Sea Food Differently.

Last December, FastCasual.com’s columnist Darrel Suderman wrote an article titled “Can Innovation Salvage Darden Restaurants?” that explained how innovation is the solution to the problem of declining sales and deep discounts for a brand that has lost its luster.

Suderman made one point that I believe Darden, and more specifically Red Lobster, heard loud and clear, “Now, innovation in the restaurant industry does not always need to be new product innovation. It can also be service innovation, design innovation, equipment innovation, marketing innovation, or information systems innovation.”

He could not have been any more correct. Innovation is always the answer to problems because in its truest form, innovation is simply introducing something new or different. If what you keep doing keeps causing problems, do something different. Red Lobster has decided to sea food different as they are currently testing a fast casual “happy hour” approach to lunch operations in two Orlando-area locations to pull time-starved customers from quick-serve and fast casual concepts. They are calling it “Seaside Express”. Guests will be able to order from a new lunch-focused menu at the bar or at a special counter and have their meals brought out to them in a matter of minutes.

The “Seaside Express”menu consists of entrees between $6.99 and $8.99 with meals ranging from barbecue shrimp flatbread to Red Lobster’s traditional wood-grilled burgers and chicken sandwiches.

Domino’s Awesome Japanese App.

What do you get when you combine Domino’s no. 1 guy in Japan with Japan’s no. 1 singing humanoid? Possibly the weirdest commercial in the world. But hey, at least the app is cool.

Domino’s Pizza Japan has teamed up with Crypton Future Media, Inc., the creator of Hatsune Miku, to create one of the best restaurant-related interactive apps to date. Why is the app so cool? Imagine Hannah Montana in her prime. Make her an anime character and have her promote the top rated pizza delivery chain in Japan. Now do you understand how big this is? It’s like Michael Jackson and Pepsi. Bill Cosby and JELL-O. Okay, maybe it’s not that big, but you get my point. Other than the creepy commercial and the less than creative name (Domino’s App feat. Hatsune Miku), this app is huge for Domino’s Pizza Japan.

How to Raise Your Prices… by Grant Cardone.

Written for Entrepreneur Magazine

I am constantly looking for ways to raise the prices on my products and services so that I can improve the margins. As you continue to expand your company and improve your services, you’ll one day face the challenge of raising your prices.

Almost every day you experience higher prices at the grocery store, gas pump and a range of other places. From time to time, the government requires you to increase employee wages. Why are you the only one not raising your prices? You may say, “My business is so competitive, and it’s all price driven.” Most companies make that claim. Your competition may be unwilling to ask for a higher price, but it doesn’t mean you should be. You are not your competition. You offer a different service, you are a different company, you have different people and hopefully what you offer is a better value at any price. To be successful you must figure know your unique value proposition — what it is that sets your apart from others.

Taco Bell and Doritos: The Perfect Collaboration.

When two awesome things come together to make one awesomer thing, it’s pretty awesome. This is what is referred to as a collaboration. When executed successfully, it becomes one of the greatest, most talked about phenomenons. For example, man and woman coming together to become husband and wife as one is possibly the awesomest thing God created — even more so than french fries. God created french fries. Collaborations are extremely common in the music industry. VH1 recently released The 9 Most Unexpectedly Delightful Musical Collaborations of 2012. Taylor Swift and The Civil Wars should have been number 1.

Share the Love.

Every Valentine’s Day, restaurants big and small attempt to boost their sales by offering deals and bundles or increase their popularity or audience using social media and email campaigns. With an estimated 70 million people throughout the U.S. dining out tonight, it only makes sense for restaurants to try and get their fair share. The smart chains and restaurateurs won’t cut their prices significantly or offer something for nothing; they have thought long and hard about how to get good publicity for cheap, entice you with new menu items, or get something of value for giving something of value. Valentine’s Day is an opportunity for the wise — it is a reason for the restaurants to celebrate themselves and connect with their customers.

2012 Year in Review.

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 5,200 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 9 years to get that many views.

Click here to see the complete report.

The New Look of Domino’s Pizza.

“It’s not what you say it is. It’s what they say it is.” The words of The Brand Gap author Marty Neumeier must be bouncing around the walls of the Domino’s Pizza marketing department as it’s been almost four years since they began reinventing themselves and they haven’t stopped yet.

In late 2009, Domino’s Pizza shocked everyone with a new pizza recipe that included better seasonings, a bolder sauce, and 100% real cheese. Since then, not only has their corporate attitude changed, the look and feel of Domino’s has changed from their cleaner and sometimes out-of-the-box email blasts to their recently unveiled new logo and restaurant design. In the August 14 press release, Chief Marketing Officer Russell Weiner said,