Restaurants Reinvented: Putting Growth Back on the Menu: Recent Episodes
Qu
Shining a light on the change-minded Restaurant Leaders behind our favorite brands. Get inspired with innovative brand building, guest engagement, and revenue-driving strategies. Join host Jen Kern, long-time CMO, as she dishes with leading restaurant pros who are elevating their game and careers by staying agile in the face of uncertainty to help their brands shine and prosper.
We’re talking about all things loyalty in this block-buster episode with Zach Goldstein, the CEO of Thanx. Zach and Jen discuss why loyalty is broken, with 80% of Fast Casuals and QSRs looking to improve and invest in better loyalty strategies.
The conversation emphasizes that the future of restaurant loyalty is here, now. It's data-driven, personalized, dynamic, and poised to redefine how guest loyalty is built and delivered for restaurant brands.
Moments to listen for:
- The true definition of “loyalty”
- Shortcomings of "Loyalty 2.0" and the potential of "Loyalty 3.0”
- Learnings from other industries - hotels & airlines
- The shift towards digital-first strategies
- Ways personalization has proven to improve engagement and customer retention
- The unspoken element all loyalty programs need to succeed (hint: it starts with a "C")
Related Assets:
Loyalty 3.0: Elevating Guest Engagement Through Deeper InsightsQu’s 5th Annual State of DigitalRestaurant Loyalty is Stuck in Neutral, by Joe Guszowski
Thanx is the leading loyalty and guest engagement platform to grow restaurant customer lifetime value in the digital era - without relying on expensive discounts
Connect with Zach on LinkedIn
Check out Qu's Annual State of Digital for Enterprise QSR & Fast Casual Brands
Welcome to Part 2 in our "Best of" Series. This episode doubles down on data (not for) dummies as we explore the transformative power of data in the connected restaurant.
Our esteemed guests dive into all aspects of data beyond the numbers⸺specifically, its strategic role in driving innovation from the kitchen to the customer experience.
Top takeaways include:
- How API ecosystems impact data collection and strategies
- Innovative approaches for data storytelling
- Presenting the data … Is the dashboard dead?!
- The skinny on data lakes, data models, and analyzing data in flow
- Challenges and techniques for managing large volumes of data volumes efficiently
- Integrating real-time data for operational efficiency in the kitchen
- How loyalty apps can help (or not) with data capture and customer engagement
Hear how data-centric approaches can reshape the restaurant industry, especially when rooted in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML).
Guest soundbites from:
Phil Crawford (Adyen) / Josh Boshard (Savory) / Kelly MacPherson (Union Square Hospitality Group) / Darien Bates (FourTop Solutions) / Meredith Sandland & Carl Orsbourn (The Digital Restaurant)
Related Episodes
- AI Inside & Outside the Four Walls – Phil Crawford, CKE
- The Future of Data Starts Here – Darien Bates, FourTop
Check out Qu's Annual State of Digital for Enterprise QSR & Fast Casual Brands
This is the first of a short 3-part series with top 2023 sound bites that are resonating deeply in 2024: Artificial Intelligence (AI), Data, and Platforms. This first episode delves into one of the year's most talked-about subjects: Artificial Intelligence (AI). The guests paint a hopeful picture of technology as a tool for enhancement, efficiency and automation--rather than displacement.
Join Jen as she is accompanied by industry luminaries: Phil Crawford, former CTO at CKE; Darien Bates CEO of Fourtop Solutions; Richard Shank, Sr. Principal & VP of Innovation at Technomics; and Bobby Yazdani, the visionary Founder of Cota Capital.
Moments to Listen for:
- How artificial intelligence can transform restaurant operations and enhance customer service.
- Using AI to manage inventory and customize dining experiences.
- Insights into AI's capacity to streamline tasks and predict trends.
- Voice ordering with reporting and analytics.
And the biggest emphasis of the episode is that technology is built to support, not replace, human efforts.
Related Episodes
- AI Inside & Outside the Four Walls – Phil Crawford, CKE
- The State of Foodservice Technology - Richard Shank, Technomics
- The Future of Data Starts Here – Darien Bates, FourTop
- Investing in the Future of Restaurants - Bobby Yazdani, Cota Capital
Related Assets:
- Finally, an App that Saves Your Store Managers Time & Money
- 2024 State of Digital for Enterprise QSR & Fast Casual Brands
Check out Qu's Annual State of Digital for Enterprise QSR & Fast Casual Brands
Get ready for a blockbuster episode that's been cooking up for years! We've got the incredible Bobby Yazdani, the mastermind behind Cota Capital and lead investor in Qu, joining the party on Restaurants Reinvented with Jen Kern.
Jen and Bobby take a ride through the thrilling intersection of restaurant tech and investment, following Bobby's epic journey from Tehran to the tech capital of Silicon Valley and Oracle.
Bobby delves into his investment playbook, sharing the criteria and principles that guide him, learned from over 200+ investments from Uber to Google and Dropbox. They unravel the maze of the restaurant tech ecosystem, from its complexities and emotional connections to the innovation opportunities available today.
Hear Bobby wax poetic about leaning into the future of restaurants by building a stable, scalable platform company and culture committed to innovating on behalf of the industry.
Moments to listen for:
- Conditions needed to build a successful platform company; expectations and timelines.
- The Cognitive Age - today's new new market cycle.
- The innovation playground created by the constant "tug of war" between customer expectations and operational efficiency.
- The importance of abstract thinking in technology to turn complexity into simplification.
- What it means to be a responsible financial and morale steward in the restaurant tech market.
- We talk Pizza! Bobby's love for pizza and the simplicity of it.
Related Episodes:
- The Big POS Reframe
- Here’s What Innovation Looks Like – Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu
Related Assets:
- What is a Unified Commerce Platform and Why Does it Matter?
- Why 2023 is the “Year of Efficiency” for Restaurants
Connect with Bobby on LinkedIn
Check out Qu's Annual State of Digital for Enterprise QSR & Fast Casual Brands
Get ready to hear all the juicy data and trends that came out of Technomic's "State of Foodservice Technology" report. Our guest, Richard Shank is the Sr. Principal & VP of Innovation at Technomic and he shares all the leading insights from the report with us.
We focus on three main pillars defining the future of restaurant tech:
1) the kitchen as the nucleus of the restaurant
2) the role of AI/ML - separating hype from reality
3) the evolution of customer loyalty programs
Moments to listen for:
* Richard emphasizes that all systems, from front-of-house to back-of-house, must align with the kitchen for a smooth customer experience.
* Artificial Intelligence (AI) is not just a buzzword; it's a tool that can revolutionize the restaurant industry
* Restaurants need to innovate in the loyalty space, focusing on personalization and strategic rewards to truly engage customers.
Related Episodes:
- The Big POS Reframe
- Here’s What Innovation Looks Like – Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu
- AI Inside & Outside the Four Walls – Phil Crawford, CKE
Related Assets:
Why 2023 is the “Year of Efficiency” for Restaurants
* Technomic: Vital Insights for the Foodservice Industry*
Connect with Richard on LinkedIn
Check out Qu's Annual State of Digital for Enterprise QSR & Fast Casual Brands
In the latest episode of Restaurants Reinvented, Jen Kern dives deep into the current frazzled, tenuous state of POS and tackles head-first the broad misconception that “POS is Dead.”
Jen clarifies market confusion by clearly stating that POS isn’t dead but is instead going through a massive transformation and evolution.
POS is no longer the main dish, it’s the side dish.
POS is neither Hero nor Zero.
Jen articulates the current evolution of POS as simply one of many order channels stemming off a data-driven and unified foundational platform. At Qu, this is what we call the Unified Commerce Platform.
Moments to listen for:
- Why POS has become an old habit in the restaurant industry
- How POS has evolved from Main Dish to Side Dish
- Why it's critical we cease saying "POS is Dead" and instead ask "How should my POS evolve to best serve my employees and guest needs in the future?"
- How to reset your framing of POS so you and your employees can embrace it once again, for what it is now today
- What's a Data-First Commerce Platform got to do with it?
Related Episodes:
- What Does it Mean to Go “Beyond POS” – Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu (Part 3 of 3)
- How to Get Closer to Your Customer & What Does POS Have to Do with It? – Solomon Choi
- She’s a Game Changer – Kelly MacPherson
Related Articles:
- 10 Components of a Unified Commerce Platform
- The Big POS Reframe
- POS is Dead, Right?
Connect with Jen on LinkedIn
In this celebratory episode, Chelsea Madden, Marketing Director at Qu, turns the tables on your hostess Jen Kern, CMO of Qu.
Reminisce with Jen & Chelsea as we look back on the past 3 years of the podcast.
3 years, 70 episodes, and thousands of reinventions later, these two marketing mavens muse over the collective beauty and struggle we’ve all experienced in restaurants and technology.
The Best News Yet … >> From deep in the pandemic to today’s challenges around labor, supply chain, and efficiency - the American Dream is still alive and well in restaurants! We’ve heard this loud and clear from every brilliant guest who has been on our podcast.
Thank you to all our gracious listeners for all your support these past 3 years. We could not have done it without all the generous and caring people in restaurants who exude hospitality from their core.
We love and cherish each and every one of you!
Your support and enthusiasm have continued to fuel our passion and commitment to this cause, empowering us to keep forging ahead with fresh perspectives and new-found inspiration.
Related Episodes:
Here’s What Innovation Looks Like – Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu (Part 2 of 3)
How to Support Restaurant Employees in Need – Sheila Bennett, CORE
Labor Series: We’re In The People Business – Amir Mostafavi
Connect with Jen and Chelsea on LinkedIn
Join our special guest Kelly MacPherson, from the mega-James Beard award winning Union Square Hospitality Group (USHG). More than a trailblazer, she's been a Game Changer for her entire career.
Kelly shares her remarkable journey in hospitality and retail, from configuring her first POS network to becoming one of the early female CTOs -- and she continues to revolutionize how restaurants operate.
Despite plans for retirement, she canceled them to join USHG and lead their Technology and Supply Chain division, driven by the brand's core pillars of "Enlightened Hospitality," a term coined by their infamous founder, Danny Meyer.
Moments to listen for:
- Kelly’s mission to change how we deliver Reporting & Analytics.
- Her quest to use data for powerful storytelling.
- Building exceptional Employee-First Experiences with a mobile-first strategy.
- The Connected Restaurant. What it is and how USHG is delivering it.
- The timeless tech question: Best in Class or All-in-One Solutions?
- Importance of partnerships and open collaboration among tech companies.
- The journey to CTO and what convinced Kelly to come out of retirement.
- The path to achieving “Enlightened Hospitality,” and how USHG does it.
Related Episodes:
- The Future of Data Starts Here – Darien Bates
- AI Inside & Outside the Four Walls – Phil Crawford, CKE
- Here’s What Innovation Looks Like – Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu
Related Assets:
- Article: How Software Architecture Impacts Restaurant Performance
- White Paper: What is a Unified Commerce Platform?
Connect with Kelly on LinkedIn
Two-time authors, Meredith Sandland and Carl Orsbourn, join Restaurants Reinvented for the second time!
Hear their predictions about the next big restaurant concept > the digitally native restaurant and key snips from their new book “The Path to Digital Maturity.”
Moments to listen for:
- The key phases in the path to digital maturity
- How to better drive first-party data ownership
- The next new concept category to hit restaurants
- SVB's influence on the startup tech scene
- Improving efficiency through AI
- Innovative approaches to off-prem dining through ghost kitchens
Related Episodes:
- Delivering the Digital Restaurant – Meredith Sandland & Carl Orsbourn
- Mastering the Digital Dance – Michael Chachula, CIO, Fat Brands
- AI Inside & Outside the Four Walls – Phil Crawford, CKE
Related Assets:
- 8 Digital Trends Shaping 2023
- The Path to Digital Maturity
Connect with Meredith & Carl on LinkedIn
In this episode of Restaurants Reinvented, host Jen Kern from Qu invites Andrew Glantz, the founder of GiftAMeal, and Dan Sokolik, Vice President of Marketing at Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken, to discuss their partnership that aims to fight hunger and support local communities.
GiftAMeal is a mobile app that enables users to provide meals to those in need by simply taking a photo of what they're eating at participating restaurants. The app has already facilitated the donation of 1.3 million meals and continues to expand its reach.
Moments to Listen for:
- A unique solution to food insecurity
- The role of technology in GiftAMeal's success
- Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken embraces GiftAMeal
- Building the GiftAMeal advisory board and team
- The benefits and impact of the partnership on Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken > increased loyalty and social media reach.
Related Episodes:
- How to Support Restaurant Employees in Need – Sheila Bennett, CORE
- AI Inside & Outside the Four Walls – Phil Crawford, CKE
- Accelerating Digital Transformation – Andy Rebhun, El Pollo Loco
Related Assets:
- GiftAMeal
- Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken
Connect with Dan on LinkedIn
Connect with Andrew on LinkedIn
Join the man, the myth, the legend - Phil Crawford, CTO of CKE Restaurants, on how he’s using AI to drive better efficiencies for his brand and what he thinks “the store of the future” will operate like.
Moments to Listen for:
- Harnessing technology more efficiently to save time (labor efficiency), extract data easier (personalization efficiency), and please guests (revenue efficiency)
- How CKE is using new AI technologies at the drive-thru
- How CKE is using AI on the back end to build proactive algorithms
- Kitchen efficiency and optimization strategies
- The next generation - what they’ll expect
- True contextual personalization
- Two critical components of a healthy franchisor-franchisee relationship
- Giving back through GiftAMeal
- About the Star Wars figurines
Related Episodes:
- Savory’s Growth Formula Starts with Data Ownership – Josh Boshard
- The Future of Data Starts Here – Darien Bates
- Here’s What Innovation Looks Like – Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu (Part 2 of 3)
Related Assets:
- 2023 State of Digital for Enterprise Brands
- GiftAMeal
Connect with Phil on LinkedIn
Josh Boshard, the COO of Savory, leads the Operations & Technology teams for their 10-brand portfolio. Since their first location in 2008, Josh + Savory have amassed a wealth of best practices that he shares openly in this episode.
Key Moments to Listen for:
- A solid foundation of data ownership & APIs
- Integrating systems to drive local store performance
- Partners must share the data
- A/B testing best-of-breed systems
- Growth playbooks, benchmarks, and KPIs
- Restaurants must continually innovate and right now it’s all about AI
- State-of-the-art technology has no value without the right people
- Stick-to-it-iveness makes things happen
- Putting owners’ goals & values first
Related Episode:
- The Future of Data Starts Here – Darien Bates
- Burn it Down & Fail Forward Fast – Justin Keenen
- What Does it Mean to Go “Beyond POS” – Amir Hudda
Connect with Josh on LinkedIn
Learn more about Savory
If you’re wondering how to make sense of that ocean of data your restaurant is trying to wrangle, Darien has answers!
Formerly the CTO at &Pizza, Darien’s new company, Fourtop Solutions, is all about helping restaurants organize and activate their data -- while encouraging humans to do the discovery of data and using technology to automate that discovery.
Top Moments to Listen For:
- Technology is not a pre-packaged meal, it’s a set of ingredients with overlapping capabilities and core components
- Start by centralizing your data, or you’ll constantly be back-tracking
- Dashboards are where data goes to die - they don’t make good use of data - humans do
- “There are no bad systems, only bad architectures”
- Data is like water and you have an ocean that needs structures and flows
- Let robots be robots (automation) and humans be human (discoverers)
- The value of POS has been largely overlooked; it needs to be a hub to pull in centralized data
- Hart House is using Fourtop Solutions to deploy its employee-first operations
- Technology is not a purpose -- it’s a tool to accomplish something; start with your business objectives and then find the right-fit systems to support that.
- The future of automation and ChatGPT
Related Episodes:
- Burn it Down & Fail Forward Fast – Justin Keenen of Hart House
- Mastering the Digital Dance – Michael Chachula, CIO, Fat Brands
- Here’s What Innovation Looks Like – Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu
- Trailblazin’ CTO Completes Full Tech Refresh in Under 1 Year – Dawn Gillis Freebirds World Burrito
Resources:
- “Dashboards is where data goes to die” by Darien Bates
Connect with Darien on LinkedIn
The CIO of FAT Brands, Michael Chachula, brings the heat to our CTO Trailblazer series talking about all things technology, customer experience, marketing hacks, and how the restaurant world evolved from a show to a dance post pandemic.
Are you dancing with your customers? Or still operating a static show?
Hot Takes:
- Training your guests on effectively using all the available order channels is critical to improving order accuracy and avoiding defection.
- 5 Components of FAT Brands tech organization - Technology, Data, Security, Digital, and Tech Ops.
- Best of Breed, Distilled. (hint: it's a mutt). Best of Breed is what's best for you.
- Biggest barriers facing CIO/CTOs - security, talent pool, supply chain
- Hottest trends - metaverse, bitcoin
- How FAT is building a technology toolbox that's flexible, future-proof and built on a solid foundation. Bolt-on is now glue-on. It's a living organism.
- The Vision (4 things) - Solid Foundation, Flexible Stack, Control of Data, Personalized Experiences.
- Don't give up your soul to pursue your dreams. Build a deep, rich network personally and professionally. Keep your people close, have fun at work, and include loved ones in your work travel!
- Michael's Advice - Listen and Love <3
Related Episodes:
Trailblazin’ CTO Completes Full Tech Refresh in Under 1 Year – Dawn Gillis, Freebirds
Burn it Down & Fail Forward Fast – Justin Keenen, Hart House
Here’s What Innovation Looks Like – Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu (Part 2 of 3)
Connect with Michael on LinkedIn
Learn more about FAT Brands
Justin Keenen, CTO of Kevin Hart's plant-based QSR, Hart House is redefining the role of tech in restaurants with his burn-it-down, fail-forward mentality. Justin's willingness to embrace change in tech and use it to create a remarkable experience establishes him as a titan in the industry.
Find out how Justin built his restaurant tech stack from the ground up to align with the Hart House brand vision.
Key Moments to Listen For:
- Don't be afraid to burn it all down and start again. Fail forward.
- It's not legacy's fault that your restaurant tech hasn't been updated in 25 years
- Don't forget what you're running away from
- Tech is no longer optional in restaurants. It's a requirement
- Aligning tech with remarkability
- Best-of-breed vs all in one
- Putting your employees first
Related Resources
Here’s What Innovation Looks Like – Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu (Part 2 of 3)
Trailblazin’ CTO Completes Full Tech Refresh in Under 1 Year – Dawn Gillis Freebirds World Burrito
Who Comes First: The Employee or Guest? – Lauren Fernandez
Listen Up … (to your employees) – LeBaron Meyers, NotMe Solutions
Making Technology Invisible in the Restaurant – Amir Hudda CEO of Qu (Part 1 of 3)
Connect with Justin on LinkedIn
Dawn Gillis, CTO of Freebirds World Burrito, kicks off our new CTO series. She's spent her entire career in the technology space and talks about what it means to be bold, fearless, undaunted, and a little uncomfortable when it comes to tech innovation.
Key Moments to Listen For:
- The most common barriers faced by restaurant CTOs
- How to align your tech refresh with the brand values
- The process of replacing 25-year-old architecture and 10-yr old systems with new stuff
- How to sell your stakeholders on a new tech vision
- Why MACH matters
- Early results from the tech refresh > decreasing training and labor hours; fewer online ordering failures
- Why being uncomfortable is a Good Thing!
Related Episodes:Making Technology Invisible in the Restaurant – Amir Hudda CEO of Qu (Part 1 of 3)
Here's What Innovation Looks Like (Part 2 of 3) - Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu (Part 2 of 3)
What Does it Mean to Go “Beyond POS” – Amir Hudda, CEO of Qu (Part 3 of 3)
POS is Dead, Right?
Connect with Dawn on LinkedIn
In this 3rd and final part of our mini-series, Amir Hudda, the CEO of Qu discusses the evolution of POS technology in the restaurant industry and what it means to go “Beyond POS.”
Today, it's possible to build a platform from the ground up that will last for the next 20 years. The challenge is eliminating the mindset of fear restaurant operators have toward new technology. Find out how a strong foundation of trust between restaurant operators and tech providers helps restaurants embrace new technology.
**Key Insights
🎙️Beyond POS is: Uniforming the guest experience and driving operational efficiency by providing real data value. The data that flows in/from POS is more important than anything else for restaurant operators. Qu's system lets them make decisions in a quasi-real-time fashion allowing them to serve guests in-store and digitally in a more meaningful way. 🎙️Out with the old. POS companies cannot survive by doing things the old way.** Allowing restaurant brands to be more nimble and efficient in serving guests anytime anywhere and going beyond traditional ways of building technology is critical.
🎙️A glance back. As with most companies, navigating the pandemic was difficult for Qu. Amir feels fortunate to have investors who put trust in them to innovate and a team who collectively stepped up to make these technology advancements happen.
“The investment we made in our people and our technology is here to stay and will add value to our brand partners and our customers for a very long time.”
🎙️Looking forward. "I'm excited to share everything we've built over the last 2 years. We've talked a lot about things like Notify and Edge Computing but there's a lot more to come and I'm looking forward to educating restaurants not only about what we created by why we created them."
Related ResourcesMaking Technology Invisible in the Restaurant – Amir Hudda CEO of Qu (part 1)
Connect with Amir on LinkedIn
In this 2nd part of our 3-part mini-series with Amir Hudda, the CEO of Qu, we discuss technology innovations that improve transaction speed, in-store redundancy, and uptime.
We dive into innovation areas like Edge Computing and how it helps reduce data loads (speed) when implemented on modern cloud architecture. We also discuss Voice Ordering and how Qu was "accidentally" led to integrate voice into our mobile reporting App, Notify.
Bonus content: Learn how real-time POS data can drive pricing, promotion, and production optimization.
Key Insights
🎙️Removing technology as a burdenYou cannot afford downtime as a restaurant. You need technology with real-time capabilities and no lag times for optimal guest experiences and team member efficiencies.
🎙️The Definition of Edge ComputingEdge Computing brings data closer to the point of purchase, with deeper computing power to the store level. Results: Improved speed and redundancy.
🎙️Experiments with Voice OrderingVoice ordering had multiple hops to the cloud and created lags for guests. We needed redundancy and speed. This was the genesis for looking into edge computing.
🎙️Doubling Down on Innovation During the Pandemic
While many companies had layoff and less innovation, our investors asked us to innovate in a way that would help the restaurants come out stronger. Edge computing was integrated into our platform during this time.
Related ResourcesMaking Technology Invisible in the Restaurant – Amir Hudda CEO of Qu (part 1)
Notify: App that Saves Franchisees Time & Money
How Edge Computing is Revolutionizing Restaurant Tech
Connect with Amir on LinkedIn
In this 3-part mini-series, Jen interviews the CEO of Qu, Amir Hudda. We reflect on the past 2 years of sweeping industry changes and how we can collectively innovate to create a more sustainable and profitable future for restaurants.
Technology is just one piece of that puzzle, but a larger one than ever before. Jen and Amir explore the historically tense relationship between restaurants & technology - and how to make it less “friction-filled” - in this short and educational segment.
Quotable Highlights:
- Margins, not people, have challenged the industry when it comes to adopting the best foundational technology
- The recent pace of change (and pandemic) forced many large restaurants chains to bolt new technology onto old legacy architectural foundations, creating more friction with operator and guest experiences
- The goal is: How do we make technology invisible in the restaurant?
- Frictionless experiences are not the best goal - LESS FRICTION is the more attainable goal.
- The pendulum swung too far for operators - from one tech provider to many - hoping we can get back to fewer moving parts for the restaurants to have to deal with. The pandemic created too many different tech stacks in the larger enterprise restaurant chains.
- The pace of tech adoption has been slower in our industry, but when it does happen with enterprise-level brands, it is very well thought out and planned.
- Innovation is essential, but we have to innovate collectively as an industry. We cannot have a meaningful impact if the innovation is not a collective effort. Not just one company or person here and there, all of us need to focus on innovation to move the industry forward more sustainably.
- Focusing on your #1 asset - People - is how you can have the biggest impact.
Related Episodes:
- One Lean Mean Restaurant Machine - Peter Wiley of Rapid Fired Pizza & Hot Head Burritos
- Delivering the Digital Restaurant - Meredith Sandland & Carl Orsbourne
- The New Way to Do Employee Training - Rachel Nemeth, Opus
Resources:
The Path Forward for Enterprise Restaurants - a Unified Commerce Platform.
If you want to hear what it’s like to open a restaurant in 2022 - listen to Kerry Fitzmaurice, Founder of Pure Grit BBQ. She found her Chef on Instagram during the pandemic, started with selling sauces, then did pop-ups, and recently opened her first location in NYC in May.
Not only is she reinventing what BBQ looks and taste like, but she’s on a mission to make it accessible and delicious for anyone - carnivores, omnivores and plant-eaters!
She shares her early journey with us, all the ups and downs, and the happy guest and team moments that make it all worthwhile.
Show Highlights
* Feeling excluded from eating BBQ at SXSW led her to start Pure Grit
* Pure Grit isn’t only for vegans, it’s for anyone that wants a delicious meal
* Discovering her #1 selling item by accident (burning it!)
* The importance of being in the restaurant every day to see what’s happening
* How the NYC Restaurant community has embraced and supported her
* The growing vegan fast-casual concepts - like Hart House
* How you can help!
Connect with Kerry on LinkedIn here
Learn more about Pure Grit BBQ
Related Podcasts:
Who Comes First: The Employee or Guest? With Lauren Fernandez
We’re In The People Business with Amir Mostafavi
Here’s How She Does It with Betsy Hamm
Do your employees feel safe speaking up?
It’s time to stop avoiding the topic of workplace harassment and misconduct in restaurants. Abusive environments will not prosper or attract employees. If you really want to improve your culture and employee retention you need to do two critical things:
- Listen to your employees
- Encourage them to speak up when harassment occurs
LeBaron Meyers, President of NotMe Solutions, is on a mission to improve work cultures and environments for employees. Their anonymous reporting app makes employees feel supported and heard.
Show Highlights:
- Businesses who put employees first will thrive
- Most workplace harassment issues take 90 days to escalate
- Reporting & addressing issues early de-escalates the problem
- Many people wait too long to speak up or address an issue
- Employee reports give management an opportunity to step-up
- Acknowledge and respect employees who speak up
- Happy employees create happy customers
- NotMe is a platform that provides employees with a safe place to report and interact with management anonymously
Connect with LeBaron on LinkedIn here
Learn more about NotMeSolutions
Related Episodes:
- Rachael Nemeth on The New Way to Do Employee Training
- Newton Hoang (7 Leaves Cafe) on The Straight Talk Employees Want
- Lauren Fernandez on Who Comes First: Employees or Guests?
- Donald Burns on Self-Care
Employee Training has been a big "miss" in the restaurant industry because the tools and techniques for training desk-less workers are dated or have not even existed .
The way we train restaurant employees needs a whole new perspective, approach, and strategy.
Enter Rachael Nemeth, CEO and Co-Founder of Opus. An expert trainer and life-long hospitality worker, Rachel knows what it takes to succeed in developing embraceable training that people actually learn from.
If you're serious about improving employee retention and attracting new employees, training must move to the top of your list!
Highlights from Rachael:
- Employee training is now an operations game, no longer an HR function
- Training must be delivered in small pieces or "micro segments" to increase the uptake (the global attention span is shrinking)
- Access to training has been the biggest problem - access to technology and apps that people want to use
- Training can't be done well in a classroom!
- Don't expect 100% on quizzes - it's okay to only view half the training.
- The differences in Planned versus Responsive training
- Technology that helps you build a new lesson in 9.8 minutes
Resources:
- Labor Series: A Labor Equation that Makes Better Dollars & Sense
- What’s Self-Care Got to Do With It?
- We're in the People Business
Connect with Rachael & Opus
The Restaurants Reinvented community is committed to supporting our industry's children and employee by participating in CORES Summer of Giving campaign.
1 in 4 restaurant workers are not able to pay a medical bill over $400
When unexpected medical crises arise, restaurant workers have limited financial options and resources. That’s where CORE -- Children of Restaurant Employees -- comes in.
CORE helps restaurant employees with children by providing financial support, through grants, when they face a medical crisis, death, or natural disaster.
The average CORE grant is $2,400; and 50% of grants go to single working parents.
Want to get involved?
- Spread the word on Social Media
- Refer restaurant employees with children in need to apply for a grant
- Share CORE's resources with your community
- Donate today. Every donation counts, regardless of size!
In this episode, Jen Kern & Sheila Bennett, Executive Director of CORE, explore:
- The story behind CORE
- CORE's support program for restaurant workers, the eligibility criteria
- Community resources available
- How to spread the word
Resources:
- Donate today
- CORE website
- CORE Resource Center
- What’s Self-Care Got to Do With It?
- We're in the People Business
Toxic work environments (and burnout) is the #1 reason employees quit their jobs.
Milena Regos is a “burnout expert.” An award winning marketer who had her own burnout experience - that led her to found the “Unhustle” movement.
Restaurant culture has been based on Hustle since the beginning of time.
YET … the majority of restaurant workers are BURNED OUT. Over-stressed. Over-worked. Under-paid. Under-appreciated. Under-rewarded.
Add to that a thinning workforce and severe labor shortages… and we have an industry in peril.
Creating a Healthy Work Culture that Prioritizes Employee Care IS JOB #1!
Things you’ll hear about:
- Nearly 1 million restaurant workers are burned out (80%)
- The definition - and signs of - burnout
- Generational changes in how work is performed
- Why “work-life balance” is a dated, irrelevant term and LifeWorkPlay Design is not.
- The power of building strong relationships and friendships at work.
- The need for Well-being in the workplace & open honest dialogue
- Creating harmony between humans and companies
- One in three Americans had their first job at a restaurant
- Do you work to live or live to work?
Join the Unhustle Movement - it’s good for humans and good for business.
Milena is a global speaker who is educating, leading and inspiring others to create sustainable success by prioritizing well-being and purpose as a path to achieve optimal performance. Follow, learn and connect with her here:
- https://unhustle.com/
- https://unhustle.com/podcast/
Resources:
- Who Comes First? The Employee or Guest?
- What’s Self-Care Got to Do With It?
- We're in the People Business
Still wondering … what is Unhustle? It is “ a counterintuitive approach to how we live and work that leads to increased well-being, focus, purpose and performance.”
The Great Resignation has turned into the Great Reshuffle and now the “Great Re-Reckoning.”
We invited Newton Hoang from 7 Leaves Café on to talk about the “Culture of Care” he’s building and how that fits in with the “Cultural Reckoning” the restaurant industry must address to improve employee retention, hiring, leadership, working conditions and care.
[Newton defines a Culture of Care] – it’s one where the company leaders listen to employees, uncover what they want, and then work to deliver the things they’re asking for. And it’s often not monetary!
[What employees want] is to understand the business and straight talk about the business. They’ve uncovered that employees have a real thirst for knowledge and education, and learning about the business operations.
[Community involvement and local store marketing] is an element of the culture of care -
Speaking at local colleges and encouraging leadership and store managers to get involved in these efforts has gone a long way.
[A galvanized and engaged workforce] – Employee retention is not a top challenge for the
brand due to their care and attention to employee needs and wants.
[Human marketing] - humanized marketing efforts that build meaningful 1:1 relationships. It includes using your employees in your marketing efforts - less product imagery, more imagery and stories about the people who work for your brand.
Connect with Newton on LinkedIn
Resources:
- Labor Series: Who Comes First: The Employee or Guest?
- Labor Series: Using Technology to Create a Better Work Environment
- The Great Restaurant Resurgence
Let’s talk about this folks…. Such an important question to suss out!
How do you prioritize it all and deliver awesome experiences with your brand one person at a time?
Tune in, because Lauren Fernandez delivers the goods. The future of our restaurant industry is bright with Lauren Fernandez at the forefront.
The recent NRN Power List maker answers the pivotal question - “What comes first, the employee or guest experience?”
This is EPISODE 5 of our Labor, Culture, and Leadership series. In this episode, Jen & Lauren explore:
• Debunking Myths about the Wage War and War on Talent.
• The all-important definition of Employee Value Proposition and how restaurants have missed the mark in delivering it.
• Why employee training has been a overlooked and undervalued in our industry. There’s a need for more training, especially around the company’s brand, mission, and vision.• Employee Retention issues in the restaurant industry - These problems are due to long-standing acceptance of “misbehaviors” in restaurants that many have neglected to improve.• Defining your Why... Without that, nothing else works. (It’s time to look up Simon Sinek if you don’t know about the Purpose driven model of branding)
Resources:• Full Course (Lauren’s company)• NRN Power List
• Labor Series: What’s Self-Care Got to Do With It?
• Find Your Why by Simon Sinek
Connect with Lauren on LinkedIn!
So far our labor series has touched on the need for emphatic leadership & positive modern company culture in restaurants. However, we have yet to discuss why restaurants ALSO need to modernize how they look at their P&L → ditch looking at labor costs as a percentage of gross sales. Your focus should instead be on employee productivity, zoning in on a ratio of labor costs to guests, rather than labor costs to sales.
To help us explore the importance of how labor data is viewed in modern restaurant operations, Jim Taylor joins us to continue our all-important conversation about the impact of an employee-first approach.
Jim Taylor is the CEO and Founder of BenchmarkSixty. After 20 years in restaurant operations, Jim is now helping restaurants change the way they look at and manage labor costs in order to protect both people AND profit!
Moments to Listen For:• Restaurants Only Need 4 Pieces of Data to Measure SuccessIt’s high noon for restaurants to fully embrace data as part of their operations. However, jumping into the deep end can also be rather intimidating. To start, Jim suggests restaurants understand the core 4 data points – customer count, average wage, average customer spend, and how many hours your staff is working.
• Look at Labor from a Manufacturing PerspectiveA modern restaurant is one that is can provide a quality experience for guests with efficient use of labor. By thinking more about the output and productivity of a restaurant, operators can eventually predict how many employees are needed to get the job done.
• The Number One Stressor in Restaurants: Scheduling and PayManagers fear whether they’ll be able to hit labor targets, while employees are stressed about unpredictable schedules. As an operator, bringing in out of the box ideas such as daily salaries, flex days, unlimited vacation, and even a four-day workweek can show you care and appreciate every member of your team.
Resources:• Labor Series: We’re In The People Business with Amir Mostafavi
• Labor Series: Using Technology to Create a Healthier Work Environment
• The Great Restaurant Resurgence
Connect with Jim on LinkedIn or at BenchmarkSixty.
Our Labor Series continues with "The Restaurant Coach" who further validates that the restaurant industry is NOT suffering from a labor crisis, but rather a leadership, culture, and self-care crisis!
We explore these themes with our guest, Donald Burns, who discusses how self-care and empathetic leadership are so pivotal to improving restaurant cultures and teams -- one employee at a time.
Donald is an author, speaker, and trusted restaurant expert who has helped countless brands and owners turn around their operations for the better. He has over 40 years of experience in the restaurant industry as a restaurant owner, consultant, and was even an executive chef for Wolfgang Puck!
Moments To Listen For:
• Outdated management styles no longer work.
The stick & carrot mindset that many restaurant operators use to lead their team is from the 50s & 60s. It's basic (lazy) and outdated. Now is the time to think outside the box and lead with empathy rather than with punishments & incentives. Donald provides great examples of how to do this.
• People are not commodities.
Just increasing pay is not the solution for your employee woes. Owners and operators need to make the restaurant industry an attractive & viable option for people with positive working environments, flexibility for employees, and livable wages. Take care of your people, and they will take care of you!
• Mental health must be discussed more frequently.
As leaders, it is a key consideration to keep in mind for your team. It is extremely important to discuss mental health with your team and provide resources for them as well.
• Fixing culture is NOT a quick-fix, it takes time and the right attitude.
Improving culture isn't a one-day or even one-month project. It's a sustained effort that is implemented by you and fellow leaders in the organization that trickles down to your team.
Now go forth and be awesome!
Resources:
• Labor Series: We’re In The People Business with Amir Mostafavi (RR Episode!)
• Let’s Think Outside the Bun – Greg Creed, Yum! Brands (RR Episode)
• 2022 State of Digital For Restaurants
Connect with Donald on LinkedIn or at The Restaurant Coach™
This week, we continue our discussion on labor with another innovative restaurant leader, the Founder & CEO of her favorite local juice shop in the DC Area, Amir Mostafavi of South Block.
South Block currently has 11 locations, all in the DC Area. Like many fast-food/quick-service brands, South Block was not immune to the COVID pandemic, however, he was able to keep all of his staff employed during the lockdowns.
Amir is THE model business owner for this new restaurant era. Company culture no longer takes a backseat, it must be front of mind for every brand & operator in the industry!
Moments to Listen For:• Rule #1: Don't be a jerk because your people will quit.Amir worked at his first food-service job for ONLY two weeks. His reason for quitting so soon was simple -- his manager was a jerk! Bad managers can easily affect your staff retention, because as Amir puts it, “people don't want to work for jerks”.
• Rule #2: Put your team in your dream.To help create a positive company culture, Amir believes in including your “people in your dream.” One of the innovative ways Amir has included his employees in South Block’s success is through an employee profit-sharing program -- his team is rewarded bonuses due to the success and profitability of the company.
• Rule #3: Connect to the community.
Hear from Amir about how South Block Juice serves the entire community. His non-profit called Fruitful Planet donates fresh fruits and veggies to local food banks and shelters. Check it out!
One of South Block's core values is "Small hacks can make big impacts." They've donated over 45,000 pounds of fruits and veggies in less than two year. Wow.
• Your Culture is Never Perfect.Amir admits that even South Block doesn't have a 100% perfect company culture, but then again, no one does. For him, the difference-maker has been prioritizing the needs of his employees, above all else (that includes his guests)!
Related Resources• The Real Way to Build Brand Loyalty & Trust – Andy Hooper, &Pizza (RR Episode)
• Balancing Digital Engagement & Personalized Service During COVID
• Let’s Think Outside the Bun – Greg Creed, Yum! Brands (RR Episode)
Connect with Amir on LinkedIn!
Have you recently visited your favorite coffee shop or fast food joint and it’s taking longer than usual to get your order? Unfortunately, you are not alone.
Across the nation, operators are struggling to staff their restaurants and retain talent for the long term. This can lead to shortened store hours or even restaurants closing their doors altogether.
To solve these dire labor challenges, we believe broad sweeping changes are needed for a stronger future. This episode of Restaurants Reinvented is the start of a new series focused solely on labor and what operators can do to attract and retain employees.
This week, Jen welcomes Stacey Sikorski, Mid-Market Key Accounts Executive of 7shifts, and Niko Papademetriou, SVP of Sales & Business Development of Qu, to discuss how operators can leverage modern technology solutions to improve working conditions for their team.
Moments to Listen For:• A job in the restaurant industry is more than just a career stepping stone.Working in a restaurant is not easy. It never has been. It's time to recognize your workers as essential to running your business by empowering them with the tools they need to succeed as well as compensating them fairly.
• How can technology streamline operations and make everyday life at work easier?Hear from Niko about how Qu's Notify app uses AI and machine learning so your team leaders can spend less time sorting through reports and more time with the staff, the guest, and the business.
• Technology can improve communication, transparency, and predictability.Stacey describes how 7shifts is making scheduling on Excel a thing of the past. 7shifts scheduling solution aims to put the real-time work schedule in the palm of your employees' hands -- exchanging shifts can now be a breeze!
Related Resources• Notify: The First Voice-Activated Analytics App
• 5 Ways Restaurant Scheduling Software Improves Staff Communication
• Invest in Relationships with Paul Macaluso (RR Episode!)
Connect with Stacey & Niko on LinkedIn!
Hear what these two digital restaurant savants and best-selling authors, Meredith Sandland & Carl Orsbourn, have to say about the future of the restaurant industry and what possible challenges restaurant operators may face during the digital age.
Our guests had the idea to write their book, Delivering the Digital Restaurant, as they ''want the industry to survive this big omnichannel shift. And to do that, they need some tools and a group discussion to talk about how to navigate this"!
Moments to Listen For:• The 2 Sides of Algorithmic Growth for Restaurants - Not only has the digital age introduced new avenues for exponential growth for restaurants such as with ghost kitchens and online ordering, but it will also allow operators to use data and algorithms to optimize their advertising & operations to help grow their brand.
• Bringing the Restaurant to the People - The digital restaurant will allow brands to transcend their brick-and-mortar locations, and bring the restaurant right to their guests' doorstep. Convenience is key.
• Cater to Your Workers - The new generation of workers, the Millenials and Gen-We (a.k.a Gen-Z), is a different beast. They are truly digital natives and have different priorities than previous generations such as being motivated by purpose-driven work. Reaching and appealing to them will be a challenge for many operators.
• Be Nimble & Aim to Innovate - The digital age brings a lot of unknowns to the restaurant industry. To be successful, operators must be willing to innovate, experience, and recognize that they're going to fail at times. Being flexible and having an agile tech stack will help you be ready for any change that is still to come.
Resources:• Get your copy of Delivering the Digital Restaurant! •5 Things You Need to Know About Gen We.
• Is Your Digital Foundation Built on Sand or Stone?
• 10 Best Practices for Launching a Virtual Brand & Ghost Kitchen
Connect with Meredith & Carl on LinkedIn!
Join this modern and savvy restaurateur and marketer, Solomon Choi, as we explore why POS has fallen into the “uncool” category in an industry sprinting to keep up with the digital consumer.
Solomon explains how he got into the “FroYo” business and found himself on point for figuring out the technology as well.
Moments to Listen For:
• Omni-Channel is Not New to Consumers. The consumer has been omni-channel for many years, it’s just that the hospitality and foodservice industry has been behind and is now starting to play catch up.
• Legacy POS - Solomon describes the ah-ha moment when he realized his POS was legacy - they told him it could not integrate with his loyalty provider. That was the point at which he knew he needed better solutions to serve his customers.
• Weaponizing Data - He loves to talk about not just accessing data, but then what do you do with it… he likes to weaponize his data to figure out how he can deliver above and beyond for his customers.• We’re in the First Quarter - the industry is in the first quarter of change and evolution. It’s a very exciting time!
• There are so many different touchpoints in the food journey, to think that your brand is not omni-channel is foolish!
Related Resources• 5 Must-Have Features for Unified Omni-Channel Ordering (a free e-book on omni-channel ordering)
• Redefining Loyalty (a Restaurants Reinvented episode with 2 loyalty experts!)
• Unified POS Data: Why Your Restaurant Chain Needs It
• Omni-channel & Dynamic Stores
Connect with Solomon on LinkedIn!
For this 40th episode of Restaurants Reinvented, we're hosting the new CMO at Krystal Restaurants, Alice Crowder. Alice has a very distinct and innovative way of testing "new ideas" and it comes down to a detailed process hinging on research and data -- while still leaving tons of room for creativity.
Show Highlights:• Balancing Data and the Creative ProcessAlice's approach to marketing is a marriage of instinct & innovation supported by a process infrastructure. Hear how she and her team use data from focus groups & market research to iteratively whittle down from 100 ideas to a select few every six weeks.
• Modernizing the Guest ExperienceIn her first six months as CMO, Alice has spearheaded the launch of Krystal's first mobile app & retooled their website to facilitate loyalty, online ordering, and delivery for their guests. Guests can now meaningfully interact with Krystal like never before; via college athlete ambassadors & influencers on social media. Early Results: Digital engagement increased from 0.2% to 3.5% in just a few months.
• Shifting Focus from Value to >>> Convenience and CraveabilityAlice introduces the idea of efficient indulgence for restaurants. Today, most guests focus more on convenience and craveability than on value. Thus, the next step forward for restaurants is to optimize the off-premise to meet guests where they are (and it's a moving target for sure!!!).
• The Emerging Marriage Between Marketing and TechnologyMarketing teams are adopting emerging technologies in almost every industry because customer preferences are evolving faster than ever. Alice says Krystal is on track to eventually have 1:1 marketing (as they grow their users on their app), smart menu boards, and even using AI to improve their guest experience.
Krystal Restaurants is the famous burger chain from down South with 360 locations worldwide! Alice previously served as the brand's Vice President of Marketing from 2014 to 2018 before leaving to head innovation at Tropical Smoothie Cafe.
Related Resources:
• How Church's Chicken Uses Data to Drive Digital Marketing
• Let’s Think Outside the Bun with Greg Creed (referenced episode)
• Connect withAlice on LinkedIn
Join us as we celebrate getting back to the first in-person conference in 18 LONG months. This week's episode is with Marcus Viscidi (Winsight Media) & Zack Oates (Ovation), as they reflect on the sweeping changes and impacts to the hospitality industry and how that made this first live event even more meaningful.
Marcus, a hospitality expert and leading Winsight Media spokesperson, has his finger on the pulse of all the hot topics in restaurants today. He emphasized the true heart and soul of the industry -- SERVING OTHERS and discussed ways we can all do a better job of that.
He believes that restaurant operators are more forward-thinking today and that it has carried over to all aspects of the business. "We all have an eye on the future now ... How can we look ahead? What are the blindspots?" This is what Winsight is prioritizing across all its event content, from FSTEC to RLC.
"I think we're going to see fewer events in the future, but the ones that do happen will be that much impactful," says Marcus.
Zack is the CEO and Founder of Ovation customer feedback software. He talked about how the meaning of integration has changed and evolved. "There's much more openness to integration today...and figuring out how to work together. It's all about "working together to find the solutions that fit your guests' journey," said Zack.
Our favorite quotes:
"The biggest thing about the future is we must be customer-obsessed"
-Marcus
"I'm excited about the future, I'm excited about technology, and I feel bullish about what 2022 will bring."
-Zack
"There's a surge of need for interaction and as Neil Diamond said, hands touching hands, that's what the world needs." -ZackMore about our guests:
Marcus Viscidi is the orchestrator for some of the biggest events in the hospitality industry: FSTEC, RLC, and NRA. His role as VP of Enterprise Sales at Winsight is to facilitate the relationship building between restaurant brands with allied retail vendors to help the industry move forward! Connect with him on LinkedIn here.
Zack Oates: You've probably seen him on LinkedIn recently! Besides being a part-time influencer & fellow podcaster, Zack is the founder and CEO of Ovation, a customer experience and engagement platform that is taking our standard guest feedback to the future with chatbots, machine learning, and more... let's forget those unhelpful receipt surveys! Connect with him on LinkedIn here.
Hear from The Godfather of restaurant marketing himself, Greg Creed, former CEO at Yum! Brands and CEO/CMO of Taco Bell where he spearheaded the famous “Think Outside the Bun” campaign. Another small feather in his cap…. Running the Dove brand for Unilever.
Most recently he’s co-authored a book with Ken Muench called R.E.D. Marketing: The Three Ingredients of Leading Brands- Relevance, Ease, and Distinctiveness.
Greg is chock full of marketing wisdom and experience, and has the street cred to prove it - during his tenure as CEO at Yum! Brands the company saw tremendous sales and profit growth. He boasts an unconventional but refreshing leadership style that starts with people, brands, and cultural relevance.
All at once, Greg is relatable, down-to-earth, humble, self-deprecating, and brilliant. He cites his greatest achievement as building a culture where people felt valued, empowered, and courageous. I hope you enjoy this episode as much as I did!
Some of Greg’s top beliefs and advice (a true gold mine here):
• The two most important assets in a company are not measurable -- brands & people.Although the value of a brand and its people are hard to quantify, Greg believes they are the key to having a strong balance sheet. To him, successful CEOs look past the numbers on a P&L and understand the crucial role People & Brand plays.
• Prioritize SOBO - sales overnight and brands over time. Greg says the very Best Marketers can do both. If you don’t build the sales overnight you won’t be around long enough to build the brand over time.
• Brands must always be Reinventing & Transforming.A brand is never standing still, it’s either moving forward or backward. Norms within the restaurant industry are changing, so companies need to evolve and grow to stay relevant. Greg says that any successful transformation is rooted in a good team experience and that taking care of and supporting your frontline employees should be priority number one.
• Marketers need to be courageous.And you “can’t be courageous in the absence of fear.” An example, his launch of Doritos Locos Tacos. Being courageous also means not always adhering to a strict process. "I know organizations need processes to make things happen... But, I believe people fundamentally think that if [they] just go through a process, big ideas will come out at the end. And I've never seen that to be the case".
• Create an emotional response, not an emotional connection.To Greg, brands forging a long-lasting emotional connection with their consumers is almost unattainable. Instead, your goal as marketers should be to elicit an emotional response from your guests. "Do I want you to love Taco Bell? No, not necessarily. But, when you go to Taco Bell, does it make you feel happy? Do you get a smile?".
• Be Distinctive, not Different. People get too hung up on functional differentiation… Replace differentiation with distinctiveness.
Resources:• Connect with Greg Creed on LinkedIn
• Greg's Book - R.E.D. Marketing: The Three Ingredients of Leading Brands• CreedUnCo
Today's female CEO super-star, Betsy Hamm, joins Restaurants Reinvented to talk about franchise marketing, branding, community involvement, empathetic leadership, & so much more!
Betsy is the new CEO of Duck Donuts, a successful donut shop franchise with 100+ stores worldwide. She entered the restaurant industry after working at Hershey Foods for 14 years. After that, Betsy started the formal marketing function at Duck Donuts, moved into operations, and is now the chief executive officer. From the time she joined the company five years ago, Duck Donuts has achieved 5x growth and continues to expand across the globe.
We're so excited to have a smart, strong, and courageous female marketer turned CEO on our show today!
Show Highlights• The beauty of a franchisee brandBetsy & Duck Donuts stresses the importance of community involvement and their franchisees excel at being extending the brand locally, anything from donating donuts to schools to dropping some off at the local fire station. The marketing "...really has to be from the franchisee's perspective ... getting them to really own the brand and elevate their game to help grow the brand and their store sales..." is the focus on Duck Donut's branding.
• What does a well-thought-out franchising model look like?Hear how Betsy uses the predictive index assessment to find the right 'marriage' with franchisees that fit their culture and model.
• Why even small restaurant chains need marketing.Betsy does a great job explaining how marketing and brand building helps even small restaurants build a bigger-than-life brand. She details the "free" marketing channels available, such as social media and others.
• Use social media to engage with your customers.If you already receive lots of user-generated content on social media, why not use it to your benefit! That's exactly what marketers at Duck Donuts focus on, their customers' love. "We don't have millions of dollars in our marketing budgets. So we do have to be very strategic and also very engaged with our customers to maximize their love for us."
• Empathetic LeadershipThe importance of being empathetic, realistic, and positive. As humans, leaders, and workers. Betsy focuses on constant communication with franchisees to help them get through uncertain times.
• From junior Marketer to CMO to COO to CEO!Not only is Betsy an experienced and talented marketer, but she also thrives in connecting the dots and uniting marketing and operations. Combining these skills turned out to be the key reason why the CEO asked her to replace him. She's now 4 months into her new role and we know she's going to do GREAT THINGS!
Tune in to hear her sweet & exciting story.
Resources• Connect with Betsy Hamm on LinkedIn• Duck Donuts
• The Biggest Challenges and Opportunities for Restaurant Marketers in 2021
• Refresh Your Brand (Now!) - (RR Podcast Episode)
This episode is a continuation of our interview with Peter Wiley, co-founder of two fast-casual chains and a technology superstar. We drill into today’s reality of technology in restaurants - Peter provides a great modern, fresh example of how busy operators can integrate fast, scalable tech into their daily operations to streamline both internal and external processes.
If you haven’t checked out the first episode, we suggest you listen to it as a warm-up for this one. Peter is currently the Co-Founder and Head of Marketing for Rapid Fired Pizza and Hot Head Burritos. He and his brother are definitely pushing the boundaries of technology in the restaurant world. Can you say “cryptocurrency”?!
Key Insights• Leveraging technology to improve employee productivity and engagement.Technology has become a major part of the restaurant industry during the past few years. As an experienced tech guy and huge innovator, Peter explains what technology represents for him. Above all, it's an effective and useful tool that his crew needs, "to do their jobs to the best of their ability and make life easy for them". • Tech is no longer optional.One thing's for sure, technology is here to stay, and restaurants have no choice but to keep up. To put it in Peter's words, "You have to embrace it. If you don't embrace it, I think you're just going to struggle. If you do embrace it, it chips away. It's another line item on your bottom line, but hopefully, the returns are there to justify it because it's not going away."
• Both customers and employees want (and expect) technology.While it's true that customers come to restaurants to enjoy delicious food, that doesn't mean they don't want technology too. As a matter of fact, they expect it. Restaurants that don't deploy technology might regret it later. "They expect it to be super simple to order online. They expect it to be super simple to get their rewards. They expect it to get pertinent, relevant marketing information, not spam that hits everybody. So that all comes from tech."
Tune in to find out why tech is no longer optional but a reality.
Resources• Rapid Fire Pizza & Hot Head Burritos Rollout
• How to Stop Hating & Start Loving Third-Party Delivery (Free E-Book!)
• 3 Ways to Future-Proof Your Restaurant Tech Stack
• Is Your Digital Foundation Built on Sand or Stone?
• Connect with Peter Wiley on LinkedIn
Creating new in-restaurant dining experiences and balancing those with growing to-go-only concepts are the meat of this episode.
What is the secret of a successful restaurant chain? According to Tana Davila, the CMO at P.F. Chang's, it is about brand distinctiveness, unique technology approaches, and being able to adapt quickly and creatively in a pandemic.
Tana and her creative team of 30 people have reinvented P.F. Chang's due to a pandemic. They focused on To-Go concepts, delivery, e-commerce, creating a safe and effective restaurant space that customers would love to visit. And the fact that P.F. Chang's exists in 300 locations inside and outside the US proves its tremendous success and the ability to adapt under trying circumstances.
Key Insights & Quotes
• A brand has to be highly differentiated to succeed.
Hear from Tana about how embracing innovation can benefit a brand by providing unique guest experiences that can differentiate you from the myriad of competitors in the marketplace.
• There is a blurring of the lines between the traditional restaurant segments.Tana believes that the pandemic has significantly changed the way guests see restaurants and brands, adding that operators should implement technology to keep pace with the customers' expectations.
"Coming out of the pandemic, our overall off-premises business has essentially doubled and continues to grow. It's changed the way we think about the brand, how we operate our restaurant, how we structure it. And it's also continued to fuel the pipeline of P.F. Chang's To-Go. So, we have launched an extension of the brand, and we did that before the pandemic.
The P.F. Chang's To-Go model allows us to scale and reach a lot more people that are interested in Asian food. It's takeout delivery catering only; it does not have seating. It's designed for To-Go occasions. We are not super highly penetrated today in an urban environment. So, To-Go allows us to go there."
Resources
• P.F. Chang's Expanding To-Go Model
• How to Solve Menu Mayhem Across All Order Channels (A free guide!)
• Restaurants in the New Roaring 20s
• 5 Best Practices for Marketing Your Online Order Channel
• Connect with Tana Davila on LinkedIn
Fasten your seat belts and get ready to hear from one of the Fast Casual industry's most innovative and cool restauranteurs -- Peter Wiley, the Co-Founder at Rapid Fired Pizza & Hot Head Burritos -- and super-human Qu account rep, Sean Brennan.
These two guys are driving the restaurant tech industry forward with new ways of embracing technology, modern processes, and restaurant trends - like cryptocurrency, just to name one.
Key Insights & Quotes
• POS built from the cloud down versus from the POS up to the cloud. Hear from Peter the big difference with modern tech built first from the cloud, and connected to all the other systems, like POS.
• As new technologies emerge on the market, restaurants need to keep up.According to Peter, technology is no longer just a piece of your business or something you have to deal with. It is an integral part of running a restaurant nowadays, from the marketing all the way to the ops.
• Modern & agile software reduces friction and enables a seamless user experience
Nobody likes friction: not Peter’s employees, not his customers, and not him! Third-party delivery has eliminated friction to a certain degree and has allowed for a smoother ordering process, but only if it’s connected directly into the POS - natively with bidirectional APIs.
• Strong partnerships in technology deployment are vital.
According to Peter, the key is to communicate and learn from each other. Communication helps us grow. "That opportunity just makes for a better product.”
Peter and his team’s input and feedback have gone a long…. way into making Qu a better next-gen POS and Omni-channel ordering platform for QSRs and Fast Casual restaurants.
Resources• Rapid Fire Pizza & Hot Head Burritos Rollout
• How to Stop Hating & Start Loving Third-Party Delivery (Free E-Book!)
• 3 Ways to Future-Proof Your Restaurant Tech Stack
• Is Your Digital Foundation Built on Sand or Stone?
• Connect with Peter Wiley on LinkedIn
Paul Macaluso, President and CEO of Another Broken Egg Cafe, talks about the importance of investing in your staff, as taking care of your employees' career growth can lead to better relationships, business, and brand results. Paul also talks about the changes he’s seen across the restaurant landscape, namely the growth of digital media and the importance of technology in current restaurants.
Key Takeaways & Quotes
• Implementing & scaling off-prem from 0 to 15% of business''We started promoting off-premise third-party delivery and our online ordering platforms. Now it's a significant part of our business, over 15% of our business. It carried us through the pandemic. We were able to keep things going, provide jobs for people, and keep the brand growing. That is now a big part of our business, and something that I think will be for a long time...
• Invest in careers for your peoplePaul believes business growth depends on an organization's willingness to focus on its employees. As he explains, "the brand grows as much as it allows its members to grow professionally.
• Investing in relationships helps you evolve professionallyPaul’s career took off when he invested in relationships. It’s not just about the skills, but it was about the relationships. Find mentors and people you can confide in; people that can be honest with you about what your opportunities are. "
Resources:
Another Broken Egg Cafe
Meet Lidija Davidson, brand expert extraordinaire and restaurant innovator. This episode is all about the Power of Brand. If you haven’t thought about your brand in a while - start now.
The post-pandemic world is rife with opportunities to engage guests and grow your business to a whole new and different level. Communicating a relatable, relevant (and fun) brand to your employees, guests, franchisees, and partners is paramount to building that success in 2021.
As a passionate restaurateur, marketer, and innovator - Lidija discusses the most important and powerful components of brand refreshes - from concise messaging, purpose and positioning to personas, culture, training, and helping employees embody your brand’s mission and vision.
Plus, tips for bringing it all to life through packaging, ordering channels, digital properties, and wherever guests get your food.
Marketers and Owners... don’t miss this episode and all the valuable reminders and resources for crafting an awesome brand that your teams will adopt and guests will love. Now… go make Brand Evangelists of your teams!
Key Takeaways:
• Revisit your brand messaging and positioning to ensure relevance in the post pandemic world. Have fun and be creative!
•Simplicity will lead you to success! Embrace the power of simplicity >> simplify complex operations, menu, and brand for success today, and tomorrow.
•Help employees embrace your brand and feel motivated to share your company’s vision. How? By making it short, simple and easy to remember.
•Unleash new and improved innovation opportunities across your business - Lidijia provides great examples from other leading brands like Disney, Taco Bell, Chipotle, Chick-fil-A and more.
•Flexibility, Adaptiveness, and Innovation FTW
Resources:
- Simon Sinek - The Golden Circle & Purpose-Driven Model of Branding
- http://www.siftcipherandbloom.com/
- /in/lidijadavidson on LinkedIn
Meet the fearless female leader behind the smokin’ barbecue pit at Dickey’s!
After joining Dickey’s during the 2008 recession, to CIO and then CEO, Laura Rae Dickey shares how the technology infrastructure they built 10 years ago served to fortify the brand during the 2020 pandemic. The evidence is clear - they’ve had 11 straight months of sales growth and continue opening new locations every month.
Now celebrating their 80th anniversary, Laura and Jen dish on all things restaurants reinvented: from new menu items and virtual brands to new partnerships and marketing strategies PLUS (Bonus Content on perspectives about Female Leadership in a very traditional industry. You won’t want to miss Laura’s advice and both ladies’ book recommendations!
HIGHLIGHTS:
- 80th Anniversary - Dickey’s celebrating its 80th anniversary this year. The original location is the oldest, longest-running restaurant in Dallas. “That pit has been smokin’ since 1941”
- The intersection of technology and data - right place right time
Parallels between 2008 recession & 2020 pandemic - In 2008, Dickey’s responded to the recession by building a solid technology and data-driven infrastructure. 10-year roadmap. The imperative is the same for restaurants today.
Resources:
Dickey's Website
Laura on Twitter
Book: Radical Candor
Book: The Confidence Code
Book: Who Cooked Adam Smith's Dinner?
Book: Men are from Mars, Women are From Venus
Season 2 kicks off with a fierce female leader in honor of Women's History Month!
Join the former President of Auntie Anne's, Heather Leed Neary, on her new adventure as the EVP and General Manager at KBP Investments. KBP is a leading restaurant franchise group that operates many worldwide restaurants, including KFC and Taco Bell. Heather is overseeing the Taco Bell portfolio -- KBP Bells.
After serving as the President of Auntie Anne’s for five years, Heather decided it was time for a new challenge. Hear how she moved on gracefully, taking time for herself, before KBP created a new role for her at the company.
Episode Highlights
- Opening Lobbies & the Importance of the In-Store Experience - The Taco Bell lobbies were closed for the past year and one of the first things Heather tackled is opening up lobbies again.And guests are more than ready! “Bringing back those small nuggets of joy, I think are really important.”
- The dynamic between the marketers and the operators is a significant challenge in the restaurant business. The secret to a successful collaboration between these two departments is to pair them together. They need to understand each other's side of the business to be able to work together. "Helping both sides of the fence understand what drives the other is what is the key to our success."
- Dynamics between franchisor and franchisee - Hear how Heather views the different roles and perspectives and how she's making the transition from Franchisor to Franchisee side of the business.
Challenges to tackle after the pandemic - “The one big challenge for us is labor. It’s a common issue across the country. Minimum wage is a concern from a cost perspective, but we also want to make sure that we’re always doing the right thing for our crew members. - Setting a goal but then also being vocal about it is the key to success. Heather shares a few practical tips for young women in the industry trying to work their way to executive positions. She says goal setting played an essential role in her business journey. "I remember my first month at Auntie Anne's; I was sitting down with my boss, who was the CMO at the time. And she said to me, 'Where do you see yourself in five years?' And I said, 'In your seat.'
- Find a tribe to help you improve. “There are things that I need to work on all the time, but I think being willing to continuously improve and continuously learn are strong reasons to continue to grow in your career. Finding mentors is important. Find multiple mentors because each mentor brings something a little bit different to the table based on their own experiences.”
Resources:KBP InvestmentsHeather on LinkedIn
Two top loyalty experts : Diane Le (Punchh) and Olga Lopategui (OLLO Consult) discuss how to build more meaningful relationships with your guests + all the fundamentals of a “modern day restaurant loyalty program.”
Key Takeaways:
- It all starts with the customer experience and 1:1 relationships. (Move from a transactional to relational mindset)
- How to use Data & Segmentation for Smart Marketing.
- What Can Ruin Your Loyalty Program? Lack of alignment b/t Marketing & Ops!
- The most important loyalty program metrics >> Participation rate, Visits, and Spend Lift.
- The 3 loyalty team members you need to successfully execute.
- The future is all about AI & Machine Learning.
- Bonus content on dispelling the myth of work-life balance in the pandemic and how these new moms stay positive and on top of their game. (hint: their partners)
Top Quotes:
“...a good metric, if you're starting off, is to aim for 10% participation rate. So one in every 10 people who walks in, they should be a loyalty member. If you can get to 20, 25%, you're in great shape, because that means one in every four or every five is a loyalty member. … really successful programs have like 40, 50, 60% participation,” say Diane and Olga.
Episode Highlights & Show Notes: Redefining Loyalty
Diane Le on LinkedIn
Olga Lopategui on LinkedIn
^^^ Connect with these awesome women and crank your loyalty program into top gear.
As always, thanks for listening!
It’s often said that the brightest times follow the darkest times. We see this is indeed the case for Taco John’s and its fearless Marketing leader, Barry Westrum.
On this episode of Restaurants Reinvented, we take our Taco Series to new heights (and add a side of Potato Olés®) with 4-time CMO, Barry Westrum who’s turning up the heat for the Midwestern taco darling Taco John's, which operates nearly 400 restaurants in 23 states.
Hear how the chaos of COVID and a brand in flux became the positive instigator for growth that Taco John’s needed to inject new life into the 50-year old brand.
Barry relies heavily on clarity and focuses to guide all his marketing programs, and he stepped into the “big mess” in April 2020 with an immediate focus on optimizing drive-thrus to be more efficient and speedy. As a result, the chain has outperformed other QSR category leaders —with four points of same-store sales growth over pre-pandemic numbers.
“Everybody uses the word, but it’s so true, these were unprecedented times,” he says. “But what came from that was clarity and focus.”
One thing that helps Barry and the rest of Taco John’s executive team stay on track is the brand’s five strategic tenets, which include a commitment to digital transformation as well as a focus on evolving the menu to provide better options based on customer feedback.
Featured Taco Series Brands & Speakers:
- Chipotle - Jonathon Relkin - #4
- Torchy's Tacos - Scott Hudler - #3
- Del Taco - Erin Levzow - #2
- Fuzzy's Tacos - Laura Purser - #1
A self-taught digital marketing expert from his early days of crafting social for Wendy’s; to converting Papa John’s to a digital focus - Brandon Rhoten specializes in turnaround brands.
After spending nearly seven years leading marketing initiatives for the two brands, Brandon has developed a strong understanding of what makes a successful restaurant marketer — which he brings to Potbelly Sandwich Works as its Chief Marketing Officer.
On this episode of Restaurants Reinvented, host Jen Kern interviews Brandon about how his marketing approach revolves around brand positioning with a unique voice and performance marketing.
“You’ve got to get noticed. … You’ve got to do work that gets noticed and is interesting and is going to connect with the consumer.”
Brandon also shares his potentially surprising distaste for LTOs and discusses the type of data marketers should focus on to determine if their approach is working.
Hear what baseball, authenticity, and America’s farmers have to do with Chipotle’s continued off-prem (r)evolution, starring Jonathon Relkin, Director of Digital & Off-Premises at Chipotle.
On this episode of Restaurant Reinvented, hostess Jen Kern dives into Jonathon’s impressive eComm background with brands like Vans, Mattel, and Reebok to discover which B2C best practices translate to the restaurant industry’s rapid digital transformation.
Learn tips on how to entice consumer purchasing at each step of the off-prem journey, including:
- Dressing your digital storefront with the best assets
- Getting vital guest feedback post-sale
- Building successful relationships across the value chain
- The metrics that matter to Chipotle’s digital team
- How Chipotle is committed to saving America’s farmers
- What’s up next for digital innovation and new menu items
Jen also talks with Jonathon about authenticity, staying true to the brand's mission, and creating an amazing customer experience off-premises.
Jonathon on LinkedIn
Chipotle Website
Featured Taco Series Brands & Speakers:
- Torchy's Tacos - Scott Hudler - #3
- Del Taco - Erin Levzow - #2
- Fuzzy's Tacos - Laura Purser - #1
Hear how Dog Haus has managed to increase sales and revenue during a pandemic year through a tightly aligned, symbiotic partnership between Marketing & Operations.
Dubbed "Markerations", CJ Ramirez (CMO) and Raz Mahrouk (VP of Ops) of Dog Haus join Jen Kern and take listeners on a virtual journey into the inner-workings of the company's unique workplace and service culture.
The love is real! And it shows, not just on the inside but all the way to how food is prepared, partners are treated, and guests are cherished.
Top Takeaways:
- More brands from one kitchen - Dog Haus has been able to create, test, and launch 4-5 virtual brands out of one existing kitchen, repurposing their menu items and using delivery-only services.
- YoY Sales Growth - has increased, due to their adaptability and resourcefulness (not waiting to be perfect); plus extending (vs. shortening) operating hours during the pandemic.
- Markerations = Marketing + Operations is ONE team, vs. two. They meet 3x a week to collaborate, communicate, and ideate.
- 2020 was about data, not feelings. Let's make decisions based upon data. Aggregating all the data silos has been challenging, though. They have two Data Aggregators (Full-Time positions) on their Markerations Team.
- Customer are called "Fans" and it's not about loyalty and increased dollar spend per visit, it's about them coming back to Dog Haus for life. That's the brand promise.
- Gamification and new training tools - they're using 1Huddle for this and rave about it.
Resources:CJ Ramirez on LinkedIn Dog Haus in the News
The Absolute Brands Concepts:
- Badass Breakfast Burritos
- Bad Muther Clucker
- Plant B (vegan)
- Freiburger
- Huevos Dias
Quotables:
- "If we're not working as hard as we can for our franchisees, then we're not doing our job. We must look at their budgets as if it was ours, as if their dollars were our dollars."
- "Hustle is a pace that permeates our entire company. We're able to execute, motivate, analyze, correct, reimplement, etc. It's the natural cycle of marketing and advertising that we now call Markerations."
- "Everything for us is in knowing that if you come to our location and you love it, then you're going to come back. So, it's about delivering on the brand promise."
Scott Greenberg, franchisee expert, author, and speaker talks with Jenifer Kern, CMO at Qu and host of the Restaurants Reinvented podcast about his new book, The Wealthy Franchisee: Game-Changing Steps to Becoming a Thriving Franchisee Superstar.
Scott provides insights into the challenges franchisees face and what those mean for marketers. His perspective will help you get inside the mind and psyche of franchisees - what motivates them, how they view marketing, and what they expect from their franchisors and corporate marketing teams.
He’s also passionate about customer experience and customer service as a critical marketing tool -- and it shows. Scott examines the emotional aspect of the customer experience and the joint responsibility of marketers & franchisee’s to communicate effectively, persuade, and work together to improve the experience while maximizing ROI.
Where to Find Scott: LinkedIn
Company: The NEXT-LEVEL Business
Rev Ciancio, a digital hospitality and customer marketing expert, covers the crucial components of the customer journey/sales funnel and how to drive more frequency, revenue, and retention.
Passionate about “awareness, acquisition & retention marketing” -- Rev and Jen explore the increasingly important concepts of Revenue Marketing, the Sales Funnel & Customer Journey, Search Optimization, Digital Table Touches & Guest Feedback.
Key Takeaways:
- Reverse Engineer the Funnel: Top of the Funnel (TOFU) awareness marketing does not drive revenue, according to Rev. Restaurant marketers need to start at the Bottom of the Funnel (BOFU) to understand what’s converting customers.
- SEO & Search Optimization - brands need to own Search with unbranded keywords relevant to their menu and products. (2 out of 3 searches are unbranded).
- Single Menu Management drives improved efficiencies for managing SEO and Search.
- Digital Table Touches - are key to retaining customers and getting feedback. Operators are overlooking this valuable step in the customer journey (esp w/delivery orders) and losing revenue if not asking for feedback from each and every guest.
- Redefine Loyalty by “Frequency” and “surprise and delight” - not points.
- Improve New Customer Retention - with 7-touch email onboarding flows.
Resources:
Company: Branded Strategic HospitalityWhere to Find Rev: LinkedIn | Instagram
On this episode, Jodie Conrad, CMO talks candidly about how she's boosted the chain’s off-premise dining initiatives in the midst of the pandemic — and how Speed, Value, and Cleanliness have saved the day for the brand. In 2020 overall they are up 7% over 2020 sales!
With experience working at Wendy, Coca-Cola, Rax Roast Beef Restaurants, and The Pillsbury Company, Jodie is well positioned to help the brand thrive in difficult times.
Episode Highlights:
Off-Prem Focus: Drive-Thru optimization (with free breadsticks!), building an online ordering system, mobile app, loyalty program and partnerships with delivery platforms.
Largest Traffic Source: Drive-thru has been their workhorse and Jodie's doing creative things to optimize it further for guest experiences and revenue. The results are clear as they're experiencing 7% growth over 2020.
Unique Brand Niche: Fazoli's is a hybrid fast-casual/QSR serving hearty Italian meals at a very value-driven price point; and fast -- making it the perfect pandemic panacea!
Guests Want to SEE You Cleaning: Before COVID, cleaning was something you did behind the scenes, now guests want to see you actively cleaning as much as possible.
Social Media: It's more about engaging on social; not just posting; and responding to all the positive and negative comments.
Resources:
Jodie on LinkedIn
Fazoli's website
On this episode of Restaurants Reinvented, Scott Hudler of Torchy's Tacos dives into how he's growing the brand—embracing the “damn good” promise across the product, customer experience, and marketing—and by creating a new category called “Craft Casual” for the unique concept.
Torchy's just announced new investors and plans to double growth by 2024. No doubt that Scott will get them there.
Top Takeaways:
1 - Executing on the Brand Promise: Be Damn Good at Everything, from the food to the customer experience, marketing, and community involvement. Rather than focusing on fast food, Torchy's focuses on "Craft Casual."
2 - Smart Pandemic Strategies: They created popular “Margarita Packs” to-go, rolled out curbside and formed a coalition of restaurants in Austin dubbed “Come and Take Out,” helping many local restaurants stay open during the difficult time.
3 - Continually Improving the Experience: To provide a “damn good experience” Scott is looking into Order-at-Table technology, using text messaging to pay for orders, and other more efficient ways to constantly improve the order experience. His first priority is to make online ordering better.
4 - Getting to 360 View of the Guest: When it comes to data and personalization he admits that “we can do better.” His goal is to get to the full 360 view of the guest.
5 - Non-Traditional Marketing Approaches: Torchy's Tacos does not spend money on advertising or engage in traditional “loyalty” programs. In fact, he does not believe in discounting at Torchy’s.
6 - Memorable & Successful Campaigns: The "Tacos/Queso" 2020 political spin-off was a huge hit and garnered tons of engagement; as well as the Valentines “Salty Singles Day” where people could torch their ex’s stuff!
Resources:
- Torchy's Tacos website
- Scott on LinkedIn
- Press release on doubling growth
Featured Taco Series Brands & Speakers:
- Chipotle - Jonathon Relkin - #4
- Del Taco - Erin Levzow - #2
- Fuzzy's Tacos - Laura Purser - #1
We need to get beyond "coupon crack" as Kelly calls it, and move to a Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) mindset in restaurant marketing.
On this episode of Restaurants Reinvented, Kelly explains the most effective way marketers can collect useful data, how to sell directly to your consumers, the true meaning of loyalty, and more tips for meeting consumers where they are today.
Top Takeaways:
- Test & Learn - now is the best time for marketers to test and learn from customers. Customers are more forgiving right now.
- Get Inside the 4 Walls - marketers must go onsite to see what's happening in their local markets.
- Recent Stats: 50% of guests have returned to on-prem visits; and weekday spikes way outperform weekends in the pandemic.
- Lack of Trust in Data - why some CMOs and CEOs don't trust data, esp mobile attribution data, and how to validate that.
- The Psychology of TikTok - we break it down and talk about recent viral campaigns.
"My hope is that restaurant owners and operators open themselves up to agency and consulting partners, such as myself, in a much bigger way moving forward. Most of us have valuable experience both inside and outside of the industry that could prove beneficial as you look to grow and evolve. Now is a great time to test, build and bet on a promising future."
Resources:
- Flight and Flute website
- Black Box Intelligence weekly reports
- Kelly on LinkedIn
- Canlis in Seattle & "Canlis Pivots Again" news article
About Kelly:Based in Seattle, Kelly is an independent consultant who believes that the new agency model, is not an agency at all. It is about being a consultative leader, untied to media or agency overhead. It's about leading strategic thinking, informed by data and insights. It's about leading a collective and bringing in the right talent to meet the needs for each brand and their business challenge.
From category leaders such as ASU, Frito Lay, Target, Outback Steakhouse, Bar Louie, WTIA, Apprenti and more – marketers agree the time has come to think and act differently.
As a leader of strategy and development, Kelly is responsible for building award winning collectives in support of transforming some of the world’s leading brands. As a strategist with over 20 years of retail and merchandising DNA, she understands that the marketing dollar must first and foremost drive sales and support business needs. It is no longer brand for the sake of brand. The marketing dollar must at all times, add value.
Alan Magee loves working with turnaround brands, guiding them through digital transformation and paving the way for stronger growth and customer experiences.
“It’s a tough balancing act” he says. Digital is supposed to make things so much easier but that’s not always the case. Alan is in Year 3 of his implementing a turnaround strategy for Church’s Chicken, a global chicken-lovers brand.
He advocates for engaging smart digital people to manage and optimize the technology -- you can’t set it and forget it -- and to help with the change management process involved with new tech adoption.
Highlights from this episode include:
- Avoid being “data rich & insights poor” - Alan believes having 40% of truthful, real-time data is better than 30-day old data. More on our data discussion here.
- How to fend off dissatisfiers in an increasingly complex omni-channel world. Tech can only do so much to solve it. It’s about the people.
- Simplification and Storytelling - it all comes down to this to delivering on your promises and providing the best guest experience.
- The holy grail > personalized marketing’s role in brand loyalty - loyalty is a big umbrella, he defines it as a combination of the great experience and personalized approach.
- How to execute on both the emotional and functional side of Restaurant Marketing
- Aligning the triad (three-legged stool)of digital marketing, IT & Ops
- The importance of maintaining a community focus - he provides a great example of a drive-through graduation ceremony. Watch it on Instagram!
Del Taco created a new position for Erin Levzow: VP of Marketing Technology, and you’ll hear why on this episode. Erin’s fresh perspective includes challenging the status quo when it comes to everything from big data, RFPs, and personalization to loyalty and the real meaning of “no.”
An early digital marketing native, this tech-minded marketing executive brings years of experience in hotels -- and for leading restaurant brands like Wingstop and Freebirds -- to Del Taco where she’s focused on building a strong foundation for future growth and scale.
Highlights include:
- Erin’s refreshing and realistic expectations about restaurant technology, data, and digital maturity
- Building a strong foundation and tying together your data
- Her take on the future of loyalty & CRM, personalization and micro-segmentation
- Her approach to “always learning” in an ever changing digital world
- How she stays hyper-focused on the consumer
- “No” means she needs to find a better way … it never means no.
Featured Taco Series Brands & Speakers:
- Chipotle - Jonathon Relkin - #4
- Torchy's Tacos - Scott Hudler - #3
- Fuzzy's Tacos - Laura Purser - #1
The First Episode in our Taco Series!
Meet Laura Purser, the VP of Marketing behind the rapidly growing and super-fun Fuzzy’s Taco brand. Laura talks about all the ways the brand has pushed through the pandemic to overcome common off-prem obstacles, while opening 4 new locations and always seeking to stay relevant with the guest.
The vibe is real and fun inside a Fuzzy’s Taco Shop and Laura talks about how her biggest challenge now is delivering that same vibe home with the food. With 40% take-away and 60% dine-in, she expects the off-prem surge to continue and discusses how her brand is embracing technology and data to better serve guests.
Biggest takeaways :
- The value of being a “Value” brand. Value is King in a pandemic.
- How Fuzzy’s is evolving and maturing its curbside and take-out programs.
- Using data to better understand guests; and prioritizing digital + technology.
- Putting franchisees first and engaging communities with local store marketing.
- Getting back to the FUN in restaurant marketing - we all need more of this now!
- Being more comfortable with risk; letting your agencies push you harder.
Featured Taco Series Brands & Speakers:
- Chipotle - Jonathon Relkin - #4
- Torchy's Tacos - Scott Hudler - #3
- Del Taco - Erin Levzow - #2
From entry-level to executive status, Justin McCoy has been at Cousins for over 14 years. And that long-term tenure and consistency has helped the brand fare better than most during the pandemic.
Several years ago Justin, VP of Marketing, and his executive team prioritized technology investments and contactless ordering solutions (delivery, online ordering, loyalty, drive-thru). That combined with his team’s keen data-driven focus and media chops landed Cousins Subs back on plan in early June.
In this episode, Jen talks to Justin about the evolving Wisconsin-based brand menu and the three key strategies—beyond early tech investments—that set the brand apart from the start of the pandemic:
- Partnering with finance teams internally to project best, worst, and mid-case scenarios
- Embracing media and PR, flooding airwaves with info about where/how to order food.
- Deploying transparent communications daily, from one source, their President.
Hear more about how Justin stays on the cutting edge of the industry and how he’s continuing to drive incremental sales growth and guest frequency at this beloved Midwest brand.
- Connect with Justin on LinkedIn
- Cousins Subs
- White House Subs
He’s got red-hot Digital DNA and he’s bringing it to El Pollo Loco (EPL). Meet Andy Rebhun, the digital leader behind this growing brand.
Get a glimpse into how EPL is transforming on all digital fronts—from its differentiated loyalty and offers programs to data-driven personalized marketing, super fast curb-side rollout in under 6 weeks.
Ever heard of the Digital Flywheel? Find out what that means to EPL.
Andy got his start in the industry by earning his first MBA at Chipotle (Master Burrito Ambassador!) and then moved on to Kellogg’s School of Management for his second MBA. He cut his teeth in digital marketing at Ford and was one of the first hires on McDonald’s USA digital team. Now, at El Pollo Loco, he's setting the bar high for digital-first leadership and transformation.
Beyond his impressive resume, Andy is truly a passionate, visionary and humble leader working at a company that shares those same values.
“Remember, a brand doesn’t define you, Bosses define you. Bosses change your leadership style. Bosses elevate your thinking to the next level. Bosses bring the weather,” says Andy.
RESOURCES to Link at Bottom:
- EPL & Andy in the News
- Little Bets (the book): How breakthrough ideas emerge from small discoveries
- Digital Flywheel & Jim Collins
- Hispanic Heritage Month at EPL
- Bernard Acoca, EPL CEO on Tripling Digital Sales in 2020
Dive deep into the brain of one the industry’s leading tech wizards, Cody Jones, sr. product manager and tech mastermind at Qu.
Learn everything you need to know about the ghost & host kitchen phenomenon, how to simplify enterprise technology, and how modern tech can power stronger marketing.
Cody has taken Qu’s POS one step further, into the kitchen, as the wizard behind our new product, KitchenUP.
“Nobody wants 10 tablets, operators need more simple and resilient approaches.”
Cody is all for operators getting new concepts spun up faster, and with a shorter learning curve. Thus, he advocates for a one tablet and one menu approach.
From the benefits of new tech models to the future of co-bots & robots, Cody covers all the bases -- while advocating for the unbreakable bond between marketing & tech throughout the food experience.
Resources Quoted:
- Miso Robotics
- Spyce Kitchens
- ELO touch-less kiosk
- Host Kitchens, by Franklin Junction
- KitchenUP, by Qu.
Meet Angela Diffly, co-founder of the Restaurant Technology Network (RTN), the leading industry think-tank and peer share organization that’s pushing the industry forward—while bringing us all together—with technology standards and virtual workgroups.
In this episode, Angela and Jen dish about the explosion of RTN membership, the fusion of marketing and technology, the fate of the industry and what hope she sees in the future.
She cites many recent examples from brands that are leading the way in tech + marketing—who all pivoted quickly—and encourages marketers to embrace new technologies that spark creativity. Look at these campaigns and get inspiration for your own: Burger King TikTok Dance competition; It’s Just Wings virtual concept by Brinker, Chipotelanes; Dominos drone testing; Torchy’s Tacos Cinco De Maio campaign, Taco Bell’s trucker drive-thrus, The McMuffin RIP headstone and many others.
“It's important for technologists to work with marketers and vice versa, especially with new generations (which she calls “genzenialls”), because what used to work doesn't work anymore. You have to find more creative, out-of-the-box ways to capture your audience and bring them in,” she says—and show off your personality in more inventive ways.
RTN Resources:
- Off-Prem Playbook
- RFP Buyer’s Guide
- COVID Resources
- Coming soon: RTN’s Open API Framework
Jodi Boyce joined Teriyaki Madness 4 years ago as the EVP of Marketing. Since then, this irreverent and fun brand has experienced 3x growth and is still opening new locations through the pandemic.
Hear Jodi's secrets to success - from simplicity, value, and menu innovation to technology upgrades, data collection, and thriving on a limited budget. But paramount to her success is her sharp focus on "getting more bowls in people's hands" and driving franchisee profitability.
Jodi also shares how the brand's “Pay it Forward” promotion fed more than 6,000 healthcare workers and first responders while also reviving business.
Episode Highlights:
- Jodi's journey from behind the wheel of the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile to marketing positions for brands such as Quiznos, Einstein Bros. Bagels and Smashburger.
- How to be a successful marketer with a limited budget and why your preexisting tools can be just as effective as fancy new ones.
- Their Pay it Forward campaign in May and June "...got us back on track. We recovered completely … by the end of May, we rehired everyone [who got laid off] and our company, recovered everybody's cut pay. … It was just really rewarding.”
- How their early investment in third-party delivery (3 years ago) + the App has helped them through the pandemic. Plus, the addition of curbside delivery.
- How to keep menus both simple and profitable to ensure franchisee profitability.
- Jodi's take on LTOs, Family Meals, and Discounting.
- Advice to marketers: Keep it Simple - it's about getting food in people's mouths - be known for doing 1 or 2 things really well; don't be everything to everyone and don't fragment your message.
Andy Hooper, the President of &Pizza, talks about all the unique ways this iconic and beloved DC-based pizza brand builds loyalty & trust with their tribes, communities, and customers. Andy also talks about how they're accelerating their growth plans during the pandemic and doubling-down on digital.
As one of the first all-in restaurants to stand up text messaging, their "do the right thing" people-first philosophy is paying dividends, as evidenced by 600% increase in digital sales for some of their suburban pizza shops during the pandemic.
From promotions like Hero Pies to chanting for Bryce Harper to strike out - this is one brand going way above and beyond and “doing well by doing good.”
Key Status & Quotes:
- All-In on Texting: "During COVID our run rate for the number of text conversations has quintupled; and the number of new registered users coming into the top of the funnel has tripled versus the run rate pre-COVID."
- Small But Mighty: “We have about three and a half times the number of registered users per pizza shop than Chipotle … that are interacting with the brand in that digital sphere and we've seen that contribute to sales … suburban pizza shops like the one in Bethesda for example are seeing digital sales 600% higher than last year as a result of that.”
- Hero Pies: With the help of our community partners and sponsors, today we've provided over 75,000 Hero Pies for hospital workers,, and we’re closing in on $800,000 in donated value from the company out to the community. With Citibank’s contribution we did close to 20,000 pies … and with Jose Andres and World Central Kitchen we sent 4,000 pies in a day to a hospital in Harlem.
- Genius Bryce Harper promotion: Last fall when Bryce Harper returned to Washington DC for the final series ... We decided to create a flash sale where every time Bryce Harper struck out, you could text #You’reOut to our text line and we’d automatically kick-back a code for a $3 pizza. We got 3,000 text messages in 60 seconds and all of Nats' park was chanting, “we want pizza.” And then you imagine 17,000 fans all texting our text line at the same time.
Andy began his career with Burger King in the HR Department, then worked with Cafe Rio, before joining &pizza. Check out their website for new locations coming soon to northeast (NJ, NY) and well as southern VA.
Contact Andy on LinkedIN
For Brian Hipsher, being a “marketing outsider” served as an advantage. When he first started in the restaurant industry, his curiosity didn’t only help him get the job done — it helped him land the job in the first place.
“That's probably why I sounded so different because I didn't know, and I asked lots of questions. I was really curious and I knew I could figure things out if given the opportunity. I think I approached the business differently as a result of that,” says Brian, VP of Marketing for restaurant brands BIBIBOP and Charleys Philly Steaks.
In this episode of Restaurants Reinvented, Brian talks about building two very different brands — BIBIBOP, a fast casual Asian cuisine brand, and Charleys, a cheese-steak chain with almost 600 locations in 17 countries.
He also discusses forging ahead with new, customer-centric innovative campaigns, how marketing has changed since the pandemic, the 4 P’s (now 5 P’s) of marketing, and how he addresses marketing challenges.
“At the core, I think for both brands, there's a lot of care for the employees and care for the guests. And that's deeply, deeply rooted in Charley himself and his spiritual beliefs. That flows through the company and what the company cares about as well,” Brian says.
Hear how Dunkin’ is brewing its digital and delivery strategy during a global pandemic (hint: It's not a light roast) with the original off-prem diva, Brandy Blackwell.
Jen Kern talks with Brandy about her restaurant marketing journey—how she went from an early off-prem pioneer at a local tex-mex chain to driving delivery and key digital strategies at global coffee/breakfast icon.
Brandy explains how Dunkin’ is adapting its business model to fit the changing needs of customers during a global pandemic (more delivery and curbside options, better functionality on its app and a renewed focused on maintaining relationships with loyal customers) and dissects the numbers from its recent earnings call and Q2 performance.
After nearly tripling the number of delivery locations, adding curbside options, and improving app functionality—Dunkin' is not slowing down anytime soon with Brandy on board. From prioritizing team, culture, and franchise relationships to keen financial acumen and business grit, Brandy & Dunkin' are running full speed ahead.
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Resources:
Brandy on Twitter & LinkedIn
Dunkin' JOY Run
Dunkin' JOY on IG + Dog Toys
Tijuana Flats
McAlister’s Deli
The plan was for Donna Josephson to be a stay-at-home mom. But when Chick-fil-A recruited her for a grassroots marketing and training role that plan quickly dissipated. Now, five restaurant brands later, she’s the Chief Marketing Officer of Corner Bakery.
In this episode of Restaurants Reinvented, Jen Kern interviews Donna about her atypical entry into the industry, the lessons she’s learned about teamwork, and how Corner Bakery is adapting its business model to facilitate good customer experience during a pandemic.
Donna also explains the importance of marketing and operators/franchisees working closely together, while pushing for new ideas others might not think possible. She stresses the value of cross-functional teams and for marketers to embrace all aspects of the operation - from product R&D to interior design. Key Resources:
Donna on Twitter & LinkedInApplebee's Wendy's McAlisters's Deli Fazoli's
How this executive pastry chef, turned creamery expert, launched a CBD Vegan Ice Cream business during the pandemic. The Nashville-based entrepreneur, Lokelani Alabanza, discusses reinvention and finding her own identity by mixing nostalgia with her roots to create a new kind of ice cream legacy.
With inspiration from black-authored cookbooks, she shares her love of storytelling by weaving the past into the future through photos, recipes, and now pop-up tents selling out of her ice cream.
Key Links:
See article in Food 52 magazine
Chris Kimball’s Milk Street
Hattie Jane’s creamery
Saturated
In this episode, Jen talks with Jessica Smith, the Marketing Director at Groundwork Coffee LLC. Celebrating its 30th Anniversary, Groundwork is staying afloat during the pandemic by employing a multi-channel strategy that includes selling its organic coffees in grocery, e-commerce, many foodservice outlets, and in its cafes on the West Coast.
Jessica highlights her journey in the restaurant industry, which started in early childhood with lots of nostalgic experiences, at Veggie Grill, and up to her current role at Groundwork. She covers a variety of topics, including the importance of tying a company’s mission to its community, the excitement of brand refreshes and the spark of a DIY culture during the pandemic. Hear about special partnerships and innovations with Chemex and how they're staying entrenched in local communities with multiple give-back, training, and artistic initiatives.
Resources & Links:https://www.groundworkcoffee.com/
http://www.veggiegrill.com/
https://www.aryzta.com/
http://www.otisspunkmeyer.com/
https://www.labreabakery.com/
https://www.valassis.com/
Jen Kern talks with Steph Hoppe, a two-time CMO at Bar Louie and LYFE Kitchen who most recently served as 7-Eleven’s VP of Marketing. Steph outlines her path from dishwasher to Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) and all the stops in-between, sharing how she’s kept a focus on innovation and transformation for restaurant brands. Steph currently provides fractional CMO services for clients, helping them grow brand performance, engagement and revenue.
During this podcast episode, Jen Kern, the Chief Marketing Officer of Qu, talks with Rachel Layton. Rachel is the Vice President of Marketing and Growth at Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe. Taziki’s is a fast-casual, Mediterranean concept that has elevated your typical fast-casual experience by bringing food to your table, focusing on guest services and providing a “scratch kitchen” where over a hundred items are made from scratch each day. The conversation featured Rachel’s perspectives on handling the pandemic, how she views growth as a marketer and why diversity is important within the industry.
During this episode of Restaurants Reinvented, Jen Kern, the Chief Marketing Officer of Qu, chats with Mark Mears, the Interim CMO at Saladworks. The podcast draws from Mark’s lengthy experience in the restaurant industry, with leadership positions at the Cheesecake Factory, Pizza Hut and Noodles & Co. Mark discusses the importance of building teams that are aligned and where everyone is focused on the “North Star.” Mark also takes a deeper dive into some of the guest programs created to support people during the pandemic.
During this episode of Restaurants Reinvented, Jen Kern, the Chief Marketing Officer of Qu, chats with Matt Smith, the Chief Marketing Officer of The Madera Group. During the episode, Matt talks about his experience transitioning from agencies to an in-house marketing team. He dives into the innovative fast casual experience created with the various brands offered by the Madera Group and discusses the creativity involved with a lot of the efforts made by his marketing team.
As the former Head of Marketing at Halal Guys, Justin Bartek has a knack for helping emerging brands drive international growth and expansion. Now at Ramen-favorite JINYA Holdings, hear how he's building strong franchisee/operator relationships and designing creative marketing campaigns for JINYA's four different brand concepts. From working with influencers at the MMA to performing artists, Justin provides sound advice to marketers based on his many years of strategic and tactical marketing leadership.