For digital marketers especially, there is a central
irony to their hunger for data. The idea is for data-driven automation to make interactions with customer more, not less, human. In the case of fast casual restaurant chain Fazoli’s, data is
also being used to drive much more localized and informed encounters with customer down to the store manager and clerk level.
At this week’s Search and Performance Insider Summit
in Charleston, I spoke with the company's Erin Stevens, senior manager, brand marketing. about the ways in which the company is gathering customer data from its own loyalty app and POS. And how
do they get this data in the first place? They incentivize their employees to get customers to download the Fazoli’s app and join the loyalty program by gamifying the process.
But they
then feed these aggregated insights into localized differences back to franchisees so they can better customize their own offers and even identify and reward their best customers, who then become
powerful promoters of the brand. In other words, by sharing data throughout the service chain – even down to singling out and rewarding of top customers – Fazoli’s is recruiting
everyone to feel empowered as brand ambassadors.
There is an interesting lesson here for all marketing executives who are trying to break through silos and get others in their organization to
build brand together. Treat them more like brand marketers. Give them insights into how their work impacts customers. Most people like to think they would make great marketers. Find creative ways to
empower them to do so. You can watch the entire interview at this link.