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Michael started his 20+ year pizza career from humble beginnings as a delivery driver for a national chain before eventually opening three independent pizzerias.
Now a highly-sought after consultant and speaker, he took his original pizzeria from a meager $2,000 per week to over $1 million dollars a year in sales in a town of only 8,000. Michael opened his newest pizzeria at the $1.2 million sales mark in a town of 13,000.
He is 4 Time World Pizza Champion and 8 Time World Medalist Pizza Acrobat, holding more international medals than any other American. As a founding member of the World Pizza Champions, he has traveled to Italy competing at the World Pizza Championships in Italy annually since 2002. In 2006 and 2007 his team won back to back Gold Medals in the Team Acrobatic Event. He has been featured on the Food Network, ABC's Master of Champions, Discovery Channel, and more.
Michael is a featured speaker for Pizza Today magazine, organizes and manages the World Pizza Games for the International Pizza Expo, is a certified Italian Pizza Maker (certified by the International School of Pizza) and teaches at local adult vocational schools on how to make pizzeria quality pizza at home.
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"I've been a customer since 2011 and I give this service a 10 out of 10! BUT to be honest, I don't want my competitors to know about you."
-Mike D. (Chicago, IL)
Why the most successful pizzerias, including national chains, never stop using direct mail.
A shockingly small percentage of pizzeria operators understand the power and importance of menu printing and direct mail as marketing tools.
Although it seems like a no-brainer, most pizzerias incorrectly view their takeout menu as a "list of items and prices."
In actuality, menus are an all-important marketing platform that should be used to increase awareness, ward off competitors, and sell lots and lots of pizza.
And it should never stop. Every household and business (if you have lunch service) should have your most recent menu at all times. Most pizzerias should plan to update their menu items and prices, and mail them out, approximately once per quarter to maintain an optimized strategy.
For decades, printing and direct mail marketing have remained a dominant force in the pizza industry. Even with modern technologies, there is no substitute for mailing full-color menus, loaded with coupons and offers, to every home and business within your market area.
By distributing your menus via Every Door Direct Mail® from the USPS®, you literally "force" the recipient to handle your menu and offers. Even better, a recent survey confirms that 98% of consumers receive and sort the mail the day it is delivered.
In other words, when your menus and offers deliver to homes, you will get a response -- fast.
Simply put, direct mail equals cash flow.
Real Feedback from Pizzeria Operators"After mailing our menus, we noticed instant sales increases. Some of our areas that normally don't order much increased sales by 20% to 30%." -Bryan W. (Olivehurst, CA)
"Our mailers bring in more than 7 times what they cost us to produce and distribute ...we have a 25% net increase in sales over the previous year as a result." -Brian P, (Cinccinati, OH)
"My experience was perfect. Excellent job, very professional, could not of asked for anything more. The design service was a true asset to our organization. Thank you!" -Nicholas P. (Schenectady, NY)
Have you been using the same menu for months or even years? Is your menu too plain, uninspiring, or boring? Your customers (and would-be customers) will notice.
As you know, food is a sensory experience. Presentation, taste, smell, and experience all factor into a customer's decision-making process.
Your menu must trigger a prospective customer's appetite and help them visualize the food that awaits them. It must also provide exceptional value and function as a catalyst to make the customer place an order -- without delay.
As the old saying goes, "...the best food in the world doesn't sell itself."
The best time to improve is now. Making a positive change is easy.
7 Critical Signs Your Menu Needs an Update
Pizza EDDM® Marketing Checklist
Ask yourself a simple question:
"Does every local household have a copy of my takeout menu and offers?"
If not, you are losing business to competitors (and doing them a favor).
Download the FREE Pizza EDDM® Marketing Checklist and get more out of your direct mail marketing.
What's Included?
"Marketing is the number one thing I get asked about in my consulting business. It's getting really, really hard to get in front of customers and direct mail is still something that works. Check out the guys at Taradel, they do an awesome job and I use them for my pizzeria..."
- Michael Shepherd
4-Time World Pizza Champion