2:10 — Bergen Anderson introduces Domino’s Ramon De Leon.
2:11 — Ramon: I am the operating partner of a six-store Domino’s franchise in Chicago.
2:12 — One thing Ramon believes in: “Tweetable facts.” Ramon: I cannot make money selling pizzas for one dollar, but I can make money from the conversations.
2:13 — Going beyond using the tools of social media: Ramon wants to inspire people to take games to next level.
2:14 — Ramon: My goal is to get people addicted to the Domino’s experience
2:15 — Why is he here and how did he get here? In 1998, Ramon’s store launched online ordering. Then in 2004, he began using AOL Instant Messenger. In 2005, he noticed how college students were using Facebook groups — they would take student offers and share them with their friends. To get past the college email address requirement, he used his college-aged nephew’s network to spread the word about his brand. Now everyone uses Facebook. In 2005, Ramon actually thought about going back to college to get a .edu email address in order to use Facebook!
2:18 — Social media is made up of tools to work with the core business plan. Give customers positive reasons to talk about you. Get to know their names. Smile.
2:19 — Ramon’s rules of engagement in social media: Be a part of the conversation or start one, and use lists to categorize things.
Ramon has created social media uniqueness — 90% of his twitter time is to promote customers, not himself. He uses monitter.com to follow tweets by zip code so he can monitor and respond.
2:22 — Ramon: “Social media fire needs to be put out with social media water.” For example, a customer ordered online, and posted negative feedback. They missed it in real time. In response, they made a video using a store manager, and said they’d wow the customer. The video has been embedded125, 855 times around the world! Experts couldn’t believe a brand like Domino’s would admit they messed up!
2:24 — Ramon put a face on the Domino’s brand by responding directly to issues, not waiting. He uses video often.
2:25 — He creates conversation by not talking about pizza. Sometimes he talks about giving cooking lessons in the store. He looks for ways to respond. Ramon: If my print prices don’t inspire people to order a pizza, I hope they inspire them to talk about it.
2:26 — Ramon: It will be hard to lose customers if we’re giving them something great. We print out customer feedback on pizza boxes. Then we post their feedback on Twitter to promote our customers. “You’re never alone with Ramon DeLeon.”
2:27 — Ramon: Use our hash tags, join our Facebook group, use Foursquare. The Foursquare ‘mayors’ of Domino’s get something for their status. They get something and it’s fun for them.
Make friends with media, and they, too, will spread the word for you.
2:28 — Ramon targeted Theresa, who’s a big talker—and she spread the word! Customers blogged about it when they ordered from one of his stores. Now, Theresa “feels guilty” if she doesn’t call Ramon’s store.
2:29 — Use Foursquare and let people know where you are—promote on Foursquare via pictures. It’s not about what Ramon says about his brand, it’s about what his customers say about it.
2:30 — Ramon follows all his tweets and responds to them. He engages his audience and they engage with him. He’s passionate about his customers. He really loves them and gives them incentives to come back. It’s not passion about things, but passion about people.
2:30 — Ramon is taping the session and talking to the camera. He’s addressing his audience even when they’re not present. He even inspires people like MC Hammer.
3:31 — He talks about how he gets customer video “thank yous.” He even gets responses from people in London and Mexico.
He engages conversation by showing live pictures of pizzas coming out of oven.
Raising money: Take videos and pictures of money-raising campaigns and the “big checks.”
Invite a blogger to cover you when delivering 600 pizzas!
Always be ready to share and post! Ramon shares pictures of the Chicago Blackhawks going past his store.
Ramon: Does anyone think social media’s a fad?
The world has gone mobile. Have you and your message? Are we as mobile as our workforce?
Life’s new milestone is preteens, who can’t wait to get on Facebook.
3:32 — Face the direction of travel. Trust your absolute gut instinct to go to next level. You will find it so clear you will kick yourself if you don’t get it. You will get a sign if you’re going the wrong way. Turn around.
Q&A
Q; Roger from Allstate: did Domino’s always love you?
A: I used to tweet before Domino’s had social media guidelines, and so I had to adapt to their guidelines. They work well on the corporate level. Now, I can tap into celebrities who are in Chicago.
Q: Virginia Sanchez: How do you compete in those markets?
A: I had to alienate myself from the rest of the Domino’s restaurants in the area. I mentor many franchisees. Many are afraid of negative comments, so we show people what to do with them. Remember Domino’s fiasco last year? We responded directly and showed people what health department and good customer were saying about our stores.
Q: Robin Scott from Computer Explorers: You’re speaking for Chicago, but you’re not talking about what the rest of Domino’s is doing? Are others watching what you’re doing?
A: Yes, they are!
Q: Drew of Renegade: How much time do you spend doing this on a daily basis and do you have a staff support?
A: It’s a one-man show. But I want to get people to order. I’m not making every pizza. That’s where the crew comes in. So the store management team is a huge part of this. They might not be tweeting, but they’re backing us with good operations. I check RSS feeds and alerts that come in overnight.
It’s become integrated in my day. At least 25% of 10 hr. day is for social media. I spend this time talking about stores, taking pictures, etc.
Love this live coverage? It’s all thanks to the amazing Tish Grier.
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