Monday, December 20, 2010

A Perfect Idea – Social Media and Restaurants

Restaurant consulting company, The Next Idea, looks at Social Media and the connection to the rising popularity of the humble mobile food truck.

Mobile truck growth, while very much in its infancy is massive, and arguably its success has been founded on the clever use of Social Media.

We recently learned of some research by Citibank which illustrated that social media has yet to penetrate the small business world, finding that 76% of the 500 organizations surveyed have not found social media useful in generating business. Maria Veltre, Executive Vice President of Citi’s Small Business Segment was quoted to say: “Our survey suggests that small business owners are still feeling their way into social media, particularly when it comes to using these tools to grow their businesses.”

That may be true, however all that tells us is that this new phenomonem is still only understood by a small minority, but has the potential to grow to levels that really are not yet imaginable.

One emerging industry that has demonstrated the power of social media is of course the Mobile Truck business. While, still in an embryonic stage, mobile trucks have proven the power of leveraging social media, and are reaping rewards:

Take Kogi BBQ, a mobile Korean BBQ trust that travels around Los Angeles selling Korean tacos. They’ve built up an impressive 45,000 follower base on Twitter by simply tweeting where their truck is going to appear next. The company also recently ran a crowdsourced t-shirt competition, with fans voting on their favorite t-shirt design.

The story behind Kogi BBQ is decidedly home-grown, showing that with a personality and a good product you can build up a loyal community. The now-famous taco truck has almost reached cult status and is an excellent ‘how-to’ social media model for any business who wants to get involved with Twitter.

Kogi has basically proved that social media works - Mobile food trucks are not considered the edge of food innovation – yet a branded mobile food truck that tweets around the City of Angels has enough cache to generate interest and the social media component adds sought after street credibility.

We should never forget the 3 golden most powerful sales drivers in marketing:

  • Free
  • Limited availability
  • Sex

Indeed the most powerful promotion available would be:

Free sex available today only!

Social media plays its part here - the big advantage for restaurants using social media is its immediacy – it deals with now, therefore if used correctly it can generate some major psychological turn ons:

1. Suspense – what will my restaurant do today

2. Must have now factor – by announcing limited time offers restaurants can generate immediate demand

3. Cool factor – does anyone read direct mail anymore – restaurants need to be embracing change and the modern world,

4. Tell your friends – provides customers with the ability to be a pack leader by being the source of good news

So points 1 – 4 above take care of price and immediacy – but what about the sex?

Well social media is basically that – social. Indeed almost all of the large media sites, including leaders – Facebook and My Space, asks members to list relationship status, therefore the potential is somewhat exacerbated.

Indeed there is even a site called: http://www.sexysocialmedia.com/

However Social media has even broader powers - The ability to electronically communicate with a large audience based on the exponential reach of ones network built upon your friend’s network and their friend’s network and so on provides those active online a unique opportunity to quickly if not immediately reach others that would have been out of reach only a couple years ago. But the real beauty that no-one really likes to mention is – ITS CHEAP!

Yes, its certainly true that there are marketing agencies charging an arm and a leg for their ‘knowledge’ of social media, and their ‘sophisticated’ media models, but truthfully – do you think Kogi has employed them? With a clear strategy, and a solid understanding of building an engaged social media network, operators can do this themselves, reducing huge direct mail costs, while helping the environment, and redeploying hard earned marketing funds too.

In summary –

The success of social networks marks a dynamic shift in how people are using the Internet. We’ve evolved from just searching for information to creating and participating in social spaces with other individuals through the Internet. This model is based upon the hive mentality where people identify themselves as part of a group with similar likes and interests that draw them together. This is easy to do online because the traditional communication barriers of physical locations no longer exist.

Social networks make viral marketing and word-of-mouth marketing much easier than before. The best use out of social networks does not have to be making money ‘directly’, but to harness their marketing potential and to use them to promote a brand. Essentially this is the primary strategy that will generate interest in any restaurant, and provide the restaurant with the best platform to talk to its customers.

Article written by Robert Ancill, CEO of The Next Idea, Restaurant consultants, visit: www.thenextidea.net.

Friday, December 17, 2010

5 Things to Know Before You Start Your Mobile Food Business

The mobile food business is booming. Not a day goes by without hearing about another success story. Kogi BBQ, Coolhaus, and the Grilled Cheese Truck, are all part of this great success story emerging from our recession.

In fact, one would ask – why wouldn’t you want to do this – you pick your location on an hour by hour basis, no landlords to deal with, hours are whatever suits you, and the cost structure is substantially lower than a bricks and mortar location. However, it really is not that simple, and a number of factors must be considered before embarking on this business.

Here are just a few:

1. Estimate your start up costs and decide if you can afford the initial investment in this business. The main things you need are a reliable vehicle, licenses and insurance. Inventory and personnel can be purchased day-by-day with profits.

2. Survey the competition to find out what concepts are already available in your area. Identify the gaps where your business could possibly profit. Look for ways to provide better or different food options, - differentiation is everything in this business and ‘Cool’ is in, so creating a burger truck may not be as successful as launching a mobile noodle truck.

3. Mundane things like insurance and health and safety still apply. In addition to the insurance for the vehicle you use, you must have insurance that protects you from lawsuits that customers could file. Your state may also require additional insurance. Don’t forget, your liability has actually expanded, as you are now a mobile vehicle, transporting food, therefore employee training in OSHA and general safety practices are of paramount importance.

4. Learn the basics of food safety and food preparation. Check your Department of Health, the library and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for updated laws and restrictions that may apply. The same rules apply – food must be handled safely, therefore power management, wash up facilities and equipment maintenance is essential in this business.

5. A location strategy is required before you embark on the truck business. Ensure you know the area you plan to serve, and ensure that there is adequate parking facilities (that are legal), that meets with your location requirements. This business needs high traffic locations, therefore try to do deals with shopping centers, sports centers etc, who will allow you to use their parking facilities.

Robert Ancill is CEO of international restaurant and food consulting group, The Next Idea (www.thenextidea.net).

Robert was educated in Glasgow, United Kingdom. His career spans over 24 years in the Restaurant, Retail & Leisure Industries, with a solid background in international restaurant concept & brand development, restaurant/cafe operations, management,, launching new businesses, and managing change.

The Next Idea is one of the US’s most innovative restaurant consulting groups, with specialization in concept development, branding, product and menu development and differentiation. It works with clients across the globe including: USA, Dubai (UAE), China, UK, Europe and India.