Brooke and I had the pleasure of being interviewed on our local news about how we use Snapchat for our business! See the segment below!
Steps (Another Lesson From My Daughter)
For the past two months, I have walked to the end of our block and back hundreds of times. Multiple times a day I help June's put her socks, shoes and coat on, and we walk out the front door. I help her down our porch stairs and onto the sidewalk, where she reaches up to grab the end of my pointer finger, and off we go.
We usually walk to the end of the block, sometimes a little further, turn around and walk back. June will point with her free hand and say, "Oooooo!" to cars, lights, rocks, sticks, dandelions and the three garden lamps she has to touch every time in front of our neighbors house.
There are times when June picks up the pace and starts grunting as she hustles down the street, causing me to smile from ear to ear because it's the funniest thing ever. There are times when we stop and look at the ground while she points at what looks like nothing. There are times when she looses her grip on my finger and falls to her knees. And there was the one time she lost her balance and grip and fell on her face (let's not tell mom about that one 😬 ). My bad, June!
June has taken a steps on her own quite a few times, but when we are on our sidewalk strolls she HAS to hold onto my finger. The second I try to slide it out from her grip she sumo squats down slowly to the ground and sits.
I am fully confident in her ability to walk on her own, but she needs to hold onto the end of my finger as we explore the great unknowns of Penn Street. My hand is safety and security for her and I am happy to oblige, because I love the walks and I love our time together. I love seeing her engage with life and if she needs the safety of her father's grip to do that, then I am more than happy to give it t
But here is what I know. Eventually, I will have to let go and let her figure out how to walk without me. I will do so with a little fear because I know that she will tumble, fall, cry and scrape her cute little legs. When she no longer needs my help I will play the role of cheerleader, doctor and safety net if a fall looks like it will be more than just a scraped knee. But, I will let her fall from time to time as she works through what it means to balance, take steps, walk, stop, sit down, get up, find balance again, and so on.
As I navigate fatherhood, I find that God is constantly revealing more truths to me through my relationship with June. I care and love June more than I ever thought I would and it is nothing compared to God's love for me. And as I let go of June's little, very sweaty, hand and let her brave the unknown, I know that I will be right there. I will be one step behind her, ready to catch her, care for her and love her when the falls hurt. I will be one step in front of her when she breaks her record of 15 steps to catch her, pick her up and twirl her around. I will be one step behind her when she goes from a walk to a run and a run to a fall. I will be there even when my grip is not.
My love and care does not go away when the end of my finger isn't in her grasp.
Yet at times, in my life, I find that I am angry with God because I can't "feel" His presence and don't totally understand why something is happening to me. I find it very challenging at times to feel like I am walking with Jesus, yet when I reach my hand up for support, I don't see His. It's at those moments that I want to sumo squat to the ground and throw a fit and cry, because I am frustrated He isn't just helping me take the steps I want to take. When June sumo squats down to the sidewalk during our walks they become pretty uneventful pretty quickly. We go from moving and exploring to sitting and doing nothing. Are we doing the same thing in our walk with God? Have we sat down in the middle of it because we are scared He has lost His grip? Instead of realizing that maybe we are just a few steps of faith away from breakthrough. Instead of sitting on the ground out of fear maybe we should keep moving forward because He is right behind us, ready to catch us. Or, even better, maybe He is right in front of us ready to celebrate a new victory or breakthrough!
I know that when my daughter finally starts to walk on her own she is going to take off. She can already really move while holding my hand and when she finally conquers the fear she needs to in order to let go there won't be anything holding her back. I am excited to watch it happen, eager to experience it and thrilled to be able to share in the joy of all it brings!
And here is the crazy part - I am a bad father compared to God, so if I am this excited about my daughter having a little faith to let go and believe she can do it, how much more will God be thrilled to watch you do the same?
Taking those first steps of faith is terrifying. Maybe it's taking steps in a job, or steps towards how you should manage your money, or the steps needed to talk to someone about something intense. Whatever it is, I know that it can be scary, because I have my own steps of faith I need to take. I know I might need to take them even when it feels like God isn't holding my hand through them. But as I live my life, here is what I have realized over and over again - He is either right behind you, ready to catch you and care for you, or right in front of you ready to pick you up and celebrate with you. Either way the steps of faith you take will end the same way, in your Father's arms, surrounded by His love and with a deeper understanding and knowledge of who He is and how much He loves you!
Would you want to pay the government $48,000?
Today is tax day. A day where small business owners, like myself, cringe when they realize just how much the United States government is taking from them. Small business owners all across the US today will certainly spend time thinking, "Even if I just had half of that money back, I could have..." In 2015, my wife and I paid more taxes then we ever have. After I write the last few checks today, we will have paid a total of $48,641 to federal, state and local government on a gross profit of $151,191. That means that 32% of the money that we made selling t-shirts this year went to the government.
32%!!!!!
More than 3 out of every 10 shirts we sold, were sold to pay the United States Government.
Now, before you give me the "government helps people..." speech, let me ask you a question -
Do you want to pay the government $48,000?
Do you think they are using that money more efficiently and wisely than I would? Do you think they will do a better job with that money than I will?
Let's imagine for one second that my tax rate is 15%, which it could be if Ted Cruz is elected president. I am not against paying some taxes, I'm just totally in favor of paying LESS taxes - for paying a flat rate no matter how much you make.
So, that means I would have $24,320.50 out of that $48k still in my pocket.
Now, let's imagine if I was the most selfish individual in the history of time and only wanted to spend that extra money on myself. I would take that money and do one of two things - buy a newer car or fix our back deck, which is slowly sinking into the ground.
If I bought a car, I would be putting that $24k back into the economy and helping the business of a local dealership, insurance, gas stations, etc. Maybe an extra car sale is all a dealership in our area needs to hire another salesman...
If I fixed our deck, I would hire a local contractor, Josh Strayer of Home Improvement Services. Imagine what the job could do for him and his family. He would also have to buy supplies from a local lumber mill. Maybe he would have to hire someone to help him with the job. After the deck was finished, Brooke and I would want to paint it, so we would either buy paint or hire a painter to do the job. We then would probably want to get some new furniture and we would go out and buy some. While we were out furniture shopping we would probably get coffee or stop for lunch and so on.
The possibilities are endless when you let the American people keep the money they've earned and spend it how they see fit.
Now, I am not the most selfish person in the world, so let's imagine another scenario.
Imagine if I was able to keep that extra 24k and use it in my business. I could give my employee, Alexa, a raise that she could use on her house, car and in her life. She and her husband could go on vacation or have an extra date night every week. Again, the possibilities are endless. After giving Alexa a raise, I could buy more inventory which results in paying our printer, manufacturer, and so on. I would have more to sell and some extra money, so maybe I could spend more money on Facebook advertising. Then Facebook has to hire more people to manage their advertising branch. Again, the possibilities are endless when the money we make is circulating in the economy.
I run just one of the millions of small businesses across the United States. Imagine if we could all just keep half of what we work to make day in and day out. Do you think we would spend it better than the US government does? I think we would.
Now, I know that some will argue with this post by saying, "What about the less fortunate?" "T.J., you are so selfish.." "Don't you care for the poor?" And I would say this, in 2015, Brooke and I also personally gave away more money than we ever have, totaling $20,473.25. I don't share the number for praise, but to prove a point because the "Don't you care about the poor?" argument is terrible. Does the government care about the poor? Should they care about the poor? Shouldn't that be the job of the people? Of friends? Of family? Of the CHURCH!?! Has the welfare system ever given someone a good paying job to provide for their family? Or is it small business owners, like me, providing jobs?
Even if I didn't want to give away my money, again, do you think the government is going to use it more efficiently than I will? Imagine if I used that 24k to hire someone in my area and gave them a well paying job? Do you think that would help more than a government handout?
I am sure that some of you are still caught up on the fact that my business made $151k and that in some way makes me "the man" or an evil white guy....
To that I would say this, Brooke and I are both employed by our business and are currently paying ourselves a salary of $58k.... combined. That means we each make a salary of 29k because we want the rest of the money we make to go back into growing our business. I could easily make more money working for someone else than I currently do working for myself. But I want to grow my business and I LOVE IT, so I am willing to sacrifice while walk in love. grows.
So you can call me selfish, and tell me that the money we make should go to the government, but again I ask this question - DO YOU WANT TO PAY THE GOVERNMENT $48,000 OF YOUR MONEY?
In 2016, we will have the opportunity to elect a new president. Three out of the four candidates want make government bigger and give it a greater reach into our personal freedoms and liberties. A bigger government will mean higher taxes and less money in the pockets of the US citizens. Only one candidate, Ted Cruz, is campaigning on the idea of a limited government with less power, which is the way the constitution laid it out.
If our government is smaller, we will simply have less to disagree with. If our government is smaller, we will keep more of our money to do whatever the heck we want to with. If our government is smaller, it is the people who have the power. If our government is smaller, I could probably fix my deck, which is sinking into the ground. 😂 If our government is smaller I could probably stop driving a 2006 Chrysler Town + Country Mini-van, where the wheels might fall off at anytime. 😂 If our government is smaller, I would have more jobs to give and more money to give away.
I am not an extravagant guy. One of my main goals in business is to give away a million dollars. It is hard to do that when 3 out of every 10 shirts I sell are sold for a government overrun with waste, corruption and greed. We the people, need to raise our voices and shrink the ever growing, overreaching government that is invading our personal lives more and more.
I started my business with $300 almost 11 years ago. I don't come from wealth. My mom is a flight attendant and my dad is a missionary. I want to grow my business to be as large as it can be, so I can help as many people as possible. I completely understand I have to pay some taxes, and I am not advocating that I don't. I am simply stating that I am paying too much to an inefficient, over-sized government.
It doesn't take long to realize that people are fed up with the government, so why would we ever want to make it bigger? Why would we ever want to give it more control over our lives? I can only imagine what would happen if small business owners, like myself, were able to keep the money we work so hard for.
Why Most Churches Are Bad At Social Media + How They Can Get Better!
Every now and then I find myself on a church's social media and, if I am being honest, most them are really bad at social media. As a Christian who loves social media, and the influence it can have on people's lives, I have a hard time with many churches being so bad at it. The story of Jesus is the greatest story in the history of time, yet churches seem to struggle to tell it, or any story for that matter, with their social platforms.
I thought I would point out a few ways that churches stink at social and leave a few suggestions on how to get better. I am writing this for all the people who have social media positions at churches, or hope to someday. My guess is three different things might be happening -
1. You are one of the churches who are actually good at social! Most churches are in denial about being good at social media, so please be honest with yourself. Way to go!
2. You have been trying to explain to head pastors or executive directors why the vision for social media needs to change with no success, so you've given up and just do what you are told while looking for another job. The church is really good at burning out employees.
3. You are oblivious to the error in your churches social and probably shouldn't have the job you have, but you clicked on this article anyway. Welcome!
My goal for this post is not to just point the finger and tell all churches they are bad at social, because a select few aren't. My goal is to show how the use of social platforms for churches needs to change, so that when someone is clicking around on Instagram and ends on your church's account, they are so compelled by your content that they come this weekend.
I believe that someone can start with a silly church Instagram feed and end with the amazing love of Jesus.
Also, for the most part, I am referring to churches Instagram feeds when discussing ideas below:
Problem: Where is the community you talk so much about?
I have been to a lot of churches in my life. Almost all them talk about living in community in some way. Most churches have a type of small group system in place that allow smaller groups in the church to meet together and support each other as they try to walk out living like Jesus. I've seen and heard pastors talk about the congregation being the church. YET, when you look at most churches Instagram feeds, you don't see this community they talk so much about. You see text... sooo much text. Seriously church, why are you posting so much text to a photo sharing platform? Why not show the people you talk so much about!?!
SOLUTION: SHOW THE COMMUNITY
The churches that are dominating social media are the ones that do the best job at showing who the church is - the people. Fire one of your graphic designers and hire a photographer who can take photos of people coming in and out of services and interacting with each other. Have that same photographer head out to small groups all week and take photos in peoples houses as they meet and talk about Jesus. Have that same photographer head to peoples places of work and photograph them with some text/copy that talks about what they do and how they shine for Jesus at their place of work. Stop plastering your Instagram with set-lists or countdowns to the next series and start showing the church, which is the people! Practice what you preach. And if you are constantly preaching about the community that makes up the church, your social should reflect that.
Two churches that do a great job at this - Vous Church + The City Church
Problem: Bulletin Board Syndrome
Bulletin Board Syndrome (something I made up) : A disease that infects social media feeds when treating a story telling platform like a cork bulletin board, resulting in loss of followers, engagement and anyone caring.
I understand that there is a lot going on at a church. You've got everyone from toddlers to the elderly, all in attendance, and ministries that are geared toward dozens of different age groups. You want to get them the information they need for different events, so you think social is the best way to do that. Well, it's not. First of all, there is no way that all age groups are checking for news and ministry updates on social, so it seems silly that you would use it for that. Secondly, that is what websites are for! You can put so much more information for an event on a website and if people are really that interested in that specific ministry, they will go and find it there. Keep your social social. There is nothing social about a bulletin board. Tell me the last time you really engaged with a bulletin board? My guess is that you walk by it without a second thought or glance.
SOLUTION: KEEP SOCIAL SOCIAL
Try for an entire week to not post a single "bulletin board" type item to your church's Instagram. My guess is that the attendance to all the events you were posting about will be unchanged, because people have already decided to come, or not, outside of the reminder just posted to social. Instead, spend the week going to several church ministry events and documenting them, and documenting them well. Have you ever had a friend post a photo to an awesome event they went to and think "Man, I wish I could have gone to that!" My guess is the next time the event comes around, you will make a point to go. Instead of spending your time telling people about an event coming up on social, spend your time documenting the events that are already happening. Use that photographer you hired and have them capturing all aspects of what is happening at the church. Post that story to your Instagram and my guess is the attendance will increase because people will see what they are missing.
A Church that makes me want to go to every event they have, simply based on their social - Hillsong NYC
Problem: Terrible Hype Guy
Most churches need to fire their hype guy. First of all, I don't think the church needs to hype all their series like they are the next great thing. Preach well and people will do it for you. But on occasion, I totally get why a church wants to hype a series, special guest or event they have. I think most churches try to hype every single thing too much, and when over-hype, people stop caring. Therefore, limit what you hype and build up to. Once you limit what's getting the spotlight, then do a better job at hyping said thing.
SOLUTION: HYPE ONLY WHEN NEEDED + PLAN IT OUT
Again, I believe that you should be very selective when building up to something on your social media. I think your social should mostly show the love, grace, joy and life-change of a church and not just build up to what is next, making people feel like they're already missing out on something. So keep hyping to a minimum, but when you have to, be more creative. STOP POSTING COUNTDOWNS TO THINGS. We get it, that big event is 5 days away...oh wow, today it's 4, tomorrow it will be 3.... WHAT?!?! I had no idea...
Create a plan to build up to an event. Actually market it. Stop being lazy with your strategy and come up with a plan and execute it well.
A church that shouldn't fire their hype guys - Fresh Life Church
PROBLEM: Asking for a "Big Picture"
I have had multiple meetings with pastors who want to "pick my brain" on social media. They sit down and ask, "So what should our big picture be on social media?" I can tell by that one simple question that this church will fail at social. Let me give you a secret about social media - there is no big picture. The only picture is producing great content on a regular basis that tells the story you want to tell. That's it. If you are waiting for some big picture to show up, it never will, and you will always be bad at social. Stop having meetings about "what to do on social" and just start creating content for social. Showing up consistently is half the battle. Once you do that start to refine and improve your content. People will respond to good content.
SOLUTION: CREATE CONTENT AND POST IT
Imagine if churches had less meetings talking about what they were going to do and actually just worked on doing it. When I click through churches social feeds, it is so obvious how some are so good and some are so bad. I am guessing that the ones that excel are really letting their creative team do what they do, and the ones that are bad are having meetings telling their creative team what they are allowed to do. I have learned in running our business to let Brooke, the walk in love. creative director, to do what she is going to do. The more freedom I give her, the better she is at doing her job. I let her create and post what she wants because I trust she has a pulse on our followers and engagement. Too many heads of churches try to control every aspect and that leads to subpar content posted inconsistently.
But, all of this isn't going to just going to happen overnight, so work to get better and never stop working! Social will constantly be changing, platforms, algorithms, and trends, but it will always be a way to connect with someone that could lead to a life changed forever. Give the people who run your accounts freedom to run those accounts. Trust that God has given them the skills to create a piece of content that someone might see, that could end with them knowing Jesus.
If you are a social media person in a church, share this with your team. Ask those in charge to let you to do what you can do. If you, however, are a leader or pastor who knocks the "creative legs" out from under your team, STOP! Let them create.
The story of Jesus is the greatest story ever told in human history. He has reached into our lives and picked us up, saved us and pushed us to live more loving lives. I tear up any time I hear about someone giving their life to Christ. It is so beautiful and amazing. I believe that we, as a church, just need tell that story over and over again. The power in it will never cease to work wonders. We should be telling that story on social all the time. Sometimes that could be a simple image of people hugging outside the doors of your sanctuary, sometimes it might be a story about a BBQ hosted by the church, sometimes it might look like a photo of someone raising their hands and singing their heart out on stage. It will look different to every church, but if we tell the story well in the medium provided, I absolutely believe it will be effective -- encouraging people to give their hearts to a loving Savior. I desire for every church to be good at social media, because the better they are, the more people will walk through the doors and the more lives will be changed.
CHURCHES WHO ARE AWESOME AT SOCIAL - Fresh Life Church, Vous Church, The City Church, Elevation Church, Hillsong NYC. I know there are probably loads more, but start by watching what these churches do and be inspired to make your own.
You Can Shine Backstage!
On Friday walk in love. will be releasing the Shine collection. Our brand new Spring/Summer collection. It's in a style and aesthtic that we've talked about releasing for the last two summers, but ended up going other directions. The Shine colelction is a vision that Brooke has had for a while and we believe it's perfect timing to release it. It's going to be awesome! Again, releasing Friday at 10am EST. - shopwalkinlove.com
As walk in love. grows I find myself not physically doing as much as I once was. I don't answer e-mails, I don't ship orders every day and for this collection I had nothing to do with the aesthetic and feel, outside of the designs. After I designed and ordered the products I took a step back. I handed the keys over to Brooke and said, "Do your thaaanng girl!"
It's really hard for me to step back. I tend to take charge in situations. I like to share my ideas publicy and give my opinion. It's why I have a blog, record youtube channels and fill up my Snapchat. I really enjoy being out there in the public eye.
But with this collection, I knew that Brooke had a specific vision and I needed to take a back seat to her creative genius. I told her that I trusted her and I would do what I could to help, but really wanted her to do what she wanted.
So, this past Friday I packed up the car for Brooke and her mom to head south for North Carolina. It's a good thing they did because it snowed the next day in Lancaster. It would have been very difficult to make that look summery if the photoshoot had been in PA. We chose Raleigh, NC because Brooke's cousin and best friend Kate lives there. She also has an aunt, uncle and other cousins in the area, which is why Brooke's mom went with her.
My role was staying home and watching June. That's how I was able to help. Normally, I help by coming to the photoshoots, giving ideas, making models laugh and feel comfortable, etc. But this time, I helped by taking care of June so Brooke could do her thing without any worry about how our little girl was doing. It was not glamorous by any means. I fed her, changed her, walked with her, bathed her and played with her on repeat since Friday. It was normal dad life through and through.
Last night, after I put June to bed I came downstairs to clean up the trail of chaos she leaves in her wake, which I love and no, I am not kidding. I love that our house is filled with toys and that she is constantly exploring. It makes my heart so happy to see toys, games, controllers and cheerios covering our floor at the end of the day. It means life was lived in our house and I really do love it. Anyway, after cleaning up I sat on the couch and opened up Snapchat.
Follow walk in love. on Snapchat - @shopwalkinlove
I told Brooke that I really wanted to have someone Snapchatting behind the scenes footage of the shoot so, she nominated her cousin Kate, who did a great job! I sat on the couch and started watching the Snapchats and you guessed it, started crying. It's hard to express how my heart feels when I see the company that I started over ten years ago doing something I never expected. I cry all the time when I think how walk in love. has grown, but this time was different because this time I was backstage. Brooke was shining, front and center, as the Snapchat followed her shooting, directing and interacting with the models and creative team.
I am always asking God to show me new things through what we are doing with walk in love. I never want it to be come stagnant and predictable to me. I want God to move through my company to touch peoples hearts and lives. We've seen Him touch many hearts through what we are doing and this time He didn't disappoint, he touched mine.
He showed me that you can shine backstage.
If you are someone who finds themselves on a stage with lots of eyes watching, SHINE BRIGHT! But in reality, most of us won't. Most of us will be on the stage crew, running audio, lighting and ushering people to their seats. And when we find ourselves backstage we can cross our arms and look on with jealousy as someone gets all the credit OR we can do whatever we can to make sure we are shining bright and setting up whoever is center stage to do the same. Shine where you are and let God use His brilliant light shining through you to change the hearts and minds of the people who are always watching, even when it's "just" your kids.
There are times I will probably find myself on a stage again, whether physically or digitally, and I will do my best to Shine bright for Jesus, as should you. But I want to always remember that even while I am backstage I can shine just as bright and so can you.
5 Things I'd Do If I Owned A Food Truck/Restaurant
Let's be real. If I was to ever own a food place it would be called "Snack Trayz" with a bar of delicious cheeses, fruits, vegetables + dipping mustard. You'd fill your tray, weigh it at the end, pay and sit and enjoy the greatest creation on planet earth - the snack tray. (Patent pending, verbal trademark, please don't steal this idea!)
A food business is always something I can see myself doing later in life when Brooke and I are old and gray. Brooke loves to cook and I love to interact with people so, I think it would be fun. I also love the loyalty that comes with a food business. We have regular walk in love. shoppers, which is amazing! But even the "regulars" in other businesses like ours can't compare to regulars at a restaurant or food truck. The restaurant world allows you, as an owner or manager, to really build a relationship with your customers, which is just incredible!
Anyway, if I did own a restaurant, or food truck, here are some of the things I would do from a marketing stand point.
1. I'd Reward My Regulars Outside of My Reward Program 🎉
No one is going to talk about your eatery like your regulars. If someone is coming to eat at your establishment every day, or every week, make sure they know they are appreciated. Obviously, you can do things like the punch card that allows them to "buy 9 sandwiches and get the 10th free". But just imagine what that regular would do if you went beyond that. Imagine if you covered their meal from time to time totally unexpected. Imagine if the next time they brought a friend, you let them both eat for free. What if you gave them a free t-shirt or mug that you sell. I think too often in business we get stuck thinking that people have to "earn" something free. If you HAVE to buy 10 before you get 1 for free, are you really getting it for free? Feels more like you are earning it, right? I think the awesomeness about owning a food business is that food isn't crazy expensive, so you can give it away a lot easier than someone selling watches or cars. So, if I had an eatery, I would reward my regulars outside of my standard reward program. Just think about the last time you got something for free. My guess is you went home and told someone about it! Imagine if your regulars, who already like what you do enough to keep coming back, were not only talking about your fantastic food, but also talking about how well you treat them! Priceless.
2. I'd Set Up My Restaurant/Food Truck To Be a Social Media Paradise 📷
If I were to own an eatery, I would make sure that every aspect of it was geared toward being shared on social media. I would make sure my food looked beautiful, my packaging was clever and most importantly, that my space/truck was set up to make Instagrammers and Snapchatters salivate when they walk in, even before they started eating. I'd even go so far as to have a wall or area in my space (or on the back side of my truck) literally reserved for taking pictures of yourself with food. See example below.
If you are scrolling through your feed and you see a friend eating at some place that looks awesome, then you are probably going to want to go. So, if I was in charge of restaurant I would design the layout, graphics, space, etc. while asking myself this question, "Will someone Instagram this?" Not only do you start to get your customers to do your marketing for you, but you also get an endless amount of content to repost, share and engage with. It's a win win.
3. I'd Host Meet-Ups All The Time 👋🏻
I would host all sorts of meet-ups at my establishment -- Instagram meet-ups, Snapchat meet-ups + photography meet-ups, just to name a few. I would try to bring people together as often as possible, because food and conversation just go hand in hand. Whenever you have a party, the kitchen is the most sociable room and I would hope that my eatery would be the same. I would reach out to the famous and well known Instagrammers in my area and ask if they wanted to do a meet and greet some night with their fans. I'd have a "Snapchat Your Trip" night where I'd ask people to make their way to the cafe to eat and then Snapchat what it takes for them to get my space. Best snap-story wins free drinks for a week... or something. Again, I would try to get my customers to share on social because social media is going to spread the word about my food business. Every year Instagram has a world-wide meet-up and I would use that event and date, and others like it, to get people to my establishment. I'd incentivize the meet-ups with half-off menu items, as well!
4. I'd Use Facebook Ads 💰
I know I say to use Facebook ads in every single one of these "X Things I'd Do if..." but its because it works. I can't imagine if I were a food business and could direct market to people who lived and worked in the area of my eatery. If you are like me, you probably check your social before heading to lunch. I bet if I had an ad for a local restaurant show up in your feed before started lunch you might be pretty tempted to head there for a bite. Even if it didn't work 4 days a week, it might work on a Friday. I'd use "free drink with purchase" coupons in my ads to give people an extra incentive to come on in. What if the person you hook with a Facebook ad becomes a regular!
5. I'd Have An All Are Welcome Mentality 😀
I know that all restaurants and food truck owners who read this would probably say, "Isn't that a given?" And yes, you would think that would be a given. But how many of you reading this have been to a place to eat where they make you feel un-welcomed and dumb for not knowing how it works. I went into this coffee shop one time and the pretentious barista made me feel so dumb for not knowing what a certain drink was, so I will never go back. I would make sure that every single person that worked in my food space would go above and beyond to make suer every single person felt welcome. I was at a local spot a few months ago and I could hear two servers complaining loudly about their manager while I ate. Guess what? I don't want to hear how poorly a place is run by the jerk manager while I am eating food from said place. I would do my best to make sure my team knew how important it was to promote a fun, positive and happy atmosphere because surprisingly, there are places that don't... Seriously, how is that even possible when it comes to eating? It's literally one of the best things you can do in life.
Maybe someday I will use these tactics at Snack Trayz, but until then, I hope they help you as you grow your Food Truck/Restaurant. If you want me to share "what I'd do if I were" in your field of work or business, please comment on this post with the industry or marketing conundrum. I'd love to hear from you! Have a great day!