Customers cry fowl after Boston Market fails to learn from chicken coupon mistake
Filed under: Budgets, Food, Fantastic Freebies, Consumer Complaints, Economizer
You'd think any fast-food chain would have taken a lesson from KFC and the Great Free Chicken Fiasco of 2009 and avoid offering customers an outrageous deal via the Internet, where word of just about anything -- good or bad -- can spread faster than greased lightning.Nevertheless, Boston Market stepped into similar pile of fowl doo-doo last week when it offered its loyal customers a coupon for a $1 chicken entree via its Web site. While not free, it was still one hen of a deal. For $1, diners got a choice of a quarter white or 3-piece dark chicken dinner, along with mashed potatoes and cornbread. Vegetables weren't part of the deal.
Apparently, the week-long promotion was too good for recession-weary consumers to pass up and resulted in shortages of chicken at many Boston Market restaurants, including one in Florida, where a sign pleaded with customers to limit coupon usage to one per person.
Some of its restaurants were limiting coupon users to meatloaf or turkey, while saving the chicken for full-paying customers.
An e-mail sent to company headquarters in Golden, Colo., and a call placed to a Boston Market marketing representative inquiring about the shortages and the offer weren't immediately responded to.
Folks at Boston Market, it seems, weren't paying attention (or maybe they're just not fans of Oprah) to the hoards of reports about KFC restaurants running out of chicken when, in May, legions of eager finger-lickers downloaded a coupon, at Oprah Winfrey's invitation, for two free pieces of its new Kentucky Grilled Chicken.
The subsequent fallout has become a textbook example of how not to go about marketing a new product.
Boston Market's promotion was concocted as a response to KFC's "UnFry Day," which took another stab at offering the public a free piece of grilled chicken on Oct. 26.
As with the KFC promotion, Boston Market's coupon, intended for customers of its VIP Club, spread to other deal sites. As more people sought to cash in on the deal, lines formed and the Boston Market chicken meals became scarcer than ham-and-cheese sandwiches at a Bar Mitzvah.
Boston Market's coupon, which expired Sunday, has been removed from its site but can still be found floating around the Internet. Just keep in mind that at this point, it's as useless as a chicken with its head cut off.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
11-03-2009 @ 7:39AM
seminolesuz said...
I was denied a coupon because on the last day,Sunday,I went to print out a coupon & it had been taken off the site & the explanation was that demand had been to great.
Actually, my printer went down Saturday & I went Sunday morning & bought a new printer. Imagine my surprise when I
saw the ad.
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11-03-2009 @ 8:25AM
Ilene said...
My entire family got our $1 chicken meals late afternoon Sunday. They had already run out dark chicken - we wanted white anyway! And a plus was they ran out of mashed potatos - they allowed substitutes. We always prefer other sides at Boston Market! The employees were kind of testy, though - but I'm sure it was a stressful weekend.
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11-03-2009 @ 8:57AM
DJ Jayito NYC said...
I agree with you! When DENNY'S offered that free pancake breakfast, I drove past 3 Denny's restaurants in my area and I saw lines out the door. I said to myself, "NO WAY! I'm not waiting on a long line for breakfast!" What did I do? I went home and made myself a pancake breakfast from ingedients I already had at home - so it was technicall free. LOL!
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11-03-2009 @ 9:21AM
Jack said...
Get these #%&$ commercials off my computer! Whatever pops up goes on my permanent "do not buy" list. Pop ups are worse and more irritating than robo calls.
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11-03-2009 @ 2:04PM
Jacqueline said...
The Boston Market in Atlanta ran out of chicken but they offered customers a choice: we could come back the next day and get a turkey meal or get another coupon valid Nov 5-8 for the same chicken deal. We took the new coupon. Hope they have the chicken!
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11-03-2009 @ 10:37AM
Jerry said...
Just think of all that "MSG" your eating at KFC,,,and Boston Market.,,,,for free,,,,LOL
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11-03-2009 @ 10:47AM
NOT A TURKEY MAN said...
After waiting in line at the drive up FOR ALMOST TWENTY MINUTES i was told know chicken was being served plus i was told only one coupon per person,if i new this i would have brought my children with me.When i arrived at home I WAS AMAZED TO SEE TWO THIN SLICES OF TURKEY A TABLE SPOON OF MASHED POTATOES, NOT A SCOOP, PLUS I ORDERED EXTRA CORNBREAD WITCH I DIDNT RECEIVE,After this horrible experence at Boston market I choose not to ever go there again.Almost forgot while waiting in line there were only two cars in front of me
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11-03-2009 @ 10:53AM
roxie said...
Actually, a chicken with its head cut off is pretty useful...
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11-03-2009 @ 10:53AM
michele said...
I agree with Jerry! Everyone is going crazy to get their poison for free! People...leave the $1 coupon for people who can't afford to eat! It's not for someone who can run out and buy a new printer!
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11-03-2009 @ 11:06AM
Christine said...
I received the coupon directly from Boston Market via email but was unable to print it right away because I was out of printer ink. I finally got a new cartridge on Sunday, the last day of the promo, and drove my family over for a cheap dinner. I didn't expect much of a wait because I'd driven past on Saturday night and the place looked dead. Well, the line Sunday was out the door. The folks ahead of us said Boston Market had run out of food Saturday night, that's why nobody had been in there when I drove by. This particular couple went on to tell us they'd been eating there twice a day, every day since the coupon came out because it was cheaper than buying groceries. (Although they confessed to being mighty sick of chicken at this point.) The restaurant staff kept the line moving quickly, and my family was able to place their orders and get their food in a reasonable amount of time. This particular store offered meatloaf as a substitution if you wanted it - I guess so they didn't run out of chicken again. All in all, good meal at a great price, with a minimum of hassle for us.
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11-03-2009 @ 11:11AM
PJD120 said...
I didn't get the chance to get the Boston Market deal. The resturants where I live wouldn't open up until 5pm. The ones I rode by, there were people around the corner, so I never got a chance to get a meal. I bet they won't do this anymore, lol.
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11-03-2009 @ 11:56PM
Freeze said...
At 4PM, on Saturday, I got in line behind about 15 others but the workers kept the line moving and I received two $1 meals without a problem. My wife is not able to stand in line so I was worried about the 1 coupon per customer rule but I was passed through with no delay. The Bostons, at 46th and Ray in Phoenix, had there thinking caps on when the offered the option of ANY of their meats in the meal. I got the 1/4 white and a turkey. Portions were good and the meals were tasty.
The same meals, with the addition of one more side dish, are priced at over $7, a bit on the high side, in my opinion.
Thanks, Bostons, for the opportunity to taste your meals, again. The last time I was there was about 4 years ago, when I got in a shouting match with the manager over a free chicken offer that wasn't written up too clearly.
Freeze
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11-03-2009 @ 11:37AM
Linda said...
What people will do for free food!
What businesses will do to bring in customers!
You both deserve the hassle.
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11-03-2009 @ 11:37AM
colcam said...
When I went to Boston Market they had run out of chicken, were our of dine in plates, and were working furiously to substitute turkey or meatloaf and veggies for the vanished chicken and potatoes. They were trying very hard to take care of the customers, and the staff did the best they could under what amounts to impossible circumstances.
Good food, poor planning on the corporate level.
.
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11-03-2009 @ 11:48AM
hello asca said...
poor planning and lack of foresight and definitely a lack of taking into consideration what happened with KFC and recession or not Americans aren't going to turn down free or in this case dirt cheap food, id like to hope other chains will take notice of this reaction after it happening twice but seriously id not be surprised if something like this happened again
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11-03-2009 @ 11:51AM
sylvia said...
My family and I enjoyed the dollar meal, the employees worked fast and efficient, And we appreciate Boston Market! 436/ Florida ! It was fun!
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11-06-2009 @ 4:47PM
eve said...
Unlike KFC {I still haven't received the promised coupon from their first give away.) Boston Market came thru with flying colors. The food and service were great. they also offered me a choice of sides and not because they were out of something. I think one coupon per person is very reasonable. Boston Market beats KFC
hands down.
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11-03-2009 @ 12:14PM
Ash said...
This is not Boston Market's fault. This deal was through thier VIP membership only so I doubt it was supposed to be spread all over the internet. Maybe from now on thier VIP coupons should say "members only" or something. I'm sure they are dealing with the fallout as well as they can. If you don't get your chicken, stop complaining. Life isn't about you getting what you want all the time.
Or you can go buy a pack of chicken breasts for a few dollars and cook them yourself. Potatos are super cheap and so is a box of cornbread mix. For something like $2-4 per person you have pretty much the same meal that taste much better and is much better for you. Sure, it's not $1, but I would rather put my effort into cooking than waiting and being angry with the results.
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11-03-2009 @ 12:37PM
Brian said...
Not a problem at all at my Boston Market...they even allowed you the choice of side and the staff handled the line well...they even seemed to have extra help and were very well prepared...KFC on the other hand was horrible! The fact they had food and refused to accept the coupon is unacceptable and the attitude of the employees even worse...I have not and still will not ever eat at another KFC again.
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11-03-2009 @ 12:39PM
Joseph Catoggio said...
This coupon-mania is getting rediculous! Not just in fast food chains, but supermarkets and other retailers throughout the country. In theory it's a great idea...but unfortunately people get overly greedy with their coupons, ignore the "rules" that are printed on the coupon (usually limiting great deals to one per customer per transaction...and sometimes per day), and over reproducing the coupons on their home printers and copiers! I am an avid coupon user, so I understand the desire to save as much money as possible, BUT not by breaking the rules...those coupon sites that offer coupons for other companies should be shut down...they are not legitimate vendors for these coupons and they just perpetuate the greedy coupon abusers causing places like Boston Market to run out of food!
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