Arby’s is planning to give away 1.5 million discount cards to drive trial and repeat business.
It has already hand distributed about 600,000 cards in areas where the program is running: Indiana, Kentucky, southern Illinois, Missouri, Salt Lake City, UT, Los Angeles, Seattle, Portland, OR, Michigan and Minnesota. The program runs through July 31.
Under the program, customers can buy an Arby’s melt or ham melt sandwich for 99 cents, receive a free medium soft drink with any sidekicker purchase and buy a Roast Beef sandwich for $1.99.
“The goal was to try and do some outside the box that our competition had not ventured into yet,” said Kris Smith, marketing manager for Arby’s central region. “With so much media out there, everyone is trying to cut through the clutter. Getting consumers’ attention is really hard. We are trying to do something new and different to put us in front of our competitors.”
Customers can use the a credit card-sized discount card or a smaller key chain version; Hanging the card on a set of keys helps remind patrons about the brand and boost loyalty, Smith said.
“We have seen loyalty build in that people have top of mind awareness,” she said.
Arby’s is targeting high school and college campuses and consumers who live in economically challenged markets who are looking for a good deal.
The chain is getting the word out through word-of-mouth efforts and direct mail. It sent 300,000 direct mail pieces last month to residents in Fort Wayne, IN, which included a discount card in each mailing.
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