Each month, you'll find new promotions here
designed to  increase customer count & generate sales
using the latest marketing & promotion techniques
for nightclub, bar, restaurant & hotel operations.

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    911 Patriotic Red, White & Blue Day
    Fall Community Service Project
    Oktoberfest
    Beer Drinkers Club - Join The Club !!
    Baseball ALCS & NLCS & The World Series
    Time Change

Objective: To create good within the community while assisting in a meaningful public service project.

GUIDELINES

To develop a high-visibility project with strong community & media appeal.

The Project must be "internally driven". The majority of the planning & execution must be handled by a group representing the charity thus minimizing our staff involvement.

Plan on having the promo during non-peak sales hours & use it as a business lead-in.

Project goal: To raise a specific cash amount for the charity. An
achievable goal might be $2,000

Promo Idea -- "BID FOR BACHELORS"

Targeted to ladies, this promo is a legitimate twist on the male review phenom... but here, they also bid for a dream date.

What to do:

Brainstorm with your Creative Marketing Team...... make up a "hit list" of current high-visibility community charity projects to approach.

Start with your local Chamber of Commerce & other local civic groups like the United Way, March of Dimes, Local Arts, etc.

Next, make a list local businesses who might be contacted to become co-sponsors, donate prizes & merchandise.

MARKETING SUPPORT:

This type of promo is also a natural for your local radio station. Just remember that radio people need lead time to plug events into their present schedule. With a station's support & one of their top DJs talking it up on the air that he will be the MC for the affair, your media coverage is assured.

Now, put together some thoughts about how you see the promotion unfolding. For now, just jot down ideas, then form an outline.

SUGGESTED FORMAT:

Schedule the event as an after work affair on a Friday, say, 6-9 PM.

Select a dozen or so of the communities’ most eligible bachelors.
they can be local radio, TV & sports celebrities, yes, but also target local known leaders from businesses.... doctors, lawyers, chiefs.

Each bachelor who enters is charged with developing his own "bid package". His auction date package might include dinner, dancing, the theatre or a trip to Las Vegas. (this is where those co-sponsors come in)

All bachelors are dressed in tuxes & are encouraged to have fun as they are strut down the to music & stage lights. Some throw roses, others might be dressed in mask & cape. In Phoenix, 2 bachelors teamed up for a "double-date" package sold to 2 ladies. The wilder, more creative the better. Ladies bid with cash or credit cards. Ladies might pool resources to bid as a group for a man.

On the day of the event, a decorating committee meets to do the room. Led by a manager or dept. supervisor, the team should be committed to Making the room look more festive than in recent memory.

The concept of community service means a "Win-Win" for all parties.
Your business & those of your co-sponsors all benefit from the positive
exposure in the community. The charity also benefits from the media.

NOTE: This entire event should be treated exactly like a major big time social event. Plan the entire promo A to Z. Most important, have a great time and…. "MAKE ‘EM SWEAT!!"

October might be a great time to initiate a beer drinkers club.

Frank Bongiorni at the Copper Shield Lounge in Ludlow, MA was first to ask us, "What kinds of promos can an operator of a neighborhood bar use to increase traffic, sales?"

Here’s an idea that might work for you, Frank. It might also work for Randy Hull in Muncy; Randy Sun in Libertyville; Mark McCellan in Omaha & Alan Ritter at the Friendly Tavern in Coloma, Michigan, just to name a few.

Start up an in-house beer club. Here's a quick look at two very successful beer clubs:

Fager’s Island, a year-round resort on Wright Bay off Ocean City, Md., could be the home of the nation’s largest beer club.

"6 years ago," says managing partner Charles H. Smith, "we adopted an aggressive marketing strategy to increase beer sales. Our first beer club, the "Hall Of Foam," was so successful that we added two more clubs, expanded our list and added our own private label draft, Fager’s Blue Dog."

The additional clubs, with members in Philadelphia, Washington and Baltimore as well as the Maryland coast, are "Around The World In Eighty Beers" and "Ninety-Nine Bottles Of Beer On The Wall."

Members work their way through the Fager’s Island list, now at 100, and claim a variety of awards for their pleasure, T-shirts, glasses, even trips for the luckiest ones.

In Baltimore, Steve Henderson, F&B director of the Omni Inner Harbor Hotel, has developed a unique beer club for his Corner Bar. Steve is in his second year of an "M.B.A. Program For Beer Lovers." The initials here stand for "Master Beer Aficionado."

That's a customer base that should be encouraged in every possible way.

Source: Nation's Restaurant News

NOTE: Many neighborhood pubs have reported past successes developing Oktoberfest promos in conjunction with German & other European beer purveyors.

Check with your local distributors for possible tie-ins.

Baseball ALCS, NLCS & World Series

ALCS, NLCS & World Series - Coming up in October. Begin to plan now if you are into sports, especially if you do business in an area closely affected by a hot pennant race.

Both the National & American League Championships Series present a great lead-in for the World Series.

Time Change

SPECIAL NOTE: Mark Saturday, November 3rd on your calendar. That night, at 2am local time, (Sun. the 4th) all clocks move back one hour as Standard Time resumes.

What this means: In most states, an extra hour of sales for your facility. Make sure that you give this consideration when stocking, staffing for that night.

Also, if you have a band that night, you might need to adjust the band's set schedule, possibly adding an extra set to accommodate the additional time...

More promo ideas.... We’ve just scratched the surface here. If you want to learn more, I’d like to invite you to read more about "Success Management Systems" by ordering our new book, "Bar/Nightclub Management & Marketing - 101 Ways To Make The Cash Register Ring." It's a  powerful tool for creating traffic & increasing sales using proven marketing, promotions & improved operations techniques. Details here.