Ep 65: Stephanie Hoppe is the Chief Marketing Officer for Cici’s Pizza
Many brick-and-mortar restaurant chains had the rug pulled from beneath them when the pandemic arrived, and have since had to reassess and rework their whole brand strategy and marketing plan. Cici's Pizza is a well-established brand, and was able to ride the tumultuous waves of the quarantine and the uncertain economy relatively successfully, but was still in need of some reinvigoration and redirection for the new era we have entered into. Stephanie Hoppe recently stepped into the role of Chief Marketing Officer at the company and today we get to hear from her about what this journey has looked like so far, and the important changes that she and her team have made to keep Cici's pleasing its customers and thriving across its different locations. We talk about the move away from strictly location-based services, and how this has meant embracing digital aspects of the restaurant business, with Stephanie emphasizing the balance that suits Cici's now, as people return to their outlets. She also shares some insight into the type of guidance they provide to franchisees and how this enables and empowers them to succeed. Our guest talks about some of the lessons from her career before Cici's, why we all have to keep one eye on macroeconomic trends, and so much more, so make sure to join us for this great episode!
Key Points From This Episode:
Stephanie's surprising certification in salmon judging!
A brief look at the history of Cici's Pizza, and its brand story and positioning.
Reflections on the effects of the pandemic at Cici's and how the company bounced back.
Stephanie's process since stepping into her role at the company, and her 'gather, assess, prioritize, align, and build' formula.
The marketing foundation that Stephanie put in place soon after arriving in her position.
How Stephanie and Cici's used a new creative character to stand out.
Updates on the progress of Cici's tech stack and ongoing integration.
Advice from Stephanie about honesty and transparency with regard to partner relationships.
Stephanie reflects on the lessons she brought from previous roles into the challenges at Cici's.
Communicating about return on investment for marketing budgets to leadership.
The close attention that Stephanie and the company pay to big-picture economic trends.
Traditional versus digital funnel strategies; Stephanie's perspective on what's working now.
The distribution of Cici's locations and how this influences their localized marketing.
Community and franchises; how Cici's balances empowering franchisees and brand templates.
The structure and size of the marketing team at Cici's.
Advice from Stephanie for aspiring CMOs on solving problems and managing stress.
Stephanie's yoga practice and how this helps her find balance.
Rapid fire questions with Stephanie; loyalty programs, branded content, and more.
Who Stephanie would like to hear next on the show!
Tweetables:
“Preachers, teachers and coaches, that’s where we started and that’s where we’re going right back to in 2022. It’s those community connections, they have defined the Cici experience.” — Stephanie Hoppe [0:05:23]
“Life should be an endless buffet of fun. I mean, it’s not that hard, don’t overthink it.” — Stephanie Hoppe [0:06:21]
“As things changed, we just adjusted the buffet as needed, but we stay true during the pandemic.” — Stephanie Hoppe [0:08:29]
“I’ve never moved more quickly in my career than I had in the past 8 months. It’s been the speed of light and we’ve got an incredible amount of work done with a highly supportive executive scene that I’ve never seen anything quite like it.” — Stephanie Hoppe [0:11:14]