Pizza Today - October 2019 - 46

attendees and make it easier to line up
food and staff.
Social media is a low-cost strategy
to spread the word. "By promoting
events by successful paid or organic
search marketing, pizza restaurants can
hold community events that garner
better turnout rates," says Beverly
Friedmann, content manager for
MyFoodSubscriptions. After the event,
pictures can be posted on social media,
and attendees may submit positive
feedback through the same channels.

Orlando, Florida, in November 2018. In
early 2019, the place held a local foodie
event for approximately 20 attendees.
"Our concept is a community-driven
gathering place where families and
friends can meet up and spend time
together over wood-fired pizza and
house-brewed beer," says MaryAnna
Ford, Park Pizza & Brewing Company's
general manager. "We wanted to reach
out to foodies who don't live in our
neighborhood and expand our reach into
the greater Orlando community."
Guests at the event first took a tour of
the brewery, which was led by its head
brewer. They were then offered the restaurant's most popular signature woodfired pizzas, which were sliced thin.
Guests also received beer pairings with
each pizza, which were selected by the
executive chef, and tasting pours of each
of the seasonal beers in a small glass.
"It was important to us that each guest
have the opportunity to try as much or
as little as they liked, getting a full survey
of our menu, so we adjusted our portion
sizes accordingly," Ford says.
In anticipation of the event, Ford
and staff created a program that would
showcase the desired experience for
guests. "We took into account what our
target attendance would be, how the
additional food costs would impact our
marketing budget and what the potential
4 6 / P I Z Z AT O D AY. C O M / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 9

ROI would be," she says. "We also made
sure to include our general manager,
executive chef and head brewer in the
program so that the guests would feel
personally connected to the Park Pizza
team, deepening the community ties."
To track the results, the pizzeria
implemented special hashtags for the
event. "We ended the evening with a
social media giveaway - a $50 gift card
to the restaurant - so that the winner
could come back with their friends
or family to get the full Park Pizza
experience," Ford says.
Building brand awareness and
community support were key objectives
for the planned dining experience.
"Since the event, we have seen a growth
in social engagement which we can
attribute in part to this communitybuilding event," Ford says. The restaurant
is in a tight-knit community, and having
regular guests is part of the place's
business model. "When we see the same
families and groups of friends coming to
Park Pizza & Brewing Company on a
regular basis, we know we've successfully
made a name for ourselves in the
community," Ford says.
When getting ready for an event,
"know how many guests to expect,"
says Alex Membrillo, CEO of Cardinal
Restaurant Marketing. Asking guests
to register will give you an estimate of

EVENTS CAN ALSO BE USED TO
SUPPORT LOCAL CHARITIES AND
CAUSES. During the past year, West
Coast-based Woodstock's Pizza has
raised more than $150,000 worth
of free food and cash donations
for charities. "We are passionate
about serving the communities we
are in," says Emiley Stake, business
development manager for the eatery.
"We acknowledge that it is the local
community that supports us and helps
us thrive, and we feel it is our duty to
support them in return."
For a month, Woodstock's partnered
with a local Patagonia Outlet store and
a recycling program called Grey Bears,
which uses money from recycling efforts
to help the community's elderly. "We
worked with Patagonia to donate apparel
from their shop, in addition to prizes
from our own shop, and all three of our
companies advertised a raffle and fundraiser night, hosted by Woodstock's,"
Stake says. A "Green Earth" themed
trivia session was held during the same
night. The trivia portion drew such a
crowd that there was standing room only
in the place. The proceeds from the raffle,
along with 25 percent of the sales from
the pizza shop, went to the Grey Bears
organization.
Holding events helps show concern
for the area's needs, Stake says. "It
feels good to partner with like-minded
organizations and be collaborative in our
efforts." n
RACHEL HARTMAN is a freelance writer
who covers small business, finance and
lifestyle topics.

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Pizza Today - October 2019

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