While millions of American office workers are busy filling out their March Madness brackets in hopes that this is the year Gonzaga finally cracks the Final Four, sports bars and sports-themed restaurants across the country are gearing up for a sharp increase in business during the month-long tournament. If the past is any indicator (and it generally is), bars and restaurants that show broadcasts of the NCAA tournament can expect a dramatic increase in spend per shopper during March. But it’s not so cut and dry, as our data shows. We recently dissected some of the 2015 numbers at Buffalo Wild Wings, Yard House and BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse, which are popular chain restaurants catering to sports fans by showing multiple games on big-screen TVs throughout their establishments. What we found was interesting especially when extrapolated over an entire year. Did You Know…
- Buffalo Wild Wings underperforms in its cohort during the holiday season
- Yard House and BJ’s spend per customer increases 3.8 percent and 4.4 percent, respectively, during the holidays
- Yard House experienced a 3.3 percent increase in average spend per customer in March 2015 due to March Madness
- BJ’s experienced a 3.2 percent increase in average spend per customer in March, as well
- Buffalo Wild Wings experienced a 4.3 percent increase in the same time period
It’s also worth noting another spike in spend for Buffalo Wild Wings and BJ’s customers during June, due to the Stanley Cup Finals and the NBA Finals. Yard House, on the other hand, actually decreased during this time. Having data like this can prove invaluable to companies looking to get a jump on the competition. For instance, those restaurants seeking to boost customer spends in June, but who are seeing disappointing results, might re-evaluate how they are marketing to NBA and NHL fans during those sports’ busiest seasons. How can Ynext Data can help you use this sort of big data to your advantage? By tapping into the power of millions of customers conducting millions of daily transactions, from which patterns and insights emerge.
