Confessions Beyond the Food
Confessions Beyond the Food is a podcast about working in the Food Industry. People who work in the Food Industry have grit and lots of stories to tell. W3 Sales, a sales & marketing company, will host this podcast with their confessions on how they have a new, fresh approach and invite guests to confess their secrets to their sauce.
Confessions Beyond the Food
Embracing Tradition in a Digital Age
What if you could transform a century-old company's digital presence while preserving its cherished traditions? Caroline Webre, Ben E Keith's innovative social media marketing manager, shares her inspiring journey of revitalizing this well-established brand's online footprint. With a focus on meaningful interactions over mere follower counts, Caroline reveals her strategies for aligning Ben E Keith's family-oriented, reliable, and friendly culture with modern content platforms like LinkedIn and Instagram. Her creative approach and passion have not only enhanced the company's visibility but have also strengthened connections with employees, customers, and vendors.
The heart of our conversation beats with the insights shared about building relationships in the food service industry, all while maintaining a billion-dollar company's family feel. Caroline delves into Ben E Keith's internship program, highlighting how it offers interns a panoramic view of the industry and fosters personal and professional growth. Join us as Caroline unveils the secrets of staying ahead of industry trends through social media and how those fresh experiences are really shaking things up!
Welcome to Confessions Beyond the Food. I'm your host, nancy Ridland. Let's dig in and get inspired. Hi, and welcome back to Confessions Beyond the Food. My name is Nancy Ridland, with W3Cells, and today I have Caroline Weber joining us from Vinny Key, I'm excited to be here. I'm so excited to have you here too, because Caroline is shaking things up at Benny Keith and their social marketing. So you are the social media marketing manager for Benny Keith. So tell me, what do you do for your job right now?
Speaker 2:So right now I started in this role last October, so it's been almost a year I am create content strategy. I create all the content, I edit all the content. I like to say that I am bringing to life in the digital world the Vinny Keith culture. So that way, people want to learn more about Vinny Keith instead of Googling us and seeing that we can deliver you groceries. They'll get a glimpse of who we truly are as a company.
Speaker 1:So what are those qualities that you're trying to and culture that you're trying to tell?
Speaker 2:Yes. So the Benny Keith culture is when you're there it's something we talk about on a daily basis. A few words that come to mind to describe it is very family oriented. We're a family owned company, but that really trickles down from top to bottom and coworkers treat each other like family is what I've become to love about the company. Some other things were very friendly, very traditional, very reliable, loyal. Those are kind of all attributes that I try to incorporate through our brand voice. So how we're speaking to our audience. But I've noticed our audience is kind of filled with our employees, our customers and our vendors. So trying to create content that speaks to all of those audiences. So bringing to life fun events that we have at our various divisions, highlighting customers in our various markets and what makes them special and unique in those areas and why people should go try them, and then showcasing the different products. Of course, at the end of the day we are selling food and so trying to showcase that to our audience.
Speaker 1:That's amazing. So Benny Heath has been around for a long time. They were established in 1906. And one of the things that you had mentioned is they are very traditional. And so what was your first impression coming in and some of the challenges of taking you know, because they have wonderful core values and tradition is a great value, but how has that been challenging or has it not been?
Speaker 2:Well, one thing that I noticed right when I started at Benny Keith I actually started as an intern when I was still in college and what drew me to the company was that everyone had been there for 10, 20, 30, 40 years.
Speaker 2:We have an employee that is coming up to his 50-year anniversary, so it was really cool to see that people really spend their whole career at a company and go from the warehouse to purchasing, to marketing, to sales and get the full experience of being in a food service distributor company.
Speaker 2:But, with that being said, we have been operating since 1906 and people are very traditional and people that have been at the company for 40 years have done things a certain way all this time. So coming in doing social media has been an interesting I hate to use the word challenge, but interesting opportunity, because it's something that well, why do we need that? Why are you here doing social media and so getting to almost sell the idea of how this can be beneficial for our company, how it can help our sales reps when talking to customers, talking to prospective customers as well as, like I said, just showcasing who we are as a company? I like to think that people are going to social media as much as they're going to Google when they want to learn more about a topic, about a company, about a restaurant, and so playing into that relevancy and making sure that we are staying up to date with the trends and keeping to our core values while also staying innovative.
Speaker 1:And you're doing that. I mean you're bringing so much fun and youth and energy to even you know the food shows that you guys do that you do and has made a really big impact, I think, on the community because you guys have like, how many followers do y'all have right now?
Speaker 2:Um across the different platforms, like on Instagram. We have a little over 7,000. So we're slowly but surely growing Um. Linkedin has been a huge one. That's been fun to connect with um different industry leaders, um and that one. We're almost at 20,000 followers, so that's exciting.
Speaker 1:That's when. What was the number when you started?
Speaker 2:On LinkedIn we were at right over 16,000. So after a year we've grown almost 4,000 followers. And then on Instagram it's been almost 2,000 follower growth. So, like I said, we're slowly but surely making waves. And of course we're on Facebook.
Speaker 2:I always say Facebook is where you post photos of your family, and that's what we're doing is posting photos of the family at Benny Keith on Facebook. But yeah, so it's been cool to see it grow, and while I've been trying to focus on engaging our audience rather than focusing on a certain number to grow to, it's been really fun to see how we've grown as the contents evolved.
Speaker 1:I love that, that you're focused not on the number, but the audience. So how? What's the secret to your success? Because that's really big growth.
Speaker 2:Um, I have a lot of support, um from my team, from the various leaders of the company it's and trusting their people, and so I have these great ideas and just get to run with them and get to see where they go. Um, especially in this year since it's been like I said, this is my first year um heading up the social media has been kind of let's see what's going to work, let's see what's not going to work. Um, I have a lot of support from our graphics team, from um an editing perspective and, like I said, we're able to just take ideas and run with them and see what sticks and if it doesn't, then we'll pivot and try something new.
Speaker 1:And so you probably have a lot of social media converts that may have said what are you doing?
Speaker 2:Why are we doing this?
Speaker 1:And so now, what is their feedback?
Speaker 2:It's fun because, like I said at first, I think I was talking to one of our managers at a division. I was like do you follow us on Instagram or Facebook? And he was like MySpace. I was like MySpace has been gone for so many years, no, and so it's fun for them. Then I get to see, oh, they follow us. Oh, now they're engaging in the content, now they're sharing the content Because people at Benny Keith are really proud to work there and so if I can create content that they're wanting to share on their personal accounts, then I view that as a success, because the way that they're sharing it, then their customers see it, then other industry folks see it, and I think it's just creating the awareness of what we do and who we are.
Speaker 1:Because every time you like a post especially LinkedIn is awesome. Every time you like, every time you engage, your whole network sees that and that's something I mean I know our company does is try to educate our customers, our end users, our restaurants, our hotels like hey, engage in our social media and you'll have a whole new audience. But more importantly, I think that you know the distributors, you know getting them to. You don't have to create new content, you really just need to go and Right.
Speaker 2:Well, and that's another thing that we really capitalize on at Benny Keith, we have an initiative called Eat Locally Often and it's really evolving from a hashtag that was created during COVID to get out and still support your local restaurants in a challenging time, evolving into a brand, and so we are also really trying to advocate for the industry. So advocating for our customers being a true partner and, like you said, sharing their content when they have success, sharing those successes and capitalizing on that. So it's been fun because you get really plugged in into the various markets, as our different divisions have been communicating those with me.
Speaker 1:Yeah, because it's really social, is free advertising, I mean big time, and we were talking about earlier, before we started. Just how you know, you may invest a little bit more in, you know, your tabletop setting or your vibe, but that goes a very long way, yeah. And so how are you guys? I've noticed you're now, like you said, getting involved with your customers and going on site. So what have you been doing with them?
Speaker 2:So we have a few different pieces of content and how we highlight customers. One was a more produced piece before I came on board, to our marketing team at General Office, called Behind the Menu. So we, our team, will go in and kind of really interview one of our customers and get their story how they started, any challenges maybe they faced in the past and how they overcame them. I've been working on some content that's a little bit more quick and fast. Social media is quick and fast and you have to gain attention from users within you know three to five seconds. And so going in there, kind of saying, oh you're in Dallas for the weekend, here, five spots you should visit while you're here and get a visual of what it looks like in there, the atmosphere, what we order, um, just quick and fun, and put some fun music behind it. So that's been fun as well as, um, like I said, capitalizing on our customer wins. So, um, it's as my role has evolved, um and more people have bought into this social media world.
Speaker 2:Um, now, the various employees have been key that our divisions will communicate to me. Their customers have one. So I got two articles sent to me yesterday. Uh, one of our barbecue joints. Um, they were voted as best new chefs I think is what it was. And then we had a few restaurants that our customers across our various markets were voted named top new restaurants in the South on Yelp. So getting those communicated to me so I can push those out and support those customers from our Benny Keith account has been. It's been really fun.
Speaker 1:That is really fun because I mean the goal is I mean I know we don't want to admit it- but we all want to be famous, I mean like to have you know such a great company like Benny Keith like promote you and get behind you. And I mean it's just, I mean that's amazing, I mean that's got to make the customers feel it's it's fun to get behind you. And I mean it's just, I mean that's amazing, I mean that's got to make the customers feel.
Speaker 2:It's, it's fun to get those notes, um, because, like I said before, you know we are, our culture is about being a true partner to our customers. We're not just going to show up with a truck, um, and deliver your groceries, and so if I can support that through our social media, then I'm doing something right and helping shine light to our customers.
Speaker 1:I love that and I can attest as a vendor and I've probably said it on other podcasts that Benny Heath is so good to their vendors and their culture. I mean just shines through everyone. So I love that. That is getting you know, pushed through at the end user level. So tell me, how are you keeping ahead of the trends? Because social media you know as well as professionally, so I am constantly trying to stay plugged in um and scrolling when I need to.
Speaker 2:I scroll on my personal pages, but I also scroll from our Betty Keith pages um to stay locked into what's going on in the food service world, so that I'm not missing um by just keeping one or the other, as well as I try and stay in and tripping up over my words but stay in track with. We as a team are really good about sending articles, sending what's new, sending, like I said here, this customer success. So just communicating that to throughout the team and throughout our marketing team.
Speaker 1:So that's awesome. So what do you personally love most about your job?
Speaker 2:I love the people. Um, I am such a people person. I love getting to meet um all of our customers um getting to meet people from all of our divisions we are and we have 10 different distribution centers and we deliver to 20 different states I think it was the last time I checked. So getting to meet people all across our footprint, whether they work at Vinny Keith, whether it's our vendors, whether it's our customers. It's been fun now with food shows after a year of doing them and walking through and recognizing people and just getting to walk around and hug on people and all that that's been. My favorite part is really getting to meet um a lot of people.
Speaker 1:It's exciting too to see Benny Keith with the intern program and then just bringing new fresh blood, because I think that is the biggest challenge in our industry yeah, that's how I got my foot in the door with Ben and Keith.
Speaker 2:I interned with them when I was. It was the summer before my senior year of college and I really didn't know anything about the industry before that.
Speaker 2:I didn't really think much into where my food was coming from when I went to go out to eat, and so the intern program is really cool because you get to spend time in all the departments.
Speaker 2:So we spend time with the drivers delivering groceries to our customers and getting to see a day in their life. We spent time in sales and seeing their relationship with their customers and how different a lot of sales reps go about their business, spending time in purchasing and working with the vendors and marketing in the warehouse, and so I think it's interesting that you get a perspective of the food service industry as a whole and that way, like I said, I knew nothing and so I started in purchasing before I moved over into marketing, and having that experience and getting to see a big picture has helped so much in my job now and how I've evolved in my career at Benny Keith and, like I said, it's great that they're bringing in fresh perspectives and really listen to us. I mean, it's now I'm running our social media and I've just saw this last group of summer interns come through and some of their ideas are coming to life and getting to see that progression is really, really cool that's.
Speaker 1:I keep saying it, but that's just awesome. You know that they're listening and that you know, as a young person, you have a voice and like a very large corporation and that's one thing that is great about Benny Keith is that even though y'all are a billion dollar company, you know you're heard and it's still. It still has that family feel and, um, treating other, you know, treating everybody on the team with respect. So I that's yeah, that's amazing that they're able to to. You know, keep, keep that intact.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:So okay, so I've picked your brain on lots of things, but I'm going to wrap this up. So what is your confession today?
Speaker 2:My confession um, and this might not be that exciting, but I eat breakfast for dinner probably three times a week, working in the food world.
Speaker 1:So, okay, I have to ask what is your favorite breakfast? Oh, just eggs and bacon.
Speaker 2:Eggs and bacon Very simple girl, Gotta have your bacon.
Speaker 1:Yeah, do you get to do a lot of tastings.
Speaker 2:Yes. Yes probably too much. There's always, I would say, working at Benny Keith and being in this world, there's always something new coming along something to try. It's fun whenever you like. We would ride with the sales reps or ride with the drivers, and customers want you to taste their food, and so that's really fun, trying things that probably I wouldn't have thought to try in the past.
Speaker 1:so that's it. That's amazing. So, um, I just love this because even if you're not in marketing or if you, I'm sorry, not in food service, if you're not in food service, I think this podcast can be for any translate, for anyone. Yeah, because you know what caroline has done is she has come in, you know, with fresh eyes and understood the company and it's such, not not just like what are our values, but really dug into the company and really understood what they do, you know on the operation side, and what they you know, and what the customers you know, having that customer engagement and that full circle.
Speaker 1:I know I did that, as you know, in my entry to food service and it changed everything. It changes your perspective and cause you think about all the you know, you think about all of those and I think that has made you, I mean, very successful and so you are such a bright light in our industry. And I mean, when, when Tracy met you, she's like, oh my gosh, you got to meet Caroline. She's, you're going to be obsessed with her and I mean, and I kind of am so fan girl so, but I'm just, I'm really thankful you came on today and so.
Speaker 1:But I'm just really thankful you came on today and I mean I'm just really excited to see what you're going to do. And I think it's cool because usually when somebody starts something, you know, I mean it really makes an impact, not just on you know where you're, you know at Benny Keith, but beyond, because it helps, like you said. Like it just it starts this rolling ball and you just got to. You can't be scared to take chances, yeah, and you just have to put yourself out there.
Speaker 2:So thank you so much for coming on today, thank you for having me.
Speaker 1:This was so fun. I can't wait to have you again. Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 2:I love it.
Speaker 1:Awesome. Well, check out Caroline Weber on Benny Keith Benny.
Speaker 2:Keith. Follow us, Benny Keith Foods, on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Check her out. Have a good day, guys. For more inspiration, follow our social media at W3Sales, Please like, comment and subscribe. You know all the things we would love to connect with you.