Inside Hospitality

Restaurant Marketing Video Fun – Daily Tip for Tuesday August 31st.

Posted on 31. Aug, 2010 by Guest Blogger in Daily Tip, Inside Hospitality

By Guest Blogger Michael Hartzell

Did you watch the video? It is only 2 minutes long. Have you ever created a video? Has your restaurant consultant told you to do a video? Does it seem too hard? Do you want to share your video on YouTube with a title of your restaurant to get found online? Do you know how to upload the video to many video hosting sites at once? You can sign up at www.animotomarketing.com to create a free video.

The video that you see was made with the business version which has more options for background, removal of their logo, can be longer than 30 seconds, has speed variables, and most importantly can have a link at the end to make an invitation to click.

Since we last talked about using celebrations as a focus to make the day of those visiting your restaurant, I just couldn’t help myself. I had to make a video. This is a true story as I was called and told to be ready this last week and dragged away for lunch. (It was a pleasant drag,)

I will not tell you that putting a banner up is a marketing plan, but it helps. I will not tell you that having an extended “new management special” at deep discounts is a marketing plan, but it can make people look twice. I will not propose having office supply store giant letters for a phone number in the window to be a marketing plan, but there is no missing the number. The exterior of this little store front is screaming: “Here I am and I want your business.”

California Monster Sushi is now on my recommended list for all to try. This restaurant owner reached out and introduced himself with a handshake and asked “What brought you in?” along with a happy birthday candle unique to his business and then trumped it with Panda Bear oranges for the kids. Not to be outdone, the server wrote a big Happy Birthday note at the end of the hand written check. This restaurant does not try to be glamorous. It is a very comfortable, warm, friendly place which could easily be the reverse since it is in a strip mall. I believe this family business which has been open for only two months will get a reputation quickly both online and offline. Not because they use social media but because they treat people as if they are “family, friend or royalty.” I am thinking there are a few others who are having birthdays soon. I will certainly want to take them to lunch at the California Monster Sushi Restaurant in Kent, WA.

This is NOT a commercial for this restaurant. I share this as an example to give you a piece of reality. I will be inviting others to lunch at this restaurant. Why do people invite others to your restaurant?

Are you thinking about making a video? www.animotomarketing.com

Are you thinking about uploading the video to ten other video sharing sites at once? www.tubemogul.com

Whether you want to live in the past and do it the old fashioned way by hand without special software or if you want to speed up your life with the latest and greatest tools, you need to celebrate more.

Next week I want to chat about: How Much Does it Cost to Blog for Restaurant Marketing? My Inbound Marketing hat will go on. Stay tuned.

Google: “California Monster Sushi Birthday” and see if the video is not already on the first page of Google. I know it is here . . . But Google is now different from location to location.

Michael Hartzell – Inbound Marketing Certified Professional, entrepreneur, writer, speaker, restaurant marketing coach. Co-Author of “The Reality of ROI & Social Media Marketing”. Member of the American Marketing Association. Read more at www.michaelhartzell.com/restaurant-marketing

All Nightclubs Are Not Created Equal. Introducing @PalaceChicago

Posted on 30. Aug, 2010 by Gary Tripp in Daily Tip, Inside Hospitality

We’re pretty excited to be a part of the most exciting thing to happen to Chicago nightlife scene in a long time. More information on our involvement will be posted and make public soon.

Join the Palace Nightclub fan page by clicking here!

Follow up on Twitter @PalaceChicago

Branding & Design That Doesn’t Suck. Meet Our New Partner- Crawler Promotions.

Posted on 18. Aug, 2010 by Gary Tripp in Inside Hospitality, Marketing

Inside Hospitality, LLC. is excited to officially announce a formal partnership with Chicago based Crawler Promotions. These guys do an incredible job and really understand the market, we look forward to partnering with them on many upcoming projects.

Crawler Promotions is an online and mobile strategist company that enhances a companies brand online while creating an expertise in your field. We handle all online marketing and mobile promotions for companies and organizations, especially in the bar, club and restaurant industry. We specialize in both design and development of social sites, mobile applications development and print promotional work.

We Handle:

Social Media Profile Design and Development
Mobile Application Design and Development
Website Development that includes strategic SEO and social profile integration
Promotional Design Work: Business Cards, Menus, Promo Cards, Event Flyers, & Posters

Visit Crawler Promotions by clicking here!

Choosing A Mystery Shopping Partner Isn’t Difficult. – Daily Tip for Friday Aug. 6th.

Posted on 06. Aug, 2010 by Inside Hospitality in Daily Tip, Inside Hospitality

Today’s Tip: Don’t fret. It isn’t that difficult to choose a mystery shopping company.

One of our favorite topics to discuss is mystery shopping. A few years ago we started Inside Hospitality as a restaurant, bar & hotel focused mystery shopping company. Over the years we have diversified into many different aspects of guest experience measurement and have led the industry with some pretty incredible and innovative solutions.

We feel that mystery shopping is one of the most basic and essential elements any operation can utilize to measure elements of the guest experience. Do a Google search for “restaurant mystery shopping” and you will find thousands upon thousands of service providers.

There is nothing wrong with the majority of the mystery shopping companies operating today, except for the fact that they are not hospitality focused. Many companies that evaluate restaurants and bars also evaluate car washes, dollar stores and grocery stores.

Is that who you want evaluating your systems and procedures, a company that also works with gas stations? We didn’t think so. Why would you?

Mystery shopping companies are only as good as their leadership and industry knowledge. Our Mystery Shopping programs have a presence in all 50 states and on all 7 continents.

Bottom line, if you are currently using or thinking of using a mystery shopping/secret shopping/spotter company (whatever you want to call it) you and your business owe it to yourself to talk with us first. The hospitality sector is ALL we do.

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Today’s tip is brought to you by Inside Hospitality™, a comprehensive and innovative guest experience management and measurement company whose integrated suite of hospitality business solutions from restaurant focused mystery shopping to online reputation management achieves tangible results in the marketplace and is the choice for restaurant and hotels worldwide.

Contact us today and learn how Inside Hospitality™ can create a custom solution for your organization. We can be reached anytime @ (888) 260- 0380.

Click the “RingMe” button and we’ll call you back within 1 minute.

Next in line: Young restauranteurs in St. Louis

Posted on 27. Jul, 2010 by Inside Hospitality in Industry News, Inside Hospitality

Running some of St. Louis’ most popular restaurants.

When you are running a restaurant, you truly participate in every role from chef to cleaning staff. Learn how seven restauranteurs are running their restaurants and why they think St. Louis is a great town to set up shop. We interview these young professionals who are ready to take on the family business, run the restaurant from the kitchen and others who started the business from scratch.

Read full article from St. Louis Metromix by clicking here!

Introducing our latest Guest Experience Measurement Solution | ClubAudit.com™

Posted on 25. Jul, 2010 by Inside Hospitality in Industry News, Inside Hospitality

One size fits all solutions don’t work. Every segment in the hospitality industry deserves it’s own solution. Our club solution is ClubAudit™

We are excited to officially announce today our latest guest experience measurement solution, ClubAudit™.

ClubAudit™, the industries first and only club focused mystery shopping guest feedback measurement program.

ClubAudit™, our industry-leading evaluators focus on the most important elements of your business – service, entertainment and cost control. Our reports are threefold; they ensure that your guests are being treated well, that they are entertained, and that your staff isn’t stealing money.

Truly outstanding guest service, hospitality and bartender integrity are keys to success in any bar. Using ClubAudit™ is the unique way to measure the guest experience, drink pouring, cash handling, suggestive selling and of course, ringing of all drinks and bartender ethics.

Click here to learn more about ClubAudit.com™

More GuestPulse Social Media Monitoring Reviews

Posted on 22. Jul, 2010 by Gary Tripp in Inside Hospitality, Online Reputation Management (ORM)

“Guest Pulse’s service is simple: it helps you monitor your online reputation by emailing you the most recently posted reviews and mentions of your restaurant (at Citysearch, Google Maps, Tripadvisor, etc.).

The sign up procedure is quick, easy and user-friendly. No CC required. Just enter your business’s name and verify your contact info and a few details. Once this is complete, Guest Pulse begins sending you the emails.”

Read complete review at Guestengage by clicking here!

and get your own 30 day free trial of GuestPulse by clicking the image below.

Restaurant Marketing is Inbound Marketing – Daily Tip for Monday July 19th.

Posted on 19. Jul, 2010 by Guest Blogger in Daily Tip, Inside Hospitality, Marketing, Operations

Post by guest blogger Michael Hartzell

Restaurant Marketing is Inbound Marketing

OR should I say instead: Inbound Marketing is Restaurant Marketing?

To train a restaurant owner or manager how to be the best inbound marketer on the planet, I believe you put a manager in a marginal restaurant with low sales and tell them: “You have $50 a month marketing budget, low staff, bad operations and sales are down. Turn it around yesterday.”

Yes. This is a part of my past. More than once. More than twice. In fact… let me count – - - Too many to remember.

Inbound marketing in my mind starts a bit like this:

Ignasius wakes up in the morning. He is already hungry. It is in fact part of the human condition that he must eat to stay comfortable through the day. You could say that he is … well, addicted to food. In other words, he will not go a day without taking action to reduce his personal craving. Ignasius woke up this very morning and as usual he is already pining for a double tall latte with just a bit of sugar.

Will he have time to make a latte for himself? Is he feeling up to it? Of course he knows that caffeine alone will not be enough and he must also have something called breakfast. Soon after that there will be lunch and how lucky is Ignasius, because he gets to have dinner just a few hours after that!

Food stays at the edge of his mind all day long. It is part of his passion. Eat or die.

Now comes the best part. A restaurant serves food. Restaurant owners have a ready and willing audience. There is already a top of mind passion and need in place. This is what Inbound Marketing is about. Finding a passionate audience already looking to fill their needs and wants.

Ignasius might ask during the day about 15 minutes before lunch, “Hey, do you know any good barbecue restaurants around here?” Someone will refer Ignasius to a location they feel will not only meet his need but also a place they can proudly show off. (They know the best place to go, after all.)

For Inbound Marketing, someone will type their passion or interest into the Google search box online. They already know what they are interested in. The world is a giant database. GoogleFriend (my new name for Google by the way) refers the searcher to the point of interest. (Along with a million options.)

Inbound marketing is about getting found at the right time by the person searching. A website can get found by having links to a website or a referral via email, Facebook or Twitter.

Restaurant marketing is about getting found at the right time by the person who is hungry and has a pang for a specific flavor. A restaurant can get found by having a referral which could also be in the form of a link on Facebook, email or Twitter.

Inbound marketing is about “converting”. The person coming to a website page must be impressed, have trust, find it easy to use, and definitely believe there is value.

Restaurant marketing relies on every aspect of what a visitor sees online and offline. Even the flowers that die, the broken tiles, the dark exterior, the smelly bathrooms, the 20 year old menu can add up to, “We heard good things but let’s go across the street. That restaurant looks better.”

Inbound marketing is about measuring results and eliminating the bad while doing more of what makes people glad. Measuring Inbound Marketing can be done with Hubspot software (I’m Hubspot Certified so I had to mention it) or a variety of other tools such as Google Analytics.

Restaurant marketing is about measuring results and eliminating the bad while doing more of what makes people glad. GuestPulse is not the only tool Inside Hospitality provides. Every business will have its own Point of Sale computer system that breaks down every aspect into measurements. What were people interested in?

When restaurant owners hears about “social media” and the various tools, they should shout with glee. Social media tools are key to Inbound Marketing. If the purpose is to “get found”, “convert” and “measure results” and social media tools help to make this happen more quickly, then why the heck wouldn’t a restaurant owner say, “I am going to Vegas!”

If you could double your marketing speed and reduce the time to test and measure by half, would you take the time to learn how? That is your next move: “Learn how to leverage the social media tools to my best advantage.” (I hear there is a Restaurant & Hospitality Social Media BootCamp in Las Vegas)

Will you think about how to listen better and connect better?

I hope so. Ignasius wants to eat at your restaurant but he does not know where you are or what you serve. The buzz has not yet reached his ears. Don’t worry. There are thousands of other restaurants that will take care of Ignasius. You keep working hard and maybe he will find you. Maybe.

P.S.

Remember last week? All about HTFCSM Labeling?

See the snapshots below. Notice how people will talk. You don’t even know they are. Sure, you can save time and have everything delivered to your inbox. www.guestpulse.com (free trial)

PPSS

I know. It sounds a bit like a commercial doesn’t it? Sorry.

I have learned bucket loads over the years. It starts with a spark. These came from events, workshops, college classes and people on the street in the community. There was one common rule for the best ideas: “Go outside the normal path.” Restaurant ownership can make a person feel trapped (and indispensable.) At least twice a year, go where you can get fresh thoughts and think about the path you are on. You will double business just as I have.

Michael Hartzell –, Inbound Marketing Certified Professional, entrepreneur, writer, speaker, restaurant marketing coach. Member of the American Marketing. Read more at www.michaelhartzell.com/restaurant-marketing

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Contact us today and learn how Inside Hospitality™ can create a custom solution for your organization. We can be reached anytime @ (888) 260- 0380.

Click the “RingMe” button and we’ll call you back within 1 minute.

More GuestPulse™ Client Testimonials

Posted on 17. Jul, 2010 by Inside Hospitality in Inside Hospitality, Online Reputation Management (ORM)

“GuestPulse™ allows us to communicate with our customers at a whole new level. Collecting and aggregating “mentions” of our restaurants had always been time-consuming and inconclusive. GuestPulse™ gives us the ability to listen to what our customers are saying about our restaurants, see what our competition is doing and allows us the ability to engage customers easily and efficiently with software that is easy to use and comprehensive. If you’re serious about knowing what your customers are saying about your business on the web, GuestPulse™ is an easy, inexpensive tool that you cannot live without.”

— Andrew – Social Media Manager Ark Restaurants

There is a easier, better & more cost effective way to manage your online reputation. That’s with GuestPulse™. Don’t take our word for it, signup for a free 30 day (no credit card required) trial by visiting www.GuestPulse.com

OpenMenu – Welcome to the team.

Posted on 14. Jul, 2010 by Inside Hospitality in Industry News, Inside Hospitality, Operations

We are consistently on the lookout for solutions that we can pass along to our Clients that solves a real world need. We have been following the work of OpenMenu for several months and really love these folks are doing. The Open Menu solution is both genius and desperately needed in our industry.

Inside Hospitality is excited to welcome them as a strategic partner.

One menu to maintain, in one location, shared everywhere.

Open Menu has created a standard that will change the way restaurants store and share their menus over the internet by standardizing the menus’ structure and format.

By providing a single, controlled specification for restaurant menus Open Menu™ will ensure that restaurant menus can be easily shared and used by others. From Restaurant Locators based on a menu items to tools for finding restaraunts based on what you’re looking to spend, Open Menu™ will provide the foundation for such tools.

Visit Open Menu by clicking here!

To visit our Partnership page please click here!

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