Apparently Denny's thinks the word and the concept enhances its brand. For the second year in a row the restaurant chain has offered a free Grand Slam breakfast. Last year approximately 2 million of the free meals were served across the United States. According to a local customer who is out of work he loves the idea and thinks it helps build a community.
Connecting like-minded brand champions is certainly a goal of any authentic brand, and perhaps Denny's is onto something. Usually I do not think anything free adds value. For example I spent many years in higher education enrollment management. I did not believe that a full-tuition scholarship added value to any brand that I worked for, because I was not sure if the recipients, no matter how deserving would value their education if they were not paying a least a small amount.
What do you think? Can anything free enhance a brand, and provide a means of recruiting and retaining brand champions? Even a brand slam breakfast?
Rex Whisman
Brand Champions Blog
I agree with you that usually "free" does not add any value. However, I do think it has potential to add value with the right packaging for the offer. For example, providing something extra for free AFTER a purchase is already made. Especially if it is spontaneous or unannounced because then the customer is both pleasantly surprised and is more likely to recognize the value of freebie since they've already had an encounter (hopefully good) with your brand. Great post! I think it's a good point to bring up and I am anxious to hear what other people have to say on the subject!
Posted by: Brenna | February 11, 2010 at 12:01 PM
Brenna thanks for sharing your perspective. There has been some other views shared on Facebook about this post too.
Posted by: Rex Whisman | February 11, 2010 at 12:34 PM