Are QSR Limited-Time Deals Attracting Traffic? Placer.ai Says Yes
McDonald’s and Starbucks see increased foot traffic from value deals.
Jul 12, 2024
Last month, McDonald’s debuted a limited-time $5 Meal Deal. The day it launched the offer, Placer.ai found that McDonald’s saw an 8% increase in foot traffic compared to the year-to-date Tuesday average.
Starbucks ran a 50% Friday discount for app users in the month of May. Placer.ai found that “compared to the year-to-date average, visits to Starbucks on Fridays following the launch experienced a noticeable increase in visits. Where the visits to Starbucks on Friday May 3, before the promotion launched, were 1.1% lower than the year-to-date Friday visit average, visits on May 10—when the promotion launched—jumped by 20.0% above the YTD visit average.”
Placer.ai also found that Buffalo Wild Wings brought in customers with a $19.99 for unlimited boneless wings offer on Mondays and Wednesdays. Foot traffic spiked 45.6% on Mondays and 49.3% on Wednesdays.
These limited-time deals come as restaurants feel pushback from consumers about the rising cost of menu items.
EG America recently joined the limited-time deal trend, offering two donuts and a large coffee for $4 throughout the summer as well as a $5 meal consisting of two roller grill or pizza items, a drink and a side of chips.
