February 2010

Social Media as an Effective

Communications & Marketing Tool
for Small Business

A Case Study with Alegria Cocina Restaurant

in Long Beach, CA

Written by:

Geoffrey Kutnick and Julie Kreisler

The Kreisler Group
2 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

ABSTRACT. Large corporations like Dell™, Zappos.com™ and Best Buy™

have had great success with using social media as a communications,
marketing and sales generating tool. But would a similar model using social
media work for small businesses? That is the question we attempt to answer
within this case study. The Kreisler Group (TKG), a Marketing and Public
Relations Firm based in Long Beach, CA, developed a ten-week social media
trial with Alegria Cocina Restaurant. Through this trial TKG was able to
confirm roles social media play to help small businesses sustain and grow.
We will be discussing in detail the roles social media can play and how that
directly affected sales for the restaurant.

KEYWORDS: Social Media, Small Business

INTRODUCTION

With Social Media being the buzz words for the latter half of this past decade,
and ‘tweets’ being talked about by everybody from the President Obama to
Oprah to Ashton Kutcher and back again, it made sense why pundits,
marketers and so-called social media ‘gurus’ were debating the viability of
small businesses using social media as a business tool. But what truly
sparked this case study were findings from a Citibank and GfK Roper survey
that TKG had trouble processing. First, here is the data reported from the
survey release on October 9, 20091:

• 500 Small Business Executives interviewed across the US

• 76 percent did not find social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter
and Linkedin to be helpful in generating business leads or expanding
their business
• 86 percent say they have not used social networking sites to get
business advice or information
• 61 percent of respondents say they rely on search engine sites like
Google and Yahoo for business advice or information

1
Wulfhorst, Ellen. (8 Oct. 2009). “Small Business, Social Media Not Mixing.” Reuters.
Retrieved from http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE59759L2009ten08
3 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

TKG doesn’t question the validity of the results mentioned above. We just
belive they asked the wrong people the wrong questions. According to a
2002 Survey of Business Owners (SBO) conducted by the US Census Bureau,
almost 1/3 of business owners are above the age of 55. Here is a graph of
their findings.
4 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

The data from the US Census bureau (while a little old, 2007 numbers still
being analyzed and interpreted) illustrates that a majority of business
owners (60 percent) are age 45 or older.2 This means that most business
owners were born during or before the 1960s. The original Internet, entitled
the ARPAnet, was not invented until the end of the decade in 1969. So, of
course a majority of business owners may not believe that social media will
help sales acquisitions and overall growth if they do not understand the full
capabilities of the technology. Secondly, because social media grows at an
unprecedented rate with thousands of startup companies, the knowledge
divide between those whom ‘get’ social media and those whom do not
continually grows every day. While younger generations further integrate
different applications of social technology into their lives, those not exposed
lack vital knowledge essential to current business and profit models.

The process in which people find information about retailers, products and
services has changed dramatically over the last few years. According to
research conducted in March of 2009 by Penn Schoen & Berland Associates
in partnership with LinkShare, 81% of respondents participate in online
research ‘most of the time’ before buying a product.3 Data released from
Experian’s Hitwise after 2009’s Black Friday shopping holiday revealed that
4.3% of Facebook users and 2.3% of Twitter users visited the website of a
top 500 retailer immediately after visiting the social networking sites. 4
Lastly, with the large percentage of internet users consulting the web for
information and reviews, 1 out of every 5 internet users use a status update
service like Twitter.5

These findings led us to pursue a case study with Alegria Cocina Restaurant,
to establish and prove the roles social media could play and most
importantly show significant sales growth from the previous ten weeks and
the same ten-week period of the previous year.

THE TOOLS

TKG established that there were 3 social media tools that would allow
Alegria to communicate their message effectively and efficiently to a large
audience while playing to its strengths. The selected social media platforms
used include: Facebook, Twitter and Flickr.
2
United States Census Bureau. Survey of Business Owners. Retrieved from
http://www.census.gov/econ/sbo/02/cvbosof.html
3
Dietrich, Liane. (15 Jan. 2001). “How the Online Marketing Landscape Looks in 20ten.”
UTalkMarketing.com Retrieved from http://www.utalkmarketing.com/Pages/Article.aspx?
ArticleID=16428
4
Zmuda, Natalie. (7 Dec. 2009 ). “Retailers Go Nuts for Social Media in Holiday Marketing.”
Advertising Age. Retrieved from http://www.AdvertisingAge.com
5
Fox, Susannah, Kathryn Zickuhr, and Aaron Smith. “Twitter and Status Updating, Fall
2009.” Pew Internet & American Life Project. October 2009. Retrieved from
http://www.pewinternet.org/Reports/2009/17-Twitter-and-Status-Updating-Fall-2009.aspx
5 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

WHY FACEBOOK?
1) Communicate messages to a large targeted audience effectively
and efficiently
2) Boasts a user base of over 350 million people
3) 14,600 Long Beach Residents and Workers participate with status
updates6^
4) 64,000 people within Greater Long Beach use sites like Twitter &
Facebook7^
5) Very multimedia friendly: videos, pictures, links
6) The ability to reach out to potential and existing customers with
friend requests*, events, groups*, fan pages, fan page suggestions
& friend suggestions*.

WHY TWITTER?
1) Communicate messages to a large targeted audience effectively
and efficiently
2) One of the fastest growing social networking sites in 2009.
Experienced 1382% year-to-year growth from Feb. 2008 – Feb.
20098
3) The amount of residents, workers & tourists in Long Beach and the
surrounding areas on Twitter and Facebook (approximated numbers
included in ‘Why Facebook’ section)
4) Extensive amount of Third Party Applications (TPAs) that assist in
message dissemination, link shortening, file sharing, linking to other
social media sites, etc.
5) Ability to reach out to local users based on ZIP code and key words
(e.g. salsa, Latin, dinner, etc.)
6) Trackability – Because of link shorteners like Bit.ly and Ow.ly you
can track your click-throughs from the links you sent out via social
media. Web site analytics also allows users to check ‘referring’
sites, to see what percentage of the audience came from where.

WHY FLICKR?

6
Downtown Long Beach Association. Downtown Long Beach Residents and Employment.
Retrieved from http://www.downtownlbbusiness.com/learn/information
7
Long Beach Redevelopment Agency. (2009). Downtown Long Beach Market Study. Long
Beach: Strategic Economics.
^ Numbers estimated from Pew Internet Study and Long Beach Population Numbers
8
Ostrow, Adam. “Twitter Now Growing at a Staggering 1,382 Percent.” Mashable.com. 15
Jan. 20ten. Web. 13 March 2009.
*Alegria Cocina had created a Facebook Profile before Facebook’s user agreement changed
and forced businesses to use Business Pages in 2008. We used this profile because of their
established audience and ability to make friend requests to increase our audience base.
6 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

1) Ability to create shareable photo slideshows, allowing users to

associate the food with the brand for an extended period of time
2) Alegria had professional photos on file ready to be uploaded
3) One of the top photo sharing services with wide audience base

BUILDING AN AUDIENCE

Before we focused on the proper messaging and dissemination for Twitter

and Facebook, TKG built an audience for Alegria on the respective
platforms. Because Twitter and Facebook have their differences in social
interaction we developed strategies to build audiences for both. The
following strategies allowed us to generate an audience quickly and then
allow the base to grow organically.

Targeted Prominent Groups, Media Outlets and Users

Our Alegria Facebook profile allowed TKG to connect with individuals of
similar interests including users interested in Latin American cuisine, Latin
American dance, Long Beach restaurants and the city of Long Beach.
Facebook Groups and Fan Pages were essential to grow our audience in the
beginning stages.

We targeted potential customers geographically and by tracking text

queries on Alegria’s Twitter profile. For instance, TKG could potentially
witness every tweet that originated in the 90802 area code. However, we
tracked key words like “Long Beach” and “Downtown” and were able to
participate in those conversations and add our input or information.

TKG also connected with many prominent Long Beach media outlets
including Long Beach Post, 562 City Life, The District Weekly & OC Weekly.
TKG promoted Alegria’s information (events, live entertainment, etc) that
would bring people down to the street - Pine Avenue.

Alegria Cocina also had a VIP Email list that allowed TKG to engage with the
regular customers that were engaging in social media. Finding and inviting
those passionate about Alegria through social media, only helped TKG
expand Alegria’s audience and spread their messages.

Lastly, we listed Alegria on Twitter Directories that can help lead people to
your specific profile based on location, type of food, genre of entertainment,
etc. TKG listed Alegria Cocina on Justtweetit.com, Twellow.com, and
Wefollow.com. Through these strategies we were able to increase Alegria’s
connections on Facebook and Twitter by hundreds in a few weeks time.

ROLES SOCIAL MEDIA PLAYED

Building Loyalty & Brand Recognition

7 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

TKG discovered new data reported from GroupM Search and comScore
about the role social media plays in regards to organic and paid search. The
findings are as follows.

- 50% Click Through Rate (CTR) increase in paid search when

consumers are exposed to social media
- Consumers whom have been exposed to a brand’s social marketing
campaign are 2.4 times more likely to click on organic links to the
brand’s site9

This study proves that interaction with social media strengthens relations
and builds brand recognition. But the question was, ‘How do we measure
our relationships and interaction?’ The answer involved tracking the
different types of interactions available on each social network: likes,
comments, requests, mentions, retweets, direct messages, etc. These two
roles gave TKG inspiration to create a custom report that tracked our
different levels of interaction week-to-week to measure Alegria’s progress.

Word of Mouth Magnified & Communicating in Real Time

It has never been easier to share information with people you know. Twitter
culture encourages ‘Re-tweeting (now a viable action on the service), or re-
broadcasting information that the user enjoys or wants to pass on.
Followers of the restaurant could now send Alegria’s original message to
their specific audience; a group of people outside Alegria’s own reach. Using
Twitter’s search service (search.twitter.com) in combination with their
mentioning function (e.g. @Alegria), TKG was able to reach out to people in
real time with inquiries about food, restaurant choice, entertainment, etc,
while also sending out an update to Alegria’s followers.

1) Searching for people tweeting Key Terms like ‘Salsa Long Beach’
2) Twitter Search displayed people talking about Salsa in Long Beach within
the last 7 days

9
GroupM Search & comScore. (2009). The Influenced: Social Media, Search and the
Interplay of Consideration and Consumption. New York: Chris Copeland.
8 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

3) Tweeting messages and mentioning relevant users from our search

This allowed us to introduce Alegria to new people in the area and stay
consistent with updates, further allowing for our message to be spread to
our audience and potential new audiences with every update.

Customer Service
Twitter allows for the constant flow of two-way communication in real time.
This means when people had questions regarding Alegria, we could
potentially answer them in real-time. TKG was able to answer questions,
resolve disputes and mend relationships in a number of ways. Here are just
a few examples of topics addressed:
9 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

- Parking Availability and Location

- Directions, Best Route and Address
- Special Event Information
- Specials, Discounts, Promotions
- Any Issues with Service, Food, etc.
- Customer Reviews

Public and Media Relations

With the development of the 24-hour news cycle and the increasing numbers
of news being viewed digitally, Public and Media Relations have also evolved
with the times. Traditional public relations communications (email, fax,
phone, paper) now must be combined with digital methods (social media,
digital files, blogs) to capture the full scope of today’s media outlets.

Most traditional print outlets (newspapers, magazines) are engaged in social

media platforms like Twitter and Facebook because of its free usage, real
time dissemination and instant promotion. More often than not, writers from
these same publications are also on the social media platforms. Writers
whom are utilizing social media translates into another means for PR
practitioners to develop relationships and share story ideas.

During the course of 2009, practitioners saw the Seattle-Post Intelligencer

and the Rocky Mountain News both transition into online publications, ending
their print distribution altogether. Because digital news has little overhead in
comparison to the print and deliver business model, some major outlets have
gone completely digital and hyper-local digital media outlets are popping up
everywhere. Long Beach has seen its fair share of digital media outlets
including LBPost, Everything Long Beach and 562 City Life.

In this instance, TKG did not initiate a specific media-relations campaign

with Alegria, but did facilitate the relationship between the restaurant and
the media. Through social media relationships created and maintained by
TKG, Alergia was organically picked up from online publications including a
glowing food review in 562 City Life. The article from 562 City Life can be
found at: http://www.562citylife.com/profiles/blogs/alegria-a-gem-on-pine

Collaboration of Ideas & Networking

During the ten-week case study, TKG met with Alegria’s management team
nearly every week to discuss promotions, events and general brainstorming.
Weekly meetings give management time to express thoughts that could
enhance our social media communication and/or the business itself. The
meetings led to new and improved in-store promotions, targeted local
audiences and created brand new events for the restaurant.

The most specific example led to a collaborative effort between Raq-C, 96.3
Latino FM DJ, and Alegria Cocina. Alegria planned a Pre-Halloween event with
10 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

Raq-C and obtained free radio and social media mentions. Connecting with
Raq-C and becoming aware of her frequent patronage to Alegria through
Twitter is what led to the event creation.

Becoming a Pundit or Expert in Your Field

Alegria Restaurant has two niche features: its classification of food being
Latin-American Cuisine and its location – Pine Avenue in Downtown Long
Beach. Because Alegria did not have blogging capabilities at the current
time, using tweets and status updates as mini blog posts was a great way to
send information regarding these two topics.

TKG was able to describe and send pictures of any entrée, appetizer,
cocktail and dessert on the menu. Management from Alegria also gave
insight into how dishes were prepared and why certain specials were offered
during different seasons. The pictures and descriptions of food became one
of the main sources of social media content. TKG distributed this content to
various social media channels throughout the week to keep Alegria top of
mind to its growing audience.

Alegria’s location is on Pine Avenue, in the small metropolis of Long Beach

and more specifically one of Southern California’s Top Ten Restaurant Rows
(ABC-TV). Through Alegria’s social media profiles, TKG promoted special
events or happenings that would bring people to Pine Avenue. Alegria
became a pundit for social and entertainment events in Downtown Long
Beach in an effort to stay relevant and interesting within its audience.

Sales Acquisition
TKG received the sales data for the ten-week case study and analyzed the
week-by-week data in 3 ways. First, TKG compared the ten-week period to
the same ten-week period the year before in 2008. Secondly, TKG compared
the ten-week case study period to the ten previous weeks during the
Summer of 2009. Thirdly, TKG looked for any sales spikes that directly
corresponded to certain strategies, wording or partnerships.

Please note: No other form of marketing was used during the ten-week case
study period. Secondly, we are only releasing sales percentages based on
the agreement TKG made with Alegria.

Here are our findings:

Comparing Sales from 2008 to 2009

TKG saw immediate growth starting in the second week of the campaign.
Once the profiles had been setup and the first connections had been made,
we started to send regular updates. Sales spikes in Week 4 and 5 can be
directly correlated to social media and will be elaborated upon later in the
case study. In the middle of October, sales did start to wane in comparison to
11 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

2008. TKG can attribute that to a lack of social media engagement due to
scheduling conflicts with Alegria’s management. TKG was not able to meet
with Alegria in this time period, which adversely affected our social media
implementation and communication. TKG and Alegria were able to rebound
in the last few weeks due to:
1) Buzz surrounding the Halloween Event with Raq-C
2) Stronger social media content than weeks prior
3) Halloween fell on a weekend
4) Connecting with Downtown Events on Pine Ave.

Figure 1
Sales Data Table – 2008 vs. 2009

Week % Increase or
Decrease in
sales from
2008 to 2009
Week 1
Aug 31-Sept. 6 2008 vs. Aug. 30-Sept. 5
2009 -3.23%
Week 2
Sept. 7-13 2008 vs. Sept. 6-12 2009 +17.18%
Week 3
Sept. 14-20 2008 vs. Sept. 13-19 2009 +15.76%
Week 4
Sept. 21-27 2008 vs. Sept. 20-26 2009 +41.50%
Week 5
Sept. 28-Oct. 4 2008 vs. Sept. 27-Oct. 3
2009 +23.84%
Week 6
Oct. 5-11 2008 vs. Oct. 4-10 2009 +10.71%
Week 7
Oct. 12-18 2008 vs. Oct. 11-17 2009 -8.87%
Week 8
Oct. 19-25 2008 vs. Oct. 18-24 2009 -2.53%
Week 9
Oct. 26-Nov.1 2008 vs. Oct. 25-31 2009 +9.11%
Week 10
Nov. 2-8 2008 vs. Nov. 1-7 2009 +5.26%
Total +10.33%
12 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

Figure 2
Sales Data Line Graph 2008 vs. 2009

Hispanic

Engineers

Conference

Comic- Con

• Sched

Further Sales Analysis

There were two specific weeks where TKG and Alegria could directly
associate a significantly large percentage sales increase with the social
media strategy being implemented. Week 4 and Week 5 of the case study
saw a 41.50% and 23.84% increase from 2008, respectively.

Because of Alegria’s proximity to the Long Beach Convention Center (LBCC),

TKG implemented a social media strategy to connect with two major
conventions happening within blocks from Alegria. Social media has become
an integral part of contemporary conventions, allowing conversations to
happen before, during and after the convention itself. ComicCon and The
Hispanic Engineers Conference both had Twitter and Facebook accounts that
TKG was able to communicate with. TKG never sought out convention
directors or group leaders by phone or email, but all through social media.
Through Alegria’s social media profiles TKG promoted their events as it was
also relevant to our Long Beach audience. Through these connections Alegria
13 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

received endorsements from key individuals at the conference which

translated into increased foot traffic into the restaurant.

1) TKG connected Alegria with key representatives of the conferences.

2) TKG connected Alegria with the audiences of these conferences
3) TKG communicated essentials to these audiences: location, menu,
events, hours, etc.
4) TKG made these audiences feel special: discounts, delivery, special
promotions for conference goers only

Comparing Sales June-Aug. 2009 vs. Sept.-Nov. 2009

TKG compared the sales from the ten weeks prior (June 21-August 29, 2009)
with the ten-week case study period (August 30-November 7, 2009). Many
restaurant operators might not agree with comparing numbers from Summer
with numbers from Fall because of the seasonality differences. But this is
precisely why TKG wanted to compare the numbers. The ten weeks prior to
our case study occurred in the heart of summer when Long Beach tourism is
up and more local consumers are spending money on dining. Other notable
factors include: starting a restaurant case study in the notoriously slow
dining month of September and consumer spending dropped .5% nationwide
in the same month.10 Yet, TKG was still able to increase total sales in the
time period by 2.43%.

When TKG analyzed the sales numbers and percentages, readers should
take note of a few things. First, Alegria’s average sales in June ‘09 were
significantly lower than August ‘09. So instead of seeing a general rise
toward the ending percentage of 2.43%, you will see some larger percentage
increases in the first four weeks, and a decline later in the case study. The
decrease in percentages in the later weeks is due to the strong sales
performance Alegria had in August.

Figure 3
Summer 2009 vs. Fall 2009

Week % Increase
or Decrease
in Sales
from
Summer to
Fall

10
News Service. (30 Oct. 2009) “U.S. Consumer Spending Slipped in September.” New York
Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/ten/31/business/economy/31econ.html
14 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

Week 1 +7.71%
June 21-27 2009 vs. August 30-5
2009

Week 2 +8.68%
June 28-July 4 2009 vs. Sept. 6-12
2009

Week 3 +12.56%
July 5-11 2009 vs. Sept. 13-19 2009

Week 4 +33.37%
July 12-18 2009 vs. Sept. 20-26
2009

Week 5 -3.61%
July 19-25 2009 vs. Sept. 27-Oct. 3
2009

Week 6 +5.70%
July 26-Aug.1 2009 vs. Oct. 4-10
2009

Week 7 -2.33%
Aug. 2-8 2009 vs. Oct. 11-17 2009

Week 8 -9.93%
Aug. 9-15 2009 vs. Oct. 18-24 2009

Week 9 -13.55%
Aug. 16-22 2009 vs. Oct. 25-31
2009

Week 10 -10.57%
Aug 23-29 2009 vs. Nov. 1-7 2009

Totals +2.43%

CONCLUSION – SUMMARY OF THE TEN ROLES

Building Loyalty & Brand Recognition

15 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

TKG’s social media campaign was able to connect an upwards of 1000

people directly and thousands more through the infrastructure of Facebook,
Twitter and Flickr. TKG broadcasted updates daily with new and relevant
information to its audience, which led to increases in audience numbers and
interaction.

Word of Mouth and Communicating in Real Time

TKG found and connected with potential clientele for Alegria by tracking
search terms in real-time. The user-friendly infrastructure of the different
social media platforms allowed Alegria’s message to spread and penetrate
different groups and individuals.

Customer Service
Communicating in real-time allowed us to answer questions on a public
forum and receive feedback from our customers and the general public.
Questions about specific events, parking or cuisine were public conversations
and spread awareness of any resolved issue.

Public and Media Relations

Through this case study TKG was able to witness the real power of
communicating with journalists, writers and publications though social
media, predominantly though Twitter. Digital PR is evolving and solely
implementing traditional PR is now incomplete.

Collaboration of Ideas & Networking

TKG would never boast that we did any of this on our own. TKG worked with
a management team that knew the restaurant, staff, food, floor and
customers like no one else. Every great idea was tweaked to fit the mold of
Alegria AND be effective towards its target audience to bring people in the
door. Once we were effectively communicating with our publics, networking
with key individuals came naturally. Most notably, Alegria and TKG
partnered with a popular Latino-FM DJ that never would have occurred
without social media.

Becoming a Pundit or Expert in Your Field

TKG was able to become more familiar with the true strengths of Alegria by
meeting with its management on a weekly basis. By becoming more aware
of Alegria’s origins, past events & promotions and the knowledge from their
staff, TKG was able to establish Alegria as experts in 3 areas: Latin-American
Cuisine, Latin-American Dancing and Downtown Long Beach. Becoming a
disseminator of these types of content accomplished a number of objectives.
First, it validated and gave credibility to Alegria’s social media profiles by
sending out newsworthy and ‘tweetable’ information, not just spam.
Secondly, it allowed TKG to tap into a wealth of information that could be
used as content for Alegria’s social media profiles. This allowed us to stay
top of mind throughout any given week, without solely promoting Alegria’s
16 | The Kreisler Group Social Media Case Study

promotions and events. Thirdly, concentrating on these topics allowed us to

pursue potential customers by tracking key words and connecting with these
niche audiences.

Social Media Affects Your Bottom Line

TKG compared our ten-week case study in 2009 to the same time period in
2008 AND to the ten weeks of Summer just prior to our implementation.
Alegria‘s sales reports displayed a 2.43% increase when compared to the
usually-stronger Summer months and a double digit percentage increase
10.33% when compared to the year previous.

Bottom Line: Social Media brought customers through the door.