CHAPTER 420: CHAPTER 420: MARKETING STRATEGIES

When it was time to settle the bill, the family stared at Zisu, who was calculating the total, watching as the young girl clattered away on the abacus.

After finishing the calculation, Zisu looked up with a smile.

"Do you have a coupon?"

The man handed over the coupon, and Zisu said, "The total comes to one tael of silver and five hundred coins. With the five hundred coins discount, it will be one tael of silver."

The man finally felt relieved.

He had feared that Pei’s Restaurant was just tricking people with the coupons, but now he realized it wasn’t the case.

Happily, he paid because, with the discount and the fact that the dishes they ordered weren’t very expensive, the price was acceptable.

After paying, Zisu handed over a discount voucher with a very sweet smile.

"Please take care, esteemed guest. This is a discount voucher for Pei’s Pastries, which can be combined with Pei’s Pastries’ discounts for extra savings."

"If your friends or relatives want to dine out, you can also recommend our restaurant."

The man was still a bit stunned upon receiving the discount voucher.

How could there be such a strategy where two stores exchange discounts with each other?

It was truly enlightening.

But with this approach, their business would only get better.

In front of him was a 20% discount on top of an existing discount, and Pei’s Pastries currently offered a 34% discount, so combined it would be a 52.8% discount, wouldn’t it?

The more you buy, the more you save in the end.

Employees of other restaurants were a bit worried since operating like this wasn’t profitable in the long run.

However, Pei Shu’er’s strategy for the restaurant was to have treasures of the town, signature dishes, and home-cooked meals.

First, attract customers with low prices, then introduce some pricier options to appeal to both low, middle, and high-end customers.

Just then, a young couple walked in and looked around critically.

The previous owner had done a decent job with the renovations, and with new tables and chairs added, the place looked passable.

Compared to the Drunken Immortal Tower, it was a bit lacking in opulence, but not many restaurants could match the Drunken Immortal Tower’s heritage.

What they cared about now was how the food tasted.

As the family was leaving, the woman quickly asked.

"How’s the taste here?"

The old man smacked his lips, seemingly savoring the flavor.

"It’s excellent. I’ve never eaten such delicious food in my life."

The woman frowned, wondering if they were relatives of this place, trying to trick them together.

There wasn’t such a thing as hiring shills back then, but Pei Shu’er had still spent money to hire a few.

They were already on their way.

They would dine in the restaurant and then go outside to promote how delicious the food was.

The main targets of these shills were women, as well as their relatives and neighbors.

Initially, they were resistant to approaching their relatives and neighbors.

But after tasting the food, all their resistance disappeared.

The taste was simply extraordinary.

In all their time in Jingzhou City, they hadn’t tasted food this good.

Even if they weren’t being paid, they’d still recommend it to their friends and family.

Such good food, not eating it would be a loss for friends and family.

Thus, more and more people came, some of them being shills, some genuine customers.

The couple saw the growing crowd and couldn’t help but feel that maybe this place tasted alright.

That’s the purpose of having shills.

When a restaurant is busy, the taste mustn’t be bad.

The couple sat down, feeling a bit more at ease.

The woman smiled and said, "Waiter, what dishes do you have here?"

The waiter enthusiastically approached, handing the menu to the woman.

The woman noticed that the prices at this restaurant were very straightforward, all clearly listed.

In other restaurants, you have to ask the waiter for prices, but after asking for so many, you’d forget the prices of previous dishes.

With a menu like this as a reference, she wouldn’t forget how much she ordered, keeping track in her mind.

She wondered what kind of insightful manager the shopkeeper was to even think of and improve on such details.

They ordered the inexpensive home-style dishes and added a braised pork, which just came to one tael of silver.

Moreover, they noticed that the price for braised pork was one hundred coins, the same as the price for boiled fish.

But other signature dishes, like spicy fish or sweet and sour spare ribs, were three hundred coins a serving.

"Aren’t these dishes made with the same ingredients?"

The waiter replied with a smile, "The ingredients are the same, but braised fish and boiled fish are our promotional dishes during the grand opening. Afterwards, they will return to three hundred coins."

Upon hearing this, the couple immediately ordered another boiled fish.

Otherwise, they’d miss out when the price goes up.

The wife, known as Sister Hong, waved the coupon in her hand.

"This coupon we received while walking down the street, saying it can waive five hundred coins. Is it true?"

The waiter smiled, "It’s true. As long as you spend over five hundred coins and present the coupon, five hundred coins will be deducted. If you spend less than five hundred coins, we don’t charge a cent, just take the coupon."

The woman was stunned, exchanging glances with her partner.

Once the waiter left, the woman remarked, "Isn’t this essentially a free meal? Won’t this restaurant go down doing business like this? The better the business, the more they lose."

The man pointed to the coupon in his hand: "Did you notice? This coupon is only valid for three days. After three days, it expires even if you have it."

Sister Hong still felt the shop would lose out.

But once she tasted the food, she figured she might have overthought it.

This restaurant dared to operate this way because they had confidence.

Firstly, the cabbage tasted surprisingly good.

The strong flavors were accompanied by a subtle sweetness; after eating cabbage for over twenty years, it was the first time she tasted cabbage this good.

It wasn’t just because the raw materials tasted good; the cooking methods were also very suitable.

As for the boiled fish, it was exceptionally tender, sliced thinly without a single bone.

The knife skills and preparation were simply outstanding.

Even the other dishes, simple as home-style cooking, were delightfully delicious, making one almost want to swallow their tongue.

Moreover, Sister Hong noticed that many people came just for a free meal.

But once they tried the flavor, it was so amazing that even though the portions were generous, they were never satisfied and ended up ordering more.

Whether it was stir-fried greens or cabbage, everything was tasty.

Even the White Rice was perfectly cooked, soft but not mushy, crystal-like, and carrying a subtle sweetness in each bite.

Somehow, after eating, their mind felt much clearer.