The soft sell: TCBY goes soft to remain strong.

• Author: Haraldsen, Tom
• Position: Lessons Learned - The Country's Best Yogurt

Who says you cant's teach an old treta new tricks? For decades, ice cream was primarily the one and only frozen confectionary that tantalized our taste buds. Then three decades ago, frozen yogurt became a new craze when TCBY, an acronym for The Country's Best Yogurt, introduced the product to the nation. How could it get better?

Five years ago, someone discovered how. That's when the first selfserve frozen yogurt shops began to make their appearance in America, albeit in small cities and towns, and without a national "parent" company driving the concept. That changed a little over two years ago when national players such as Yogurtland, Red Mango, Menchie's and Utah-headquartered Fares Fresh Cafes began franchising the idea. TCBY joined the parade in July of 2010 when it brought selfserve "fro-yo" into both its Sugarhouse and Murray corporate store locations.

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When TCBY first started, frozen yogurt was perceived as a healthier alternative to ice cream. It was sugar free and fat free. It also added appeal to a food group--yogurt--that many consumers had previously scorned. Yogurt suddenly became a dessert as well as a health food. Now, with health issues being more pertinent than ever, and with terms like "probiotics," "live cultures" and "antioxidants" considered assets rather than liabilities in selling product, frozen yogurt, especially the selfserve variety, is the coolest dessert and hotter than ever.

Proof of Concept

The rebranding to self-serve has proven to be a very popular shift in TCBY's philosophy.

"We started with our corporate stores here in Salt Lake City" says Greg Allison, senior director of global branding, innovation and licensing for TCBY. "Since then, it's been a whirlwind. Both of those stores gave us a chance to understand the selfserve platform first hand, to see customer reaction and engagement. With that understanding, we've been able to make adjustments in how we market this concept and how we communicate it."

Selfserve means just that. TCBYcustomers can choose from a variety of flavors of frozen yogurt, which they draw themselves from softserve machines into cups. They can then top those cups of fro-yo with sauces, syrups, fruit, candies or other dry ingredients. Prices are determined by the weight of the dessert. TCBY, like most if its competitors, charges an average of 39 cents per ounce for the finished creation.

After a successful corporate launch in 2010, the company has begun spreading...