There were few restaurant industry stories more surprising last year than the turnaround of casual-dining stalwart Chili’s Grill & Bar.
As has been oft-reported, the chain posted eye-popping, 31% same-store sales growth from October to December, driven largely by social media buzz and a new advertising energy. The number is all the more impressive given the challenges besetting many in its casual-dining cohort.
The epic comeback earned Kevin Hochman, CEO of Chili’s parent company Brinker International, the Restaurant Leader of the Year Award from this publication. Hochman received the award last week at the Restaurant Leadership Conference (RLC) in Phoenix.
Chili’s CMO George Felix joined Hochman at RLC, where he gave a presentation to a packed room (seriously, I couldn’t even score a seat and I work for the company presenting the event) about the chain’s “sizzling success.”
Here are some of the nuggets of marketing wisdom Felix shared.
Nothing matters if you don’t have good operations. Or, as he put it, if your fundamentals aren’t solid, “the worst thing you can do is have good marketing.” Marketing may bring a customer to the door, but if they have a bad experience, or if the house isn’t ready for the influx of business, that customer will never come back. “Marketing brings them in and operations brings them back, and so that’s a partnership we take very seriously.”
Create a culture of listening and innovation. This will, of course, help improve operations (see above). But it will also help fuel a guest experience that goes beyond a satisfying burger or cheese sticks, Felix said. “When we walk into a Chili’s, it’s like the vibe is different in there, and that is really driven by our team members,” he said. It was Chili’s Chief Supply Chain Officer James Butler, for example, who texted Felix and asked if he’d ever tried the chain’s fried mozzarella with Nashville hot sauce. Nashville Hot Mozz was born. “And then, next thing you know, we’re in the test kitchen,” Felix said. “And then, a few weeks later, it’s a secret menu item that you find out about on TikTok. And then, 100 million views later, people are doing crazy cheese pulls. But I think it comes back to that culture of innovation, where great ideas come from anywhere.”
Keep it simple. Chili’s is currently revamping its loyalty program, taking inspiration from an unlikely source: The supermarket. The casual-dining chain’s current rewards program is too complex and makes it too hard for diners to redeem rewards, Felix said. So, Chili’s VP of Marketing Steve Kelly coined the phrase “supermarket simple.” “Grocery stores, I think, have it figured out pretty well,” Felix said. “You either scan your little thing on your keychain or you type in your phone number, and then they start scanning your groceries, and you just see the discount rolling off.”
Listen to your customers and be nimble enough to pivot. Chili’s social media team began to notice that the chain’s Triple Dipper appetizer sampler was taking off, organically, on social media. “This is a good lesson that sometimes you have to listen to your guests and understand what really resonates with them,” Felix said. “In this case, it turns out fried cheese really resonates.” So, the social team figured out “how to pour gas on the fire,” he said, unleashing some influencer marketing, introducing secret menu items and more to further the popularity of the dish.
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