Friday, June 18, 2010

Crowdsource your restaurant

Sumathi Reddy's WSJ article highlights a new chain that will be built by social media;

burger chain launching next month is redefining the strategy.

4food, which on July 6 is to open its first of 11 planned locations, will allow customers to use iPads to place orders.

Customers also have the option of naming and branding their creation, and posting it on Facebook or Twitter. When ordering from home, they can create commercials on YouTube.

The branded burgers and commercials are then featured on a 240-square-foot media wall at the restaurant that also streams from Foursquare, a social-networking site where users can check in at restaurants and other locations. Every time someone buys one of the concoctions, the creator receives a 25-cent credit through their account...

The burgers have holes in the middle, which can be filled with one of 100 rotating garnishes, from macaroni and cheese to sushi rolls.