Social Media Marketing for Sue Ellen’s Pizzeria

Read the overview and complete the activities that follow.Assume you have just been hired as the marketing manager for Sue Ellen’s Pizzeria in Hartford, Connecticut. The owner of the restaurant has heard that social media might be a helpful tool to increase business at her small business. She has provided you with a report of the current marketing environment for Sue Ellen’s and has given you the task of developing a social media marketing strategy to generate more customers for the pizzeria.

CONCEPT REVIEW:

Social media has become a powerful tool for small business marketers looking to compete with larger firms. As beneficial as social media can be, firms must still use such tools strategically. Small business owners should focus on developing social media marketing strategies for specific sites and platforms. Those who start using multiple social media marketing tools all at once may lose focus or become discouraged because of the lack of immediate results.

Social Media Marketing for Sue Ellen’s Pizzeria

Review the report on the current marketing environment at Sue Ellen’s Pizzeria and make decisions to develop an effective social media marketing campaign.

Sue Ellen’s Pizzeria currently has one location in the west part of Hartford. The restaurant averages about 250 customers per day, and it is open between 11:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. every day. It offers a lunch buffet each day and has new specialty pizzas that are featured each month. The challenge for Sue Ellen’s pizzeria is that it does not have much money for advertising, so potential consumers are unaware of the restaurant and existing customers often forget about it because they do not see or hear advertisements.

In addition, there have been problems in the past few months because the specialty pizzas have not been very popular, costing Sue Ellen’s potential business. Customers have complained that the ingredients in the specialty pizzas are often too exotic. Coupons traditionally have been popular at Sue Ellen’s; however, the company has noticed that fewer people are using the coupons sent through the mail. This results in a great deal of wasted cost for the printing and mailing of coupons that are never used. Sue Ellen’s employees have also noticed that a very high percentage of their customers at the restaurant have smartphones and utilize social media while eating at the restaurant.

1-To maximize the potential revenue for Sue Ellen’s Pizzeria next month, the company should:

A- Not use social media because they are too expensive

B-Select one or two social media platforms to begin building a following

C-Utilize every possible social media tool that is available

D-Focus all of their efforts on their web page

E-Not use social media because the average pizza customer does not use social media

2- In an effort to increase the likelihood that customers will like the monthly specialty pizza and ultimately generate the highest possible profit, you could:

A-Make the specialty pizza the same price as regular pizzas even though the cost is much higher

B-Give everyone who buys the specialty pizza two free regular pizzas Start a Facebook conversation about the customers’ favorite regular menu items

C-Use social media to ask customers what flavors of specialty pizza they would like

D-Send a Twitter message telling people what the specialty pizza of the month will be

3-What would you suggest Sue Ellen’s do to improve its coupon strategy?

A-Increase the value of the coupons by offering customers 80 percent off menu items

B-Increase the usage of traditional coupons sent through the mail

C-Don’t use coupons because they do not work at Sue Ellen’s

D-Send coupons through social media platforms that reach customers before lunch and dinner

E-Make coupons available only on the pizzeria’s website

4- Sue Ellen’s Pizzeria could potentially advertise its products on social media using all of the following except:

A-Develop a colorful print ad that can be run in the local Hartford newspaper

B-Provide rewards for customers who tweet out positive comments about their dining experience at Sue Ellen’s

C-Have consumers “like” the restaurant on Facebook

D-Have a contest for the best-looking pizza from Sue Ellen’s on Instagram

E-Develop a YouTube channel where customers can share positive experiences

5- All of the following are advantages of social media marketing for a small business like Sue Ellen’s Pizzeria except:

A-The cost is much less than other forms of advertisement, such as television

B-If you make a mistake, very few people will know about it

C-It provides a personal touch that helps develop relationships with consumers

D-It can drive additional traffic to the restaurant

E-It can engage customers and make them feel more involved with the business.