T.G.I. Friday's Scores with a Punt Promotion...

Are you looking to create an off-the-wall sports promotion? Are you looking to reward fans/consumers based on in-game occurences?

Less than two (2) weeks prior to the Dallas Cowboys regular season opener at the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium, T.G.I Friday's issued an official challenge to fans. The casual dining chain offered a dish of free crispy green bean fries to all consumers watching the game at one of the 600 participating TGI Fridays restaurants nationwide if a punt hit the stadium's infamous $25MM center-hung scoreboard during the game, resulting in a replayed down.

The promotion drew on-air mentions during ESPN's pre-game coverage and served as a great way for the chain to drive product awareness for its crispy green bean fries. The media coverage and buzz generated from the Punt Challenge was so great that T.G.I. Friday's opted to extend the promotion for the Dallas Cowboys-Carolina Panthers Monday Night Football game on September 28th.

The chain's promotional idea was created after Tennessee Titans punter A.J. Trapasso hit the new state-of-the-art scoreboard during a preseason game, forcing the NFL to institute a new rule that any punt that hits the scoreboard will result in the down being replayed.