Here we go with another unsolicited marketing concept to benefit one of my new favorite spots - Austin's very own, The Soup Peddler. Before I get to the free marketing consultation, allow me a moment to share the story of my Soup Peddler Experience.
If you know the difference between great food and man made food with carcinogens, you'll be able to taste the great food difference at the Soup Peddler. I stumbled upon this great location when my two year old son told me, "Daddy, I have to pee". As I'm driving down I-35, I follow my son's words and immediately exit Airport. At first I was going to bring my son into the In-N-Out, but they were not open yet, so I made an executive decision to go inside The Soup Peddler.
I can immediately tell that this is a "bathroom is for customers only" kind of establishment. I look at the cashier and say, "I will order my son something as soon as he uses the bathroom". I am then told where the key is for the bathroom. The bathroom is clean but given the lack of space, there are enough supplies on the shelf above the customers head that make it unsafe.
Like a great parent I help my son wash his hands when he is finished. I return the key and I place an order for my son. I had no idea a place named "The Soup Peddler" would offer so many other choices besides soup. There are tons of healthy options, so I decided to order my son a shake. The one I chose him, he did not like the flavor and made it known before we left the store. Not wanting to bother, I began to drink the shake, left the store, and started putting my son in his car seat. Without hesitation, the cashier came out and spoke with me and said, "I can make him another shake, I must have misheard the order, does he want a different one?"
At this point I'm a little uncomfortable because I do not expect to be made another shake, nor do I want to buy another one. The real reason we went in the store is for my son to use the restroom anyway. My son says, "strawberry banana daddy" and before I can even say, "no, it's ok son" the cashier hears my son and repeats the order. Then I'm guilted by my son to say, "ok".
I fully expected to go in and pay for another shake because my son is worth it. At this point I’m adding up how much his restroom stop is costing me but happy my son found relief. The cashier hands me the shake and I hand him my card in return. The cashier tells me, "not to worry about it". I begged him to take the card because I wanted to at least leave a really thankful tip. I’m shocked he would do this because human decency is rare this days, and I only left a dollar tip on the first shake. My brain goes into how can I return the favor (law of reciprocation)? I decided that I’ll take care of the business that’s taking care of that employee and every single time I go in, I'll leave a minimum tip of 25%.
So since I feel I'm in debt to this gentlemen at The Soup Peddler, I'll go there a few times a week schedule permitting. In fact, I’m going to head there right now to finish this post with a bowl of delicious soup, a vegan grilled cheese (iykyk) and a wellness shot…
To conclude, The Soup Peddler seriously is awesome and healthy. Please treat your body the way it deserves to be treated and go fuel up at this wonderful place that was built purely on an inspiring grassroots effort by David Ansel.
Free Marketing Campaign Idea for David Ansel- Courtesy of Rule Business Consulting
Cleanliness is akin to healthiness and they are both required for everyones well-being. As an unsolicited marketing consultant, Mr. Ansel, I’ll jump right into the idea that will pay dividends for The Soup Peddler.
First, let's make it known that your restroom is available to anyone who needs it. Rule will train the staff accordingly to be equipped to encourage purchases from the new foot traffic. The law of reciprocation is automatically going to win but there are certain words cashiers can use to your new found potential customers like, “may I interest you in a wellness shot on your way out?”
This is important because it comes at a time where Starbucks decided to make it nationwide that bathrooms are for customers only (read here). Here's proof when my son had to use the restroom again and I was FORCED to go into the dreaded Starbucks to buy a birthday cake pop, just so he can use the restroom...
This is not what launched Starbucks into the coffee 'icon' that it is today and they are going away from who they originally set out to be thanks to greed. There is very little I like about Starbucks generally speaking, including using children to help source the coffee beans (read more). Even though, I have talked to a family of coffee farmers and they say generally it is much easier for children to pick coffee beans from the tree. In fact, the only thing that I like about Starbucks is how democratic they have made their coffee taste. The FORMER CEO, Howard Schulz, focused on the experience in the store. Free wi-fi (launched with ATT in early 2000's), bathrooms for all, gentle music playing in the background, and coined as a place to escape. Now their corporate scheme will put it right back where it belongs - in the mud for a new coffee chain to replace it and a new monicker that I'll coin *Starsucks.
I have plans of working with a local cleaning company to clean public restrooms this year, so I wanted to share for under $1,000 you can install a TOTO warming and cooling seat with a bidet that also warms the water. My wife is a former foodie and I’ve eaten a ton of places in Austin. Never once have I seen a toilet like this except in my house or in Tokyo. The entire toilet, base included will run you up to $4k.
In addition to that cost, we should pay a local artist to paint a mural during closing hours. We should also take the unsafe feature of storing supplies above your customers head and purchase a storage closet for the back office. Finally, I’ll have a producer of mine create an endless playlist that your customers will enjoy. It's about helping people, and their families to eat well and be clean in order to be well - while enjoying a great Soup Peddler Experience every time.
This simple idea will help your health conscious consumers rave so much about this bidet with all of its features that it could literally change Austin’s culture. Your WOM advertising will spread the name The Soup Peddler, like when you used to drive your bike around town selling warm soup…
So David, I encourage you to become the talk of the town with this very minimal cost idea that will pay dividends over the life of the business. Spend under $3k to renovate the entire bathroom, have an open bathroom policy for all, and give your customers an elevated experience while Starsucks minimizes theirs due to greed.
Cheers to keeping us Austinites safer, cleaner and healthier no matter the decisions that you choose to select for your awesome business.