RESTAURANT STRATEGY

#126 - INTERVIEW with NY Times Food Photographer, Andrew Scrivani ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: SEVENROOMS With a full suite of products including reservation, waitlist and table management, online ordering, review aggregation, and marketing automation, SevenRooms is the perfect choice for helping you gain a 360-degree view of your guests across both on- and off-premise. Book a demo with SevenRooms today and receive an Amazon gift card for $50. Simply send an e-mail to hello@trysevenrooms.com with "Restaurant Strategy" in the subject line. ***** As many of you know my marketing career really started as a food photographer. I shot for dozens of restaurants here in NYC, helping them to create content for their websites, e-blasts, and social media platforms. That makes my conversation with Andrew Scrivani doubly special. On this week's episode we talk all about how to take create photos of your food, and how to find a great food photographer if you find you need a professional. Tons of value and insights on this one! IMPORTANT LINKS: Andrew's website - https://www.andrewscrivani.com/bio Andrew's IG profile - https://www.instagram.com/andrewscrivani/ Speakeasy IG profile - https://www.instagram.com/heyspeakeasy/ Andrew's work - https://www.andrewscrivani.com Andrew's Creative Live class - https://www.creativelive.com/class/food-photography-andrew-scrivani Andrew's Speakeasy Page - https://www.speakeasy.com/speaker/andrew-scrivani Andrew's Book "That Photo Makes Me Hungry" - https://www.amazon.com/That-Photo-Makes-Hungry-Photographing/dp/1682683982 *****Looking to increase revenue in your restaurant? How about 10 tips to increase revenue by 10% overnight? Get my new e-book by CLICKING THIS LINK. 

#125 - The Value of Creating Value ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: SEVENROOMS With a full suite of products including reservation, waitlist and table management, online ordering, review aggregation, and marketing automation, SevenRooms is the perfect choice for helping you gain a 360-degree view of your guests across both on- and off-premise. Book a demo with SevenRooms today and receive an Amazon gift card for $50. Simply send an e-mail to hello@trysevenrooms.com with "Restaurant Strategy" in the subject line. ***** Zig Ziglar said a lot of great things during his life, but my absolute favorite quote is this: "You can get anything you want in life as long as you help enough other people get what they want." A business exists to solve a very specific problem for a very specific person, and we create value by solving that problem better than anyone else. The key is to solve a problem and then make sure people know that you've solved it.  IMPORTANT LINKS: MY FREE E-BOOK - https://www.restaurantstrategypodcast.com/revenue *****Looking to increase revenue in your restaurant? How about 10 tips to increase revenue by 10% overnight? Get my new e-book by CLICKING THIS LINK. 

#124 - INTEVIEW: Chatting Brand Strategy with Vigor Founder, Joseph Szala ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: VIRTUAL RESTAURANT GROUP They offer innovative, turnkey delivery-only brands that you're able to easily operate out of your existing restaurant with very little disruption to your current operation. Onboarding is super easy, with recipe guides, and step-by-step training for you and your staff. Visit the link below and use the promo code CHIP2021 to get started. That link is in the show notes VISIT: https://www.virtualrestaurantgroup.com/chip ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: POPMENU If you’re a restaurant owner you need a great website that not only looks beautiful, but helps drive more traffic and sales. Use POPMENU to take your business to the next level. Best of all, listeners of this show can lock in one, set monthly rate… and get $100 off their first month.  VISIT: https://popmenu.com/restaurantstrategy   ***** Joseph Szala is the Founder of Vigor Branding, an Atlanta-based agency that works specifically with restaurants and CPG brands in the food space. He's written a book on what it takes to create a "bullhearted brand" and is sharing insights from his 17 years in business. He's smart, funny, and an all-around nice guy. I feel very lucky to be able to share this conversation with all of you.  IMPORTANT LINKS: Vigor Branding: https://vigorbranding.com Support the Kickstarter Campaign: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/szalapalooza/the-bullhearted-brand-building-bullish-restaurant-brands *****Come join the community on Patreon where a monthly contribution will give you access to a bunch of different perks and benefits like monthly Q&A sessions, podcast swag, and one-on-one coachings with me. SUPPORT US: https://www.patreon.com/restaurantstrategy

#123 - Sharing My Blueprint for Opening Restaurants ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: VIRTUAL RESTAURANT GROUP They offer innovative, turnkey delivery-only brands that you're able to easily operate out of your existing restaurant with very little disruption to your current operation. Onboarding is super easy, with recipe guides, and step-by-step training for you and your staff. Visit the link below and use the promo code CHIP2021 to get started. That link is in the show notes VISIT: https://www.virtualrestaurantgroup.com/chip ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: POPMENU If you’re a restaurant owner you need a great website that not only looks beautiful, but helps drive more traffic and sales. Use POPMENU to take your business to the next level. Best of all, listeners of this show can lock in one, set monthly rate… and get $100 off their first month.  VISIT: https://popmenu.com/restaurantstrategy   ***** Over the years I've opened 9 different restaurants, and recently it seems like everyone is asking for advice. This makes sense, of course; there are a bunch of second gen spaces becoming available. On this week's episode I'm sharing my 9-Step Blueprint for Opening Restaurants. It's packed with a ton of valuable information. I hope you enjoy!  THE ONLY RESTAURANT BUDGET YOU'LL EVER NEED: Download my template: https://www.restaurantstrategypodcast.com/product-shop/p/the-only-restaurant-budget-youll-ever-need   *****Interested in a FREE 60-minute coaching call with me? E-mail me directly at chip@chipklose.com *****Come join the community on Patreon where a monthly contribution will give you access to a bunch of different perks and benefits like monthly Q&A sessions, podcast swag, and one-on-one coachings with me. SUPPORT US: https://www.patreon.com/restaurantstrategy

#122 - INTERVIEW: Navigating the Staffing Crisis with Restaurant Consultant, Ken McGarrie ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: SEVENROOMS With a full suite of products including reservation, waitlist and table management, online ordering, review aggregation, and marketing automation, SevenRooms is the perfect choice for helping you gain a 360-degree view of your guests across both on- and off-premise. Book a demo with SevenRooms today and receive an Amazon gift card for $50. Simply send an e-mail to hello@trysevenrooms.com with "Restaurant Strategy" in the subject line. ***** Ken McGarrie is a Chicago-based restaurant consultant as well as the author of the brand new book, "The Surprise Restaurant Manager." In this interview we talk about the staffing crisis, and how employers can combat the situation. We talk structure, procedures, and development tactics to build a loyal work force.  Ken is hilarious and charming, and an all around smart guy. Glad to know him, and even more excited to introduce him to all of you!  IMPORTANT LINKS: KORGEN HOSPITALITY - https://korgenhospitality.com The Surprise Restaurant Manager (Amazon for 99 cents) - https://www.amazon.com/Surprise-Restaurant-Manager-Ken-McGarrie-ebook/dp/B093P5GGBV/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1625858274&sr=8-1 The Surprise Restaurant Manager (The Strand paperback for $14.99) - https://www.strandbooks.com/product/9781736282304?title=the_surprise_restaurant_manager   *****Interested in a FREE 60-minute coaching call? E-mail me directly at chip@chipklose.com *****Come join the community on Patreon where a monthly contribution will give you access to a bunch of different perks and benefits like monthly Q&A sessions, podcast swag, and one-on-one coachings with me. SUPPORT US: https://www.patreon.com/restaurantstrategy

#121 - The Intersection of Hospitality and Tech ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: SEVENROOMS With a full suite of products including reservation, waitlist and table management, online ordering, review aggregation, and marketing automation, SevenRooms is the perfect choice for helping you gain a 360-degree view of your guests across both on- and off-premise. Book a demo with SevenRooms today and receive an Amazon gift card for $50. Simply send an e-mail to hello@trysevenrooms.com with "Restaurant Strategy' in the subject line. ***** Technology is fundamentally reshaping our world... everything from retail to education to medicine and more. The restaurant industry has always been slow to adopt and adapt, and I want to make the case for the bright future of hospitality. On this week's episode I'm sharing four different case studies showcasing the ways our industry is utilizing technology.  IMPORTANT LINKS: https://www.forbes.com/sites/edrensi/2018/07/11/mcdonalds-says-goodbye-cashiers-hello-kiosks/?sh=223635e86f14 https://sevenrooms.com/en/blog/the-rise-of-qr-codes-in-hospitality-during-the-pandemic/ https://tim.blog/2018/10/18/nick-kokonas/   *****Interested in a FREE 60-minute coaching call? E-mail me directly at chip@chipklose.com *****Come join the community on Patreon where a monthly contribution will give you access to a bunch of different perks and benefits like monthly Q&A sessions, podcast swag, and one-on-one coachings with me. SUPPORT US: https://www.patreon.com/restaurantstrategy

#120 - INTERVIEW: Restaurant Uniform Entrepreneur, Jim Snediker ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: POPMENU If you’re a restaurant owner you need a great website that not only looks beautiful, but helps drive more traffic and sales. Use POPMENU to take your business to the next level. Best of all, listeners of this show can lock in one, set monthly rate… and get $100 off their first month.  VISIT: https://popmenu.com/restaurantstrategy ***** Jim Snediker is the co-founder of Stock Manufacturing, a Chicago-based workwear company that provides uniforms for some of the country's best restaurants including Soho House and Alinea Restaurant Group. We talk about why uniforms matter and how removing the friction is helping operators from coast-to-coast.  His journey has been winding and there's a lot to learn from the way he pivoted to help create this company.  IMPORTANT LINKS: Stock Manufacturing - https://stockmfgco.com Get 20% off using the promo code CHIP20 *****Interested in a FREE 60-minute coaching call with me? E-mail me directly at chip@chipklose.com *****Come join the community on Patreon where a monthly contribution will give you access to a bunch of different perks and benefits like monthly Q&A sessions, podcast swag, and one-on-one coachings with me. SUPPORT US: https://www.patreon.com/restaurantstrategy

#119 - Rethinking Your Social Strategy ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: POPMENU If you’re a restaurant owner you need a great website that not only looks beautiful, but helps drive more traffic and sales. Use POPMENU to take your business to the next level. Best of all, listeners of this show can lock in one, set monthly rate… and get $100 off their first month.  VISIT: https://popmenu.com/restaurantstrategy *****   Last week I sat with three marketing executives who work for some of the biggest food brands in the country. We got to talking about social media... trading notes and sharing best practices... and something strange happened. We realized that everyone was using a different strategy. Same platforms; different approaches.  I'm shielding the names of my colleagues and the companies they work for, but will happily share the strategies and tactics they're using to find success. I hope it helps you build your own strategy. *****Interested in a FREE 6-minute coaching call with me? E-mail me directly at chip@chipklose.com *****Come join the community on Patreon where a monthly contribution will give you access to a bunch of different perks and benefits like monthly Q&A sessions, podcast swag, and one-on-one coachings with me. SUPPORT US: https://www.patreon.com/restaurantstrategy

#118 - INTERVIEW: Building a Restaurant Funnel with Lance Popke ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: OVATION Get more feedback, more reviews, and more revenue with Ovation. Get started with 2,000 FREE text messages by visiting ovationup.com/chip ***** This week's episode is also sponsored by: RESTAURANT FUNNEL Generate leads, turn those leads into contacts, and then convert those contacts into actual guests that will rave about their experience. To get started, they offer a free Marketing Report Card for your business. Visit restaurantfunnel.com/chip ***** Lance Popke is an accomplished restauranteur turned marketer who now runs a company called Restaurant Funnel. They've been a sponsor of this show for the past few months, and I've been increasingly more impressed as I've gotten to learn about what they do. Today's episode is a wide-ranging conversation where we talk both strategy and tactics. Remember that Lance and his team offer a free Marketing Report Card as a way of getting started. If you've been thinking about using his company, do take him up on the offer. Smart guy, nice guy, and a great podcast guest!  *****Come join the community on Patreon where a monthly contribution will give you access to a bunch of different perks and benefits like monthly Q&A sessions, podcast swag, and one-on-one coachings with me. SUPPORT US: https://www.patreon.com/restaurantstrategy

#117 - The Triangle Principle ***** This week's episode is brought to you by: OVATION Get more feedback, more reviews, and more revenue with Ovation. Get started with 2,000 FREE text messages by visiting ovationup.com/chip ***** This week's episode is also sponsored by: RESTAURANT FUNNEL Generate leads, turn those leads into contacts, and then convert those contacts into actual guests that will rave about their experience. To get started, they offer a free Marketing Report Card for your business. Visit restaurantfunnel.com/chip ***** About a year ago I gave a talk about dumbing down marketing so that anyone could understand it. I lovingly coined it Kindergarten Marketing and it was all about using numbers, letters, and shapes to explain complicated marketing concepts. On today's episode I'm going to introduce you to The Triangle Principle. Simply put, it states that to market any product you need to consider three sides: Attraction, Retention, and Evangelism. Today's episode explain how to use these ideas to grow your business.  *****Come join the community on Patreon where a monthly contribution will give you access to a bunch of different perks and benefits like monthly Q&A sessions, podcast swag, and one-on-one coachings with me. SUPPORT US: https://www.patreon.com/restaurantstrategy