Tag Archives: Jill McFarland

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Not a Conference, a Movement

Whether you are in the restaurant industry, social media or HR, this is why you don’t want to miss People Report Summer Camp and newly added Digital Brand Camp.

• Cutting edge content by top notch speakers including Keynote Scott Stratten
• Work alongside industry leaders in a community service event
• Digital Brand Camp led by Paul Barron
• An energy that you have never felt before
• Build relationships that will change your life – I promise they will

Instead of explaining what People Report does, I’ll let you learn more here. The more important message that I would like to get across is that those who have attended this conference have described it as life changing. At the helm of People Report is Joni Doolin who I admire for her tenacity to be on the leading edge of not just industry trends but trends in the world and how they will effect business and your world. She has a track record of bringing in speakers that wow the audience like Futurist David Houle, forward thinker and founder of MacWEEK Michael Tchong, along with a list of restaurant industry icons.

The speakers are only par t of the conference. Each conference has included a half day of community service. Everyone including CEO’s of major brands, speakers, attendees, vendors and volunteers work alongside to put meals together at the North Texas Food Bank to bring awareness to Share Our Strength‘s plight to end childhood hunger. They weed the gardens at Jonathan’s Place to give abused children better living environment, and the list goes on.

Interactive breakout sessions led by thought leaders examine forward thinking industry trends. Past sessions have included using social media and location based apps to recruit, how the industry can be more green, measuring social media metrics, implications of healthcare reform, and a great many more. My biggest complaint about the conference has always been having to choose between so many relevant sessions running at one time.

The number one reason I would recommend this conference is the relationships that are formed there. They have opened a great number of doors for me and have allowed me to meet people that are now some of my best friends. This is the type of company you want to surround yourself with. We have used social media to remain in communication year round. If you’re not social media savvy you will be by the time you leave as this is the most tweeted about conference in the restaurant community, and if you know me, you know that’s a lot of tweets!

Learn more about Summer Camp and Digital Brand Camp

 

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Dancing in the Streets

No you weren’t hallucinating, a couple did randomly appear tango dancing in the middle of your neighborhood.

This is the work of TangoTab a new digital marketing platform that is changing the way restaurants reach target audiences while allowing them to maintain control over their message, offers, and traffic flow.

TangoTab kicked off their launch with a huge party in Dallas, their home base.  The party took place at Sfuzzi in Uptown on April 25th with a lot of downloading of the TangoTab iPhone  app.  In order to continue to build awareness, tango dancers are popping up in numerous locations in the New York City, Chicago, and Los Angeles areas.  They’re asking onlookers to complete the following sentence, “It takes _____ to tango”.  In order to engage other cities they are holding a video contest asking participants to send in a video of them completing the same sentence.

“We chose the name TangoTab based on the idea that it takes two to tango,” said Andre Angel, TangoTab founder and CEO.  “With TangoTab the restaurants create offers that make sense to them and are appealing to guests.  Guests receive great offers and reward restaurants by promoting restaurants to their social networks.   It’s a metaphorical tango dance.” added Angel.

TangoTab launched their site and app on April 25th and are quickly building momentum in the 12 major launch cities.  They will continue to add cities until they are available throughout the US and Canada.  Keep your eyes open and phone handy as there will soon be tangoing in your town!

In case you missed the Tango dancers in your neighborhood, you can see the videos submitted by the audience on TangoTab’s Facebook page.

 

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TangoTab Drives Traffic to Restaurants by Flipping the Model Upside Down

DALLAS, TX – April 20, 2011 – Dallas based TangoTab puts control back into the hands of restaurants to drive traffic when they need it most.

Use the word coupon or daily deal and watch the team at TangoTab cringe. As a next generation digital marketer in the restaurant space, TangoTab drives traffic to restaurants when they want it. Their revolutionary solution aligns restaurant goals with guests’ desires and builds loyalty by rewarding guests for promoting restaurants and their offers.

“It’s all about the food, atmosphere and fun for restaurant-goers and expanding revenue streams for operators. It’s most definitely not about the coupon. That’s where a lot of existing solutions get it wrong,” says Andre Angel, TangoTab founder and CEO.

The founder of several successful technology startups, Angel spotted opportunity in the food service industry and put his technology background to use. “Looking into the financial equations of restaurants, I found serious issues with traffic and filling tables” said Angel. “Out of a seven day week most made all of their money over three days with empty tables and mounting operating costs plaguing the remainder of the week.”

The success of social deal and discount sites piqued Angel’s interest early on, but he found the model to be flawed and envisioned a better way – that better manages restaurant traffic and rewards consumers for talking up local establishments.

TangoTab operates a partnership model giving restaurants the flexibility to present limited time offers when it makes sense for their bottom line, not when there’s a schedule opening for the so-called daily deal.

“We put the tools and power in the hands of our partners,” says Angel. “By making it on their terms and breaking from the one-size-fits all couponing model to a hyper-local approach that’s best suited for local business.”

Launching officially on April 25th, TangoTab has already built a sizable following of potential restaurant guests awaiting news of deals at their favorite local eateries. Leading off in 12 markets, users will be able to access deals through the TangoTab website, mobile alerts (iPhone, iPad and Android platforms), Facebook, Twitter or email according to their preference. Offers are available in real time. For example, if a restaurant recognizes that Tuesday is a slow night, they can create a limited time offer that morning for a free appetizer between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m., controlling the offer, quantity and when they can expect the traffic. Just imagine walking down the street and getting a mobile alert for a deal nearby – reserving and redeeming it immediately. What’s more, guests pay the establishment directly, not TangoTab, eliminating the common confusion and frustration associated with daily deal services.

What differentiates TangoTab from other deal sites is the focus on the restaurant industry and commitment to their success, as well as giving guests better choices per day. TangoTab provides power and agility. The real-time interface is the key to connecting hungry customers to enthusiastic food joints. By focusing exclusively on managing restaurant traffic flow, there’s no pressure for owners to offer the deep – and often unprofitable – discounts that have left a bad taste in the mouths of many proprietors who have tried and rejected group couponing services.

“We’re in the business of providing an exceptional experience for both the restaurant and its local patrons.” TangoTab kicks-off with a launch party in Dallas, TX on April 25. They are launching in 12 major US cities, and will expand across the US and Canada over the next few months.

About TangoTab

Dallas based TangoTab empowers restaurants to market to a targeted audience, driving traffic and loyalty to their brand. With marketing, technology, and social media tools and expertise TangoTab’s platform allows restaurants to interact with guests in real time and to bring them in with enticing offers when they most need to fill empty seats. TangoTab builds relationships with the restaurants most desirable to guests, delivering a win-win experience for both. Please visit http://www.tangotab.com