BUSINESS: The Biggest Mistakes New Restaurateurs Make & How to Avoid Them
There are a number of reasons why 60% of restaurants fail in their first year, most of which can be bundled under being business decisions. New owners can avoid the most common mistakes by remembering they are atop the chain of command and need to prioritize running a healthy business by delegating most of the daily tasks. It’s true that owners and managers need to focus on the big picture and the smallest details, but they don’t need to be the ones to jump in and fix everything.
DID YOU KNOWS…
Banned for Being “Too Cheap”
Beer Beer (yes that’s the beer’s name) is brewed by Drummond Brewery in Alberta, Canada and is touted as “generic beer.” Even the beer’s label is about as plain as you can expect. And it sold well – 1.5 million cases in the first year. That’s until Beer Beer crossed the provincial border into Saskatchewan where the local government “illegally cheap.” A 12-beer case went for $10.80, about $2 less than competing beers. To offset the cheapness, Drummond Brewery raised prices but packed each case with $2 bills; alas, the liquor board didn’t approve. After a 45-day ban, Beer Beer is now just $0.60 cheaper than the likes of Labatt and Molson.
America’s OK with Gov’t Facial Recognition
About 60% of U.S. adults believe that it is acceptable for law enforcement to use facial recognition to assess security threats in public spaces. Despite a high level of acceptance for using biometric tracking tools for law enforcement, the American public remains largely skeptical of advertisers and employers adopting these tools, however. Over half of U.S. adults find it unacceptable for advertisers to track people’s response to ad displays using biometric technology -- but, sure, let the government track you. \_(ツ)_/‾
Are You About to Lose ESPN, ABC & Other Disney-Owned Channels?
There’s a good possibility that if you have an AT&T platform (DirecTV, U-Verse, etc.) that you might lose access to ESPN, ABC and other Disney-owned channels as early as tonight (though exactly when the current deal ends is unknown). The two sides are in the middle of negotiating a new carriage deal and it apparently isn’t going well. It’s gotten to the point where Disney is taking jabs at AT&T during some ad slots and in ticker news.
CAN YOU PLAN VIRAL MARKETING?
Why it matters to you: Getting something to go viral can be accomplished with good planning
Restaurant social media marketing goes viral for a variety of reasons, but according to this blog on Entrepreneur it can actually be planned. The author focuses on four factors that impact planning for viral marketing. It starts with identifying a group persona. This can be easy if you already attract folks to your restaurant thematically as sports-themed operators already do. Whether you are the local fan club spot for a specific team or just the best damn place to eat wings in town, you are at the center of a group that identifies with each other and wants to interact. But the commonality of the group alone won’t take you viral. You must also trigger emotions. When most of you read trigger you might think in terms of negative emotions, but your social can also trigger positive emotional valence as well. These emotions are what drive virality.
As an example, think of Popeye’s most recent viral chicken sandwich. Because it was a limited time offer (LTO) they triggered fear. Not a fear of threatened safety, but a fear of missing out (FOMO) due to scarcity. From there you need to create the content that will compel the emotional response you seek. This can only be done through a solid narrative punctuated by good visual. Video is a very successful way to get there, but quality design can also do the trick. Finally, there must also be some practical value if you are going to drive people to your restaurant. So, if your LTO is just not a good item, then you might go viral by creating an emotion like disdain and that’s not the winner you seek. No one is saying this is easy, but the author does say it’s an attainable goal if you include these elements and we think they’re on to something.
[Source: Entrepreneur]
BRINGING THE HEAT
Why it matters to you: Spicy cocktails is the trend you didn’t know you needed.
We rarely comment on flavor trends. They are nebulous and change so frequently, that it’s just not our thing. However, there is one new cocktail trend that we just can’t stop thinking about -- spicy cocktails. Great tasting food and beverage has always incorporated disparate tasting ingredients to create memorable flavors. Anyone that ever dipped a French fry in to a chocolate shake knows the joy of sweet and salty combined. These flavors don’t intuitively sound like they belong together, but the outcome is just plain glorious. Such is the case with the spicy cocktail.
Sweet and spicy (no that’s not the name of some new girl band) have always been a one of those disparate combinations, but it was reserved for foods. If you’ve ever had habanero barbecue sauce you know exactly the combination to which we refer. But, until recently this hadn’t spilled over into the beverage world. Let’s face it, there didn’t appear to be anything new under the sun when it came to simple cocktails, but with the advent of the spicy concoction that has all changed. So if you are looking to punch up your beverage menu don’t be afraid to add that unholy hot pepper or cool hot sauce you’ve been toying around. Hot is in and we think that a winner -- at least on the Scoville scale.
[Source: FSR Magazine]
