August 27th, 2010
If you own a coffee shop and your sales aren’t where you would like this blog entry is for you. Through owning our own coffee shop we’ve discovered the best ways to increase coffeehouse sales. Below are some of the coffee shop marketing ideas that have worked for us.
- We introduce and promote new products like Frozen Hot Chocolate to keep consumers interested.
- We celebrate our World Wide Headquarters anniversary at our coffeehouse with a $1 drink blowout.
- We feature and promote different specialty drinks over the course of the year using our creatively designed free marketing materials.
- We never stop marketing; When one promotion ends another starts.
Two Meaningful Tactics
The list above consist of promotions and some of the coffee shop marketing ideas we’ve implements. We have also used a number of coffee shop marketing tactics designed to increase visibility and brand awareness; Here are two that had the most impact.
This first has been the most meaningful and has involved networking with our neighbors and area business owners. For this tactic, Greg visited each and every business, large and small, in a targeted area. The targeted area was much bigger than the few blocks around our store, but it was still within a few miles of the coffeehouse. When Greg would visit he would introduce himself to the owner or manager of the business and offer free drink cards for all the employees. The camaraderie and support he received was energizing and led to some important community partnerships. The time Greg spent networking was extremely valuable and it helped raised the level of awareness for our store in the local community. The coupons were very effective in bringing in new customers and it was a great way for us to track the return on time and money invested in the project. This coffee shop marketing idea has been a huge success and something we encourage other coffee shops to consider trying.
The second tactic we use is A-frame signs by the road. These signs go out every morning and back in every night. The message and colors change often so as not to become part of the scenery and ignored; sometimes we even hang balloons or streamers on them to blow in the wind. The A-frame signs have gotten new customers interested in our products and have let current customers know about the newest products we have. This is a simple coffee shop marketing idea, but it has proven highly effective.
For additional coffee shop marketing ideas or to download a free section of Seven Steps to Success, our guide to getting into the coffee business, click here.
Tags: coffee shop marketing ideas, crimson cup, own a coffee shop, small business marketing success
Posted in Owning a Coffee Shop | No Comments »
July 14th, 2010
Location is crucial when opening a coffee shop because it can make or break a business. Over the years we’ve helped many people in their quest to own a coffee shop; We’ve seen numerous coffee shops open up all over the country and in a variety of settings. Below are a few of our tips for picking out a successful coffee shop location.
- Visibility – How visible is your coffeehouse? Are you buried in a strip mall or pushed back from the road? If you choose to own a coffee shop in a location that’s not very visible how will you overcome this challenge?
- Easy in & out access – When you own a coffee shop the majority of customers stop by in the morning. Many of these people will likely be on the way to work so it’s important to make sure there is an easy and efficient way for these customers to reach your coffeehouse as well exit.
- Neighborhood – Know who your neighbors are. If the people in the neighborhood aren’t likely to pass by your shop on the way to work or the neighborhood doesn’t allow for much pedestrian traffic you may want to reconsider the spot you’ve chosen for opening a coffee shop.
- Cost – Can you afford the space? If the rent in a particular location is expensive there is usually a reason why. The real question is: Can your coffee shop sales make up for the cost of your rent?
Remember, just because you think the spot where you have chosen to own a coffee shop is great it’s important to do the research. For more information on how to choose a great coffee shop location check out the book Seven Steps to Success.
Tags: coffee shop location, opening a coffee shop, own a coffee shop
Posted in Owning a Coffee Shop | 1 Comment »
June 10th, 2010
My first blog on coffee shop ideas touched on the coffee shop experience and my simple definition of it. Here I’ll tell you about the steps we took after running a coffee shop for a while to ensure we continue to deliver a great coffee shop experience.
Crimson Cup opened it’s retail coffee house nearly three years ago and we have learned much in that time. That is precisely why we have a retail store; to experience running a coffee shop. We want to experience the struggles of owning a coffee shop so we can implement successful coffee shop marketing ideas, improve our barista training course, and improve our coffee shop business plan. Looking outside our current menu for innovative products or ways to enhance our current products is one way we’ve helped increase our sales. Our eye is always on delivering a great espresso based drink, but improving the non-espresso drinks on our menu is the next step in becoming the best at what we do.
The first product to get our attention was Frozen Hot Chocolate; this drink replaced the Chocolate Creme. The next menu item to receive a makeover was iced tea; we added flavor shot options to our current tea offerings. Now we are focusing on protein lite versions of our frozen drinks. All of these improvements have been followed by a marketing campaign and an update to our menu. Making improvements on our existing menu is bringing us closer to realizing Crimson Cup Coffeehouse’s full sales potential.
You can do the same. We use the very same free marketing materials that we make available to our customers who own a coffee shop. We have updated Crimson Cup Coffeehouse’s menu twice in three years and we are looking into making a third change. We have also raised our prices with each new menu with no negative feedback from customers. As you continue owning a coffee shop, your ongoing marketing strategy should include annual updates to your menu reflecting new product changes. For more information on improving your coffee shop menu or for other coffee shop marketing ideas click here, or fill out the contact form to the left.
By Chris Lamb, Retail Development Manager
Tags: coffee shop business plan, coffee shop experience, coffee shop franchise, coffee shop marketing ideas, opening a coffee shop, own a coffee shop, running a coffee shop, success in small business
Posted in News from CrimsonCup Worldwide Headquarters, Owning a Coffee Shop | 1 Comment »
May 21st, 2010
Through the 30 years I’ve been in the coffee business, I know darn well there is more to a caffe latte or a great tasting cappuccino then just coffee, milk, and syrups. All of these ingredients must be high quality, they must blend well together, and they must stand out to a customer. So to give you 
an insight into how we take ordinary coffee drinks to extraordinary I’m going to write a blog on each of the most important ingredients in your favorite coffee drinks: milk, coffee, and syrup. Today’s post will focus on our syrups & sauces.
Our Syrups & Sauces
Our syrups and sauces have been chosen to compliment the delicate taste of our espresso blend. Flavor syrups with to much citric acid will cause milk to curdle; this was a problem during the late 80’s when syrup companies began testing the waters of the business. Proper amounts of syrups in our drinks create a balance between syrup, espresso and milk for a smooth and pleasing combination. Neither flavor overpowers the other.
Our chocolate, white chocolate and caramel sauces are Crimson Cups’ own formulation. We developed these sauces with one of the top food technology companies in the world. Last year, after four years of development, we released our white and caramel sauces. After a few false starts and five visits to two different labs in two different states and countless sensory panel tests we finally found the flavor profile we set out to achieve. The white sauce had to be just right as it’s the main ingredient in our famous signature drink, The Crimson Cup Mocha.
So while it may seem simple to choose a syrup or sauce when you are placing your drink order in actuality there is a lot of work that we put into making sure the syrup or sauce in your drink is the best on the market. For more information on any of our products visit our website: www.crimsoncup.com.
By Armando, Crimson Cup’s Chief Espresso Officer.
Tags: armando, baristas, buy local, coffee, coffee house, coffee shop franchises, franchise coffee shops, own a coffee shop, running a coffee shop, sauces, syrups
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