We have a 3-pronged strategy to acheive this goal.
1. Food Distribution everyday
2. Cow Presence everyday
3. Suggestive Selling contests everyday
The food distribution and cow presence increase the number of visitors to our store. The suggestive selling helps us maximize those visits by increasing our check average.
Increased Transactions
By blitzing everyday we are leveraging our food and people. Briana, our UMD, is visiting what we call the "low hanging fruit" - areas that are close and full of potential raving fans. She hands out Chick-fil-A sandwiches or biscuits as well as a "totally free" coupon to come visit us in the store. She also leaves a few catering brochures for potential future outside sales.
We are leveraging our cow daily with highly visible street presence. Our store is located at the intersection of 2 high traffic streets - 104th Street and Federal Blvd. We are just far enough away from the intersection that cars traveling down 104th Street can drive by without seeing us. By placing a cow on that intersection, we force potential guests to at least consider dining with us.
Check Average
Our suggestive selling contests have really been beneficial in increasing our check average. We have a contest everyday for both the lunch and dinner rushes. These contests provide a number of benefits to Federal Heights. First, the competition creates excitement for the Team Members. Second, it provides a way for us to educate our guests on menu options that they did not previously know about. Last, these contests are a cheap and easy way for us to maximize our sales potential through impulse purchasing.
Results
We began this strategy two weeks ago - the first full week of October. Since then we have only had one day with a sales decrease (and that day we got 2 inches of snow!). Not counting that snow day, sales are up almost 8% and transactions are up 20 per day. (Which is great considering the fact that last month we were down 35 transactions per day). For the month we are up 4% and have positive momentum heading into the second half of the October. Overall, our strategy has been (and continues to be) a great success!
