The past two weeks were the two most influential weeks I have had since I started with Taziki’s.

Week one consisted of working in one of our stores, where I was able to learn and work each back-of-house station which included prep, salads, demo, cashier, etc.

Going into it, I knew I was going to learn a lot, which I did. What I didn’t expect were the relationships I would build with my other coworkers. Everyone at the store acted and treated each other as if they were family. That was meaningful to me.

Before I get into what I did week two, I want to touch on my key takeaways from working in the store.

1. Whenever a marketing campaign is being run, it impacts EVERYONE from both corporate and the local store. For example, if we are promoting dinner specials for Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night, that impacts the prep that begins at 8 a.m. Now, before I even think about promotion ideas, I first think about who is impacted, and how. (speaking of prep- never cut the onions for the salad too thick. You will not get good feedback.)
2. Taziki’s is a big family. To the owners, to the shift leaders, to the cooks, everyone is in it as a team.
3. A system is a system for a reason. Wow, did it get busy at lunch! I was even more amazed by how everyone did not panic for one second. Why? They had a system in place. They were organized and knew what they were doing.
4. You need to build relationships with trust. Some people may not be caught up with what digital/social media marketing is and how beneficial it is. I honestly do not blame them. What my job consists of is to get them bought into how it works, why it will work, and how it can benefit their business. This is where face to face conversation and relationships are crucial! Right now, that’s the biggest challenge but in time and with past results, it will happen.

Four good takeaways from my week behind the counter. I enjoyed it a lot and plan on doing it once a month. Alright, onto week two.

I spent that second week with our Nashville LSM (local store marketer), to see what a typical LSM does on a day in and day out basis.

We went from delivering catering orders to wedding tastings to being on set at the Nashville NBC studios. I would say I got the best week to shadow an LSM since I got a taste of almost everything possible.

Key takeaways from working with the Nashville LSM are…

1. Our LSMS play a crucial role in our market’s success since they do so much.
2. Their needs to be solid connections and relationships between corporate and LSMS to make sure everyone is on the same page and has the same end goal in mind for different objectives.
3. Listen to people who have been in the business longer than you and do not be afraid to ask questions.
4. Marketing is much more than just marketing.

Overall, a solid two weeks. If I had to break down my big takeaway from this time I would say it’s crucial to build trust with people that you are working with, especially when you are spending their money to build up business (and I don’t blame them or anyone for not trusting a 21-year-old).

It’s also just as important if not more important to know what you are marketing. I did come up with some ideas for campaigns during that first week while working in the store.

It’s the time set aside to listen, connect, and build a relationship where that trust is earned. My goal in the next two-three months is to focus on just that. Build trust.

Hope you guys enjoyed this one! Be on the lookout for something non-Taziki’s related in my next blog post.