Wait… It’s National What Day?

Ready, Set, Celebrate!

Everybody loves a holiday. 

So, in honor of National Foot Traffic Day (okay, we made that one up), we dove into the data to see how brands turned some of the calendar’s more creative celebrations into reasons to visit. 

Say Cheese … 

National Cheeseburger Day falls on September 18th, and this year, plenty of chains got in on the action. But Five Guys – which rarely runs promotions – stole the show with a buy-one-get-one burger deal that ran from September 16th - 18th.

And diners were quick to bite. Visits rose 21.3% above an average Wednesday on the promotion’s first day, 37.8% above an average Thursday on its second, and 64.1% above an average Friday on the holiday itself – making September 18th Five Guys’ busiest day of the past 12 months. Across the full week, visits jumped 19.1% year over year.

…or Moooo

Chick-fil-A, for its part, held a celebration earlier in the summer more to the cows’ liking. On July 14th, the chain brought back National Cow Appreciation Day, offering free entrées to guests in bovine-themed attire.

The dress code took a little effort, but customers were happy to play along. Visits ran 29.8% above the Tuesday average for the past year, making July 14th the chain’s busiest Tuesday in that period – and its busiest day overall. At 21.1% above the daily average, traffic narrowly surpassed February 28th, when a free chicken biscuit giveaway drew a 20.9% lift on its final day.

The offer’s final hour drew an even bigger surge. From 6 to 7 PM, visits were 81.9% above the same-hour Tuesday average – suggesting a last-minute rush to join the herd.

Flip-Flops?

National Flip Flop Day, it turns out, is also a thing. 

On June 5th, Tropical Smoothie Cafe offered free smoothies to flip-flop wearers from 2 to 7 PM. The casual dress code drew some serious traffic, with the giveaway window accounting for 58.5% of the day’s visits, compared with 40.2% during the same hours on an average Friday.

Save the Date

For retail and dining brands, the calendar offers plenty of opportunities to turn an ordinary day into an occasion. And customers are more than willing to turn out – even if the holiday isn’t on everyone’s calendar.

For more data-driven dining deep-dives, visit placer.ai/anchor.