Pizza advertising ideas haven’t changed much over the years: direct mail coupons, a loyalty club “punch card,” or sponsoring a Little League Team. So what can you do to get noticed with promotions that will build profits?
Pizza Advertising Ideas have to be profitable
Most Ideas for advertising pizza just aren’t profitable enough. Television or Cable advertising are too expensive to be profitable. Punch cards might increase customer loyalty, but they might make loyal customers less profitable (if they order a pizza every Friday night, you’re probably giving them a free pie once every 10 or 20 weeks). Direct mail is usually discard or ignored, so that you can’t count on more than a 2% response rate. How about apps? Third party apps simply drain your profit.
Five Ideas
So what can you do? How should you advertise profitably? Here are 5 ideas that are proven to increase profitability
- Pizza by the Slice. I know that most pizzerias want to sell the entire pie, but it opens up a whole market to you: the customer who craves pizza but doesn’t want an entire pizza. If you’re the only “by the slice” pizza parlor on a well travelled street, you’ll capture the market. A single slice can be profitable, too, with premium pricing. Why not bundle two slices with a drink for $8? That’s profitable.
- Be the choice of “the team.” Every high school team in our town has pizza nights all year long, so why not offer a 15% discount when the team orders 5 or more pies? One pizzeria sells dozens to schools when they run their own pizza stand during school carnivals or games. The boxes just keep coming all though the event.
- Go with coupons. Distribute them at stores around town. Offer a special discounted price, and be sure to display an “expiration date” on the coupon. Making the offer “time sensitive” gets the customer to act sooner. Tracking results is easy: just keep the coupon.
- Great reviews: who wants to go to a 1-star pizzeria? Be sure to get 5-star reviews from happy customers while they’re in the store, on their phones while dining in, or when you deliver. Tracking results is easy with Google Analytics.
- Messages on hold. You know what’s going to happen on Friday, right? Your phone is going to ring for hours. Just about all of these callers will be asked to “please hold” while you take orders. Why not build “add on” sales (like side salads and garlic knots) or premium items (with a premium profit) like specialty pies and extra toppings? Or desserts? Or give them reasons to call back on Tuesday to order Chicken Parm, on Wednesday for Pasta, and on Sunday for Wings or Specialty Sandwiches? Tracking results of your messages on hold is also easy when you understand how to include special offers.
5.5 Want more? Replace your loyalty “punch card” with a Digital Club. Customers like it because it’s more convenient, and you’ll like how you can use customer contact information to promote mid-week specials, catering, and more. Make your program simple and fun. Give customers rewards that they really want, like free toppings, a larger pizza, or a free side dish. For Pizzerias, like every business, loyalty is the key to success.
Advertising works
When you choose the right advertising strategy, advertising works. Try any of these ideas, one at a time. Track your results. Keep using profitable advertising ideas, and abandon unprofitable ones. Then try the next.
Resources
Here are a few resources that might help you:
Loyalty programs designed for restaurants always work better for pizzerias. Programs like Loopy Loyalty range from $15/month to $150/month.
Have you ever tried messages on hold? We’ve gotten reports that they can increase your average order 4 to 10%. You can see results immediately for as little as $59.95/month. Find out more about how they work.
Reviews: check back and we’ll have information on the easiest way to get more reviews.
Ready earn more?
You’ll earn more when you look for a “outside the (pizza) box” pizza advertising ideas that will help you increase sales and profits starting today.
