Tag Archives: Marketing and Advertising

May 22, 2015 · 11:57 am

Pretty Pictures Or Perfect Food?

It’s Foodie Friday and I’m shaking my head today.  No, not at the fact that we’re still walking around the Northeast wearing sweaters entering Memorial Day Weekend but at something I read about a “marketing” effort being made by the folks at Chili’s.  This from the AP:

Chili's Grill & Bar logo

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Chili’s says it’s spending about $750,000 a year for an egg wash that gives its burger buns a photogenic glaze. It’s part of an effort by the chain to get you to take pictures of its food and post them online.  In addition to using burger buns with an egg wash…the chain also recently started serving its fries in a stainless steel holder that “looks cool.” And ribs are no longer served in big slabs reminiscent of The Flintstones cartoons, but are cut into sections and stacked.

Hmm.  Why risk bad photos?  How about plastic food that’s perfect in each lobby?  Perhaps a little booth into which you can cart your burger and fries that’s perfectly lit?  Maybe the servers and bartenders need to be more photogenic while we’re at it. Even better – provide digital downloads via your free wi-fi so customers don’t risk getting their phones messy.  What’s that?  You don’t have free wi-fi?

This is not a great use of funds, but it’s also selfish.  This move is about Chili’s and not about their customers.  Chili’s wants to “go viral” with pretty pictures and good-looking food.  I wonder how viral really great food is.  Judging from what I pick up in my news feeds on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, great food gets posts (yes, I have a lot of foodie friends) and while some of the photos are lacking in composition or badly lit, I’d try anything my friends think is worth the calories.

In each of its past two fiscal years, sales at established Chili’s locations rose less than 1 percent.  Maybe better looking isn’t the answer.  I’m willing to bet better tasting, reasonably priced and served efficiently with a smile are ahead of it in line.  You know – that silly customer-focused stuff you’re ignoring in your quest for social traction.

What do you all think?

Leave a comment

Filed under digital media, food, Huh?

Tagged as , , , , , ,

May 18, 2015 · 10:05 am

Predicting The Unpredictable

You might be starting your work week pondering what new opportunities will present themselves. Then again, you might just as likely be sitting at your desk dreading those very same opportunities. For many folks, seeing and being ready for what’s just over the horizon is absolutely the hardest, most gut-wrenching part of their jobs. It certainly was for me and remains so as I work with clients on their behalf.

Part of what we probably ought to be doing is not thinking so much about what the next hot new platform is going to be and spending a lot more time on controlling the things we can.  Your immediate response might be “sure, all two of them” but there actually is quite a lot which can help mitigate the unpredictability of business these days. All we’re really trying to do is to change “predict” to “anticipate.”

We can anticipate a good customer’s birthday (assuming we’ve taken the time to gather that data) just as easily as we can anticipate them appearing in our place of business based on past behavior.  We can use that knowledge to send them a coupon or tweet birthday wishes to them.  I’m still surprised how few businesses listen to all of the social streams and attempt to cull knowledge from what they’re hearing.  The old-school megaphone mentality is still pervasive.  Most of us in marketing need to listen more, speak less, and react more quickly to what we’re hearing.  This isn’t so much predicting as it is reacting but unless you’ve taken the time to set up the processes and people required to be proactive (thereby predicting the need!), you’ll fail.

Here is my prediction.  The pace of change is going to continue to accelerate.  We see disruption in once unthinkable ways (the impending changes in the TV landscape, for one and the huge shift to mobile from the desktop for another).  Many of us will have meetings about the future and write “long-range” plans as we do our budgets.  Much of that is unnecessary.  Business has become more like driving a foggy road – you can only see so far out.    Pay attention to what’s visible with your past experience telling you what’s still hidden in the fog.  it will become clear eventually as long as you stay on the road.

 

Leave a comment

Filed under Consulting, Thinking Aloud

Tagged as , , , ,

May 15, 2015 · 9:34 am

Tweetza!

Our Foodie Friday Fun ventures into pizza today. You might have read or heard that Dominos has made it possible to order a pizza via Twitter. That’s right – no more picking up the phone and dialing. Now it’s just pick up the phone and tweet out an order. If you’re a regular, all you might have to do is send out a pizza emoji. According to this piece in USA Today, Domino’s Twitter ordering system will make it the “first major player in the restaurant industry to use Twitter, on an ongoing basis, to place and complete an order.”

Русский: Коробки для пиццы.

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

You can laugh or shrug your shoulders, but this is important.  First, Domino’s focus is squarely on convenience for their customers.  One hears the word “frictionless” a lot when technology is being described and this is the epitome of making it easy for your customers to buy your product.  This isn’t new for Domino’s either. The company has invested tens of millions of dollars in technology and now employs more than 250 IT staff. A big part of what they do: trying to make it easier for consumers to order pizza.  It’s not just Twitter – they have ordering capabilities for a bunch of devices, including smart televisions and smart watches.

It may also be a seminal moment in social commerce.  Twitter, Facebook, and other social platforms have been trying to figure out inoffensive and profitable ways to integrate commerce into social media.  While it’s not happening yet, one can easily see Twitter demanding a slice of the pie (see what I did there?)  from each order placed via their platform.

Most of what I like about this is that Domino’s is making the technology work for them and for their customers.  They’re not threatened by disruption – they’re embracing it.  No more Yellow Pages for listings?  No Blockbuster to partner with for dinner and a movie?  Move on.  As the USA Today article concludes:

Doyle says that Domino’s will continue to look at platforms “where people are spending time” such as Facebook and Instagram. “This certainly will not be our last platform.”

That’s their (smart) approach.  What’s yours?

Leave a comment

Filed under digital media, food

Tagged as , , , , , , , ,