Episode 20 - Kelly Parriott
Jenifer Kern: [00:00:00] Hello, everyone. Welcome to Restaurants Reinvented. This is Jen Kern. And today I have a great influencer guest with me, it is Kelly Pariott and she is the owner and founder of Flight and Flute, she's a brand strategist marketing planner, and as I found out recently a consumer marketing experts. So welcome to the show, Kelly.
[00:00:43] Kelly Parriott: [00:00:43] Thank you, Jennifer. Very excited to be here today.
[00:00:46] Jenifer Kern: [00:00:46] Yeah, I'm excited to have you. I mean, in our previous conversations, we've talked a lot about data and consumer insights and how restaurants are now looking at B to C and retail and other industries to get ideas and get ahead and leapfrog this whole digital challenge that we're having today. So, excited to hear your insights around that and around some of the trends and data you've been seeing.
[00:01:07] Before we jump in, can you, just give us some background, like where you've been? what you're up to today? So that our listeners can get to know you a little bit.
[00:01:15] Kelly Parriott: [00:01:15] Yeah, no, absolutely. And thanks again for having me. Probably a little over 25 years ago I really, cut my teeth in retail. I worked for Nordstrom for about eight, nine years and left as a buyer. Went back to school, backpacks, traveled, did all those fun things. And when I reentered the workforce, I started on the agency side of the business and I've had the honor of working for a lot of really strong agency, CPG clients, restaurant clients, everybody from Frito-Lay to target to Outback steakhouse, life kitchen, I have seven 11. I've really enjoyed a pretty full career working on the consumer marketing side of things. I think that, as a business owner now and having run and operated a midsize agency business, I have a better understanding for the business side of the business as well.
[00:02:10] And I think that's really what has brought me where I am today. I have built strategic business plans for everybody from the boardroom to private equity firms and in the space of restaurants, at the end of the day, the marketing dollar is solving for one thing and it's traffic and sales.
[00:02:26] And so it's really important to understand both the marketing and the brand side but also the business needs.
[00:02:32] Jenifer Kern: [00:02:32] Yeah, absolutely. Have you seen a big shift in terms of at the investment changing on the marketing side during the pandemic
[00:02:39]Kelly Parriott: [00:02:39] A pretty significant shift. A lot of dollars geared towards digital. Obviously, a lot of brands are trying super hard to go direct to consumer. So whether that is in this space, ordering online and pickup or working with third party delivery companies and really investing in the infrastructure needed to be able to support that.
[00:03:01] So it's not just your marketing and communications and all of those assets and your content but it's also your packaging, how your food is presented, how your brand is traveling from inside your four walls to somebody's home. And so there's, for many many years, a lot of brands have fought this whole delivery mechanism, and now it's really becoming a necessity.
[00:03:23] Jenifer Kern: [00:03:23] Yeah. Yeah. And so who are some of the brands that you've worked with in the past and some that you're working with now. If you could maybe just tell us a couple of your favorite stories.
[00:03:31] Kelly Parriott: [00:03:31] Sure. So on the kind of more QSR side I've worked with 7/11 for years and brought their hot food program to market obviously helped to deliver a lot of seven 11 love with the hero brand of Slurpee nationwide have worked in the fast casual space with life kitchen and probably one of my most enduring client experiences was with Outback steakhouse And it was one of those unique opportunities in your career where you were as an agency partner you were in the C-suite you were with the operators out in the field and we were directly touching consumers with activation And that program was three-year program really fundamentally focused from data So Outback and all of this is public knowledge but Outback worked with Boston consulting group and did a deep dive into their guest base to really have an understanding of life cycle and kind of where their current base was and having a better understanding of who the future guests of Outback steakhouse were And so our whole reason for being for about a three-year period of time is bringing these light users in for an incremental visit Even one incremental visit a month helped to fund this program And once we did the deep dive on really understanding who those consumers were we learned a lot about them We learned what kind of music they like where they do their grocery shopping where they spend their free time and really getting to know them And that's how we really tapped into not just building broad base awareness but ultimately driving loyalty We put over a million members into the first year of that loyalty program and it was super exciting So we decided to really leverage experience versus coupons and offers As you know in this space we all call it coupon crack you know as a concept you get stuck on the offer crack and it's hard to get off of it And it's hard to longterm See a return on investment in those guests start being worth less and less as time goes on And so We started we did a partnership with Tim McGraw we knew that this guest space highly index towards country music We knew that they wrote Walmart shoppers We knew where their Radio behaviors or media behaviors or social behaviors And we tapped into that And so we did a partnership with Tim McGraw for his North American tour and then help to support him getting to Australia for the first time And obviously that's a very natural tie in for a concept like Outback And so for a year we incentivize people to enter in our loyalty program with an opportunity to win to fly to Australia and see Tim live in concert And we had VIP experiences all throughout his North American tour People cut to meet and greet but they also got access to a pre private concert before each tour stop That was super intimate Outback Food was being served The operators the local operators and local Outback staff got to engage and interact With those guests and it was just overall it was a win-win for everybody involved in your over year It drove incremental traffic and sales and it was considered a big success
[00:06:46] Jenifer Kern: [00:06:46] That's awesome I love that story When was that By the way
[00:06:49] Kelly Parriott: [00:06:49] That was 2010 to 2013
[00:06:52] Jenifer Kern: [00:06:52] So cool creating those like celebrity moments Right And today I mean it's almost like with our user generated content like anyone can be a celebrity on social media Right But it doesn't have to be Tim McGraw Right But that's super interesting I love that example you touched on loyalty And this has been something we've talked about a lot all my guests have brought this up Like what does loyalty really mean And it's so fun hearing Everyone's different kind of definition of that but I think everyone agrees It's more than coupon crack right It's more than points and rewards it's more about Engaging and the engagement and what you're talking about the experience and how you deliver that So how have you seen that shift over the past since that campaign over the past 10 years and then up to today how are you working with your customers to really generate a better experience when it comes to loyalty
[00:07:44] Kelly Parriott: [00:07:44] So it's a few things So it really starts with understanding who your target guest or your target consumer are because different consumer sets want different things They appreciate different things and more and more we're seeing your millennial and even your older gen Zs are they Value experience much for than an offer And so when you look at the consumer funnel the top of the funnel you have trying to generate awareness all the way down to the bottom of the funnel in loyalty coupons help with the transaction and driving purchase but they don't get people back So in this particular space in the restaurant industry it's one of the few industries out there that is so operational Operationally dependent on loyalty So a consumer will forgive about food experience or a bad drink experience if they have a positive service experience And so I think the really understanding things like your sat scores and your secret shops and that level of data in terms of what's happening inside the four walls and then looking at what really Matters to this consumer set Is it experience is it access to content that they otherwise wouldn't have Is it access to learning more about your brand are you talking about your team members or your operators and what they're doing in the community And if you're in a particular DMA that is super environmental and focus or the farming industry is super important to you like really tapping into those things that are important in your community and with your guest set to really help drive that loyalty I mean obviously food ultimately has to deliver beverage has to deliver but at the end of the day there's a lot of those other cues that really matter in terms of driving loyalty in this particular space
[00:09:32] Jenifer Kern: [00:09:32] and speaking of environmentally conscious you're in Seattle is that right
[00:09:35] Kelly Parriott: [00:09:35] I am
[00:09:37] Jenifer Kern: [00:09:37] Yeah
[00:09:42] It's great I love it So yeah I mean location story even though we're all essentially sitting in our homes it's location on occasion that's really interesting I mean I love the story If you could share with our listeners too about your recent work and with I think it's a wine right Is it a wine brand based out of Seattle And I can't forget to mention step hoppy because you did mention core life also And she had originally introduced us to each other and she's now working for wild Alaskan
[00:10:11] Kelly Parriott: [00:10:11] Wild Alaskan seafood company Again another concept that's been really able to pivot in that direct to consumer space and taking their industry knowledge and bringing all of that direct to consumer with those fabulous seafood subscription boxes And so on the wine side I have been working with a Washington-based wine group to bring a few brands to market they have a partner company that has the vineyards and bringing these different brands to market and Fast forward the pandemic So all of these conversations were happening in January and February and then COVID happened And we really buckled down and said Hey what if we could bring seven brands to market In time for may And then we go direct to consumer in July and all of these things that seemed absolutely crazy at the time this is a marketer's dream bringing a brand from absolutely nothing into the marketplace and being able to do that seven times over in a six to eight month period of time Is not only exhausting but it's also inspiring This has been a work of a lifetime And so we've got the seven brands are online we have taken all of the brands national there We started with distribution here in the Pacific Northwest and it quickly grew to the East coast And the wine is Getting awards all over the place from wine enthusiasts and wine spectator to sunset magazine and it's super inspiring So you can check it out at aqualinawines.com and there are all the different brands are there and the wine shop but it's just it's beautiful wine And it's been pretty exciting to be able to touch all aspects of that business super scrappy I have learned a lot because I've been able to touch everything from production to marketing strategies So very exciting
[00:11:56] Jenifer Kern: [00:11:56] That's great Seven brands is a lot to bring to market at time
[00:11:59] Kelly Parriott: [00:11:59] Well and as you know I mean in looking at the data the ALC Bev space is on fire right now Something like a pandemic to help fuel beverage sales
[00:12:08] Jenifer Kern: [00:12:08] Yeah Yeah So continuing on our conversation about the consumer Right And the insights And you talked about that out back example as well And what is your recommendation to restaurant marketers today in terms of how they can find those things out What are the best resources and what's the best process for them to go about learning about their consumers Like you said they shop at Walmart knowing the ins and outs and different concepts have every demographic right So how do you stay focused and find the right data to look at in order to really understand the largest portion of your consumer base
[00:12:44] Kelly Parriott: [00:12:44] Well it really depends If you're a large concept you probably do have access to a lot of data through your point of sale through a lot of your vendor partners everybody from your food to your ALC Bev partners have Access to a lot of very expensive data that a lot of smaller to midsize concepts might not already have access to you know you have your Nielsen's and your IRI and all sorts of you know that kind of data but if you really wanted to dig in without access to a lot of those tools and information I would start with Spending more time inside the four walls So if you're a marketer you should be spending more time inside the four walls and you should be spending a lot more time with the team members and the operators and the people who really know That guest base in any particular DMA And this is a challenge So you could have a large concept that has urban stores and suburban stores And quite honestly those challenges are going to be different The consumer needs are going to be different and a lot of your urban areas you've already got a lot of consumers that are back inside office buildings and a lot of your suburban areas You've got consumers that are working full-time jobs and they're being a homeschool teacher And the last thing they have time to do is cook dinner every night and they're desperately wanting somebody to deliver a cocktail to them So it's really understanding what those needs are And I think that you could also go into Your social media environment It's super easy to go into your business page in Facebook You don't even have to have an elaborate analytics program set up You can go in and look at your analytics You can look at your demographics You can look at the time of day that they're on and they're posting And when people are engaging with you and you can start really optimizing when you were engaging with them that people are spending a lot more time online a lot more time on their phone I saw one of the statistics here It was something close to 70% of the restaurant transactions right now were happening on mobile So all of that data is readily available in your Google analytics and your Facebook analytics that also pull in your Instagram data And so there's a richness of data there that I think if you pair that with really connecting with Your team members that are interacting with guests every day Those two things combined can help shape menu direction It can help shape little small things that could help I saw one article were noticing that the guests were there absolutely wanting to support their local restaurant They were having a super hard time though finding parking and getting and picking up their orders in time And it was creating a lot of additional stress where people weren't coming back And so just like being negotiated with the landlord they got two dedicated pickup and delivery spaces they had a runner going out to the cars and people didn't have to get out of their car and take off their masks and all of those things And so little things like that make a huge difference and repeat visit and loyalty
[00:15:33] Jenifer Kern: [00:15:33] Right And I think what I hear you saying is balancing, looking at that data, right? Which is imperative like you gotta be able to look at the data I was talking to Alan McGee last week from church's chicken. He's going to be our next episode. And he was talking about just getting, if he can get 40% of real time data he'd take that over a hundred percent in six months or in three months or whatever it is like he wants the real-time data and getting some portion of that so that he knows the people that are in front of him right now. what's really important to him. And, so I think what I hear you saying is getting that data as much as you can the best data you can but then balancing that with the in-person, like seeing what's actually happening at the store, what is going on there? And we're living in this constantly changing environment right now where week to week, things are changing.
[00:16:20] Kelly Parriott: [00:16:20] A hundred percent. And another resource I forgot to mention is black box intelligence. So normally black box, as you know, it's probably the most highly regarded kind of industry repository of data and information. If you sign up, I think on their site, you can get weekly updates, they're reporting weekly updates and statistics and in a normal world, in a normal consumer marketing kind of landscape, you would hardly ever look at week to week data as something that's actionable in your overall business plan or menu planning or anything like that or service model. But we sort of have to be looking at it now. Normally we'd be looking at 52 and 36 week data. But looking at the data week to week now, you're seeing significant changes. Some of that might have to do with weather. A lot of concepts have been able to extend their 50% capacity by using outside space.
[00:17:10] Well now that the weather's turning, that's changing. How is that affecting traffic and sales? How are you still keeping those occasions with those guests? And so something that came out in Nielsen this last week is that a little over half of consumers have returned to on-premise visits. That data has stayed relatively consistent since about mid July. It's gone up and down slightly week to week.
[00:17:33] And there's probably weather and other variables in there. But it's remained slightly consistent. And kind of what that's telling us is roughly half of consumers have returned. Those are probably the consumers that are comfortable returning in an on-premise environment. So what are you doing to address the other 50%? To get a visit occasion with them and really diving into that a little bit more and testing. Can you take care of a midweek dinner another piece of data that is readily available through black box and Nielsen, is that the mid week occasions have skyrocketed while the weekend dedications in terms of visits have gone down. And basically logic would dictate that a lot of people they have more time to kind of hunker in and spend time with family on the weekend but they are stretched then during the week. They just do not have the bandwidth to homeschool and cook dinner and zoom all day and all of those things.
[00:18:30] And so it's like a 30% swing from the increase in weekday visits to the decline in weekend. So those are types of things that data is readily available to really look at and how does that apply to your specific concept?
[00:18:42] Jenifer Kern: [00:18:42] Yeah, that's fascinating. Not surprising, like you're saying when you describe it, right? But fascinating about the spike during the week in the middle of the week versus on the weekend and 50% coming feeling comfortable coming back to whether it's dining on a patio or just walking in and picking up like their on-premise.
[00:19:01] Although you did say this 70% of ordering from mobile, so yeah, there might be some combination of ordering mobile coming and picking up. And yeah, I was talking about this last week too. Like, what is that on-site experience looking like for the people that are coming and then the ones that aren't what's your strategy with those.
[00:19:19] Kelly Parriott: [00:19:19] Right. And so I think that you have to meet them where they are and that in the consumer marketing world has not changed. And that has been that way since we started with the digital and social spaces. So it has not for a very long time, it has not been about trafficking it.
[00:19:34] TV ad and you're out of home and kind of washing your hands of it and moving on to the next campaign, you constantly have to meet them where they are. And so that is different for even in, so take a market like a New York or Washington DC, where you used to be able to hit commuters all the time with your radio or your out of home and your bus and your transit and all of those types of things with messaging.
[00:19:57] They're not there. So there's empty subway stations and partially empty airports and things of that nature. And so you have to meet them where they are. So really looking at your Google analytics, look at how you can start optimizing in your search. Definitely having people on your team, who can dig into the digital and social space for your concepts.
[00:20:20] And this is a great opportunity to take maybe local team members. And there are a few concepts that have done this really well. Texas Roadhouse is actually one of them. I worked with them back in the day. Every unit has a local marketing representative. And what that means today is they're the ones constantly in the social feeds for that particular location, constantly replying and engaging and all of that.
[00:20:44] And those things are meaningful. They're hugely meaningful.
[00:20:48] Jenifer Kern: [00:20:48] Yeah, that's a great strategy. I mean, having someone in that local market, particularly if you are multi state brand. Because like you're saying it is so different across States. What do you think is the biggest single opportunity right now for restaurant marketers?
[00:21:03]Kelly Parriott: [00:21:03] Well that's a really good question. I mean, in terms of single biggest opportunity, I think is probably engaging and figuring out how to first of all, I think it starts with getting inside the four walls. I think it's really getting to know the guests on a level that maybe they wouldn't have done before from corporate office. Really getting inside the different units and locations and understanding the guests. And starting to test and learn of all times.
[00:21:31] This time is ideally set up for test and learn. You can be quick to fail, but don't be afraid to try new things. And I think, as we talked about earlier, I think guests will forgive if they're getting their food delivered and it's not as hot as it normally would be when they're inside the four walls and some subpar experiences that way it's how they're being treated and that relationship that they start to build with the teammates and the staff. Whether you're a bar and grill or fast casual or QSR, they get to know a lot of those people. And so I think as a marketer of all times, this is a time to test and learn. It is not a time to try and be solving for this from inside your four walls. Either at your home office or at the corporate office. It's the time to really get out there because chances are, your units are experiencing different things depending upon their segment, depending upon are they more of a commuter location.
[00:22:27] Are they more of a suburban location? And they're going to have some different challenges and there's, I guess the short answer to that is there's no single, I don't think there's a silver bullet to this situation but I do think getting in there, getting to know the guests, listening to the teams and then testing. There really is never been a better time to try and test some of those ideas and concepts.
[00:22:49] Jenifer Kern: [00:22:49] Yeah. And you mentioned social media and the amount of time people are spending on social media is exponentially higher. And I heard this week about, I'd love to know your thoughts on like TikTok and some of the different channels. But that is where I had drawn the line. I'm like, okay, I'm on so many socials.
[00:23:03] I'm not on TikTok. Okay, but everyone was talking about this at work. We were on this call and they said, Jen, have you seen the cranberry ocean spray skateboarding guy? And I'm like, what?
[00:23:12] Kelly Parriott: [00:23:12] Oh, Yeah.
[00:23:13] Jenifer Kern: [00:23:13] Yeah. And I was like, damn, I gotta look this up. You know? and I saw it and I was like, but apparently this one viral and so they've sent all cranberry juice to his house in a truck.
[00:23:26] And how can restaurants be leveraging that instance, that example in social right now?
[00:23:32]Kelly Parriott: [00:23:32] Well it goes back to really understanding your audience. So TikTok might not be the best fit for a bar and grill. I think your average consumers is 13 to 15 year old range on TikTok in terms of those who are actively engaging. There's lots of us like me who were voyeurs. I go through probably 50 TikToks every night with my son and we have a blast.
[00:23:52] They're mostly dog videos. Because it's on his TikTok. And they know he's 13. But I think if your concept in the QSR space, if you were in convenience, I think that could be a great space for you to be. And talk about engaging, video in general, whether it's on a TikTok or an Instagram or a Facebook has three X engagement to a still or just a copy of your post.
[00:24:16] So I think that really understanding who your audience is and then leveraging that channel. TikTok is still fairly new in the paid space. There can't be any alcohol paid promotion. So if that's a very important part of your P mix that might not work for you.
[00:24:31] But really understanding who your consumers are. It is a very engaging channel. It also goes to it is quick turn, it is instant gratification, it is really there are a lot of local influencers who have really capitalized on making the most of that local market. And that is also a great opportunity for local marketers is finding some of those pockets of influencers in there.
[00:24:54] If it's the right thing for your concept.
[00:24:57] Jenifer Kern: [00:24:57] Yeah. Well, it could be an interesting thing to test. Because like you say, yes. I mean, it's the 12 to whatever, 15 year old hunger, which is one of the reasons my kids are older. But all the videos I've seen there, the people in the videos that are shooting talkers,
[00:25:09] Kelly Parriott: [00:25:09] I know.
[00:25:10] Jenifer Kern: [00:25:10] They're not 12. Like this guy on a skateboard look like my age. And my brothers like addicted to TikTok.
[00:25:19] Kelly Parriott: [00:25:19] It's entertainment and it's a quick hit and it's also light. It's not overly heavy. And I think we have a lot of heaviness going on right now. And I do think there's a psychological reason why this has been an interesting moment in time for TikTok. And it's also their algorithm, so to speak, is really good at fine tuning based on your areas of interest.
[00:25:43] So pretty much 90% of the content that my son gets served up is all animal videos. He is like an animal lover and they know that. And so it is constantly what he's being fed and new people in that space.
[00:25:56] Jenifer Kern: [00:25:56] Well now I feel like I need to get on it.
[00:25:58] Kelly Parriott: [00:25:58] You do. You're missing out.
[00:26:01] Jenifer Kern: [00:26:01] Yeah. So moving on, I'm curious to know what is the most frequent question you get from your customers, your clients? However you call them, like, operators, the owners, the restaurants, the brands. What are they asking you right now the most?
[00:26:16]Kelly Parriott: [00:26:16] I think a lot of times people do want that silver bullet. Like what is the one thing that we could be doing to increase traffic and sales. And I think that it isn't one thing. I think that a lot of CEOs and CMOs are sort of like they didn't necessarily grow up in this digital age.
[00:26:35] And so that will definitely be obviously shifting over the next five to 10 years as we start to see that leadership kind of shift. But you have everybody from the leadership in the private equity groups to the boardroom, to the C-suite that don't necessarily trust the data. And they feel like they've got all of these people throwing data at them.
[00:26:56] And they've got credit card data and they've got all this roll-up of transaction. And I think probably the single biggest question is what does it all mean? And then the next part is, can I trust it? So I think there's this lack of trust in the data. And I think we just need to make a fundamental shift for that's fine if you don't trust it, then let's test what the data is showing you. Instead of being afraid of it. And so, believe it or not, I still have a lot of clients that I've worked with over the last several years that don't trust mobile attribution data. Which is baffling to me because we are all tracked on our phone, whether you like it or not, unless you turn everything off and your maps aren't on and all of those things.
[00:27:39] We do know if you were come for happy hour, we know that you shopped at whole foods the day before, and that you go to the gym four days a week, and all of that is aggregated. We don't have people's personal information but all of that behavioral information is aggregated. And I think that just trusting that and being willing to lean into that, so to speak and then test and learn.
[00:28:02] If you're not willing to completely take it on face value, then start testing what the data is telling you. And I think that's probably the single biggest thing is just that lack of trust and understanding of what the data is showing. And a lot of times, the concepts have not invested in true analytics.
[00:28:20] And so as a marketer, I'm being asked to analyze a lot of this data and that's, I wouldn't say that's necessarily my number one core competency, but you can go heads down in it and sort of read between the lines and what it's telling you, and then match that with other points. But it really is saying, somebody tell me the three things that I need to be doing and we will do it. And I think it's just not always those things. And especially in the restaurant space, you have to be looking at everything. You have to be looking at turnover. You have to be looking at service models. You have to be looking at sat scores. You have to be looking at all of those things in conjunction with your menu and your P mix and your PPA and all of those things that absolutely matter. But I would think that's the thing I've heard very consistently.
[00:29:04] Jenifer Kern: [00:29:04] So are they coming to you and saying, help me trust the data?
[00:29:07] Kelly Parriott: [00:29:07] Yes!
[00:29:07]Jenifer Kern: [00:29:07] Like Oh, wow.
[00:29:09] Kelly Parriott: [00:29:09] Validate this or how do we prove this? And so that is when I get to do what I love doing is really building communication and branding and marketing programming around that. That can't stand on its own. It's sort of like that three legged stool, you still need a product and a service offering that people really want and deliver.
[00:29:30] And then you need to have the operational model that supports that. And, it really is that all has to work together. And I think too often in my experience, you don't always have those factions working together. And I think that's one of the reasons why I hearkened back to that Outback experiences.
[00:29:47] It literally was everybody in the room from the president to head of operations, to finance, head of digital, gift card program, marketing it's like everybody working together in terms of how we affect things from all different touch points and this is a very unique and well-rounded experience but it also created a better user experience.
[00:30:10] Jenifer Kern: [00:30:10] Yeah, well, to be looking at all this stuff that you're rattling off, the sat scores and the services, and then you do need the whole team. You need every body, all those eyes and the ears looking at all those different things. And it's impossible to do that in a silo or within an organization that's pretty siloed.
[00:30:26] And doesn't have that everyone's pulling in the same direction toward it sort of thing but you talks about a lot of things there that are quite interesting to me. Like the silver bullet notion, right? I mean, I've been in marketing so long and there's always was a silver bullet notion that we'll just like, there's no silver bullet.
[00:30:41] There's no silver bullet yet. I've worked for a lot of CEOs who were pushing me to get to the silver bullet and I've pushed myself, not just to get to the one silver bullet, but like you said, even just like three things and it's probably created my shorter tenure at. A lot CMOs have the shortest tenure in the C-suite, and it tends to be because of that lack of expectation alignment between the CEO and the CMO.
[00:31:04] And so when you start talking about that silver bullet, it's like, yeah, it's a good reminder for all of us to keep our lens wide. Right? And yet we need to manage our days, right? In our lives and you can keep it why, but you need to bring it back in. It's almost like that in an aquarium sort of lifestyle.
[00:31:21] Right? You go out and you go in.
[00:31:22] Kelly Parriott: [00:31:22] And you go in. No, absolutely and I think really developing kind of a hierarchy of really understanding what's the why? Why do people engage with your brand? Why do they come to your units? And understanding that because it'll be different for every concept.
[00:31:41] And for some concepts, it will be different in markets, but I think really understanding the why. And then I think you asked earlier what could marketing be doing right now? I think this is a really interesting point in time for marketing as they get inside the four walls, developing a process where they are constantly engaging all of those different factors. What would normally be silos in the company? So operations and finance and all of those and digital and all those different components to really gain an understanding if we're testing, what do we hope to learn, or what do we want the expected outcome to be?
[00:32:16] And then having all of those factions work together in that. Because be marketing cannot be a standalone and it's definitely not a solve for all the concept's problems.
[00:32:26] Jenifer Kern: [00:32:26] Right. And it's a big job. It's a big job, but it's fun.
[00:32:29] Kelly Parriott: [00:32:29] It is, it is.
[00:32:30] Jenifer Kern: [00:32:30] Yeah, we talked about some examples earlier. I'd love to know one example of what you think has been like the most innovative or creative we use. I hesitate to say the word pivot but one of the most innovative or creative things you've seen a brand do through the pandemic.
[00:32:47] Kelly Parriott: [00:32:47] So, and this is actually not a brand that I had the pleasure of working on, but I was most impressed and it's been on the national news. So Canlis is a fine dining. So I know that's not the core of what we're talking about here, but this will be a little patient it'll come back around.
[00:33:03] So Canlis, fine dining over 70 years here in Seattle, they're an icon. It's one of those places that takes months to get reservations. They've just been an icon and the owners and the chefs, and everybody got together early on when they realized what was happening. And they said, listen, fine dining is what we offer and it's not what people need right now.
[00:33:23] So what do people need again, really understanding what's going on in that guest space. And they are at the base of queen Anne in Seattle and I'm looking over like union's stunning restaurant and they completely adjusted their business model while also keeping they're employees employed.
[00:33:45] And so they started addressing breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They took advantage of some bakery equipment that they hadn't yet used. And they started doing bagel service and coffee in the mornings. They have lines going down the street and it was like, "When it's gone, it's gone. So come get this in the morning."
[00:34:04] And so they were doing bagel service, they were doing family meal kits for again, all these parents were all of a sudden thrust into being homeschooled teachers and didn't have time for dinner and cooking, but you could also get a nice bottle of wine and you could get little bits of normal that people wanted from this local neighborhood icon and it has exploded. And they did over the summer, they did a huge crab shack. So they completely took over their patio and completely did these crab dinners, and it was socially spaced and distanced and all of those things.
[00:34:37] And you could also get those things to go. They started inserting bingo cards and all of the to go orders. And then everybody would log online and do bingo via their social media channels and stuff from home. So again, it's just engaging and really understanding your guests. And I mean, that is and I hate the over use of that word as well, but that is one of the biggest pivots I think I've seen in this space and it was so successful.
[00:35:02] That's why I think it's garnered such national attention but it was very impressive.
[00:35:07] Jenifer Kern: [00:35:07] That is so cool. And I remember you had sent the link to me earlier and I looked at it and I was blown away. When I read the article and saw the video. Actually, I never got to see the video yet because too many ads but there was a quote that I pulled out. I don't know if it was the owner of the business, but he said, "We now have an obsolete business. Let's just admit it." And then he talks about how they successfully re-imagine themselves as a multifaceted food supply service. And I was blown away cause I did I saw some of the pictures and you could tell it was this really upscale restaurant and they're now a food supply service. And it sounds like changing their strategy every week to guests where they are.
[00:35:44] Kelly Parriott: [00:35:44] Well, they are and they're paying attention in the beginning that think back grocery stores were out of meat, they were out of eggs, they were out of milk. I mean, all of the supply chain was broken. And so they decided to address that right out of the gate. And once those things leveled out then people started, some workers started going back to work.
[00:36:04] That's when they started the breakfast, the bagel service. And then they did the family meal kits and they just continued to evolve without getting stuck in that moment in time. And I think constantly engaging and listening to their guests, I mean, they have developed a love for their brand.
[00:36:19] And what's interesting is they've taken this horrific period of time. And they've been able to endear a lot of people. They would have previously been considered just this special occasion sort of aspirational type of concept. And now they have people feeling super connected to them and the community and to their people.
[00:36:41] And they've been able to keep people employed and this is huge.
[00:36:45] Jenifer Kern: [00:36:45] Yeah. Yeah, it's really a cool example. I was also a little dubious at first I'm like, wow, what is this? And when I read it, I was so inspired and it's so neat to see how people are thriving through such a hard time. And how do you see the role of restaurant marketing changing in the near future? I mean, that's an interesting example to tee up and then say, okay, so what does that mean for restaurant marketers?
[00:37:08]Kelly Parriott: [00:37:08] What I hope it means is that restaurant marketers are more involved in the overall process. I think that everything from menu development to service models to traffic flow and experience inside the four walls. I think marketers are closer to a lot of this data than the rest of the organization.
[00:37:30] And my hope is that marketers can start to affect those things that will ultimately affect all the way down to the end of the funnel, which is loyalty. Because it is not just about like the card or an app or, you know, a loyalty program. I think all of those things are part of it. But I think my hope is that marketers are able to start focusing on the overall experience.
[00:37:52] And that is not just your paid advertising. That is not just your videos. You're creating it is everything. Especially in this space because we are so dependent upon operations. It's not just, it's on a product that we're manufacturing and shipping through a supply chain. It is an experience. And my other hope is that marketers are able to start tapping into more of the emotional aspect of food and beverage. This is a high involvement category that people are super passionate about food and beverage and I hope they are able to start tapping into that a little bit more. I think that hopefully coming out of all of this we're all going to appreciate that happy hour just a little bit more.
[00:38:31] And being able to stop by and hang out after your kids football game or lacrosse game or whatever and just hang out as a family and have dinner and outside of your four walls at your house. So my hope is that marketers are going to be able to tap into that and affect more of that overall guest experience.
[00:38:51]Jenifer Kern: [00:38:51] Yeah. it's so spot on. Again, going back to some of your comments earlier about looking at the data but making sure it's informing the overall guest experience and what is that experience? And sometimes that means the people that are waiting when you are smiling, you know, like let's not forget the importance of that.
[00:39:08] Okay, well as we wrap here, is there anything else you wanted to cover in terms of some of the data I know that you had looked at some of the Nielsen and black box data. Is there any data you wanted to share with the audience or trends that you're seeing that you think would be useful?
[00:39:23] Kelly Parriott: [00:39:23] Yes. So I think that, there's some encouraging signs. I think if I were to end, I would hopefully would love to wrap this up on a positive note. I think there's some encouraging signs. Actually Blackbox intelligence did an operator poll and between those it was, how do you expect your holiday sales to compare to last year?
[00:39:43] You actually, between the positive and flat have close to 50% of the operators polled. And so I think that, and then even those that were down, it was down less than 15%. I think there's some starting to be some signs of concepts that have made some changes or they feel like they've been able to adjust enough to retain guests, to get people coming back with 50% of consumers having been out to eat.
[00:40:09] I think that it's encouraging to see that happening. I think we still have a long way to go. And I think that there's some positive signs in terms of the trends that we're seeing and not only visits but within the food and beverage space. And I think that when you look at why people are coming back, 86% felt the health and safety precautions were meeting their needs.
[00:40:33] 82% felt good about the atmosphere. And I know that's a big concern for operators, like all of these plastic things and the mobile menus and all these, how is it really affecting our atmosphere here in Washington state, our bars haven't even been able to reopen. And so you've got a dining room with a bar with this all surround wrapped and taped up.
[00:40:51] And so that can't affect atmosphere. And then 85% say they felt positive about the overall experience. And I think those are all positive signs and I think that this too shall pass. But I think that it's really important to continue to learn. We should always be learning from this and the best place to do that are your team members and your guests.
[00:41:12] Jenifer Kern: [00:41:12] Yeah. Back to the test and learn. It's good time to test and learn and fail and test and learn and fail some more and figure it all out. Yeah. Well, great talking to you today, as we wrap, are there any recommended resources, or anything that you even want to promote yourself and for your own brand?
[00:41:28] Kelly Parriott: [00:41:28] I think that I would love for people to sign up for black box. The weekly email, I think that has been widely beneficial. Nielsen also has a lot of public information that they're sharing, even if you're not within their paid network. And yes, I mean, I started my consultancy with this huge passion in the food and beverage space is flight and flute for a reason.
[00:41:49] I'm used to being on planes and trains and automobiles and champagne is my thing. So when you're a consultancy, it is kind of all about your brand personality. But I love getting to engage in some of these challenges and really appreciate your time and allowing me on today. And it is as much as we talk about the data.
[00:42:08] This is a people driven business. And so I'm super passionate about this space and I don't live in the agency either. So I worked back of house, front of house and even Fried bloomin' onion in my day.
[00:42:22] Jenifer Kern: [00:42:22] I remember them Great well, so fun to have you thank you for all your insights and for giving us a little peak behind your world and into some of the data on the consumer trends and where you see things headed. And even just talking about the holiday season, it gets me kind of excited.
[00:42:36] I'm really excited to see what some of the marketers in our business are going to do. I mean, this is a really a time to get creative and think outside the box. And we've had so many great examples of that on this show. I've had so many talented marketers coming on and I hope we can hold her on wait during the holiday season this year.
[00:42:52] And so, everyone focused on that mid day guests or mid week, I'll say the middle-week guests and get some fun socials out there around the holidays. And, hopefully everyone's business will slowly continue to climb. But Kelly, thank you so much for your time. I really wish you all the best and hope to talk to you again soon.
[00:43:09] Kelly Parriott: [00:43:09] Thank you, Jennifer. You too.