ContraCostaLive.com
SINCE 2001
Frank MacCallister
(925) 325-0934
ContraCostaLive.com  ·  SPOTLIGHT  ·  Since 2001

You already have
the restaurant.
Let's fill the seats.

SPOTLIGHT is not for every restaurant. It's for the ones that have already done the hard work — great food, loyal regulars, a reputation that precedes them. The only thing left to solve is the empty seats on nights they shouldn't be empty.

7,000+
Engaged Subscribers
70%
Email Open Rate
23
Years in Contra Costa
$62
Per Week · 2-Month Trial
This program is selective

We work with one new restaurant per month.
Here's who we're looking for.

SPOTLIGHT isn't a directory listing or a discount platform. It's a deliberate, sequenced promotional calendar built for restaurants that have already earned their reputation — and need to put more people in the seats they've already built.

If you're still working out the kitchen, the service, or the concept — this isn't for you yet. Come back when you're ready. If you know what you have and you want more Contra Costa diners to know it too — keep reading.

✓
You're a destination, not a convenience
People drive to you. You compete on experience, not foot traffic or location.
✓
You have seats to fill on specific nights
Wednesday. Sunday. The lunch rush that hasn't fully come back. Perishable inventory you can't recover.
✓
You want new regulars, not one-time deal chasers
The 3·2·2·1 calendar attracts the kind of customer who comes back — and brings people when they do.
✓
$595 is a slow Tuesday, not a decision
That's two months. Eight weeks. The full sequence. If this number requires deliberation, the seat problem is deeper than marketing can fix.
✗
You need a guarantee
NBC didn't refund Super Bowl advertisers when ratings dipped. Neither do we. What we offer is a real audience, a proven format, and 23 years of earned trust with Contra Costa diners.
0
The real cost of doing nothing

An empty seat isn't neutral.
It's inventory that just expired.

When your 60-seat dining room runs at 70% on a Wednesday night, you left 18 seats empty. Not free — expired. That night doesn't come back. And the people who would have filled those seats just got an email from a competitor who made the call you didn't.

Empty seats on a slow night
18 seats
Table revenue (2.5 people × $45)
$113 per table
Missed revenue (18 ÷ 2.5 tables)
$814 per night
Slow nights per month
× 8 nights
Monthly revenue left on the table
$6,512

SPOTLIGHT costs $62.40 a week on the 2-month trial. You're spending more than that on napkins. The question was never whether the program is affordable. The question is how much longer you want to leave $6,000 a month on the table.

The 20-customer model

What 20 new customers
actually means to your bottom line

Not one-timers. Real customers who found you through SPOTLIGHT and came back. Here's what they're worth — by type, by year, and over a lifetime.

~50% of new customers
The Occasional Visitor
2–3 visits per year  ·  Birthdays, date nights, celebrations — they chose you for the moments that matter
$220/yr
Lifetime value (5–7 yrs): $1,100–$1,500
~30% of new customers
The Regular
6–8 visits per year  ·  They know your menu, they ask for their table, they bring friends when they recommend you
$660/yr
Lifetime value (5–7 yrs): $3,300–$4,600
~20% of new customers
The Loyal Regular
12–20 visits per year  ·  Knows your staff by name, tips 25%, sends every out-of-town guest to you
$1,650/yr
Lifetime value (5–7 yrs): $8,250–$11,500
Customer Type
Count of 20
Annual Each
Annual Total
Lifetime Total
Occasional (2–3×/yr)
10
$220
$2,200
$11,000–$15,000
Regular (6–8×/yr)
6
$660
$3,960
$19,800–$27,700
Loyal Regular (12–20×/yr)
4
$1,650
$6,600
$33,000–$46,000
Total — 20 New Customers
$12,760/yr
$63,800–$88,700

$45/person · 2.5 avg party size · word-of-mouth referrals add 20–40% on top, not included above

The conversion funnel

From 7,000 subscribers
to new regulars at your door

Set your target. The funnel shows you what it actually takes — and just how conservative the math is for a restaurant people are already looking for a reason to visit.

📧
Step 1 · Email List
ContraCostaLive subscribers who receive your SPOTLIGHT feature — 23 years of local audience trust behind every send.
7,000
subscribers
👁️
Step 2 · Email Opens
70% open rate. Industry average is 15–20%. This isn't software. This is two decades of a trusted local voice people actually read.
4,900
people see it
🖱️
Step 3 · Clicks & Inquiries
~3% click through. These are not passive readers — they are looking up your menu, your hours, your location right now.
72
active prospects
🚗
Step 4 · First Visits
~35% walk in. They don't come alone — they bring spouses, friends, family. Each visit is a table, not a person.
25
first-time tables
⭐
Step 5 · New Customers
~40% of first-timers return at least once. That's the threshold — from visitor to customer. This is the number that compounds over years.
10
new customers
Your numbers
$
👥
% of list needed
0.14%
Revenue · Year One
$6,380
Lifetime value · 5–7 yrs
$31,900–$44,350
ROI vs. annual program cost
13:1
To get 10 new customers, SPOTLIGHT needs 72 clicks out of 4,900 people who already opened the email about a restaurant they want to try. That happens on a regular send.
"Who doesn't want a guarantee? When you bought your last 10,000 shares of stock, did that come with one? Did NBC give Super Bowl advertisers their money back? I'm an advertising option — not a promise machine. What I have is a real audience, 7,000+ engaged Contra Costa neighbors, a 70% open rate, and the will to give your restaurant the best I've got, every single week. Try it for two months. $595. If you're not seeing people walk in — we'll talk. But I think you'll be calling me about the annual rate."
ContraCostaLive.com Frank MacCallister  ·  ContraCostaLive.com  ·  (925) 325-0934
Start here

Eight weeks.
$595.
One restaurant per month.

The 2-month trial gives you the full 3·2·2·1 promotional calendar — Seasonal, Premium, Traffic, and Family offers sequenced to reach four different audiences over eight weeks. Eight deliberate placements in front of 7,000 people who live and eat in Contra Costa County.

If the math above doesn't make this an obvious call — please don't do it. This program works for restaurants that are ready for it. You know who you are.

Test the water
One-Week Feature
$79
→
The full 3·2·2·1 calendar · Best entry point
2-Month Trial — 8 Weeks
$595
→
Committed. Best rate. Best results.
Full Year — 52 Weeks
$3,245
→
Questions first? (925) 325-0934 or frank@contracostalive.com · One new partner per month.
Five-year partners

The restaurants that
never looked back

These owners did the math, made the call, and kept renewing year after year. Five years of renewals is the only testimonial that actually means anything — it means the seats got filled.

5+ Years
Cap's Restaurant
Brentwood, CA
5+ Years
Celia's Mexican Food
Antioch, CA
5+ Years
Smith's Landing Seafood Grill
Antioch, CA
5+ Years
Vinnie's Bar
Concord, CA
5+ Years
19th Hole Casino & Sports Bar
Antioch, CA
Five years isn't a testimonial. It's a verdict.
Ready when you are

Those seats won't
fill themselves.

The people who would become your next loyal regulars are out there right now — subscribed, local, eating out every week, and looking for a reason to come to you specifically. Give them one.

📞 Call Frank: (925) 325-0934 frank@contracostalive.com
One week$79 2-month trial · recommended$595 Full year · best rate$3,245

One new restaurant partner per month. Reach out before the spot is taken.