I’m sure you have experienced it yourself. Your waiter, who has done a superb job of serving you so far, surprises you and your guest with an “on the house” dessert. He simply offers it as a token of thanks for being such a wonderful guest.
Although it may appear to be a random act of kindness, it has a several attributes that make it the perfect brand loyalty marketing tactic.
1. Desserts are special. Therefore the experience of sharing dessert at the end of a meal can be a most memorable moment. This builds your loyalty towards the restaurant and the waiter.
2. Dessert comes at the end of the meal, right before it is time to leave the tip. In the spirit of mutual generosity it is appropriate for you to leave a larger tip. This makes the waiter happy, which rubs off on the next customers. And so on and so on.
3. Many desserts are tossed out if not eaten, so the incremental cost of giving away an expensive dessert is negligible. Besides, you may choose to order coffee or cognac to compliment it.
4. Free sampling is a good way to promote trial usage. So next time, you may choose to order one of those “Chocolate Cappuccino Noodle Kugel Cakes” and pay full price.
Although offering a free dessert may be a cost-effective loyalty builder for fine restaurants, not all of us are in the restaurant business. Yet, the concept is one that deserves exploration for any company in a competitive field that is looking to build loyalty.
Here are some things to consider when offering a “free dessert” to promote your business:
– Find something that has real value, but little incremental cost to you.
– Ideal if it is something that is unique or appropriate to your business.
– Avoid making it a policy like “free shipping.”
– Implement on a random basis so that it is a surprise and not expected.
– More effective if the customer feels it is a gift to them.
– Allow customer representative to be the one to present gift.
– Management and co-workers need to be in support of it.
