Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from Jeffrey Omohundro – Wachovia Capital Markets LLC.
Jeffrey Omohundro – Wachovia Capital Markets LLC.
Could you talk a little bit more about your efforts to drive traffic? And, in particular efforts behind the USA Today print media, perhaps mailers with some of your competitors have embraced when they’re looking at driving a value message?
Emanuel N. Hilario
We have two other items that we’re putting specific focus behind. One of them is our national sales initiatives driving sales from national accounts to a central system. That’s an item that we have launched just recently and we think we’ll begin to get some payouts from that in the third and fourth quarter this year. The other item that we believe will continue to help us driving traffic this year is our focus on our loyalty guest program. We think that those guests are more easily influenced to come back to the restaurants more readily so we’re putting quite a bit of focus behind actions and incentives that will actually bring those guys back to the restaurants more often.
Jeffrey Omohundro – Wachovia Capital Markets LLC.
And when you look at the value band that has been added to your menu, how has the mix on those products performed and has that met your expectations?
Douglas L. Schmick
Jeff, it’s definitely met our expectations. It’s driving around 3% to 4% of the sales mix and I think most importantly I think it is just restating that there is range and value to our menu. I think that component of our menu direction is increasingly important as we look at having the opportunity to put these wild products that we’ve been discussing the wild halibut, salmon, and so on in to the menu which are going to drive the average entrée price for those particular items up in the $39 range so again, keeping that range there is very important to us.
Jeffrey Omohundro – Wachovia Capital Markets LLC.
Finally, your first quarter results did come in a bit below first call expectations and our expectations yet you are maintaining your full year guidance. Is there any unusual benefits in the out quarter that would give you confidence in achieving those full year expectations?
Emanuel N. Hilario
There is a couple of items that when we look at our third and fourth quarter we feel pretty comfortable about it. Number one, is that last year you may recall in the third quarter we had a pretty tough operating quarter so we think relatively year-over-year that we’re lapping a quarter where we’ve gotten much better and savvier operating the cost line items. So, we think we’ve got a good chance in that quarter. The other thing is our marketing calendar going in to the third quarter is also much stronger than we’ve ever had in the third quarter. We’re going to be featuring wild species in that quarter, wild fish and so forth which our consumer reviews and surveys have shown that that is going to be a very wide appeal activity for us in the third quarter. So, we feel very strong about the strength of that marketing calendar which typically the third quarter because of the fourth of July holidays and other stuff is a very weak quarter for us. So, we believe in the strength of the marketing calendar. And lastly, in the fourth quarter, you may recall that there were a couple of really rough banquet weekends relative to weather where we were shut down in a lot of places so the holiday banquet business was very choppy for us last year and we think that our execution coupled with a national sales program will certainly help us have a stronger performance on banquets than we did last year in the fourth quarter.
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