Social Media at Work .. Twitter and the Cactus Club (and the floor tile wholesaler)
Wednesday, August 12, 2009 at 8:12AM .
I'm in a cafe near my home, working on a blog post about the crowdsourcing of (organizational) vision.
Two booths down, I am sort-of eavesdropping on two people who are discussing social media .. in this case, there's a young man who appears to be less than 20 years old advising a woman whom I would guess is the marketing manager of the Cactus Club restaurant (across the street from the cafe) on the use of Twitter.
I'm tempted to ask them if they have considered getting into the crowdsourcing, say once a month, of the restaurant's menu (though that would likely cause some chaos to food ordering and inventory management, until the restaurant chain learned to become more nimble).
But I did not act on my (nefarious) impulse. After all, I am an old fart ... what do I know ?
I just overheard "Twitter is a conversation, and you want to be part of the conversation", said by the young greenhorn to the marketing manager.
In other sightings, I noticed a roadside sign the other day stating"Follow us on Twitter and receive a 15% discount" (this from a floor tile wholesaling warehouse).
Almost enough to make me want to go offline for a month or two.
.
Powered by Qumana
Main Page 
Reader Comments (9)
Check in on Cactus Club and see how they are doing: follow @cactusclubcafe or fan on facebook www.facebook.com/cactusclubcafe
- "young greenhorn" ;)
Interesting observation! What do you mean by crowdsourcing in this context though? Do you mean for people on Twitter or Facebook to reveal what they would want on the menu?
Yeah, more or less .. there are any number of ways to address the possibility and dynamics of crowdsourcing information useful to a restaurant. If you want to know more, feel free to hire me ;-)
A friend of mine works in one of the other major chains in our area that competes directly with Cactus Club. Despite his training as a chef, and his awards in competitions, his every move is directed from head office, down to inspectors measuring that his portions are within 1-2 g of the "specified size".
I suspect his working conditions are similar to those at Cactus Club and others. Each "rule" is a response designed to manage waste [and thus cost] and to get as much leverage as possible from as consolidated an inventory of foods as is reasonable. My friend told me that the last competition he entered focused on bringing in a 5-star establishment style multi-course meal ... and it had to be done at (or under) a specified price point. Such is the nature of the beast: we vote with our dollars for "affordability" amongst other things.
In any event, here's the question: how does crowdsourcing "reach" into the corporate centre in an effective way? Sure, a particular outlet (I shall imagine that you were at the Blenz in Bentall V for your coffee, with the Cactus Club just outside the door, at Dunsmuir & Burrard in Vancouver, just for a moment) might tap into their local market in terms of local promotions ... but much of their operation is determined for them and not open to local questioning.
The one thing the "young greenhorns" — personally, I prefer "enthusiastic visionaries" — are least likely to get anytime soon from the crowd is something that speaks to a closed worldview. Talk 5¢ less meat on the plate and you're speaking their language. Talk "ostrich instead of chicken" and it might get an "ostrich special" to test market the idea. Talk "variable sizing, shared plates" and other rethinking of the restaurant trade and the worldview of tightly defined processes, sizes and costs becomes a hard shell off which such notions bounce.
The one who jumps this hurdle successfully will take significant share from competitors ... but as this is a "who bells the cat" type of problem I'd really like to see some thoughts on how to break into that closed view effectively.
href="http://www.feetlockers.com/women-mbt-shoes-mbt-sports-shoes-c-3_21.html">mbt walking shoes for walking 2 weeks. I was surprised, my pain is reduced when I was walking. It’s too amazing and incredible. I have only had my MBT Shoes Sale a short time but I already love them! Every day I wore discount MBT UK to walk 3 miles. After one month, my waist pain is disappearing! They are really great! I had purchased 4 pair of MBT Footwear from hellombtshoes.com and I love them. Now that I have been wearing the MBT Shoes Clearance, I hardly ever wear any of my other shoes. They are everyday shoes now. It’s so comfortable when wearing them.MBT Shoes are sold online with discount prices. We have fast delivery to your home, a large part of region with Free Shipping. Enjoy these high quality cheap MBT discount shoes technology for these new cheap MBT shoes. Features adjustable buckles at the forefoot, instep and ankle.
href="http://www.zigtechshoesonsale.com/reebok-easytone-go-outside-c-6.html">Easytone Shoes cost $100 and will sit, next to the similarly-unused New Balance Reebok Easytone Shoes, in my closet, and that I should very simply not buy them. the Reebok Easy Tone Shoes can be the solution to the spring workout program too.Cheap Zigtech Shoes, it will tone your muscles and the only requirement is that you wear Reebok EasyTone. The balance pods on the sole of the Reebok EasyTone Inspire does the whole work for you by making the muscles in your calves and hamstrings work harder to keep you straight. Discount Reebok EasyTone really is a fantastic way to start an exercise regime. I think
In my opinion, this article is very good and I like it very much. And I introduce a good cheap oris watches
If you are intrested it,you can click it! The particular which have appeared to the evenings may arouse a fshion trend.Best good luck for you !
This is my first time i visit here. I found so many interesting stuff in your blog especially its discussion. From the tons of comments christian on your articles, I guess I am not the only one having all the enjoyment here! keep up the good work.adidas phone
at one corner of the inn, beside a pool in which a flotilla of ducks was navigating, a badly paved path plunged into adidas world cup shoes the bushes. The wayfarer struck into this.after traversing a hundred paces, skirting a wall of the fifteenth century, surmounted by a pointed gable, with bricks set in contrast, he found himself adidas f30 soccer cleats before a large door of arched stone, with a rectilinear impost, in the sombre soccer shoes nike style of Louis XIV., flanked by two flat medallions. HYD