Houlihan's wants you to obsess even more about the economy
Posted on Fri Jan 16 2009
The bad news? Your once-thriving stock portfolio is now worth less than a loan co-sign from Bernie Madoff. The good news? Free 'shrooms!
Casual dining chain Houlihan's is launching a "Dowwie Wowwie" promotion on Feb. 9. On days when the Dow Jones industrial average finishes up, each Houlihan dining party will receive an order of Italian donuts with dipping sauce; when the Dow is down, each table gets a card to return for a free appetizer with the purchase of an entrée. Guests can also enter for a chance to win a $5,000 savings bond via e-mail sign-up slips at the 100 or so Houlihan's restaurants. The campaign runs through Feb. 27. "We were looking for a way to drive traffic with a promotion that had a compelling consumer proposition, and the economy is what's on America's conscience," vp of marketing Jen Gulvik tells us. "It's a lot easier for the fast-food segment to drive traffic with promotions because they can get hundreds through their doors and drive-thrus."
Houlihan's will communicate Dowwie Wowwie through sticky-note ads in alt-weeklies, online advertising an NPR buy and in-store collateral.
—Posted by Becky Ebenkamp
