9/101 Relentless Marketing Ideas: Start a Pet Club

Here's another quick low-to-no cost ideas for building your restaurant and/or retail sales:

9) Start a Pet Club

Pet owners are a loyal and close-knit group. They are great in number and mighty in spending power. If you have a patio or outdoor seating, consider designating a slower day/night/or time as Pet Club Day/Night/Time. Be sure to post it and warn all non-pet club guests ahead of time.

Allow dog owners to bring their dogs, and offer special accommodations for their pets. While it can have its raucous moments, many outdoor restaurants have had great success with this concept. A great place to start would be to enlist the aid and perhaps sponsorship of the local pet store proprietors. They can also get the word out. You can also poll your team members and identify and involve the most ardent animal lovers to assist in promoting and implementing Pet Club.

As always, be sure to get names, contact information, email addresses of both pet and owner. Check local health department ordinances and be aware what on your menu animals can or shouldn't eat. [Source: saw this in a busy outdoor cafe in Atlanta that had built a great Thursday evening Pet Club.]

Pet Club callout:

We remember one of the most frequent customers of a Morrone's Italian Ice franchise location in Philadelphia was a dog. The dog's owner once fed him Morrone's Italian Ice and Fido was hooked. If they drove by, the dog would howl until they turned around and went back. And he wouldn't accept the hard store-bought kind. It had to be Morrone's. Once when the owners were traveling to Europe, they brought a week's supply to the Kennel with strict instructions to make it last all week. The dog brought them back 3-4 times per week. The Morrone's franchise owner kept a picture of the Fido in her office, right next to her financial statement.

What's most important in raising your sales isn't so much what you do, but that you start doing it.

"There is no try. There is only do." Yoda

Relentless marketer Sean Kelly is a 20 year veteran of the franchise industry, and founder of the award-winning marketing firm IdeaFarm. In 2006, he founded the FranBest franchise network, best franchise opportunities, the top new franchises, franchise marketing, franchise public relations and small business marketing. Contact him at seankelly[at]ideafarm.net.