Marketing and all things related

Marketing Blurb loves pasta more than the next pundit. Of course that’s because our wife often makes pasta and sauces by hand, which we enjoy in sensible portions in our own kitchen. But for those who need a more serious portion of pasta, you can always head over to the Olive Garden. The 584-unit casual dining Italian restaurant keeps chugging along with a ten-year old promotion concept that keeps patrons returning. The winning deal is the Olive Garden’s famous “Never-Ending Pasta Bowl”—all the pasta you can eat available in 42 different combinations of noodles and sauce for just $ 7.95. The thought of gorging on those Italian noodles brings in diners who often then trade-up to $ 9.95 menu items. Either way, customers are happy, and the Olive Garden posted a 2.9% increase in same stores sale gain last quarter. This was their 48th consecutive quarter of increases in same store sales. So the chain and their agency has decided not leave well enough alone, a strategy that continues to baffle many folks in advertising trade.  Photo Credit: The Olive Garden