Hannaford Takes Grilling Outside For A Successful Summer

Hannaford, a leading retailer in the northeast, has more than 165 store locations across Maine, Massachusetts, New York, New Hampshire and Vermont. In 2007, they selected 70 stores to participate in their innovative Grilling Tour promotion that got their customers' taste buds dancing.

Hannaford worked with the beef checkoff to create the “Summer Celebration” party planner. The brochure featured recipes and grilling tips, as well as a "$1.00 off beef" coupon. More than 28,000 were distributed to customers during the grilling tour.

Large tents outside of the selected stores caught customer attention while beef demonstrations beneath the tents made mouths water with delicious recipes. Customers got to sample the delicious dishes and take home the recipes demonstrated by picking up the party planner.

Hannaford experienced a redemption rate far exceeding average for the coupon - 7.2%! This included 2,100 unique customers. During the week of the demonstrations, average dollar sales of the four cuts featured in the party planner were 13% higher than sales of those same cuts the week before. In the control stores, dollar sales for the four cuts were 7% lower than the week prior. The Black and Blue burgers were the strongest driver, with a 44% increase in dollar sales over the previous week.

Based on the success of the promotion, Hannaford is working with the beef checkoff again this summer to expand the grilling tour into 90 stores. Hannaford has also created radio ads that will play within the selected markets. And this year, the party planner will be distributed in all Hannaford stores.

Think outside the box this summer, like Hannaford did. Take your promotions outside the store or into a different department. Switching things up increases customer awareness of your products and drives business in your department. Happy Grilling!