Rooster’s Coffeehouse launched a campaign that offers disgruntled players of Tim Hortons’ “Roll Up the Rim” contest a different way to win.
The “Please Play Again” promotion started Feb. 10. Anyone who brings in a “please play again” tab from their Tim Hortons’ coffee cup will receive 20 per cent off any size of coffee, tea, or hot chocolate at Rooster’s.
“We’re hoping this can build up the attendance at Rooster’s, get people more excited about their coffeehouse. We want students to come to our business,” said Folarin Odunayo, Carleton University Students’ Association president.
Tim Hortons gets a lot of traffic from its annual campaign, he said. This is Rooster’s attempt to play off that attention and promote a campus business.
“We thought, hey, Roll Up the Rim is going on. The line at Tim Hortons is getting longer, let’s make the lineup at Rooster’s a little longer,” Odunayo said.
Coffeehouse manager Ron Barrette said the idea for the promotion was conceived in the summer of 2014 at a conference with hospitality managers from other Ontario universities.
One of them successfully ran a similar campaign the year before, and Rooster’s picked up the idea. Work began on the campaign in mid-January and it launched the second week of February with online and poster advertisements.
“Judging by what’s happening on social media, it’s gonna be pretty big,” Barrette said. “We got quite a few views on our post yesterday, and I’m sure it’s just going further today.”
Rooster’s underwent extensive renovations last summer, changing its aesthetic and accessibility. The doors re-opened in late September.
This campaign follows other promotions Rooster’s has been running, such as 20 per cent off all breakfast items before 10 a.m. and 40 cents off hot drinks if customers bring their own mug.
Second-year student and Tim Hortons regular Gary Huang said he thinks the promotion is a great idea.
“It’s like a consolation prize. I mean, I’m worried Rooster’s won’t have enough coffee to keep up with the demand,” he said.
