Chick-fil-A’s Cellphone Coop Challenge: Creating a Bridge Between Families by Disconnecting Them to the World

In today's technology-based generation, family members are now investing less time for each other and more on their individual concerns. That notion urged Chick-fil-A, an Atlanta-based fast food chain, to start a challenge that aims to create a change especially on how family invest time in communicating with each other during meals.

"I've been doing this for 25 years, and it's interesting to walk through the dining room and see the evolution, the change from having a conversation to nowadays, when there's just this disconnect," said Brad Williams, operator of two Chick-fil-A locations in Atlanta area. "For a lot of our regular guests, it's becoming a habit. They come in our stores and say, OK, cell phones in the box."

Families who are willing to participate in the challenge stand a chance to win a free ice cream for dessert, but only if they will be strong enough not to give in until the end. As reported by Time, customers are urged to keep their phones in silent mode first, put their phones inside the cellphone coop and finish their entire meal without touching their phones even for a second.

Simple as it may sound; some people were still not able to resist the urge of checking on their phones, as according to Today. As for Chick-fil-A's record, of all the customers who tried the challenge, an estimated of about 90 percent succeeded.

"I had one family come up to me, and the dad said, 'We tried the challenge, but unfortunately my son decided he needed to send a text in the middle of dinner, so we're going to go home with no dessert, no ice cream,'" Williams said. "But he said, 'We'll be back next week to try again."

The idea started when Williams saw a mother spending almost the whole time of their family meal navigating her phone instead of investing her time with her kids. Meanwhile, Williams' idea has already been adopted by other Chick-fil-A restaurants.