How California Pizza Kitchen Embraces Change, Goes Viral on TikTok, and Gives Consumers FOMO

This week's maestro has worked for Lou Malnati's (pizza), Krispy Kreme (doughnuts), and now heads nan trading squad astatine California Pizza Kitchen (back to pizza) — making her profession sound for illustration my dream transportation bid aft a unsmooth Monday.

Keep reference to perceive from Dawn Keller, CMO astatine California Pizza Kitchen, connected why she likes giving consumers affectional FOMO and really to lead nan complaint connected marque evolution.

Lesson 1: Drive affectional FOMO. 

"Craveable items that are unsocial and compel consumers to beryllium irrational are nan champion defense against competition, user apathy, aliases inertia," says Keller. 

For Keller, this pertains to some her paper and her marketing. Her extremity is to "drive affectional FOMO" for her consumers. 

Look, I'll manus it to you — discussing "craveable products" pinch nan trading leader for a pizza institution astir apt doesn't sound excessively relatable to B2B marketers. 

But erstwhile I show Keller that cheesy, gooey crust is much seductive than gross attribution reporting, she pushes back: "I really spot this successful B2B trading each nan time. Emotional FOMO is wholly create-able successful that world, excessively — you conscionable request to show what's possible, and nan occurrence stories of different people."

She adds, "It's each nan aforesaid humans, you know? They're conscionable making different decisions… Like, what to eat, and what package to usage for their businesses."

While you mightiness not beryllium trading ail knots, location are plentifulness of B2B attributes that are insanely "craveable" — for illustration easiness of use, clip savings, and productivity boosts. Use those crippled points to get each your soon-to-be consumers hungering for your offerings for illustration they crave a bully mac and cheese. 

Lesson 2: Turn antagonistic moments into a chance to show up. 

Recently, a customer ordered mac and food from CPK — and conscionable sewage cheese. 

After she posted nan vid connected TikTok, CPK responded pinch a video successful which Chef Paul jokingly walks done nan steps of decently making a mac and food (emphasis on: Add nan mac) and past announces 50% disconnected mac and food for each CPK customers. (Since nan customer only sewage 50% of her repast — get it?) 

CPK's TikTok consequence sewage 13.5 cardinal views. Keller was shocked… and thrilled. 

"It was mind-blowing to everybody [how good it did], but we judge what really made nan quality was how we showed up — successful a ace authentic, humble, self-deprecating way. It wasn't corporate-y aliases stuffy."

CPK could've chosen to disregard nan customer's title altogether, aliases they could've commented connected nan video pinch a generic "I'm sorry!" customer work response. Instead, they decided to usage nan opportunity to reframe nan communicative into thing nosy and lighthearted. 

And arsenic Keller points out, "We still sewage to reenforce what matters to america — which is that we person value food, and we attraction astir our guests. Authenticity and intermezo is what gets people's attention… Not conscionable that you're utilizing socials arsenic an advertizing channel." 

We've heard it crossed nan committee this twelvemonth from Greg Fass, Jenna Kutcher, and plentifulness of different Masters successful Marketing, and nan constituent holds true: Being authentic and showcasing nan human down your marque is simply a overmuch amended strategy than a polished advertisement these days. 

Lesson 3: Evolve arsenic your consumers do. 

It hasn't ever been doughnuts and pizza for Keller, who has besides held trading roles astatine CVS Health and Staples.

Across those roles, she believes 1 halfway work has ever been to beryllium an "agent of change." 

But group don't ever emotion change, peculiarly astatine brands that person existed for 40+ years. So I wanted to know: When Keller joined CPK, really did she equilibrium caller ideas without making nan squad consciousness for illustration she was steamrolling nan good-ole measurement of doing things? 

"I springiness a batch of in installments to Jeff Warne [the CEO of CPK] and my colleagues, who person really incubated this thought that any marque that's been astir for 40 years has to proceed to germinate and do new, caller things," Keller tells me. 

Fortunately, she besides has immoderate words of contented for trading leaders who've been tasked pinch maturation astatine a institution that doesn't clasp alteration arsenic easily.

"You person to bring group on nan travel and induce ideas from anywhere. Sometimes, leaders deliberation bully ideas tin only travel from caller people. But veterans pinch heavy discourse tin besides beryllium nan originators of nan champion caller thinking." 

Everybody has a domiciled to play, and nan much a alteration supplier tin promote and incentivize caller ideas while breaking down nan walls of fearfulness aliases discomfort, nan much apt they are to win successful creating an progressively applicable brand.