Even though it can sometimes feel as though a college town
revolves around athletics, all students must step off the field and
into the classroom at one point or another.
Especially when popular sports seasons come to a close,
various academic and student groups are still hard at work and
_________
general manager for the Michigan State location
can be a good source for more money and brand awareness.
Which groups to partner with and in what capacity can present a
challenge, however.
“It seems like all of them come to us at some point to ask
for sponsorships, gift certificates, donations or fundraisers,” said
Weiner. “In general, we give a small gift certificate donation to
pretty much every one for every event when they ask.”
Another tip for narrowing down the constant influx of
requests, suggested Weiner, is to funnel organizations through the
EWRF program. Some groups do not want to put in the legwork
needed for a EWFR event to turn a decent profit, so by utilizing
the program, restaurants often end up partnering with organiza-
tions that are committed or have a high following.
Ousley and DeNardis said they too push the Eat Wings
Raise Funds program.
“We get more support from these types of organizations
through our EWRF events. All of these organizations are
connected with nonprofit, charitable organizations and are
constantly looking for ways to raise funds to show their support,”
said Ousley. “We look for groups that have large followings and
what organization that they are connected with.”
World Wide Wings locations try to appeal to student groups
looking for help by offering special deals on certain items and
quantities.
“A lot of student organizations have several events
throughout the year, which have a predetermined budget. We
want student organizations to spend their money with us, so we’re
flexible on their orders by offering value-day pricing or discounts
when we can,” said Parish. “In doing this, we see repeat business
from these groups for their events and just nights out with their
friends.”
Thomas notes that the Baton Rouge Buffalo Wild Wings gets
roughly two applications every week from student groups looking
for some sort of partnership or sponsorship.
“To help filter out which organizations to partner with, we
look at the visibility our brand will get. We would prefer if we
are donating a large amount of food or if the organization would
hold a give back night with us,” said Thomas. “If we participate
in an event, we try to make sure that the organization will allow
for us to bring swag and coupons to pass out so that we can see a
return and get our logo in people’s houses.”
Regardless of which strategies a Buffalo Wild Wings uses
to attract college students, it is sure to be the result of a creative
school of thought and unique game plan. S
CHRISTINA CANNON is the FBS communications manager. You can
reach Cannon at 678-797-5160 or [email protected].
27
Class is Back in Session
“The best advice that I can give is to
make sure to go out of your way to
cater to their [athletic teams’] needs
and always be consistent.”
– Aaron Weiner
the cost,” said DeNardis. “The athletic programs want a large
financial investment, and it is often very difficult to gauge the
success or value of that commitment.”
Instead, the New Haven location tries to encourage watch
and viewing parties to make the most of the school’s sports
programing. The restaurant can accommodate a large group of
people for which they have a dedicated area. Also working in the
location’s favor is the ability to be able to broadcast the games in
the first place.
“Many times these events are not available on the college
cable system. In addition, many businesses in the area that can
show these are bars without a dining area and are off limits to
minor students,” said DeNardis. “Many of the smaller sports are
not covered on the major networks, but we usually can find them
or, at times, students have brought laptops to hook up and stream
an event.”
To maximize the full potential of college athletics, restaurants
shouldn’t only create campaigns around the most popular sports,
but leverage the smaller teams and programs as well.
“We have had some challenges getting partnered with some
of the major sports teams, such as football. They are so limited
to what type of outside partnering they can get involved in,” said
Thomas. “Even though football and basketball are our biggest
revenue builders, we do partner with smaller sports on campus.
We sponsor and hold ‘give back nights’ for any teams that we can,
which helps bring in some revenue. We also offer specials and
deals to members of groups that would come to view less popular
sports or hold events during games.”
Anderson Manag ement Group also utilizes percentage nights
for less popular sports and often uses the Eat Wings Raise Funds
program to structure the events. Just over the past year, Anderson
Management Group’s stores donated over $60,000 through the
EWRF program alone.
Weiner notes that the Michigan State BWW has seen
good traffic from coupons handed out at hockey and women’s
basketball games, but for Mississippi State and Ole Miss B-Dubs
locations it’s more about focusing on the relationships.
“When the athletic programs do well, we do well. When they
have an off season, it has a negative impact on operations,” said
Ousley. “The best advice that I can give is to make sure to go out
of your way to cater to their [athletic teams’] needs and always be
consistent.”
For example, at Mississippi State, BWW developed a
customized catering menu for the baseball team where the players
select the items they want and the restaurant delivers to them at
the ballpark.
“At Mississippi State and Ole Miss, football and baseball
are the bigger sports. We try to develop programs with other
programs that continue to drive traffic, but to be totally honest,
what helps to continue to drive traffic is to make your location a
destination after each sporting event,” added Ousley. “Showing
your support by designing a theme that supports the university
helps tremendously.”