Bounce back coupons

[steveo922]

Hey guys,

We’re in the process of figuring out/designing some box toppers. What are some good bounce back coupons/deals to get people to return?

We offer an 8" individual pizza and was thinking of giving out a free 8" specialty pizza for them to try with their next $15 purchase. We offer an array of unique specialty pizzas and I think this promo would be perfect for people that are leery of trying something new. What do you think? That was just one idea though, I plan to have a couple.

Thanks!

(r.g.- is this more productive lol?)

 

[Patriot_sPizza]

We’ve been successful using the word FREE - get free garlic knots or mozzarella stix w/your next order…

We’re going to expand that offer by increasing the free premium on Monday/Tuesday, like free topping day or BOGO and continue w/the other freebies on other days…

 

[wa_dave]

Steve our latest box topper is buy 2 x family pizzas (15") and get a FREE small (10") Hawaiian pizza (ham & pineapple).

We went with Family size to move customers up from the biggest selling size - larger 13". Sale increase is $10, $26.90 for 2 large vs $36.90 for 2 family.

The cost to make the small Hawaiian (a very popular variant) is about $2.70 including the box.

I look at FREE give aways at the make cost only as wages rent etc are covered in the sales that you take for the customer to get the freebe. The cost to sale is 7% ($36.90 sale).

By moving them up to the bigger size we get an additional $350 a week based on 5 per day at a cost of $95, but also we will get people who may only buy the odd 1 or two go for the deal , which would gives us a better sales to profit ratio. 5 per day redemption may not seem much but here in Australia couponing and box topping is not used very much outside of PH and Domino’s, so any extra sales are a bonus.

I would stick with a popular variant that people buy as the FREE one rather than a shotgun any variant approach. The reason is that costs are controlled, it is quicker making the same one rather than changing your thoughts to another variant each time, plus you eliminate any confusion in what they can or cannot get. That is why we go with our variant. It is simple, realively cheap and is a popular variant that most people like (kids love) and it has worked well in the past.

Dave

 

[wa_dave]

Sorry guys I made a mistake on the costings - cost is $1.90 for the small Hawaiian not $2.70 which brings cost to sale down to 5% and cost for 35 per week Free to $67 not $95.

Anyone knows what happened to the edit button? Mine’s gone.

Dave

 

[Kris]

We use our door hangers for box toppers. Saves a bit of money to buy one item and use two ways. We take a paper cutter and cut the top of the door hanger off. We got them from century 2 color and they were inexpensive.

We offer 3 coupons on ours. One is a 2 pizza deal. The second is a bundle deal…pizza, salad and stix for one price and the third is what makes our place unique in our town…we deliver pasta so it is a bundled pasta deal.

The second coupon appears to be a good deal but the truth is most people don’t order pizza, salad and stix. They may order pizza and salad or pizza and stix. The “good deal” forces them to buy all three and we only discount 3.oo off the regular menu price but the perceived value is they are getting a great deal on all three. So if the menu price was 23.00 bucks we make the coupon for 19.99.

Same with the second deal. We offer two pasta dinners but bundle in two pieces of cheesecake. The reality is no one really orders dessert but we force them to and they perceive it as a good deal.

Most of our pastas are 7.99 and 8.99. Our coupon is 20.00. Our cheese cake is 2.75 (our cost 1.25) so they really are only getting one piece of cheesecake free but buying one when they probably wouldn’t otherwise. But they see it as a great deal.

Our first coupon offers a bigger discount by taking a two topping pizza and forcing them to buy a second at half price. But we bundle the two pizzas for one price.

These are our most popular coupons. Not to mention it gets our customers to try many things on the menu. Our pizza, our salad, our stix, our dessert. They are terrific so the next time they order they think yummm get some stix. Or our cheesecake which is fabulous encourages them to order it next time…outside of the coupon…maybe with pizza because it is so good.

And as I said they aren’t huge discounts they are just bundling things and forcing the customer to spend more. You can also make box toppers on your computer which is very inexpensive by using landscape (2 boxtoppers to a page) but the image from ordering is better. Bottom line all orders need something to encourage them to come back.

Just my thoughts.

 

[pizzapirate]

Kris:

We use our door hangers for box toppers. Saves a bit of money to buy one item and use two ways. We take a paper cutter and cut the top of the door hanger off. We got them from century 2 color and they were inexpensive.

If you use “one” coupon “two” ways, how do you track the success of the different mediums? Meaning, how do you know if your door hanging has been successful or your box topping has?

 

[royster13]

With printing technology these days the cost of doing a split print run with 2 different designs should be minor…And box toppers and door hangers are going after a much different target so it would best to keep them separate…I am also thinking the box topper does not need to be as aggressive…

 

[Kris]

We track the coupons not so much the way the customer gets them.

I know door hanging works and I know box topping works…for us.

I think in steveo’s situation he is just in need of SOMETHING and to order 5,000 or heck 500 coupons and plaster them wherever he can is going to help him.

Kris

 

[Kris]

royster13:

With printing technology these days the cost of doing a split print run with 2 different designs should be minor…And box toppers and door hangers are going after a much different target so it would best to keep them separate…I am also thinking the box topper does not need to be as aggressive…

I completely disagree. From my experience and the behavior of probably most people is something like this The first thing we did is get a plate of food from the box and plop on the couch…usually with the box on the coffee table. We then would hap hazardly close the box and see a topper. The coupon nut I am I pull it off and look at it. (Perhaps I wait until throwing it in the trash) but either way I pull it off the box. Most people pull it off the box. Then hmmmmm I didn’t know they deliver pasta, I didn’t know they had salad, I didn’t know they have dessert ohhhh and look they deliver everything on their menu. Man what a great deal on pizza. On and on. Perhaps starts a conversation who knows really but either way it informs the customer but even more provokes the customer to read, think, remember and keep.

Even if we disagree on this point…my post was directed at steveo’s situation in which he does ZERO now. He needs to do something and for 100 bucks he can get quite a few door hangers and mulit use them rather than 200 and wait to get them.

Kris

 

[Kris]

And as far as the target? I am targeting getting my customers in the door. New or old.

Not to mention these deals are saving them 3.00 and costing me no more than a dollar. I am confused at what you consider aggressive.

Kris

 

[royster13]

Do you not target potential new customers differently than returning customers?..My thinking is that it takes more effort to get them in the door the 1st time…Once they are there, a less “aggressive” offer will still keep them coming back…So if you are using the same offer you might be leaving money on the table…

Using your 3.00 off offer that costs you 1.00…Maybe a 2.00 off offer to a returning customer might also work and that will only cost you .66…So if the less “aggressive” offer works just as good you save .34 each time…And those .34s add up over time…

You also mention extra menu items…You may not have to discount those to inspire sales…Perhaps just a mention of it on the box topper is enough…Or just send along a “sampler” size so they can try it…

As far as Steve, if he has 100.00 to invest it should all be in door hangers…The customers in the POS the better in the long run…

PS…Every one defines aggressive differently…And I was not trying to express an opinion on how aggressive your offers are…

 

[Kris]

As for steveo…seems to me if he has lets say 500 door hangers and distributes 100 and gets 10 customers it would make more sense to box top with the door hangers instead of putting them on a shelf for the next door hanging bonanza and a blank box leaving the restaurant with a customer…new or old.

As my situation we do more than just box top door hangers…but they are used as box toppers. We also box top our menus, new menu items etc.

We do shake ours up so if they order two pizzas, more often than not they will be different box toppers…again the reply was directed to guide steveo on what I think he should do.

I think it is hard to not only get customers in the door but also keep them coming in the door so it makes me no difference if my “faithful” customers enjoy the same “fruits” as my new customers.

There have been times I have wanted to order something and the coupon says for new customers only and it leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Although I understand why people do it…I don’t, nor do I care if I have coupons out anyone can use them. Heck some days I get calls for expired coupons and we honor them. I am just glad they called and we pick up the coupon and they leave happy and so do I.

I don’t have time to go into all the details of my feelings on this subject and I am sure we all are going to have great discussion on this topic but I am not a coupon stickler and I have and always will want to give the best offer I have going to any customer who comes in or calls.

I gotta go to a manager meeting but will try and explain myself later.

Kris

 

[pizzapirate]

Kris:

I think it is hard to not only get customers in the door but also keep them coming in the door so it makes me no difference if my “faithful” customers enjoy the same “fruits” as my new customers.

There have been times I have wanted to order something and the coupon says for new customers only and it leaves a bad taste in my mouth.
Kris

I think varying your offers, as Royce has suggested, does not have to be exclusive as you suggest here.

We are more aggressive in our offers that are attempting to gather more customers. The idea being, we are trying to lower the risk involved for a potential customer to “try” us out. Our offers to existing customers are meant to inspire more “frequent” visits. They have already tried us, and are hooked so to speak, and the need to lower the risk is not there.

Aggressive offers to “potential” customers are always open to anyone who receives them. I agree with you Kris, that to make them “exclusive” to new customers is alienating. It would turn me off as well.

Maybe this is easier for us than concepts with smaller menus, but we never repeat the same offer (not for some time anyway) and never use the same coupon for different mediums. Thus we can track which mediums or offers are working the best. The other reason is that it prevents customers from simply saying they have a certain coupon all the time when they really don’t. This leads to people feeling they should never have to pay full price or “why should they”. Its more work to change your offers all the time but I feel its worth it.

I would agree with you that Steve’s case is probably an exception because of the extreme financial limitations. Although I think with some due diligence, one could still find a way to do separate prints and offers. Printing has gotten so much cheaper. Why not print up offers on business cards and use them as box toppers? Print up other business cards that you can hand out personally? A lot of businesses use the business cards as door hangers as well using rubber bands.

 

[boatnut]

How about offering the best pizza in town and telling them that? Forget the discounting (coupon). If you can’t offer the best, you had better be the cheapest. God help you if there is a large chain in your area if you try to compete by being the cheapest. They will win every time. Leaves being the best. I firmly believe that is what an independant is all about. Having the best pizza in town. People WILL PAY for good food vs soy cheese C#R#A#P etc. Just after the world melted down (Oct/Nov last year) our competitor started doing some stupid three for one promo. To combat that we put our prices up.
We are up 22% in the first quarter. QUIT CHEAPENING YOUR PRODUCT BOYS AND GIRLS!! You do not need to.