Comments on: Freaks People Out, He Says

By: Chris Lockwood

Chris Lockwood — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 23:59:01 +0000

Interesting that customers couldn’t figure out why Denny’s would offer free food- um, because people will buy brinks, they might bring friends who order other meals, they might like the meal and come back later… not rocket science!

What kills me is people calling- why would Denny’s advertise free meals if they weren’t really offering them? Were people expecting them to say on the phone that the ad wasn’t true?

I guess it really is hard to underestimate people.

As for the brain surgeon, yes I would expect a free consult. How much should it cost for that? Most attorneys offer a free consult to see if your case is something they might take, so why should it be different for surgeons?

By: Dr. Michael Beck | Chiropractic Marketing

Dr. Michael Beck | Chiropractic Marketing — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 21:12:46 +0000

In some markets, free actually depresses response. For example, would you respond to a “free consult” to a brain surgeon’s office?

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 04:03:29 +0000

What Denny’s did on Tuesday was an extra-generous form of “sampling.” It’s the most effective marketing strategy to bring back consumers who left a brand, or get new customers to try it, says David Vinjamuri, marketing professor at New York University. “In a recession, you try to add value, and sampling does just that.” http://tinyurl.com/am5ym8

I think it was a fabulous idea. Denny’s has dropped off the radar for many. Now that people are pinching their pennies I think it’s a great time for Denny’s to slip their brand name and competitive advantage (low-budget dining) into the forefront of everyone’s minds.

Tho, I agree with Ryan that they could’ve gotten a lot more VAVOOM out of the promotion by giving out coupons to get more returning customers.

By: Ryan M. Healy

Ryan M. Healy — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 20:48:50 +0000

@John – Interesting that the customers were forced to speculate why in the world Denny’s would give away a free meal. :-)

Apparently, Denny’s was thinking they might break even on the offer if people ordered a beverage with the meal.

Still, they could have done MUCH better had they given a reason why and devised a way to get people to come back.

@Stephen – I agree: They created inertia, but they didn’t leverage it properly.

By: Stephen Dean

Stephen Dean — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 20:06:36 +0000

@John Food always tastes better when it’s free!

Seems like Denny’s may have missed a big opportunity with their free meal. I guess they might have earned some inertia by getting people in the door and people thinking about them… but wasted much of their effort.

By: John Holzmann

John Holzmann — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 19:57:50 +0000

Yeah. I saw an article in the Rocky Mountain News about this offer. Indeed, they said it "hit one out of the park." But I didn't understand at all why Denny's would be excited about giving away 8 hours worth of income while increasing expenses throughout that period. It made no sense to me at all. And, as far as I could see, Denny's itself gave absolutely no reason for the offer. One customer seemed to catch a reason . . . similar to what you highlighted in your proposed copy, Ryan:

"We were talking about how the food is a little better than everyone remembers," said Tony Nichols, 29, who got up at 4:45 a.m. to grab breakfast with his brother, Rob Nichols, 34, and Rob's fiancee, Andie Byrne, 32. "I wonder if they're thinking, 'OK, we've improved our food vendors and our cooking. We're trying to let people know that we taste better now,' " Tony Nichols added.

But that was what the customers had to come up with.

By: Ryan M. Healy

Ryan M. Healy — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:24:13 +0000

Free Isn’t Dead. Not Yet….

So I’m writing and doing some research today when I see this headline:
“Free breakfast at Denny’s? I’m there!”
That got my attention. Not because I like Denny’s — I don’t. But the idea of a free meal is c…