" taxonomy_persona: - "Association Professionals" --- [Home](https://associationsnow.com/) » [Articles](https://associationsnow.com/format/article/) » Monday Buzz: IHOP’s Masterful Zeitgeist Takeover Whether you love that the International House of Pancakes changed its name to the International House of Burgers on Monday or consider it a crime against humanity, the fact is that the company figured out how to lead the conversation. The restaurant chain, famously known as IHOP, succeeded at getting lots of people to talk about it, driving the online conversation around its name change to IHOb. (Which, fortunately for pancake fans, [is only temporary (opens in a new tab)](http://money.cnn.com/2018/06/11/investing/ihob-ihop-burgers-name-change/index.html) .) The company has used a variety of tactics to draw attention: It leveraged the element of surprise by not explaining what the “b” meant at first, pushed for a large amount of social media conversation, and had fun with the announcement, issuing a [press release (opens in a new tab)](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ihop-changes-name-to-ihob-reveals-the-b-is-for-burgers-300663918.html) that went all-in on the stunt marketing. An actual quote from the release: “Also, burgers burgers burgers. Burgerin’ burgers burgers. Reburgered burgers burgers burgers burgers burgers burgers. Burger burgerings burgers burgers burgers. Burgerin’ burgers burgers. Moreover, burgers burgered burgers burgers. Burgers burgers burgerin’ burgers burgers burgers burgers burgers burgers burgers burgers burgers burgerin’ burgers.” You can argue all week whether or not the name change makes any sense—and plenty of people are [already doing so (opens in a new tab)](http://www.foxnews.com/food-drink/2018/06/11/flapjack-lovers-outraged-over-ihops-ihob-announcement-what-epic-failure.html) —but IHOb has achieved something every association doing a rebrand dreams of: It created a conversation reaching far beyond its base. If your association could capture 2 percent of IHOb’s success, it would be a massive win. (Of course, if you aren’t doing a rebrand, [maybe you can fill some potholes (opens in a new tab)](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/dominos-pizza-unveils-u-s-infrastructure-project-filling-potholes-130802630.html) like Domino’s Pizza is doing.) ### At Both Ends > Beating Burnout [https://t.co/bmx4jmqbul (opens in a new tab)](https://t.co/bmx4jmqbul) > [#meetings (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/meetings?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > [#conference (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/conference?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > [#eventprofs (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/eventprofs?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > [#AMCi (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/AMCi?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > [#assnchat (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/assnchat?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > [#associations (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/hashtag/associations?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) > > — Kris Finger CMM (@KrisFinger) [June 11, 2018 (opens in a new tab)](https://twitter.com/KrisFinger/status/1006222087101603840?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw) **Feeling burned out?** It’s pretty common. So how can you deal? PCMA’s *Convene* [offers some remedies (opens in a new tab)](http://www.pcmaconvene.org/career/development-career-development/beating-burnout/) , including taking action on your to-do list, taking a break, and being willing to open up about what’s stressing you out. Hopefully, the cause of your stress is something small and manageable, like IHOP’s recent name change. ### Other Links of Note **Want to feel a little less busy?** Time-management expert Laura Vanderkam recommends spending some time with friends and family. [Business Insider explains (opens in a new tab)](http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-feel-less-busy-happier-schedule-friend-family-time-2018-6) . **So a past leader** **left a mess behind.** Don’t waste your energy complaining about it, “just fix it,” [Association Executive Management’s David M. Patt writes (opens in a new tab)](http://aem-patt.com/aem-blog/index.php?itemid=2300) . The b is for burgers, but only for the moment. (handout photo) [Ernie Smith](https://associationsnow.com/author/ernie-smith/) Ernie Smith is a former senior editor for Associations Now. 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