Beyond The Dough

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The Two Hardest Things To Teach Our Kids

As a father of three, I’ve found the hardest things to teach are gratitude and work ethic.

Running a restaurant gives you a very unique way to teach both by example.

Some of the best operators, that I know, are always thanking their customers. We live in this crazy tech filled world but there is still nothing better then an old school, eye to eye, handshake with an “I truly appreciate you supporting me and my family. It means the world to me!”. Thank your customers. Thank your staff. Thank your food providers. Thank your FAMILY.

My longtime friend, Dustin Jones, of Simple Simon’s Pizza, in Tulsa, Ok, and I used to talk about “We don’t HAVE to go to work…. We GET to go to work!”. Showing your kids that you “Get To Go To Work” is huge.

Going to work isn’t a chore if you’re doing something you enjoy! When you have this attitude, your kids will see it.

Give thanks. Work hard. Love your family. Repeat.

To learn more about Perfect Crust’s pizza liners and other products, visit perfectcrust.com or email Eric Bam at Eric@perfectcrust.com

About Eric Bam:

A Boston native now living in Tulsa, OK, Eric Bam is VP of sales and marketing for Perfect Crust, with 20 years of experience in the foodservice industry. A powerful force in the workplace, Bam uses his positive attitude and tireless energy to encourage others to work hard and succeed. He has three children and loves helping the men and women of the pizza industry grow their businesses.

run multiple brands out of a single kitchen and cross-train the same team to be able to cook cuisine from all concepts. This allows restaurants the ability to maximize operating efficiency, provide more robust customer-facing services, streamline internal services and maintain a low capital spend. As rents and labor become more expensive, the digital kitchen model offsets those costs.”

Therefore, Simon believes that finding a ghost kitchen space where other food brands or restaurants operate is key. A digital kitchen with six to eight brands operating out of a single space can generate a significant increase in revenue and has the potential to reach new demographics because of the increased diversity in options for customers.

Alternatively, ghost kitchens also allow a single operator to offer a variety of his own brands under one roof. That’s the route chosen by Gene McWilliams, owner of Kitchens Unlimited in Effingham, Illinois, which opened in November 2020 with three virtual concepts, including the pizza-focused Lucia’s Italian Kitchen. “While a lot of ghost kitchens are landlord-based—you may rent out 500 square feet and operate with third-party delivery—we own all of the restaurants and the delivery team; we don’t use third-party,” he explains. “We’re running three restaurants out of one shared kitchen, and customers can choose from all of them in one order.”

Because McWilliams wants to build more of a “chef-driven” brand, this format allows him to test the waters on new concepts—and, if one isn’t working, to change it on a moment’s notice. That said, even though ghost kitchens offer unique advantages, McWilliams stresses that many aspects are just as difficult as with brick-and-mortar operations—after all, you still need to master core aspects like marketing, accounting, menu items and overseeing staff.

Nailing The Digital Details

When you don’t have a storefront to entice customers—and potential patrons won’t be tempted by menu items traveling through the restaurant on the way to tables—having a strong digital presence is paramount. Wintersteen notes that third-party delivery services will be key in helping increase awareness for new operators. But, adds Michael Parlapiano, creative director of The Culinary Edge in San Francisco, exposure from third-party services will only go so far. “When people aren’t driving by your location, you have to approach your branding and marketing in a very serious way—it becomes more about search engine optimization and digital and social media strategies to connect with customers,” he says. “Just as people eat with their eyes first, the same goes for your brand: You need unique features to distinguish yourself from others. Create a cohesive esthetic in tone, name and design; have a strong sense of what your brand stands for and your values; and consider the ways to communicate that, from your photography to social media to packaging. Invest in your design to appeal to the specific customer you’re going after.” Then, as you build a loyal fan base, review that customer data to learn more about the people ordering from you and how you can better target them.

Wintersteen believes that improving your digital presence should involve a two-pronged approach: your owned channels (i.e., website and social media), which should reinforce the brand and provide customers with relevant information; and third-party channels (your profiles across third-party delivery services, Google My Business, Yelp, etc.), which should be as simple and built-out as possible. “Using your website and social media to give the brand a personality, tout specials and promotions, and even provide a behind-the-scenes look at your operation are all ways to increase transparency with the customer,” Wintersteen says. “Fostering relationships with customers, without a dine-in experience, is much harder to achieve.” In addition, regardless of the length of your menu, Wintersteen suggests making it “digestible”—include topnotch visuals through photography and clear sections to make it easier to scan and order from.

Finally, keep in mind that in some areas, customers might not even know what ghost kitchens are all about. McWilliams, located in a rural town of 18,000, notes that there has been a learning curve with locals who are used to calling a pizzeria and asking about the day’s specials, versus ordering online and scrolling pics on social media. “We post daily on social media, like Facebook and Instagram, but really Google is the most important,” McWilliams says. “When people search for pizza or restaurants near them, SEO is huge. You want to pop up in those first couple of results. Ask your customers to review you on Google, not on Facebook. Photographs are huge, too— when people see mouthwatering images, they feel like they need to try you.”