Episode 17 - Laura Purser
Jenifer Kern: [00:00:00] Hello everyone and welcome to Restaurants Reinvented. This is Jen and today I have Laura Purser with me the VP of marketing from Fuzzies Taco Shop. Hi, Laura.
[00:00:34] Laura Purser: [00:00:34] Hi, Jen. So good to talk to you.
[00:00:36] Jenifer Kern: [00:00:36] Cool, great. Welcome to the show. Really excited to kick off national taco month with you guys at Fuzzies. Yeah, and I know you've got lots of exciting things going on over there this month.
[00:00:48] Laura Purser: [00:00:48] We do. We actually just wrapped up national taco day over the weekend. Our ninth year of doing some really great promotions around for every restaurant this year, we did dollar 50 tacos for the whole entire day, and it was a ton of fun. We had a great day and it's a great way for us in a normal year.
[00:01:04] To thank all of our guests for coming in and just supporting us through the year and do something special for them. And that this year with everything that's happened, you had to be able to do that again. This year has just really made all of our operators and us feel really good. Definitely wanted to thank our guests for sticking with us over these last seven or eight months.
[00:01:19] Jenifer Kern: [00:01:19] Yeah. Wow. I mean, getting some for a dollar 50. You just can't do that much anymore. You gotta love that.
[00:01:26] Laura Purser: [00:01:26] It was fun. It was definitely a good time.
[00:01:28] Jenifer Kern: [00:01:28] That's great. That's great. Well, you know in this show, we're all about restaurant marketing and we're all about reinventing restaurants and this year has been a big year for reinvention.
[00:01:37] Laura Purser: [00:01:37] Definitely, like it or not.
[00:01:39] Jenifer Kern: [00:01:39] Yeah, exactly. So, we'll get into that, but first, for our listeners, can you give us background on how you got into the restaurant industry, how you got started and what brought you to your role at fuzzies?
[00:01:49] Laura Purser: [00:01:49] Absolutely I've actually been within the restaurant industry since 1999 So we're entering year 22 coming up I know I'd hate to say I don't feel old enough
[00:02:01] Jenifer Kern: [00:02:01] It's awesome
[00:02:02] Laura Purser: [00:02:02] but Yeah I started with a regional steakhouse chain here in Dallas and we had At one point up to 24 locations Great Small kind of family run I guess not too small but family run restaurant a ton of fun That was my first Corporate side or office side of restaurants I worked at McDonald's as a kid and Burger's bagels in high school and college loved it Then I remember saying to my dad at one point at Burger's when I was a senior in high school and he came to pick me up after one of my shifts and I got in I'm like Oh I just love my job It's so much fun And know dad who had worked for By the time he retired 30 some years for a teacher's union in New York And he's like you can't love a restaurant job I'm like no but I do It's so much fun I loved it with college came down to Texas did some sports marketing for a few years and then just fell into a restaurant role restaurant marketing and loved it and had no intention ever of leaving Once I got in because restaurants are fun and people are happy and they're there and you're bringing people food and who doesn't love food from steakhouse Come on that was especially a steakhouse in Texas we were good stayed there for five years Then I went over to corner bakery cafe So at the time when I got there as part of Brinker which is Certainly in this area Just such a respected company and so thrilled to be a part of that company And then a couple of years in corner bakery was sold off So went through a couple of sales there I was there for 12 years and Yeah loved it to learn so much I think we heard about 80 locations when I got there And when I left 12 years later which is quite a long time we were at over 140 had started franchising during that time period So I learned a ton of setting up franchise marketing understanding franchise brands and marketing Cause it's completely different than all corporate So yeah it took a lot on that I started as a brand manager and left as director of marketing which was a lot to learn I also built a local store marketing team that they'd never really had there At one point we were up to six people throughout the country and really strong marketers who all of them have gone on to Bigger roles at different places And one girl is still there now running the local marketing team at corner bakery and very proud of all of them after that I went to the agency side because one of them the things I loved most was the creative development and that's where my heart lives through all of this and making things look good and after I had my first photoshoot I said at one point and if I had known about food styling As a career in a real life thing I would've done that in college It's so much fun So I went over to the agency side and spent two years with an agency here in Dallas had some great restaurant clients And then also a lot of other things nonprofits and packaged goods learned a lot of different industries in different ways not just restaurant and I got a phone call one day from the team at fuzzies and realized restaurants where my heart is and what I missed with the agency where I loved Being hands on with a lot of different things I miss being able to be all in on one thing And coming back here you're coming back into the restaurant world and coming back into franchising Cause it fuzzies taco shop we are 95% franchised it was a big challenge and I decided it was time to push myself one more time and try something different and have been here It'll be two years in January and I love every minute of it We have an amazing team and so much fun and a great product So you can't go wrong with talking about tacos
[00:05:16] Jenifer Kern: [00:05:16] Yeah absolutely Wow thanks for walking us through that that's a really great journey and so interesting so many of my guests I've talked to it's like restaurants get in your blood
[00:05:26] Laura Purser: [00:05:26] get in your blood They really do
[00:05:29] Jenifer Kern: [00:05:29] Guess it's happened to me
[00:05:31] Laura Purser: [00:05:31] And it doesn't take long either
[00:05:33] Jenifer Kern: [00:05:33] Right a year and a half I've been and I'm like Oh man this is great It's just like you said it's such a comfortable personable happy industry in the sense of serving food and people love to eat and I love to eat And at a corner Baker Did you know Donna Josephson
[00:05:49] Laura Purser: [00:05:49] I did not Donna started just after I left about a year after I left but I've certainly heard of her through the industry over the years and my people who are still there I think the world of her over it should be safe Yeah
[00:05:59] Jenifer Kern: [00:05:59] I think episode six She was one of my early brave ones and yeah she's phenomenal She's a great story too so cool And so now you're at fuzzies and you were hired in as the VP of marketing Okay And in that role you are the top executive in marketing and obviously decision making around the brand And I know you also I believe you told me you run menu innovation
[00:06:20] Laura Purser: [00:06:20] Menu innovation Yep So for our LTOs and just trying to stay ahead of things in the market or at least up with things plant based proteins and our LTOs last year Yeah We try to do for a year 2020 obviously we got a little caught short from one but we actually just had an LTO launch this week mid-October for it was planned for our cue to this year which then obviously got put on hold but we've got some fried chicken tacos for the first time coming to fuzzies and very excited about those I've been eating them for almost a year now For the innovation stage and kit Oh Was so thrilled that they finally got to the restaurant this week So yeah I've eaten a few too many in the last three days but that's okay They're only an LTO and that again while I can right
[00:07:00] Jenifer Kern: [00:07:00] It sounds amazing we'll get to that We'll talk about all the campaigns and all the fun stuff for listeners who might not be familiar with your brand I got to hear a lot about it in our pre show call and I'd love the story of how it was founded and where you are today Can you give us the overview of your brand number of locations You mentioned the franchisees just quick lay of the land there
[00:07:19] Laura Purser: [00:07:19] So fuzzies taco shop was born here in Fort worth Texas near the Texas Christian university TCU campus The first location is still open up and running does a great job So we opened in 2003 out there as a brand we now have about 140 just over 140 locations in 16 different States Texas is our largest state kind of our main hub because that's where all of our growth has Really up until now been very organic our president is Mel Knight He is an amazing man who has a ton of charisma and loves everything about this brand so as he meets people and talks to people People want to be part of it And that's what's been fantastic our grwth has really been organic from people who know him or people who have come into our restaurants eating the food felt the vibe We have a great atmosphere We're Bajan inspired tacos which so it's a little bit different It's not what you're going to get at a lot of other strong TexMex brands or real Mexican taco places We've got a little different to us We've got a maiden house garlic sauce that goes on every taco which is incredible one of our taglines is welcome to your new addiction and that addiction is that our like sauce It is incredible then our tacos are the little the six inch kind of street taco size but we also top them all off with better cheese which is Also something different So we've really got a different taste and flavor tacos are what we do best and most However we also have a lot of other Mexican favorites so we've got nachos which are unbelievably amazing And I wished I hadn't discovered them so early on in my career here as I did and I had to stop eating them Cause the pants weren't fitting well anymore burritos and quesadillas and enchiladas and everything is made in house which is also Really unusual for a brand like this we make that garlic sauce fresh every or Pico or salsas all of these things are made fresh and then what really helps us as a brand and as a point of difference from a lot of the other taco brands is we have a full bar at every restaurant So we have beer and Margarita's and so people can come in And eat their tacos and having a great margarita in a really fun atmosphere so yeah we're also a value brand so that's been very helpful over these last several months but we did some guest research back in 2018 and the top three things about us were our food our atmosphere and our value That's what people look for with us So you know a family of four can come in and walk out the door with a full meal and a couple of drinks for $25 it's incredible Yeah It's really great
[00:09:40] Jenifer Kern: [00:09:40] So is the demographic like your main guests Are you targeting families or does it run the gamut from young kids being near college
[00:09:48] Laura Purser: [00:09:48] Yeah we have about 23 restaurants near college campuses Out of our 140 we hit a little bit of everything and I feel like what came out of that research yeah we went to restaurants in seven different States We talked to owners we talked to operators we talked to guests through all this and as a marketer it's a good and bad There was not a strong demographic I could target really because we do get families but we also get Singles happy hour crowds will come into us We get that college kid Then we also have a lot of gen X'ers that come in You know we have a little bit of everyone and everything because we're relaxed and easy So you'll have people in there in a pretty suit and scrubs and shorts and flip flops all at the same day and the same time sadly but also wonderfully we say that our target is anyone with a mouth because They don't want to come in So it's a little hard to target where I'm going all the time but it also helps because I can hit several different people and make sure we're going to hit up and span somewhere
[00:10:45] Jenifer Kern: [00:10:45] Interesting Yeah That is a double edged sword for marketing right Cause you want to be as intimate and personalized as you can with your marketing And that's still really hard to do I mean we've been talking about it for years and segmentation and targeting and personalization but it's still tough without having a really great grasp on the data But when you also have a demographic that's
[00:11:03] Laura Purser: [00:11:03] very wide Yes
[00:11:05] Jenifer Kern: [00:11:05] But it can be done right
[00:11:07] Laura Purser: [00:11:07] It can be And what's great for us is Okay great But also we're not as strong media brand we don't have a big strong media presence So a lot of what we do is local So we can target Small town Texas town is gonna be much different than a DFW market or Colorado Springs is going to be different than Hayes Kansas So we have that ability to take everything to a local level and a lot of ways and talk to the people in that area about what makes sense for them
[00:11:34] Jenifer Kern: [00:11:34] Cool So you mentioned 140 locations started in 2003 What is your growth model
[00:11:40] Laura Purser: [00:11:40] we are continuing to expand with franchisees we've done really well in that a lot of our expansion is With existing franchisees adding to their portfolios or adding into their development agreements But we are certainly now starting to for the first time ever get out there and market ourselves as a franchise yeah we haven't had to be for but also what we've learned over these last seven or eight months through COVID in the shutdowns is people are still interested in us and Because and I'm sure we'll talk about this later but because we have weathered the storm of all this better than a lot of other brands people are definitely interested in us now as a value brand it's helpful to be able to bring that to people when there's so much uncertainty we were expecting to maybe have the phones Get real quiet for a bit And they haven't So we're really thrilled about that and Andy Smurl franchise sales manager and she has just partnered with a couple agencies to help in development franchise development sales and targeting And we're really excited about that So we've got some good plans for 2021
[00:12:42] Jenifer Kern: [00:12:42] Okay Cool Cool Can you share anything I mean obviously the growth this year probably the whole plan probably went out but so what are you thinking for next year
[00:12:48] Laura Purser: [00:12:48] actually we did have four restaurants that opened during the shutdowns which is fantastic or maybe three and then one is about two but still yeah we have restaurants opening Because they were already in process Nope There were four And one of them was the first time the franchisee for us and so they're doing really well That was the Hays Kansas one I mentioned early on but other than that yeah we did have hopes for larger numbers this year but we do have a hope for 20 to 25 openings next year Cause we do have a few that pushed from this year into next And then it's about nine months nine to 10 months from Signing a franchise agreement to getting one up and running So yeah we certainly can have some more coming next year
[00:13:25] Jenifer Kern: [00:13:25] Yeah that's exciting
[00:13:27] Laura Purser: [00:13:27] Very exciting Yep
[00:13:28] Jenifer Kern: [00:13:28] had a marketing yeah Opening new stores New locations
[00:13:32] Laura Purser: [00:13:32] Getting into new markets Absolutely Very fun
[00:13:35] Jenifer Kern: [00:13:35] Yeah Yeah So obviously we've alluded to the craziness of 2020
[00:13:41] Laura Purser: [00:13:41] Yes you can't not
[00:13:44] Jenifer Kern: [00:13:44] It's like in some ways I'm like okay I haven't maybe people are I like it here I'm tired of talking about using the word pandemic you just the whole thing but it is the reality what was it like for you all there
[00:13:54] Laura Purser: [00:13:54] It was frightening in the beginning for those first few minutes when you really realized what was happening and I think that's across the board for everyone because it's something nothing we'd ever experienced before But our leadership team came together quickly and just realized Hey we can't panic We've got a great brand We've got a great team We've got great franchisees We're going to just plow through and we're going to work together as a team and we're going to support those franchisees However we can keep their restaurants open we made a deal among ourselves to be able to roll out some new programs or training materials or anything two to three a week For those first few weeks of the shutdown Like we really pushed ourselves to roll out new programs to support those franchisees And we also
[00:14:38] Jenifer Kern: [00:14:38] Can you give us a couple of examples
[00:14:39] Laura Purser: [00:14:39] Yeah we did curbside pick up We'd never had before no exaggeration We have that my training our training team our it team and operations in our team had that 36 hours from when we first talked about it until it rolled out we had that done seriously in less than two days nothing without bugs or hiccups but as doors were shutting down but restaurants could stay open We needed to be able to get food out to our guests right from that we went into building family meals and we hadn't done that in the past We had looked at it a couple years ago Recipes were out there but nothing that had been fully flushed out or put together and we had our first phone call on a Wednesday about that and taco family meals launched on Saturday of that week So I mean that was amazing And then for the next couple of weeks we added andtojitos ensaladas salads to be able to continue to bring family meals out to our guests And during those first three or four months of shutdowns that the family meals came up to be 5% of our sales So we did a really great job with that and they're staying with us Still we're going to focus on them for our fourth quarter holiday program is going to be focused on the family meals where in the past we've done more with catering in Q4 but this year is going to be different We also benefited on our end from the alcohol to go That pretty much happened in every state eventually our margarita's are big fan favorites So the fact that we could Put them in a gallon jug and sell 'em And it's some fun pictures of fans putting them out on social where they take their gallon and seat-belted into the front seat to make sure I made it home safe
[00:16:13] Jenifer Kern: [00:16:13] So funny
[00:16:14] Laura Purser: [00:16:14] And we partnered with door dash So we had an MSA with them but probably only about 40 of our restaurants were on door dash at the beginning and now we're well over a hundred and they were an amazing partner to help us get people online quickly to be able to work with them And then they helped us do some great promotions throughout those few challenging months So yeah we moved super quick and got a lot done And all within that we knowing the franchisees were our number one priority we had weekly phone calls and it was just yeah we had a standing zoom call that every Monday We would meet as a leadership team ahead of time and go through everything that we had moving together And then we'd get on a call that afternoon And each of us around the horn would talk about what's going on So with PPP like our CFO took the lead on that and helping guide them and just letting them know Okay PPP is coming out this week So talk to your banker see what you can do helping work with rent abatement and just giving them tips Cause obviously we can't do that stuff for them as a franchisor but we can give them information as to where they can go and ways they can help Our procurement team did an amazing job Working with our vendors Us foods is our Big distribution partner and really didn't miss a beat even though everything Was up in the air So many with the plants having to close for a lot of times meat your price is going up and things and our procurement team did an amazing job with them So it was really important for us as the leadership team to make sure everyone knew that we were there and we're working for them And here's the information we have And weekly calls was really I think very helpful to everybody we've pulled back from weekly but we still do monthly Now and are in constant communication with everybody Cause yes things are a little easier now but we're still in a pandemic and things are still a challenge with different ways
[00:18:08] Jenifer Kern: [00:18:08] right That's a lot though I mean sounds like you moved really quickly the curbside I'm kinda curious about that because I remember in the early days particularly when CoVid first hit The curbside was just we tried to do curbside pickup here a couple of places and it was just broken It was just not good
[00:18:24] Laura Purser: [00:18:24] Yeah
[00:18:25] Jenifer Kern: [00:18:25] And there's a lot of talk about curbside now in our industry everyone's talking about curbside and I have so many thoughts about it but the one thing I was thinking about with you all is we did a Mexican pick up too couple months ago and We got home and the tacos were like soggy we did a family meal and we were just really bummed out and we actually I'm in DC so we don't have fuzzies here Unfortunately I looked at the closest one
[00:18:50] Laura Purser: [00:18:50] Charlottesville Virginia Yes
[00:18:51] Jenifer Kern: [00:18:51] Three and a half three hours I'll hit it up one day but I think that's difficult but I've also I think our listeners would love to know like how did you roll out curbside so quickly what did that look like What kind of technology did you use and was that an evolving process and has that matured and where are you at today
[00:19:07] Laura Purser: [00:19:07] absolutely evolving It is still not matured It is still a work in progress because in the beginning I will say it was a little bit easier Now I'm not an operations that I'm not out in the field So our operators may hear me say this and shake their head and stump their foot a little bit but it was easier to execute when the restaurant dining rooms were closed down because There weren't as many people coming in that you were also yeah your cashiers or your back of house We're only having to focus on placing the orders the occasional person coming in to pick up a pickup order or making the orders Now with restaurants being open again it is a little bit of a challenge in that sense but truly we have a low as our online ordering partner they have a curbside option as one of the yeah You pick up delivery A pickup curbside drive through any of those options so we just have restaurants turn that on We created pop for banners yard signs then the parking signs that go in the spaces And initially it was just call when you get here place your order online or call in for the phone call When you get here we'll bring it up to you So in the beginning it was very basic we definitely are trying to find more Technological advantages to help us do it now because curbside is not going to go away it came in as a necessity and people like it and they feel safer and they feel comfortable and it's helpful with a mom with two kids who's trying to pick up dinner Yeah let's not unpack everybody and have to go in and stand in line our it team is continuing to work with our partners to make it better but for what we needed right In the beginning we went down and dirty and got it done It was not ideal for a future but we're going to keep it and we're going to figure it out
[00:20:50] Jenifer Kern: [00:20:50] Yeah And like you said it's convenient and it's not going away It'd be interesting to see it depends obviously too if you have drive-thru and you guys have some drive thrus
[00:20:58] Laura Purser: [00:20:58] We do not no As a fast casual brand we make everything to order when the orders are placed So it's a little bit of a challenge always something that we've thought about was in the back of the mind Actually just in the last month one of our corporate owned locations here in Fort worth was an old barbecue restaurant that had a drive-thru when we took it over we just boarded it up and moved on But we've since opened it up or at least testing it as a pickup window
[00:21:22] Jenifer Kern: [00:21:22] I saw that on your Instagram for some reason that's why I thought you might be had a drive in
[00:21:25] Laura Purser: [00:21:25] but we're not against drive-ins drive-thrus it's just it needs to be The right situations right Fit Yeah The kitchen design would need to be changed to work around that But certainly the fact that obviously the drive-thru restaurants the QSRs did really well through all the shutdowns show us that it's important And we've had a great through this one pickup window that's only been open for a couple of weeks we're seeing great numbers so it's very encouraging
[00:21:52] Jenifer Kern: [00:21:52] Right And across the board in terms of your top ordering channels what's the breakdown between Today between the curbside delivery and then people actually coming into the store
[00:22:03] Laura Purser: [00:22:03] we're about 60% overall dine-in now that's brand wide Some of our Texas we're at 75% open Florida has no restrictions right now some of the other States are still at 50% but we're still seeing these amount of dining We have patios in all of our restaurants so people feel much more comfortable out on patios It is the perfect time of year for patios right now January February might get a little less Ideal for them But you'll be seeing a lot plus with the alcohol you have people want to come and have a beer or two it's an easy place to come in and sit and have a beer And then delivery is probably about 10 of us right now 2go has always been that 40 to 50% just now spread up over those different We do a very lil decent amount of pickup business where call ahead they'll place the order or they just come in and place the order and take it to go So we're about at that 60 40 split
[00:22:53] Jenifer Kern: [00:22:53] Okay
[00:22:53] Laura Purser: [00:22:53] But national taco day was earlier this week and it was the first time we actually let our special gopher to go Cause typically we've just done it for dine-in Obviously we couldn't do that this year because we did have those limits in a lot of States and we didn't want to overwhelm the restaurants or have lines out the door for people waiting to sit and eat their food and we saw about a 52% dine-in and 48% to go on that day So it was really encouraging that we were still able to bring people this special on this one day of the year but they could do it at home where they felt more comfortable
[00:23:27] Jenifer Kern: [00:23:27] And how do you get around the non soggy factor
[00:23:30] Laura Purser: [00:23:30] our tacos mainly come on soft corn tortillas So they're not on the crispy shell so much which is easier they're wrapped up in foil as soon as they're made unless they're in for a taco plate But if you do an individual taco so it really holds it together very well but it does make a difference that the crispy shells will get soggy a little bit Yeah
[00:23:51] Jenifer Kern: [00:23:51] Okay
[00:23:51] Laura Purser: [00:23:51] And then our family meals they're build your own So if you got a family meal with the tacos I'll put together us we give you all the ingredients you take it home and make your tacos how you want them
[00:24:01] Jenifer Kern: [00:24:01] So you talked about moving really quickly with the executive team people mobilizing from a communication standpoint with your franchisees If you bring us up to current day and I know you've started planning for 2021 what are some of the things you're really focused on today and for the foreseeable like next six months
[00:24:20] Laura Purser: [00:24:20] Really luckily with restaurants where you're opening and dining rooms reopening we have been able to bring our LTOs back and to be able to focus on food items Like I said we had an LTO launched this week our Q4 Planning aside from the LTO or holiday We've done great with gift cards So we're going to continue that this year and then our family meals instead of catering and we're really just focused much more digital than we have in the past because you have fewer people coming into the restaurant actually So that is going to be our number one priority Even for 2021 on the marketing side is making sure we're making the best Effort we can through all of our digital channels and yeah I had a meeting yesterday with our agencies and just challenging all of them to bring the best ideas and their disciplines to me and my team so that we can make the best decisions this year Digital has been fantastic for us We've been with our agency now for just over two years So we've been able to optimize every single campaign based on what we've learned So we've got two years of data For all of our markets and who responds best and what they respond best too but we need to expand that now and determine our best way to reach people that in the past we've done a lot of in store marketing which we're losing out on right now We also have a fantastic rewards program loyalty program with punch that we're working on making that a bigger focus for 2021 as well So it's really that digital mindset
[00:25:49] Jenifer Kern: [00:25:49] Yeah And have you been able to get back close to plan for the year
[00:25:53] Laura Purser: [00:25:53] Yeah actually we're feeling pretty good yeah I like the fourth quarter I feel really great about I think we've got we're testing some things and doing some different things we haven't done before And the fact that we didn't have to close Through any of this that our restaurant stayed open that our operators understood the importance of getting involved with their local community and reassuring them that we were still here for them and doing whatever we could to help them I think we've really just helped to increase that loyalty at the individual shop level which is very important So I felt really good about Q4 Maybe I'm being very optimistic but I like to live my life that way rather than the other
[00:26:34] Jenifer Kern: [00:26:34] Let's stay with it Let's stay with the optimism
[00:26:36] Laura Purser: [00:26:36] Yes
[00:26:37] Jenifer Kern: [00:26:37] Okay in terms of digital which is obviously technology is on everyone's mind right now From the restaurant whether you're in the marketing team or in the it team on the operation teams everyone's trying to figure out how to leverage technology more efficiently How do you have those conversations and make those decisions internally Are you super involved in all the technology decisions do you stay within the marketing realm or are you making decisions globally as a company And then it gets even more complicated with the franchisees
[00:27:08] Laura Purser: [00:27:08] With the franchisees yes
[00:27:08] Jenifer Kern: [00:27:08] What technology are they using
[00:27:10] Laura Purser: [00:27:10] right now we're all on the same technology like for POS our IT team so over to my left and my office Our head of it is right next to me And two doors down is procurement right next to me is operations Like we are all completely aware of what everyone else is working on And we do have opportunities to weigh in decisions are rarely made in silos here which is very rare from where I've lived in the past and so that's been very helpful But cause we're all working to that same goal we don't want to do anything technology-wise without understanding fully how it's going to impact the franchisees So we really take some extra care with that And the beauty of the marketing side of it is we can do that big picture brand wide Marketing through digital and then allow them to have their local sites as well So within our rewards app or local digital my LSM team can work with our agency to create digital marketing campaigns at the local level as well So we're always continuing to work through that Yeah we've got some opportunities Absolutely Some things we could be doing better some integrations that we're trying to work with across all fields because there's so many great new technologies or programs that have popped up in these last six months but being able to make sure that they will work with our punch app or POS that the reporting could be what we need it to be has been a bit of a challenge but nothing we can't handle And I think yeah the fact that our it team Is all right here with us we're not spread out around the country We're all local We can get together and talk whenever we need to And then ensure we know what's going on across the board has been very helpful
[00:28:52] Jenifer Kern: [00:28:52] Yeah the integrations are always tricky right
[00:28:54] Laura Purser: [00:28:54] They are yes
[00:28:55] Jenifer Kern: [00:28:55] You're not alone in that that's always tricky it sounds You have a really good foundation which is so important And let me just ask I mean Restaurants Reinvented that's what we're about here What does that mean What does restaurants reinvented mean to you and to your brand and where do you see the future of restaurants headed
[00:29:12] Laura Purser: [00:29:12] I am heartbroken by so many of the restaurants that have had to close that are challenged I hate to hear those stories The one thing though for over 20 years in the industry We will come back We will figure this out and we will come back stronger I definitely think technology and is as someone who is been in the workforce for well over 20 years let's just go with that route technology is intimidating to me personally and We have to embrace it and we have to move forward because that is what's going to make it better and easier across the board And I'm very fortunate that the team here understands that and that our franchisees are clamoring for it even though it's easy to just fall back on what you've always done We can't afford as an industry to do that And certainly as a brand we have to continue moving forward And I do think that's a lot of where the whole industry is going to move I would hate to lose the personal side of restaurants because that is so important that face to face of having your favorite server at your restaurant or your favorite cashier or a bartender who knows what you're going to order when they see you walking up that is so important to everything that makes restaurants A place people want to go to So I hope we never lose that However we need to also focus on understanding that off-premise now is going to be a much bigger thing than it ever was And what do we do to make that same experience and that personal touch yet to people at their homes or their offices or outside of the restaurant and it's exciting in that sense too because Our brand is the environment and the atmosphere and the vibe is so important that is my challenge Now how can I get that home with people and make them still feel like they're in a fuzzies when they're eating our food
[00:31:02] Jenifer Kern: [00:31:02] there's so much in there because I was really thinking about the experience when you were talking to me the experience of I'm a big diner outer And I love the experience I'm super extrovert I love to become best friends with my waiter wherever I go
[00:31:15] Laura Purser: [00:31:15] Yep I love it
[00:31:16] Jenifer Kern: [00:31:16] Starbucks down the street knows me I talked to all of them and I miss that in fact I never was actually a big coffee drinker And now I talk to them I'd like to go somewhere I like to go somewhere I like to talk And I liked the experience And so when you talk about extending that experience To home to outside the walls of the restaurant It is a great challenge for restaurant marketers today And it is an exciting challenge and I've seen some people like looking to e-commerce as for ideas and as some for inspiration What are some of the things you're thinking about doing to do that because this really falls squarely on marketing right
[00:31:54] Laura Purser: [00:31:54] It absolutely does
[00:31:57] Jenifer Kern: [00:31:57] challenging pushing the brand further Yeah
[00:31:59] Laura Purser: [00:31:59] I think we have a really big opportunity with our rewards program we've implemented just in the last month the dispatch and rails portion of our online ordering of a low where now guests can In certain locations cause we're not across the board yet but in about 30% 25% of our restaurants you can go to our app or online order delivery through us instead of going to DoorDash or Postmates or grub hub and ordering you can order it through our app and now you'll get your rewards points for that so that's going to help us And then we've also partnered with punch I don't know how public this is yet but I'm pretty sure they've announced that they do have an AI segmentation platform That's part of their system that they launched this year And so we actually just signed on with that the last couple of weeks and are going through a training on our end right now but it's going to help us really further segment Our users and our guests So we will better know how to talk to them and what they use and when they use it and how often they use us And that way we can give them more of that experience when they're not actually with us but we can bring fuzzies to them Where they need to be and also really on our end just working to maximize what we can with delivery and with family meals and catering as that does get back online Cause we are seeing catering come back slightly You're not where it was last year but a lot of it is just our packaging and our attitude and our food and making sure it's all what it would be in the restaurant When you get home it's a challenge It's going to be fun
[00:33:33] Jenifer Kern: [00:33:33] Yeah absolutely I'm excited to see what you guys do have you looked into ghost and host kitchens at all I know Susan Beth had originally introduced us
[00:33:41] Laura Purser: [00:33:41] Yes So yeah NRD has through Franklin junction that they've got some of that We have not partnered with them yet We're certainly talking there's opportunities for us to do some of our things some of our menu items would be very easy For ghost kitchen to make it's a little challenging in the sense that we do so much by hand and our prep is all back of house that's why we probably can't put everything out there for a ghost kitchen unless they've got a full pitch that they can Give us a good chunk and people are dicing with the tomatoes and the onions and the jalapeños and putting everything together and making garlic sauce and enchilada sauce by hand there's a lot that we do every day So it's a little bit more of a challenge but yeah we are certainly open to all options this year
[00:34:23] Jenifer Kern: [00:34:23] What do you think the biggest challenge facing marketers is today
[00:34:28] Laura Purser: [00:34:28] It is really understanding what we're going to be able to do to reach our guests to keep them I really do think that off premise side of the world is going to take that priority and so we've got to continue to reach them and we've got to keep ourselves relevant to them whatever that means based on your brand but finding what is relevant through the digital channels through Their taste buds Yeah Things are constantly changing and also targeting the younger audience because we've got to continue to grow and bring them in as our taste change and our country changes and everything else yeah we've got a lot but I don't think that's all that different forever Yeah Normal it's always important to Stay focused on who your guest is and what they need from you I think now it's a little bit more important than ever
[00:35:18] Jenifer Kern: [00:35:18] Yeah well you're in a good position having that value play First of all because value has been top of mind for everyone this year And it sounds like the quality is really high The freshness
[00:35:28] Laura Purser: [00:35:28] It is
[00:35:29] Jenifer Kern: [00:35:29] So you're really well positioned You're really well positioned So we've talked a lot about the opportunities that have also come through all the silver linings this year What would you say is the one greatest opportunity for marketers to seize on this year
[00:35:42] Laura Purser: [00:35:42] I think and I don't want to say too much but that digital get your data understand your guests find out what's happening We have not maybe done as well as we could matching our sales with our loyalty app with what we've seen through our digital buys and combining them and really pulling all that together So as much as you can do to understand your data and know it from every single angle that's really gonna help us all of us moving forward And I will be honest this is my first of course work everything gets better every year But if you think back if I started at corner bakery in 2004 we had no data Yeah We were all working off Excel sheets for everything And so now the fact that this agency over here can provide me all this data that then I can combine with our information coming in from our users from punch who then can speak to this credit card data from this guy And we can find out who our real guest is that's going to help all of us move forward because I do think getting more targeted and focused is going to help everybody
[00:36:46] Jenifer Kern: [00:36:46] Yeah I hear that marketing vitals
[00:36:48] Laura Purser: [00:36:48] marketing vitals Yep Yeah They do our credit card data and guests Yep We've got them and they do work with punch and they work with our Aloha POS and Arlo and everything So it's all very integrated
[00:37:00] Jenifer Kern: [00:37:00] That's awesome So if you had all the budget in the world Laura What would you invest in
[00:37:07] Laura Purser: [00:37:07] once upon a time we all were said TV That is not the world right now I hate to keep harping on digital but that's where it's going to be And we've got to be able to work with All of our guests to find out what makes the most sense I would love to let's come up with the next TikTok or have something completely that takes over the world but that is where our focus is this year and we're learning OTT we're learning streaming we're learning getting out there and partnering on Twitch Do we advertise on Twitch I just want to be able to try everything and see what really works and
[00:37:39] Jenifer Kern: [00:37:39] Yeah
[00:37:39] Laura Purser: [00:37:39] I would love to have a great big budget someday Yes let's just go spend money but That's where I'm excited that I'm going to be able to spend more this year in that realm and to continue to learn and grow and build from that because it's so efficient it really can be where TV is Fantastic Absolutely And again I wish I could do that but it also doesn't make sense for my brand and a limited budget and 140 locations is not a lot in the big picture national TV just doesn't make sense for us So let me spend the money on something that I can really see sales come in the door That's what we gotta do
[00:38:17] Jenifer Kern: [00:38:17] I love hearing you say that and talk about digital I mean we're a tech company so And we're all trying to figure it out right Like we've been moving quickly to try to figure stuff out and yeah So that's great That's great to hear What would you say is the coolest kind of like most cutting edge technology out there for marketers right now
[00:38:36] Laura Purser: [00:38:36] I do think it's the TikTok it's the Reels and because you can have fun Yeah You can have fun with that stuff And luckily we have a very fun brand We were just starting to really start with a TikTok strategy when all the talk of it Going away came about So we've put all that on hold through the end of this year at least But we had a great time watching our employees who have things out there and different just seeing and guests who love fuzzies Yeah So that's really I think where we need to spend some time next year and just have some fun with it everybody's been so down for this last 10 months and understandably let's have some fun just let go a little
[00:39:13] Jenifer Kern: [00:39:13] margarita is
[00:39:14] Laura Purser: [00:39:14] Oh we've seen some people do that Yes They get little limes that shake Yeah It's fun
[00:39:20] Jenifer Kern: [00:39:20] yeah there's one question I always ask everyone and it's fun Cause I started pulling all the answers the other day what advice would you give to marketers today
[00:39:29] Laura Purser: [00:39:29] Know your guests I think that's the number one thing and that hasn't changed from the day I started Understand what's important to them get involved as much as you can with them and give them what they want Yeah Luckily we all think we know what's best but once we have some time to really sit down and talk to them or do some research or even just go out in the restaurants and sit and talk to people You really find out what's important and it may change your direction You've got to give them what they need rather than what we think they need And that's been instilled in me from all of my mentors and the people who have led me is know your guests first and foremost That's what we're here for
[00:40:08] Jenifer Kern: [00:40:08] Yeah I was raised with the old Peter Drucker marketing know your guests while at the products sells itself
[00:40:14] Laura Purser: [00:40:14] Yeah exactly Just give them what they want
[00:40:17] Jenifer Kern: [00:40:17] yeah What was the best career advice you were ever given
[00:40:21] Laura Purser: [00:40:21] Honestly it was for this job and it was just that trust yourself push yourself challenge yourself trust yourself And then also like I said we had an agency meeting yesterday and it was let your agencies push you don't pull them along with you Let them push you to where they think you need to be And I'm Not as good as that And I've also let them know that too Hey you're going to have to push me three times before I get it before I say yes but don't give up because I need you to get me where I need to be but really it's trust yourself and take that chance And that works try OTT for the first time try this for the first time give it a shot and see what happens And I'm not really good at taking chances I don't like it I'm a creature of habit but Every time I've pushed myself I've gotten to a good place
[00:41:06] Jenifer Kern: [00:41:06] I liked that Donna talks about that a lot She talks about push
[00:41:10] Laura Purser: [00:41:10] Yeah exactly
[00:41:11] Jenifer Kern: [00:41:11] That was actually what we ended up calling her episode is we put the push in there pushing for a better customer experience essentially what it was But that was her advice Don't be afraid to push but I like how you talked about the agency them pushing you
[00:41:23] Laura Purser: [00:41:23] Yeah We're partners
[00:41:24] Jenifer Kern: [00:41:24] Because that's scary for us sometimes giving up that control but they're there to bring you ideas and to
[00:41:31] Laura Purser: [00:41:31] And sometimes because it's so easy just to like I said to go back to what we know works but it's not always gonna work And that I learned from one of my CMOs at corner bakery Diana Hovey who's now with no kid hungry that was what she always said about the agencies is your here to push me make me uncomfortable I may not go with it But it'll always live in the back of my mind And I will remember make me uncomfortable
[00:41:56] Jenifer Kern: [00:41:56] Yeah
[00:41:57] Laura Purser: [00:41:57] and I like that because I am a creature of habit. So show me what I should be doing. And I will take that chance. And luckily, if you have good partners, they're going to push you in a way that is right.
[00:42:08]Jenifer Kern: [00:42:08] I love that.
[00:42:09] Laura Purser: [00:42:09] I've been very fortunate.
[00:42:10] Jenifer Kern: [00:42:10] And uncomfortability.
[00:42:11] Laura Purser: [00:42:11] Yeah, not good at it, but I like it.
[00:42:14] Jenifer Kern: [00:42:14] Yeah. It is a good thing. When it comes down to it at the end, it's like getting uncomfortable and being able to sit in that and be okay with it and Whatever comes in.
[00:42:21] Laura Purser: [00:42:21] Even like our LTO that launched this week, I had butterflies in my stomach that morning, because what if it's horrible? I know it's not horrible. I've been eating those tacos for a year. I know they're amazing. But what if it's horrible and you have to have that cause you have to have the passion. You have to want to succeed. What, if it doesn't work, at least I know I gave it my very best and we all did. It's fried chicken.
[00:42:43] Jenifer Kern: [00:42:43] they not be wonderful?
[00:42:45] Laura Purser: [00:42:45] Not too worried anymore. Cause who doesn't like fried chicken.
[00:42:50] Jenifer Kern: [00:42:50] That's amazing. That sounds amazing. This has been really fun. I'm really glad that I got to know you a little bit and you shared a lot of great insights and expertise with the listeners. So I'm sure they're appreciative too. Before I close. I like to give any last shout outs that you might have to your team or we'll be talking a lot about your team here.
[00:43:09] Any local community organizations or nonprofits that you're supporting, really, whatever Provo you want to do
[00:43:15] Laura Purser: [00:43:15] here.
[00:43:15] Absolutely. I do just want to say that we work with some of the best people here in the industry. Mel Knight, who I mentioned, Jessica Wescott our CFO and COO. She actually just got promoted to that title of COO as well. So thrilled for her, our VP of Ops, Kevin Rochelle, or director of IT, Leo Aguilar, and then Senior Retar, our purchasing VP.
[00:43:36] And honestly, I truly feel have some of the best franchisees in the business because they could have easily gotten frustrated and left or just shut us out through all of this craziness. But instead they came to the table and appreciated us and came to us with ideas and partnered with us and made everything better.
[00:43:56] So we're very fortunate, I'm very happy we have a lot of fun every day and, that's really what it's all about.
[00:44:03] Jenifer Kern: [00:44:03] Absolutely. Absolutely. We're so blessed. Marketing is fun.
[00:44:06] Laura Purser: [00:44:06] It is so much fun. You can't complain too much.
[00:44:09] Jenifer Kern: [00:44:09] It is fun. And I get to do that. So I get to talk to other marketers and hear all about their amazing stories and journeys. So thank you for sharing yours with us today. I wished you and Fuzzies all the best with your fried chicken tacos and
[00:44:21] Laura Purser: [00:44:21] Thank you.
[00:44:21] Jenifer Kern: [00:44:21] Today is Friday so go get that big plate of guilty nachos. I say, go for it.
[00:44:30] Thank you so much, Laura. Have a wonderful day.
[00:44:33] Yeah.