As a specialty coffee and tea shop owner, you know it’s critical to your business that the beverage products you feature are the ones which will make you the most money.

As new products are introduced, and new “hot” trends develop, you need low-risk ways to market these new products to your customers. All this is critical to your profit margin and success.

At The Cappuccino Connection, we like to help our customer achieve the most profit possible for the effort they put into their shops. Here are some ideas you may not have considered, or just need to be reminded of again:

Tip#1: Flavored Syrups Sell More Drip Coffee – Pocket Up To $720 More Per Month

Flavoring added to coffee helps you sell more coffee. Almost 50% of ALL beverages sold include flavor. DaVinci brand flavored syrups have been shown to sell more drinks than other brands.

One simple marketing strategy using DaVinci flavored syrup can increase your profits by $720 each month. That is: Provide the flavored syrup FREE to your customers to add to their drip coffee. Make available 4 or 5 of the most popular flavors and encourage your customers to try them and report their favorite.

How will this increase your profits? Let’s assume you have an average size shop where you sell 150 cups of drip coffee a day. The FREE flavored syrup promotion should increase your coffee sales by 20%, therefore 30 more cups per day. If your profit per cup is currently $1.00, your profit after the cost of syrup is 80 cents. Those 30 additional cups are worth $24 per day, or $720 in 30 days.

In addition, as customers grow to appreciate the flavors, they will begin buying your higher profit specialty coffees.

Tip#2: Spiced Chai – Switching Brands Could Save You $203 per Month

If you are currently using Oregon Chai, a simple switch to DaVinci Spiced Chai could add $203 per month to your bottom line – while making your job easier, not harder!

The cost of Oregon Chai is about $1.10 per serving, the cost of DaVinci Spiced Chai is only about 65 cents – a 45 cent savings. If you average 15 Chais a day, that’s $6.75 in savings, or about $203 extra profit in 30 days.

And that’s while making your job easier. DaVinci Chai uses a pump system and a concentrated formula (9:1 ratio), which allows for easy measurement and clean dispensing. Also, no refrigeration is required, meaning the drink is not cooled by adding a large amount of cold liquid.

Greater profits, easier product to use, why not switch to DaVinci Spiced Chai?

Tip#3: Feature Flavors – Seasonal or Monthly

As we mentioned before – flavoring helps sell more coffee. Many of the DaVinci flavored syrups are ideal to feature at a particular season or month. Curiosity about that flavor can sell more coffee. How about Peppermint Paddy at St. Patrick’s Day, or Pumpkin Pie at Halloween? Red Hot Cinnamon on Valentine’s Day, Egg Nog on New Year’s Day … let your imagination run wild!

Or better yet, have your customers enter a contest to suggest flavors for certain events or celebrations. Offer a prize of a mug or free pound of coffee to the winner. Everyone will look forward to trying the next featured flavor.

Call us at The Cappuccino Connection at 1-800-249-0011 – we can send you a chart of suggested feature flavors for the year.

Tip#4: Nifty Names and New Recipes

Have a special drink? Give it a special name. Turtle Mocha is more catching than Chocolate-Caramel-Praline. White Zombie, Chunky Monkey, Winterberry Freeze … all can raise a curiosity in customers which can lead to more sales.

Need ideas for new drinks? Again, let your customers get involved – with a contest if necessary – to suggest flavor combinations and new drink ideas. Name the drink after the winning customer.

Also, DaVinci Gourmet publishes drink recipes and new drink ideas. Call us at The Cappuccino Connection – we can send you new recipe suggestions.

Tip#5: Package Deals – Everybody Likes a Bargain

Make it easier for your customers. Offer a package deal which includes popular items bundled together at a lower price than the individual items. Breakfast Wakeup Special of a latte and a scone, or an Afternoon Tea for Two Special of Chai and Biscotti. Packages make the decision making process easier, and easier makes for more sales.

Don’t forget take-out packages as well as in-store specials. A Sunday Romantic Brunch package of gourmet pancake mix, coffee, and a small bottle of flavored syrup in a small basket with napkins and a candle would make an attractive special offer. It could also increase you sales of syrups for home use.

Tip#6: Special Customers Club – Make Them Feel Important:

After all, they are the most important part of your business. Your regular customers should feel appreciated for their faithful patronage of your shop. Even a simple Customer Loyalty Card rewarding them with a free drink after purchasing 12 or 20 lets them know you appreciate their business and keeps them coming back regularly.

Offer Frequent Customer Special days with discounts for all customers with the Frequent Customer Card. As mentioned before, name a drink after customers who win a contest or are your most loyal patrons.

Tip#7: Joint Ventures – Coordinate With Neighboring Merchants

Is there an automobile oil change shop near you? Wouldn’t his customers appreciate a good cup of coffee while waiting for their car to be finished? (Do any of those places ever serve good coffee? – Why not offer the oil change merchant some coupons for a free cup of coffee at your shop? His clients would be happier – and they will usually order something else in addition to the coffee. You might even sell him the coupons at your cost. Or, you could offer to give your customers a discounted coupon to his shop after they have completed their Frequent Customer Card.

How about a hair stylist? An electronics repair shop? A Laundromat? Any shop where customers might need to wait for ten minutes or more. Just think of all the businesses around you and try to figure out ways you can drive business to them while they drive business to you … at little cost to either of you.

Tip#8: Special Needs – Special Opportunities

The most common special need is sugar-free products. Here again DaVinci meets that need with the widest variety of sugar-free syrup flavors (38 in all). Sweetened with Splenda – they have excellent flavor without the added calories of sugar or the “peculiar” taste of other artificial sweeteners.

Get the word out to your special needs customers – Splenda is safe for diabetics, pregnant women, and children, and carries no health warnings or usage restrictions. Is there a diabetic focus group, a weight reduction clinic, or health spa near you? Educate them on the availability and advantages of DaVinci Gourmet Syrups.

Tip#9: Gift Baskets – Help Your Customers with Their Gift Ideas

Design various gift basket combinations for different celebrations – Breakfast in Bed, Afternoon Picnic, Birthday, House-warming, or any holiday. Include a small selection of DaVinci syrups along with coffee or tea and gourmet cookies, pancake mix, or dried fruit or candy. This provides your customers with great gift ideas for their friends and family.

Flavored syrups give you all the tools to make customers happy. Soon they will be coming to you to purchase the syrups in small bottles for home use.

How can we help you with your coffee shop marketing?

At The Cappuccino Connection, we know that helping you make your business successful is the best way to make our business successful. Let us help you with your marketing ideas and products.

We offer best prices on coffee shop supplies, beverages and great customer service. You can order online or by phone 1-800-249-0011. We also have a dedicated team for espresso machine installations, repairs and service. Call us today or fill out this form to submit your request.

If you are a customer we can also provide you with Point-of-Sale products:

• Hot and cold drink posters
• Banners
• Chalkboards
• Coffee drink counter cards
• Full color product sell sheets
• Recipe brochures
• POS order cards

In fact, in cooperation with DaVinci Gourmet, we can provide you with customized POS Counter Cards, showing your own drink name and your price.

Let us know how we can help you be successful and share your own tips below in the comments section.