Roses Are Red,

Profits Are Green 

Looking for Valentine's Day Revenue in all the Right Places

    The elixir of love is a tried and true motivator to get couples out of the house and ensconced in their favorite restaurant for a romantic dinner on St. Valentine’s Day.

    Getting guests into bars and clubs for a night of revenue-raising revelry on this day however, is another matter. After all, even the cleverest Valentine’s Day promotion out there must contend with the tradition of this holiday as a red-letter date for couples and intimate celebrations — the exact opposite of the singles crowds that tend to frequent the noisy nightlife scene.

    Yet for every star-struck couple desiring to be alone in a candlelit corner on February 14th, there are perhaps legions of singles out there looking for love and more than willing to reward the operator who can help them find it.

Cash and Cupid
    While it’s not yet Halloween, New Year’s Eve or St. Patrick’s Day in terms of its ability to generate traffic and revenue for bars and clubs, St. Valentine’s Day is a promotional date with first-rate potential by way of its universal draw and its place at the beginning of the calendar year.

    “I think it has legs to be a big day,” says Michelle Mora-Lopez, premier accounts manager for Mission Viejo Calif.-based MarkeTeam, a promotional consulting firm that helps its on-premise food and beverage clients keep their Valentine’s Day promotions fresh and on target with the changing times.
                                                                    
    The trick for owners and operators of bars and nightclubs, Mora-Lopez says, is first to target the right demographic — often the polar opposite of what works for dining establishments on this romantic holiday. “You will have couples going out to a bar on Valentine’s Day, but the singles sure do,” Mora-Lopez says.

    She says any number of promotional combinations allows venues to plug into this singular energy and profit from it. “If you present candy heart to guests at the door, singles can use them to mingle and see if someone else has a similar phrase,” she says, adding that a drawing for a grand prize can be built into the promo to build excitement and traffic and keep guests on the premises, spending money until the wee hours.

    Flowers also may be employed to spark interest and generate sales, says MarkeTeam Premier Accounts Manager Jason Stone. “Hand out a rose to each gentleman at the door, so that he gets to present it to the girl of his choice.”

    Operators also can court sales from guests and spread a little love in their own community by hosting charity auctions, says Mora-Lopez. “Bring in eligible bachelors and auction them off. The ladies will love it!”

    Depending on the venue and the clientele, contra promotions also can work, Stone says. As one example, he suggested an Anti-Valentine’s Day Party. “Guests could take pictures of their ex into a club and throw darts at them,” he says. “There’s so much pressure put on a person to have a date on Valentine’s Day, that there is a rebellion to that.”

    Whatever the promotional draw, Mora-Lopez says drink specials only add to the experience for guests and ensure greater profitability for the house. “Champagne is king of St. Valentine’s Day,” she says, along with a creative variety of red cocktails. And instead of traditional garnishes, why not use customized candy hearts?

Nuts and Bolts
    One paradigm operator who has profited mightily by emphasizing the inclusive rather than the exclusive aspect of Valentine’s Day is Thom Greco, a Wilkes-Barre, Pa., entrepreneur and Oxford Publishing Advisory Board member whose successful ventures include Banana Joe’s, the Bud Light Amphitheater and his latest, Oyster Restaurant and Nightclub.

    While he has tried romantic dinner promotions to draw couples in the past, Greco says Valentine’s Day promotions such as his “Find Your Valentine” at Banana Joe’s have shown him where the real money is for club owners on Cupid’s favorite night to howl.
“We promote it as a Valentine’s Night out,” Greco says. “It’s a promotion for people who don’t have a boyfriend or a girlfriend.”

    If the promotion itself is nothing new, its true genius can be found in the logistics with which it is carried out. Upon entering the club, guests are given nuts or bolts of various sizes — the idea being for a guest to find the guy or girl who has a corresponding or fitting part.

    Greco punctuated the evening with drink specials that included Champagne until 11 p.m., $1 drinks from 11 p.m. to midnight, with regular prices for cocktails for the after-12 dance party. The evening also included a grand prize drawing in which one lucky couple won a special night out, including dinner and a limousine.

    “It’s the most successful promotion that we’ve ever done on St. Valentine’s Day,” Greco says, estimating that it drew up to 500 singles through his doors each year for the three years he hosted it at Banana Joe’s in Wilkes-Barre. “It forces guests to communicate. It’s a great way to walk up and talk to people.” NCB   

    For more sales-boosting promotion ideas, catch Thom Greco, MarkeTeam and company at “The Show” March 5-8.