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When a restaurant chain debuts a new menu item, it often does so with the kind of fanfare typically reserved for the births of new monarchs. Got a new spicy chicken sandwich on the way? Let&#8217;s hold a parade! Launching a new dessert? Let&#8217;s hire the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KH7j185hotE&utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-very-public-benefits-of-secret-franchise-menus-1340" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Blue Angels</a> to paint a picture of a sundae in the sky using contrails! While this is all well and good, franchises could be missing out on the unique mystique that comes with not publicizing a menu item. It sounds crazy, I know (not to mention the fact that it gives publicists and PR firms cold sweats), but the allure of the &#8220;secret menu&#8221; is well-documented, an irony for the ages, to be sure. Most secret menus develop organically over time, <a href="http://www.qsrmagazine.com/consumer-trends/secret-s-out?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-very-public-benefits-of-secret-franchise-menus-1340" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">as was the case</a> for Boston-based burrito chain Boloco. &#8220;We love having [secret] things our customers and team members have made with ingredients we already offer,&#8221; Allison Doyle, director of marketing for Boloco, told QSR. &#8220;We like to say we are all about options. Our secret menu comes from constantly evolving [and] simple menu edits customers have asked for.&#8221; More established brands have gotten in on the act, as well. Digital news outlet Quartz previously highlighted how Starbucks&#8217; <a href="http://qz.com/241826/the-real-story-behind-secret-menusis-the-key-to-hacking-them/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-very-public-benefits-of-secret-franchise-menus-1340" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">secret twists</a> on Frappuccinos helped the brand appeal to younger consumers. The news source detailed how small children knew to ask baristas to add a little raspberry syrup to a Vanilla Bean Frappuccino to create a cotton candy-flavored brew. &#8220;I&#8217;m stunned and amazed at the concoctions that people order with our Frappuccino,&#8221; Starbucks CEO Howard Schulz was quoted as saying <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/business/2014/06/starbucks-ceo-howard-schultz-shares-his-surprising-guilty-pleasure/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-very-public-benefits-of-secret-franchise-menus-1340" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">by ABC News</a>. &#8220;I never imagined it and the secret menu that has developed as a result.&#8221; As The New Yorker has <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/fast-food-chains-love-deny-secret-menus?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-very-public-benefits-of-secret-franchise-menus-1340" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">already detailed</a>, it&#8217;s difficult to throw a rock without hitting a franchise that has a secret menu item or two. McDonald&#8217;s, Burger King, Taco Bell, Arby&#8217;s, Jamba Juice &#8211; you name it, they&#8217;ll deny it and then make you a secret item anyway. That&#8217;s part of the fun, after all. These giant companies claim they don&#8217;t have secret menus, which makes people in the know feel special for proving them wrong. It&#8217;s also a great way to give public interest a boost. A story about a new menu item at a fast food restaurant isn&#8217;t exactly the cure for cancer. But a story about a shadowy menu filled with secret foodstuffs? Now that&#8217;s an article people want to read &#8211; just ask <a href="http://www.thrillist.com/eat/nation/secret-menu-items-testing-secret-fast-food-menu-items-at-8-chains-thrillist-nation?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-very-public-benefits-of-secret-franchise-menus-1340" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Thrillist</a>, <a href="http://www.buzzfeed.com/angelameiquan/19-secret-menu-items-to-conquer-at-fast-food-chain-70fn?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-very-public-benefits-of-secret-franchise-menus-1340" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Buzzfeed</a>, <a href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/14417f3e-f742-11e3-8ed6-00144feabdc0.html?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-very-public-benefits-of-secret-franchise-menus-1340#axzz38m0s7jXF" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Financial Times</a>, <a href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/14417f3e-f742-11e3-8ed6-00144feabdc0.html?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-very-public-benefits-of-secret-franchise-menus-1340#axzz38m0s7jXF" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Business Insider</a> and, yes, now us. Hell, there&#8217;s even a special website dedicated to secret menus: <a href="http://hackthemenu.com/?utm_source=1851franchise.com&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=the-very-public-benefits-of-secret-franchise-menus-1340" target="_blank" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">HacktheMenu.com</a>. Of course, secret menus can come with their own particular downsides. Dennis Lombardi, executive vice president of foodservice strategies for WD Partners, spotlighted some of the potential complications to QSR. &#8220;No. 1, there is an increased complexity of offering a higher number of menu items &#8212; meaning more SKUs and possible waste &#8212; and two, it will put more stress on kitchen employees,&#8221; Lombardi said. &#8220;Can you respond in terms of skill base and equipment without compromising throughput speed of service?&#8221; The other roadblock to keep in mind is that secret menus typically must develop of their own accord. A franchise can&#8217;t really create a separate menu, keep it a secret and then expect people to know about it. Off-the-books menu items are created when cheeky customers take their ability to customize dishes to the limit. Therefore, only chains that are willing to give consumers a bit more leeway over how food is prepared will be able to benefit from the unique allure of secret menus. From there it&#8217;s a whisper campaign, one that can gain considerable steam thanks to social media. Secret menus create a club for people in the know, men and women who are able to order a special dish with a wink and a smile for the person behind the counter. It may not be as quantifiable as traditional marketing, but there&#8217;s nothing people love more than learning a secret and promptly sharing it with someone else.

1851 Franchise

Secret menu items can provide franchises with an attractive mystique.

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