My favorite dive/college bar is The Duchess.  Just north of U-Village, the walls are covered in completely random decor and decades of Husky memorabilia.  They’ve got cheap beer, pool tables, lots of TVs, pop-a-shot basketball, even shuffleboard.

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But within The Duchess is an example of marketing genius: their Beer Hunter’s Club.  Membership into this elite group is simple: consume one of every beer they have — 40 in total.  Once you complete the checklist (which has no deadlines), you earn an official Beer Hunter hat, and you get your name engraved on a plaque for posterity on the “Hall of Foam.”

So proud.

duchess10

It’s genius for a few reasons:

  • 40 beers is an attainable goal.  Other places have similar “clubs”, but their beer lists are 100 or 200 deep.  We achieved Hall of Foam status mostly during Spring Quarter 2005.
  • It keeps customers coming back.  We could have gone to other bars, but then we wouldn’t have made any progress on our Beer Hunter punchcards.
  • It brings in additional customers.  Other, non-Beer-Hunters would join us and spend money at the bar.
  • It creates other non-beer purchases.  If you spend enough time there, you’re bound to get hungry, play pool, pop-a-shot, and even feed the jukebox.
  • It creates other Beer Hunters.  When someone finishes all 40, the bartender rings the bell and announces your accomplishment to the whole place.  I’m sure this spurs an “I want to be a Beer Hunter, too” response in at least some other bar-goers.

All in all, The Duchess Beer Hunter gimmick is great marketing because it brings in a ton of revenue at very little additional expense.

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