Everyone loves ice cream, with the exception of maybe a few people on earth. Whether it's a special day treat or an everyday snack, ice cream and/or frozen dessert treats can really cheer up your day. With all the splendor, deliciousness and bold flavors of today's ice cream recipes, the cones and cups that it is served in is usually not the thing that catches a customers attention. In fact, choosing whether you want a cup or a cone and what kind of cone is usually an afterthought to what flavor ice cream. By offering new and innovative ways of serving ice cream you could sell more frozen treats and make more profit in your store.
Ice Cream Cones
An ice cream cone is essentially a funnel shaped ice cream delivery device for your stomach. And though they come in the usual shapes and flavors such plain, sugar, waffle or taco shell, there are other various combinations and cones you can use to serve your ice cream in to differentiate your product from the competitor. Here are some other examples of cone flavors that are becoming more popular across the country.
Cone on Cob: This cone is made up of pastry, sweet corn, caramel corn with a cob top. First introduced in Japan the craze is taking off here in the states.
Egg Waffles: First invented in Hong Kong, this concoction involves an egg waffle with any type of creamy dessert on the top. The combination of waffle and ice cream may seem strange at first but once you try this combination, you may never go back to a regular cone.
Pretzel Cones: These cones are extremely popular because it offers both the salty and sweet combination. Pretzels and ice cream have always been a natural pairing but eating ice cream out of a pretzel cone is a whole new experience for the taste buds.
Rice Krispie Cones: You know how good Rice Krispie treats are alone and we know how good ice cream is alone. Joining these two together is a match made in ice cream heaven. These cones are an enhancement over plain cones and the stand alone rice krispie treat.
Bacon cones: Yes, maybe it sounds absolutely ridiculous, and perhaps it is, but some people love the taste of bacon no matter what it's combined with. Having ice cream served on a bacon cone cures the craving for fried meat and ice cream. If you love bacon and you love ice cream then this combination is for you.
Cookie Cones: Nothing is a mood lifter like a cookie cone ice cream. We already know cookies and ice cream go quite well together (cookies and cream ice cream) but when you have the opportunity to eat your ice cream out of a cookie cone, you're on another level. What's best about cookie cones are that you're not limited to one flavor of cookie. With all the different types of cookies and all the flavors of ice cream, the combinations can almost be endless.
Fruity Pebbles Ice Cream Cone: This might be the most colorful cone as well as the most nostalgic creation. You know how good those milk soaked Fruity Pebbles were when you got to the bottom of the cereal bowl. Now, just imagine that ecstasy multiplied. Not only are these cones colorful but the taste is an explosion of fruity sweetness.
These creative, colorful and tasty cones will attract the attention of all types of ice cream lovers, especially children. Most of these types of cones can be made in house or be bought through your vendor. If you're still offering the same combination of regular cones then it might be time to break out of the box and start offering some of these variations. Doing so can help increase traffic to your store as well as help build your brand.
Ice Cream Cups
Ice cream cups are basically serving bowls in which ice cream is presented or packaged in. Bowls are usually necessary for the customer looking to take the ice cream with them or just looking to keep themselves a little cleaner. For instance if you have a child customer that seems to get more ice cream on his or her shirt rather than in their mouth, a bowl or cup might be a better option for them. Traditionally these ice cream containers were made up of simple, plain disposable paper, wax or plastics. However, just buying and reusing plain white bowls and cups won't help your business (nor will it help the environment). That white space on any container is another opportunity for you to brand your store or product. Sure you can decorate the cups and bowls with stickers or prints of various cartoon character or popular movie figures but that will only last for a season or two. The real opportunity is to make your own labels that reflect your brand and store, meaning you have your logo and store name imprinted on them. That way, no matter where the person is eating your product, your brand is always front of mind.
If you want to take a different route and not be part of the disposable society then look into the edible cups and bowls. Often times these cups are made up of cakes, cookies, brownies, fruit and even french toast. Not only are these cups flavorful, appealing to the customer and attractive to the yum senses but they often compliment the taste of the ice cream flavor you pair with them. What's more, you get to tout to the customer that you're eco-friendly which might mean a big deal to them.
Packaging of an ice cream is as important as the quality , flavor and taste of the ice cream itself. Being colorful, creative and innovative in your ice cream packaging can help you increase sales and make your store more popular and profitable.
Don't Forget To PSP
PSP stands for Picture, Share, Promote. Now that you're offering special cones and unique packaging for your frozen desserts be sure to promote them throughout your store, all of your social media channels and to your customers alike. When promoting or posting about your products, be sure to include pictures or visuals to show all the colors and taste combinations. Attractive pictures of your product can really help sell a customer who is not physically in your store at that moment. You could be the best copywriter in the world describing why your fruity pebble cones are the bomb but that still won't be enough to convince some customers to try it - until you show them the picture of how delicious that thing looks. Having a picture also means more opportunities for customers to share that picture with their friends and family, thus exposing your shop to new and potential customers. If your store offers eco-friendly or bio-degradable products, make sure you promote that and be sure to share that information across all of your social media channels as well. Honestly, some people may not care about environment friendly products but the people who do find that important will make the extra effort to visit your store first over your competitors. The promotion of your unique products should be an ongoing process and with all the different colors, flavor combinations and fun happening in your store the content can be never ending.
