The Exhibitor (1965)

Promotions For The Drive-In Concession Stand Theatre Confections Ltd. Maps Out Complete Plans For Building Customer Interest And Higher Sales (Editor’s Note: The Drive-In Department of Theatre Confections, Ltd., has prepared this series of special promotions with the idea that trained attendants, good intermission schedul¬ ing, and the use of concessions trailers are basics that can be supplemented by a con¬ scientious effort on the part of the concession manager to promote and merchandise the items his stavid is selling. We wish to thank G. R. Dillon, of the TCL Drive-In Depart¬ ment, for making this material available to other theatremen. As TCL advises, you can “hoist the sales in every drive-in location by drawing the attention of the patron to the Snack Bar.” We encourage you to adopt some of the many suggested promotions to your theatre. They will certainly have a positive effect on your concession sales!) LUCKY LICENCE NUMBER One, two, or three licence numbers can be selected at random each night. If three are selected, the first one should be posted shortly after the concession opens, the second shortly before the show starts, and the third number during intermission. The Bulletin Board for posting the licence numbers should be located in a prominent location in the Concession Stand. Suggested Script “Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen: There is still time to visit our clean, modern refreshment stand, located in the center of the grounds directly behind the projection booth, where there are trained courteous attendants to serve you. Enjoy delicious hot dogs, ice cream, ice cold drinks, hot, freshly popped popcorn, and other taste tempting treats. As an added feature, each night we select at random, three licence numbers of cars en¬ tering the theatre. The numbers selected are posted on a bulletin board located in the Con¬ cession area. Don’t forget to check the bulle¬ tin board for tonight’s lucky licence numbers. If your licence number is selected, you will receive a double pass to the Skyway Drive-In Theatre, and two gallons of gasoline from Smith’s Service Station.” Subsequent Announcement “Hello again folks: we have just added an¬ other lucky licence number to the Bulletin Board in our concession stand. I would sug¬ gest all of you going over to the stand to see if you are one of the lucky winners. Remem¬ ber — tonight’s prize for the lucky licence is a double pass to the Skyway Drive-In Theatre and two gallons of gasoline from Smith’s Serv¬ ice Station. Stretch your legs and come over to the Con¬ cession Stand where you will find piping hot hot dogs, freshly popped popcorn, and a num¬ ber of other taste tempting treats. MYSTERY TUNE CONTEST (1) Select a current hit record each night preferably without lyrics or an old “stand¬ ard.” (2) The record should be played shortly after the box office opens and two or three times with suitable P.A. Announcements be¬ fore the show commences. (3) Scratch pads and pencils should be pro¬ vided in the Concession Booth along with a container in which the patrons can submit their guesses. (4) Approximately ten minutes before the show is scheduled to start, the Mystery Tune should be played with an appropriate P.A. announcement. (5) Sometime before the intermission, a draw should be made and the first correct answer drawn is the winner. Name of winner should be announced at the start of the inter¬ mission. SUGGESTED SCRIPT Opening Announcement “Good Evening Ladies and Gentlemen: Wel¬ come to the . Drive-In theatre. If the youngsters are with you, make sure that they visit our modem playground located just un¬ der the screen tower. Ladies’ and Men’s rest¬ rooms are located on each side of the Con¬ cession Stand directly behind the projection booth in the center of the grounds. “For your added enjoyment, from now until showtime, you will be entertained by the latest records. The first record we play tonight will be your Mystery Tune. If you think you can identify it, go to the Concession stand and deposit your answer in the Mystery Tune box. The winner of tonight’s Mystery Tune Contest will be announced at the beginning of the first intermission and will receive 24 bot¬ tles of Pepsi-Cola” (or appropriate gift pro¬ moted from anyone of your suppliers) . Subsequent Announcement “Ladies and Gentlemen: We are going to play the Mystery Tune once again so that each one of our patrons will have an oppor¬ tunity of naming tonight’s Mystery Tune. Your answer should be deposited in the Mystery Tune Box located in the Concession Booth. You have plenty of time to visit the Conces¬ sion Booth and name the Mystery Tune. Don’t forget tonight’s prize is 24 bottles of Pepsi¬ Cola.” MAGIC WORD CONTEST In the contest, the name of one of the prod¬ ucts sold in the concession stand is selected ( e.g ., Hot Dogs, Popcorn, etc.) and the word selected is the MAGIC WORD for the eve¬ ning. The purpose of the contest is to bring patrons to the Concession Bar at slow periods, which would vary in every location. Select the time in your Theatre when business is usually slack and arrange with the manager to make the announcement explaining the contest just prior to that time. The winners of this contest are the first five patrons ordering the item chosen as the MAGIC WORD. The winners obtain these items free of charge. SUGGESTED SCRIPT Opening Announcement “Hello again folks: I hope you are enjoy¬ ing our program of recorded music. There is still ample time to visit our modem re¬ freshment stand located in the center of the grounds directly behind the projection booth. As an added feature, each night we select a magic word which is one of the taste tempting treats sold at the Concession Stand. For the next ten minutes, if you use the magic word while at the Concession Stand, the treat will be on us, so let’s all stretch our legs and meet our friends and neighbors at the Concession Stand.” KNOW THE STARS CONTEST This contest will not only bring people to the concession stand, but it also keeps your patrons movie minded. No doubt a number of your patrons have a keen interest in the movie industry and their stars, and this con¬ test is based on the fact that a number of stars, although married, use their single names (e.g., Sandra Dee’s married name is Mrs. Bobby Darin). Select a well-known star and announce their married name and request your patrons to identify the star. If possible, select a star from a coming attraction so that a plug for the picture can be worked into your script. Containers for submitting answers should be placed in the concession area along with a supply of pencils and paper. Sometime be¬ tween the time the show starts and inter¬ mission, have someone draw the answer from the container. The first correct answer drawu> will be the winner and the name of the winner should be announced at the start of the intermission. SUGGESTED SCRIPT Opening Announcement “Good evening, ladies and gentlemen: Wel¬ come to the Drive-In Theatre, ’s favorite showplace. If the youngsters are with you, make sure they visit our modem playground located just under the screen tower. Ladies’ and men’s restrooms are lo¬ cated each side of the Concession Stand di¬ rectly behind the projection booth in the center of the grounds. For your enjoyment from now until show¬ time, you will be entertained by the latest recorded music. As an added attraction to¬ night we are conducting a contest called “How well do you know the stars?” You have all seen and enjoyed such stars as Doris Day, Joanne Woodward and Elizabeth Taylor, but do you know their married names? To test your knowledge, we have selected the married name of a well-known star.. She co-starred with Rex Harrison in “My Fair Lady” which can be seen at this theatre starting this Friday. Place your answers in the container provided at the Concession Stand. The first correct entry drawn will be the winner and the name of tonight’s winner will be an( Continued in next column) 56 MOTION PICTURE EXHIBITOR— 1 965 THEATRE CATALOG Edition April 7, 1965