Food & Restaurant Marketing

1:31 Nutrition and context 2:43 Dietitians and nutritionists 4:22 Better for you - the claim 5:30 Food allergies and sensitivities (celiacs) 6:38 Labeling 7:25 Paleo 8:41 Trends at the NY Fancy Food Show 9:32 Nutrition as a trend driver 10:24 Superfood 11:40 Are we getting smarter? 13:11 Speed of the trend cycle 15:15 Panera and the perils of 'clean' food 18:51 Papa John's 20:15 GMO / Non-GMO 22:05 Gluten free 23:17 Organic 25:59 Free-from 27:20 Snacks Listen to Leah's ongoing podcast and radio show Ingles Information Aisle - http://inglesinfoaisle.com/

1:30 Experience and perspective 4:30 Authenticity 5:52 Culture 7:44 Marlow's Magic Book 8:34 Bringing values to life 9:40 Marlow's Tavern background 11:03 Unique locations 12:14 Hospitality is everything 14:38 Hiring for culture 16:33 Ops and management 18:03 Brand reflects reality 20:10 Service, the fork 21:28 Missing on culture 23:57 Leadership 24:51 One word 26:19 How to get culture right 28:10 Scaling culture

Dan and Adam look at the media's obsession with retails downward trend. Is retail dying? Probably not, but no question something's going to change. 0:32 Malls are dying 1:40 Luxury goods and tactile experience 2:30 Shopping & Guitar Center 4:30 Ideas for empty malls 7:02 Why is retail suffering? 7:50 We made it this far before mentioning Amazon. You're welcome. 9:12 Showrooming 10:20 Friction and customer experience 12:22 Service 14:49 Value and outlet malls 16:20 What brands are closing? 17:34 Delivery and experience 21:07 Louis Vuitton 22:57 Let's not talk omnichannel 24:05 Customer journey 25:02 Instagram worthy restaurants 27:10 Authenticity 28:31 We don't miss malls 29:05 Real estate selection

Authenticity has become a bit of a buzzword. But Zac Painter of Fatz Cafe joins us to talk about how the southern kitchen concept works to bring authenticity to life. :52 Introducing Zac Painter 2:33 Firehouse Subs 3:48 Working in restaurants 5:24 All about Fatz Cafe 7:15 The peach shed 7:50 The great recession and change 8:48 Understanding the founder's mission 10:31 Getting the menu right 12:45 Decor and attire 14:08 Music and atmosphere 15:10 Imagine Dragons (yup, really) 18:42 Experience curve 20:54 Multi-generational authenticity 22:43 Know how your guest uses you 25:21 Increasing value for the guest 26:43 Kid's menu 28:39 Autism Speaks 30:28 Non-profit programs and partnership See transcript for links and notes.

The media is obsessed with the death of television. Dan and Adam dive into the facts from Gfk MRI and discuss what's really going on, and why it's really important to restaurant brands. :20 New studio surrounds for F&RM :47 Pinterest 1:40 The demise of television according to the media 3:05 Cord cutting 4:07 Cord nevers 6:42 Gfk MRI report and stats 7:38 The media never over reacts 8:51 Apple TV, Roku, Netflix, Amazon, options 10:32 1 minute decline in viewership (Media Post) 11:36 Exponent podcast (Ben Thompson, James Allworth: Ben, how ARE you!) 12:26 Cord nevers 13:46 Streaming expands to Twitter, Facebook, beyond 14:05 Sports TV (My Jets are so bad) 16:36 Media buying and performance 18:05 Compelling programming 19:23 Google, Facebook and dominance in digital media revenue 20:54 Media 'waste' 23:16 Culture is changing 24:14 Retail is getting slaughtered 25:25 Inverse age aspiration and trends 27:11 Traditional institutions aren't safe 29:49 adam@foodandrestaurantmarketing.com, @FandRM

Fast casual salad concept MAD Greens is doing a lot of things right as they continue to grow. In this interesting conversation, Lucas Clarke joins us to talk about their approach to captivating customers. 0:50 Titles, Head Lettuce Juggler 1:29 Lucas Clarke 2:35 Adam loves MAD Greens, there I said it. 4:13 Palate and craving 6:35 Culinary and ops 8:15 Ingredient management 9:41 Suggestions from customers 10:43 Simplifying messages 12:24 Speed of service 15:03 Explaining the concept to new guests 16:02 The perils of customization 18:49 (Re)defining fast casual 21:45 LTOs and popularity 24:43 Culinary focus 25:49 Menu clarity 26:48 Waste 28:18 Paradox of choice 29:12 Ingredient trends 32:27 Marketing approach 37:00 We run out of tape See transcript for links and notes.

As part of our editorial series on the mobile app environment for restaurant brands of all sizes, Dan and Adam discuss the good, the bad and the beautiful about mobile apps. 1:35 Pros and Cons articles on F&RM.com 2:40 What is mobile? 4:35 Even laptops are mobile. 5:52 Brand responsibility 6:30 Thinly veiled Ruby Tuesday reference 6:56 Data collection and POS 9:07 Software integration 11:20 Adam is a human 12:02 Domino’s is setting the standard 14:49 The investment 15:44 Your app is your brand 16:49 Commit spend 19:27 Loyalty 21:34 Your app can hurt you 22.37 comScore: A lot of people don’t download apps 24:24 Does it have to be an app? 26:38 Built in behaviors 28:06 Hooked by Nir Eyal 28:36 Security 30:10 Your app is a product 34:19 Amazon and Apple are your app’s competitors See transcript for links and notes.

Earlier this season, Dan and Adam looked at the reasons why brands fail to extend into new markets. Now we discuss the flip side with a couple of Casual Dining brands that have launched new endeavors into the Fast Casual space and discuss which brands did it best: Denny's, Tony Roma's or Cracker Barrel. 0:49: Brand Extension 3:12: Casual Dining brands 3:34: Holler & Dash 5:52: Tony Roma’s 7:58: Treasure Island, no TI 09:08: The Den by Denny’s 11:25: Eegee’s 11:47: Wienerschnitzel 12:59: Differentiation 15:10: First Watch vs. IHOP 17:40: Brand relevance 20:05: Similar experience in Casual Dining 22:14: Hot Dog opportunity

Dan shares an ad campaign he's seen (a lot) for an LTO Starbucks Coffee featuring a price point typically used by QSR brands. Dan and Adam discuss and debate the direction of the brand and the state of their vaunted experience. Grab a cuppa and settle in for this one. 0:20: Starbucks 2:47: Breakfast battle 5:50: LTO 9:17: American Express Small Business Saturday 10:05: Is Starbucks mass? 11:25: Starbucks vs. McDonald’s 12:03: Real estate strategy 13:17: Quik Trip breakfast 14:57: Appetite appeal 15:45: Offer testing 17:27: Subway 20:46: Carl’s Jr. 22:15: Mass appeal 23:50: Gas station breakfast

The media simply won't stop reporting that Casual Dining is a dying breed. What does that mean for the people at the helm of those brands? Dan and Adam dig in to discuss the changing restaurant environment and ways that Casual Dining brands can fight and win their share of dining occasions. Have a seat and dig in. 00:30: The prediction of the demise of Casual Dining 01:42: Miller Pulse 02:01: Media spin 03:47: Define your competitor 04:24: The Great Recession 05:50: Innovation vs. Ziosk 07:70: LTOs 10:10: Oversaturation of restaurants 10:51: Cold Stone Creamery 11:50: Real estate strategy 13:12: Core menu 15:40: Offers 17:21: Measurable media and risk 19:18: Magic number 20:23: Brand awareness vs. offers 21:16: FSI danger 23:02: Taking price 24:18: Millennial segmentation 25:51: Geolocation layer 27:12: Experience

With the premiere of The Founder, the story of the humble beginnings of McDonald's, Dan and Adam wonder what makes a great brand story. If your customers were asked, would they be able to conjure a tale about your brand? If so, are you sure you'd want to hear it? 00:27: The Founder 02:20: All American Burger 02:53: McDonald’s history 05:07: Founder’s story mythology 05:11: Hewlett-Packard founding 05:40: Denny’s 07:20: Pei Wei Asian Diner 07:51: Shared brand knowledge 08:40: McCafe 10:44: Ruby Tuesday’s 11:39: Do people understand your brand? 11:59: Buffalo Wild Wings 13:20: Quizno’s, Subway and toasters 14:49: The Ringer’s excellent piece on Ray Kroc and McDonald’s 15:39: The 80’s. 16:35: McRib 18:30: Applebee’s 19:14: Social media intelligence and daypart pattern recognition 20:30: The Cheesecake Factory 21:45: Occasions 23:24: Chili’s changing menu 24:13: P.F. Chang’s 25:40: Media penetration 26:30: Martin Scorcese and Bobby Deniro

Today, consumers expect brands to be wherever they are online. And not just be there, but to be delivering amazing experiences at every touchpoint. What is considered table stakes and what is considered a leading edge digital restaurant brand? We look at examples of who's doing it well and what can be learned. Let's dive in! 1:10 Digital agencies 2:51 Email marketing 4:53 Death of reach in social media 6:52 Mobile first vs. dedicated apps 8:10 Denny's social community management 10:06 Where is the line? 11:10 Innovation for PR sake 14:02 App saturation 16:20 An app is a product that need support 19:30 Data vs. analytics 21:47 Campaign measurement and attribution 23:21 On premise digital experience (Ziosk) 25:22 The goal of digital for restaurants

If 2016 has taught us anything, it is that no brand is invulnerable to restaurant traffic cutting off at some point in time. Every brand faces change in different ways. What makes an unstoppable brand lose the flow of customers? And more importantly, what can head off those changes? Let's discuss! 1:19 Oversaturation 2:15 Quizno’s 3:10 Restaurant shakeout 4:12 Fine tune media plan 6:56 Catasrophe and domino effect 8:20 Domino’s 11:30 Understand core customer 13:10 Menu updates 16:30 Menu testing 17:52 Service and experience 20:20 Cleanliness

Every restaurant brand discounts to drive traffic or sales. We look at the ways consumers understand discounting and couponing and how they react to each. Hint: It's not always good. Dan Santy and Adam Pierno dive in to LTOs, FSIs, dayparting strategies and some behavioral economics. Ready to join us? Let's go. 02:10: Discounting cycle: 04:15: Traffic 05:07: Offers 07:03: QSR magic number offers 08:05: LTOs 10:12: Context 12:40: Penetration and attribution 14:35: Upsell 18:19: McRib 20:14: Frequency

Customers love free things. Or discounted things. Does that make restaurant loyalty programs contingent on giving freebies a great idea for every concept? Not necessarily. This week, Dan Santy and Adam Pierno look at the strategic work that goes into deciding on a program and compares brands doing it well, and not so well. 1:18 Fishbowl 3:59 Big data and the myth 6:02 Starbucks loyalty program 6:25 Removing friction 9:26 Red Robin Royalty 11:30 Chili’s Rewards 13:35 McDonald’s Loyalty? 15:03 QSR loyalty strategies and challenges 18:04 Cadence of reward redemption (Dunkin’ Donuts) 19:45 Cannibalization 21:47 Training

On this episode of the Food & Restaurant Marketing Podcast - we look at the pullback by Red Robin and Jamba Juice from problematic attempts at brand extensions and try to understand what went wrong. Of course, Dan and Adam examine some success stories and the challenges inside brands that lead to flawed decisions. 2:05 Jamba Juice cancels Jamba Go 5:02 Slush machines 5:31 Red Robin closes Burger Works 8:25 CEO and C-suite management team changes 12:15 Arby’s turnaround 12:35 Arby’s venison test 16:22 McDonald’s Create Your Taste kiosks 19:00 Subway LTOs 22:11 Subway toasts Quizno’s

This time on the Food & Restaurant Marketing Podcast, Dan Santy lays out the signs that another recession is upon us, and discusses with Adam Pierno how restaurants can plan and prepare to overcome the down market. Can restaurants thrive in a bear market? Let's dive in together. 1:15: Soft market 1:43: Stock market at 18,000 2:46: Downward trend in restaurant revenues 4:02: Consistent spend during recession 7:16: Menu audit 8:42: Sriracha 9:21: LTOs 15:29: Labor pressure 16:21: Staff training 18:20: Loyalty programs 18:56: Audience assessment

This time on the Food & Restaurant Marketing Podcast, Mr. Pierno and Mr. Santy investigate the ways that the improvements made in the grocery prepared offering have hurt restaurants and the four ways restaurants can fight back. With so much cost pressure on restaurants, how can they win this battle? We explore, join us. Commodity costs down: 7:01

How long is the long tail in CPG product innovation?

On this episode of the Food & Restaurant Marketing podcast, we have a lively discussion on the newest marketing moves at Chipotle putting much more focus on food safety in their trade and content marketing. Chipotle's troubles1:21 Scarecrow Video: 5:43 Kantar: 9:20 Chipotle's share price: 10:40 1990's Jack in the Box E. coli outbreak: 12:42 This American Life 569, Put A Bow On It: 13:11 loyalty program: 16:40 hamburgers, better burgers: 20:24 Sonoran hot dogs: 21:40