Tim Hortons’ iconic roll the rim to win contest isn’t working. Seems Tim Hortons’ recent reprise of their annual promo is not raking it in. Profits are down and the food giant is trying to figure out a way to refresh the game from the way it has been since the 1980s. As the saying might go, you have to know when to roll ‘me and when to fold ‘em.
I wish to share my own experience with the contest. I have been a loyal customer of Tim Hortons way back while Tim Horton himself used to score goals against my beloved Montreal Canadians. I enjoyed the products and I did not hold those acts of aggression against him.
In all the years, I must say I did ring the bell once and rolled up the rim to find I had won a free donut. You are asking no doubt, did that contest score change my life?
You hear stories about how contest victories do not bring happiness. There may be a big high initially. The lucky person may get extravagant, and binge. He or she might buy a new car or take a lavish trip. Then the mood drops, and they sometimes even get depressed. I found I did not follow that scenario. I just claimed my donut, no special fanfare. And actually I was happy ongoing. I never considered seeing a shrink about post contest trauma disorder (PCTD?).
You also see stories about how charitable organizations get in touch and offer congratulations to the winners, expecting a hand-out. I was not sure if that would happen in this case. One thing for certain, I did not expect to hear from the Canadian Diabetes Association.
As well you hear that people who have hardly noticed you for a while suddenly surface. That did not happen either. I will say my daughter Natalie who was about 10 at the time and who was generally pre-occupied with her friends and social activities, did notice my fresh chocolate sprinkled donut on my desk and she suggested it would be a noble and grand gesture if I were to share my winnings with her. She reminded me that chocolate was her favourite food and that in any event, donuts were not healthy for older men. I handed her the donut in toto.
So, in short, to answer the question, my life was not altered much by my contest kill. I did not go out and buy a new car or take a lavish trip. And Tim Hortons, take notice, for the record I rolled many rims since, all unsuccessfully. Maybe there lies some of the problems for TH. They should enable more people to win. Then again, I am not sure I want another donut. My daughter is a now a mother herself and I am a much older man.
