Tommy Hashem
Goodfella's Pizza
Scranton, PA

Tommy Hashem, owner of Good Fellas Pizza in Scranton, Pennsylvania, was featured on the cover of the Summer 99 issue of PMQ. In that issue, we documented how he was able to double his sales in just one year. Now his sales are 30% higher than when we last congratulated him. He gives most of the credit to this use of a consistent and aggressive direct mailing program, which uses half of his 5% marketing budget.

Since we did our first cover story on Tommy, he has recruited a local mail house (Emmit Marketing of Scranton, PA) to coordinate with technicians at Rockland Technology to create an automatic mailing program. Now, his Diamond Toush POS system automatically creates and sends a weekly marketing data file to his mail house. From there, Emmit Marketing manages the details of the mailing program. Every Monday, the information is processed and mail goes out that day. "No headaches, no worries. It's finally manageable to me. I'm able to actually send mail to every customer that has complained or received a late pizza during the week. I tell them (his mail house) what I want done and they do it."

In addition to his automatic weekly mailing program, his mail house also executes his larger prescheduled mailing program. It consists of a strategic mailing schedule that targets different customer groups. They are Recent (customers in the last 60 to 90 days), Fading (customers in the last 90 to 130 days), Almost Lost (customers in the last 130 to 150 days) and Lost (customers 150 days or older). Recent customers are sent a coupon every 30 days for a free coke or topping for their next order, or at least a thank you note. The message on each mail piece, emphasizing either quality, price, service or variety, is regularly rotated.

One new idea Tommy is trying is the use of special coupons given out by his drivers. Fifteen to 20 coupons are issued each night to every driver to distribute at their discretion to delivery customers as a way to increase their tips. And finally, for those readers who have confused Tommy's Goodfella's Pizza with the same-named Staten Island landmark, there is good news. Next month when he opens his second store, it will be called PizzaFella's. He now owns the exclusive rights to that name.