Beverage Partnership Boosts Soda Sales by 36% | Confero
Mystery shopping combined with employee incentives improves upselling, service behaviors, and product execution—driving measurable revenue growth for restaurant brands.
The Challenge
Soda fountain sales are a major revenue stream for quick service restaurants and beverage companies. A nationwide QSR chain and its beverage provider partnered on a drive-thru promotional campaign.
The Beverage Company Wanted to:
- Boost fountain drink sales through suggestive selling.
- Ensure proper fill levels for each beverage size.
- Confirm that associates consistently greeted and thanked customers during the drive-thru
- experience.
Both partners needed reliable, nationwide insights to evaluate promotion execution and measure its impact on sales.
The Objective
The partnership aimed to:
- Increase revenue by motivating cashiers to upsell fountain drinks.
- Validate whether service touch points (greeting, thanking) were consistently delivered.
- Measure beverage fill levels to inform future product sizing decisions.
- Provide on-the-spot employee recognition to reinforce positive behaviors.
The Approach
Confero designed a nationwide mystery shopping and rewards program that combined
promotional evaluation with employee engagement.
- Mystery Shopping Visits: Shoppers went through the drive-thru, timed service, and observed cashier upselling behaviors.
- On-the-Spot Recognition: When cashiers greeted or thanked customers, mystery shoppers rewarded them immediately and recorded names for reporting.
- Beverage Fill Evaluation: Shoppers measured fountain drink fill levels to provide data for beverage sizing decisions.
- Data Reporting: Results were consolidated into actionable reports for both the QSR chain and the beverage provider.
The Results:
- Sales Lift: Suggestive selling improved soda fountain sales by 36%.
- Service Quality: Cashiers consistently greeted and thanked customers when motivated by immediate recognition.
- Operational Insights: Cup size and fill-level data informed future product sizing strategy.
- Partnership Value: Both the restaurant chain and the beverage provider gained measurable revenue growth and insights to improve execution.
The Success
The QSR chain and beverage partner turned a promotional campaign into a revenue -generating success.
By combining upselling, recognition, and beverage analysis, Confero delivered a program that grew sales, improved service, and strengthened the brand partnership nationwide.
Key Takeaway
Confero helps restaurants and beverage providers nationwide design promotional mystery
shopping programs that drive revenue, improve employee performance, and provide
actionable operational data.
To read more about Confero’s offerings in restaurants – Restaurant & Hospitality Services.
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