Food Trucks and Employee Engagement

The National
Food Truck
Association
estimates that
restaurants-on-wheels
generate $1billion
of sales annually
in the U.S.

The really interesting
part about food trucks,
besides the food,
is the buzz
that centers
on the highly
personal experience.

Next time you’re
standing in line for
lunch at your favorite
food truck location,
think about how similar
the experience is
to a well-designed
employee engagement
strategy.

It’s all
about
social
Twitter and
Facebook are
the chief
connection points
between food trucks
and their legion of
uber-urban hipsters.

It’s all
about social
If you aren’t out in front
with social media
allowing managers and
employees to follow, recognize
and reinforce each other socially,
then you might be giving
your engagement program
a flat tire.

Customizable
experience
Diners love being part of
an experience they can
personalize.

Customizable
experience
When an engagement program
is completely personal,
it’s closer to becoming
completely effective.
Allow your employees to choose
how they would like to be
recognized and let them
opt in or out of
social participation.

mix it up
One of the new trends in the
food truck craze is a
Food Truck Jam
where people can
sample from many
different places.

mix it up
The element of surprise and
the thrill of getting something
that might be in limited supply
can keep your employees
interested in what’s
coming up next and
on board with what
they need to reach the
goals you’ve set.

be where
they are
Those who drive food trucks
are masters at anticipating
just the right corner
where enthused customers
will be congregating.

be where
they are
Don’t take for granted
that your messaging is always
going to work in any one place.
Think about your audiences as
customers you need to find and
position your messaging where
they’re most likely to see it.

Worth their while
The only way to build up a
loyal fan base for a food truck
is to deliver great food
in a fun environment,
time after time.

Worth their while
Many employee engagement
programs have limited
communications, unclear goals,
rewards that fall short and
rules structures that favor
the “same old” winners. It takes
time to create an engagement
strategy that will keep employees
excited and ready to participate.

Download our
article now to
learn more about
how you can
make your
employee
engagement
strategy as
interesting as a
food truck offering
a bacon-cronut-
quinoa kabob.
Stand to the right. Decide on your order before you get to the window – thenopen wide. The current trend for truckside dining is continuing to grow andthe National Food Truck Association estimates that restaurants-on-wheelsgenerate $1 billion of sales annually in the U.S. What’s interestingto note is that only part – and probably not the largest part – of thisphenomenon is about food. The rest of the buzz centers on thehighly personal experience of the individual diners.
Standing in line for lunch at our favorite food truck location,we got to thinking about how similar this experience was to awell-designed employee engagement strategy (and yes, that is thekind of thing we thought about in the food truck line, because we’dalready decided on the pork belly taco with the cilantro-limereduction, so we had some extra time). Here’s what we musedbefore we got ready to chow down:
It’s all about social: Many food truck owners say theycouldn’t do what they do, or sell as much food as they do, withouta heavy reliance on social media. Twitter and Facebook are thechief connection points between one mobile food unit and its legionof uber-urban hipsters who follow its location the way rabid sportsfans follow the play-by-play. The lesson for your engagementprogram: if you aren’t out in front with social media allowing yourmanagers and employees to follow, recognize and reinforce eachother in ways they prefer, then you might be giving yourengagement program a hard-to-overcome flat tire.
Customizable experience: Diners love being part of anexperience they can personalize. That’s why they follow their favoritefood trucks to certain corners, events or taprooms, perhapscreating a traveling dinner by stopping for their favorite menu itemat a number of trucks. The secret here is that it’s all about theindividual’s personal choices and, no surprise, that’s the secretof a well-designed engagement program too. Allow your employeesto choose how they want to be recognized. Let them opt-in oropt-out of social participation. When an engagement program iscompletely personal, it’s closer to becoming completely effective.
Mix it up: One of the coolest new trends in the food truck craze is what’s
being called a Food Truck Jam, where an area’s top mobile venues gather
in one location to allow for prime grazing with minimal schlepping. Peoplelove the “little of this, taste of that” experience that sampling from lots ofdifferent places can bring. No two experiences are the same and there’salways something new to try. That’s a good strategy to keep in mind when
you’re planning an engagement strategy too. The element of surprise – and
the thrill of getting something that might be in limited supply – can keepyour employees totally on board and interested in what’s coming up next.
ENGAGEMENT ON WHEELSWhat food trucks can teach you about effective employee engagement
John O’Brien, Vice President, Employee Performance Group
BI WORLDWIDE
BIWORLDWIDE.com
©BI WORLDWIDE™ 2013 | Proprietary & Confidential
Engagementon
Wheels
What food trucks
can teach you
about effective
employee engagement
Stand to the right.
Decide on your order
before
you get to the window–
thenopen wide.
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BI WORLDWIDE uses the principles of behavioral economics to
produce measurable results for our clients by driving and sustaining
engagement with their employees, channel partners and customers.

Food Trucks and Employee Engagement

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Food Trucks and Employee Engagement