Nothing says business building these days like menu building. While there have been a number of chains that tried discounting strategies to fight the economic slump earlier this year, we learned that money-saving deals and incentives did less to steal customers than it did to steal profits.

In contrast there are other chains that focused not on price but on new product-based campaigns to keep business growing. “New products are the equivalent of our daily specials,” says Brad Haley, executive vice president of marketing for Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr. “Given the logistical demands of sourcing products, training, etc., we can’t literally offer daily specials, but it serves the same purpose [of increasing] frequency to a restaurant.”

A Sample in Every Mouth: One of the most popular ways to introduce new menu items remains sampling, despite this year’s nonstop supply of free offers (think: doughnuts, coffee and pastries, grilled chicken, subs, and burgers).

“Sampling is fantastic when you’re launching your brand in a new category where you don’t have a lot of credibility,” says Cynthia Ashworth, vice president of consumer engagement for Dunkin’ Donuts.

Similarly, Danya Proud, senior manager of media relations for McDonald’s, told me that the McCafé line is not so much a new product introduction as it is a “whole new business.” Part of the rationale for the company’s recent beverage investment, she says, is to reach “people who haven’t been visiting us. For our involvement with New York Fashion Week, we sampled 20,000 cups of hot and iced mochas to all the tastemakers in an arena we haven’t played in before.”

Similarly, Terri Snyder, chief marketing officer for Checkers, says that sampling was a big part of Checkers’ launch of Classic Wings this year. “We did do a freebie, but it was part of a broader strategy,” she says. “You have to have a high-quality product so that trial produces repeat visits. Our trial got immediate repeats. And eight months later, the hit rate is about what it was at introduction.”

But Bob Phibbs, retail consultant and author of Double Sales Without Discounting, doesn’t agree that all these free samples are wise: “Is that really what marketing is? Anybody can get anyone to come in the door with stuff for free, but are you just attracting the bottom feeders or real customers?”

I own a small deli and we do our own corned beef and roast beef brisket. After cooking and slicing i end up with a good amount of trim pieces from both. I save the roast beef bits and add them to veg beef soup. Any ideas what I can do with my corned beef bits ?
 

I'm having a problem with the batter on my onion rings, it kind of falls of the ring into the oil and makes the squiggles. Very bad for the oil. Dusting them with flour before battering seems to work but now the taste is just plain bland. Can someone help an old guy out of his mind, uh, err, out of ideas?