Restaurants have to go the extra mile and go beyond food if they want to stay relevant and keep their seats filled at all times. Through the right content creation strategies, you can use social media to your advantage and keep guests coming back. Jaime Oikle sits down with Samantha Flynn, founder of Junipr Public Relations, who breaks down practical tips to market your restaurant in the vast online space, even with a tight budget. From fixing early branding mistakes to highlighting your very own signature dish in your posts, she explains what it takes to tell your story through social media, drive real traffic, and bring customers to your tables.

Find out more at https://juniprpublicrelations.com & https://www.runningrestaurants.com.

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In this Running Restaurants Podcast episode, Roger Beaudoin of Restaurant Rockstars shares practical strategies for training restaurant staff. The discussion covers mentoring and shadowing multiple top performers, cross-training for versatility, and the value of daily pre-shift huddles focused on sales and guest experience. Roger also describes engaging role-playing exercises, like "How to Turn $100 into $1000," to sharpen sales skills. The episode emphasizes empowering staff, using creative sales props, and identifying unique "hooks" to boost revenue and set restaurants apart, offering actionable tips for operators to elevate team performance and guest satisfaction.

Highlights include:

- Mentoring and shadowing strategies for restaurant staff.

- Importance of learning from multiple top-performing employees ("A players").

- Cross-training staff to enhance versatility and understanding of various roles.

- Daily pre-shift huddles as a strategy for improving guest experience and sales.

- Key topics for discussion during pre-shift huddles, including guest needs and sales strategies.

- Role-playing training exercises to develop sales skills and team engagement.

- The impact of effective sales training on restaurant revenue.

- Use of props and unique selling points to enhance sales and differentiate the restaurant.

- Identifying and promoting profitable items or experiences ("hooks") to drive sales.

Find out more at https://restaurantformula.com/ & https://www.runningrestaurants.com/

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Managing one restaurant is already challenging. How crazy would it be to manage not one but four different restaurant concepts? This is exactly the life of Leo Moura, a seasoned restaurant owner and operator in the Atlanta marketplace. He joins Jaime Oikle to share his experiences and strategies in handling American, French, and Italian cuisine – and even a pizzeria. Leo breaks down his approach to staff hiring, onboarding, and training, emphasizing the importance of continuous learning and public recognition in a restaurant team. He also explains how they adapted to the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly with digital marketing and online ordering. 

Find out more at  https://lagardeamerica.com, https://restolantoinette.com, https://ilgialloatl.com, https://gspizzaria.com & https://www.runningrestaurants.com. 

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In today’s highly digital world, maintaining a strong online visibility is a must if you want your business to thrive. But in the restaurant industry, hospitality marketing executive David "Rev" Ciancio has noted one alarming truth: many are not doing even the fundamentals of digital marketing. He joins Jaime Oikle to point out what restaurant owners and operators are missing out on if they refuse to post on social media, build a properly optimized website, and create engaging digital ads. Rev also highlights the benefits of publishing build videos regularly, setting up a rewards program for customers, and gathering client feedback to continuously improve your systems.

Find out more at https://handcraftburgers.com/ & https://www.runningrestaurants.com.

https://restaurant.mysamcart.com/products/

Choosing the right music for restaurants may not seem important from the get-go, but it is definitely a crucial aspect of your business that you must never set aside. Jaime Oikle emphasizes how your chosen playlist can make or break your restaurant environment with Ola Sars, founder and CEO of Soundtrack. He shares how they serve as a one-stop shop for businesses that want to secure the right music for their commercial needs while navigating all of its complicated licensing matters. Ola discusses their process in cultivating music for restaurant owners and employ AI tools to elevate their techniques. He also explains how restaurant managers should handle their music access, deal with explicit content, and determine the best music volume that works well for your place.

Find out more at https://www.soundtrack.io/ & https://www.runningrestaurants.com.

Sponsor Link: https://servicewithstyle.com/runningrestaurants

Sponsor Link: https://www.theleasecoach.com

A good restaurant is beloved not just because of its delicious food, but most importantly the lasting shareable experiences it offers to every single customer. Jaime Oikle sits down with Michael Tronn of 3 Hospitality and TIMBR to discuss the right way to deliver a complete restaurant experience anyone will love and remember. He explains how to perfectly combine good food, flawless service, and impactful branding to make your restaurant a certified go-to establishment. Michael also discusses why restaurant owners must always stay updated with current social media trends, where word of mouth is passed around almost instantly.

Find out more at https://www.michaeltronn.com & https://www.runningrestaurants.com.

Sponsor Link: https://www.RestaurantFormula.com

Sponsor Link: https://servicewithstyle.com/runningrestaurants

Having a good restaurant manager is essential in securing success in the world of hospitality. What characteristics and leadership styles should they possess? Jaime Oikle explores the eight traits of an effective manager with Darren Denington and Alison Anne. They discuss how managers must do the inner work to elevate themselves as impactful leaders and the best ways to build thriving relationships with their team. Darren and Alison also talk about Restaurant Management 201 and 301, a series of in-depth workshops about building cohesive and effective restaurant managers and crews.

Find out more at https://www.linkedin.com/in/darrendenington/, https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisonanne/, & https://www.runningrestaurants.com.

The everyday and long-term success of your restaurant hinges greatly not just on hiring the most talented people but also on building the right culture. Jaime Oikle sits down with David Friedman, founder of CultureWise, to break down how to create the ideal restaurant culture and environment. He talks about the right way to cultivate positivity within your team by constantly showing that you care about them, not just as employees but living and breathing human beings. David also dispels some misconceptions about culture building and the right way to take care of red flags as soon as they appear.

Find out more at https://culturewise.com/ & https://www.runningrestaurants.com.

Sponsor Link: https://servicewithstyle.com/runningrestaurants

Sponsor Link: https://www.RestaurantFormula.com

Your restaurant finances and taxes will always be your restaurant's most complicated and overwhelming aspects. Streamlining operations is the way to go if you want these to become much more manageable. Jaime Oikle sits down with returning guest Matthew Patrick to take a deep dive into the financial aspect of the restaurant industry. Together, they share valuable tips on menu engineering, tax compliance, cash flow monitoring, and tip management. Matthew also discusses how AI and the plethora of automated tools right now reshape how restaurants are run and managed - and why you cannot afford to ignore them at all.

Find out more at https://patrickaccounting.com/ & https://www.runningrestaurants.com.

Sponsor Link: https://www.RestaurantFormula.com

Sponsor Link: https://www.theleasecoach.com

Restaurant goers will certainly remember good food bundled with good customer service. By creating a point of differentiation in these areas, you can make your place not only commendable but also memorable. Chris Tripoli of The Restaurant Clinic discusses why a personalized and specialized approach is the rising trend every restaurant should take advantage of in this age when so many food choices are readily available and easily accessible. He also shares insights on adjusting to customer needs in a post-pandemic world, starting a restaurant even with little to no experience, and using the latest technology to level up your operations.

Find out more at https://www.therestaurantclinic.com/ & https://www.runningrestaurants.com. 

Sponsor Link: https://www.theleasecoach.com

Sponsor Link: https://servicewithstyle.com/runningrestaurants