Old Town Deli in Boonton, New Jersey gives free roast-beef sandwiches to regulars and new customers. The owner uses reciprocity, the psychological pull to return a favor, to turn a cheap sandwich into word-of-mouth gold and packed lunch lines.
There is a deli in Boonton, New Jersey. That's a little town next to me that I live in. I go there regularly. Old Town Deli serves literally, between me and you, the driest roast beef sandwich on the planet. But they know the law of reciprocity. When you go to Old Town Deli, sometimes John, the owner, will look at you and say, "Hey, Mike, I haven't seen you in a while. Hey, why don't you enjoy a sandwich on me?" and all of a sudden that dry roast beef sandwich becomes the most delectable sandwich on the planet. Other times I've seen new customers that he's never seen before walk in and he says, "Hey, I wanna welcome you to our store. This sandwich is on me." And what do you think people do? They start talking about Old Town Deli. That place has people lined up every single afternoon for lunch because of reciprocity. People are hardwired to respond in kind. Now we have the same opportunity. Give your customers small gifts.
