Looking for honesty...do most BBQ joints make a real profit?

[medic92]

Originally Posted by dgaddis1

SOCIAL MEDIA is an amazing tool. Done right you can really increase your brand awareness, and it doesn't cost you much, if any, money to do so. That said, you need to be thoughtful with how you use it. Pictures and video are greater than just text. Don't post crappy pictures. Be careful with political posts. Make sure you're using the platform (facebook, instagram, twitter, etc) the way it's supposed to be used.

Very good advice. We do almost 100% of our advertising on Facebook. We don't do enough on Instagram and Twitter but I'm working on that as well. As he said, you have to be very careful with other things you post. We live in a small town and I spent a solid year before we opened putting an end to my political or controversial posts. We wouldn't even put a sign in our yard supporting a particular candidate because in today's political climate people will avoid you just because you have a different belief than them. We stay out of any kind of drama that goes on and we're careful not to lean in any direction that might put off someone that leans the other way. It kind of sucks because I'm very opinionated and have always enjoyed a good debate/argument.

[dgaddis1]

Originally Posted by medic92

Very good advice. We do almost 100% of our advertising on Facebook. We don't do enough on Instagram and Twitter but I'm working on that as well. As he said, you have to be very careful with other things you post. We live in a small town and I spent a solid year before we opened putting an end to my political or controversial posts. We wouldn't even put a sign in our yard supporting a particular candidate because in today's political climate people will avoid you just because you have a different belief than them. We stay out of any kind of drama that goes on and we're careful not to lean in any direction that might put off someone that leans the other way. It kind of sucks because I'm very opinionated and have always enjoyed a good debate/argument.

Well...with politics, if you take a stand and pick a side, you'll definitely fire up some people in a good way, and make them like you more. But, you'll also turn some people off. If you get a net gain, it's a good marketing move.

Since running my own business for a while, I've definitely changed the way I look at stuff. When I see a business take a political stance I view it as marketing. It's not really about 'doing the right thing', it's not about morals or the owner's conscience - it's marketing, pure and simple. When a CEO makes a decision to do something in regards to politics, that's their own personal thing. But when they put out a press release touting their good deeds, that's marketing.

A few recent examples that spring to mind:
Nike's Kappernick ad.
REI halting sale of brands owned by Vista Outdoors.
Dicks Sporting goods halting the sale of assault rifles

All that said, it's a risk, and if you do something like that you have to know you will lose some customers.

For a small business, I'm of the opinion that it's best to build your brand in other ways that don't turn some people away. You (we) need all the 'fans' you can get, you don't want to be turning people away.

[BBQ_Bama]

Speaking from a customer's viewpoint I can tell you this. I have a very low tolerance level for business owners using their place of business to convey their political views. Years ago there was a local restaurant in our area that my wife and I loved to patron. No matter when you went, you would find the owner walking around, talking to customers, ensuring everything was to their satisfaction etc. Then all of a sudden, and I don't know what was going on at the time to cause this, the owner begins to discuss politics with his customers as he's walking around the dining area. It started off as no big deal. But each time we went back we began noticing it more and more. We also noticed that passing conversations turned into lengthy debates between he and customers. When I go out to eat, it's for relaxation, leisure and entertainment. Not to have to worry about getting into a political conversation while I'm eating.

We quit going for this very reason. I'm their to eat your food, not discuss your politics.

[dgaddis1]

There's different types of 'political' stuff too.

Physically going around getting into political discussions with your customers - that's a bad idea all around I think.

Making fun of the president (whoever that may be at the time), putting down their supporters, etc - that's a bad idea, IMO. Calling people "deplorable" for example...that's a bad idea, especially if you're a business. Deplorable money will pay your bills as well as any other money!

But if your local city/county/state has a potential new law being considered that could negatively impact your business, or your suppliers (like farmers), that is 'politics' you can openly talk about, so long as you're respectful with it. I've seen some local restaurants have posts like this on Facebook recently because the city/county was considering an additional tax on alcohol, which would raise prices. And pretty much everyone views the local city/county gov as incompetent and horrible at managing their own budget (they/we are waaaaaay in the hole), so talking about that proposed tax wasn't really going to piss anyone off.

[Annie_Hall]

Nice thread. At least learned from other's experiences or opinions.

[napp37]

We had a restaurant/grill/bar open here about five years ago that did well right from the start. It wasn't a BBQ; but many of the same business practices apply. Clean, good food, fast service, friendly staff....what's not to like. I usually went there twice a week. Sometimes alone, but mostly with my sons when they visited me. l was spending about $150-200 weekly there; and encouraging friends to go there. That lasted about a year; and suddenly a "no firearms" sign was posted on the front door. My sons, most of my friends, and myself are licensed to carry legally. It does not violate Georgia law to carry concealed in such a business establishment; but the owner does have the right to prohibit weapons in his place of business. I don't know why the owner suddenly chose to go this route....nor do I care. My sons and I haven't been back in four years. Most of my friends also chose to avoid the place.

I have no way to know if this stance towards firearms helped or hurt the overall business. The place is still up and running with quite a few vehicles in the parking lot when I drive past to go to our new hangout.

[BBQ_Bama]

Unfortunately, there are both businesses and individuals alike who feel like they have to make an unsolicited "public statement" after any major societal event. I see it on Facebook all the time. Why people do this is beyond me. I've noticed some businesses do the same, which make sense because businesses are run by people. Bigger companies do things like this as a marketing/money grab. I think smaller businesses may do it for a short term money grab, but possibly feel the need to let their customer base know where they stand. I wouldn't do it. But I see it a lot.

Originally Posted by napp37

We had a restaurant/grill/bar open here about five years ago that did well right from the start. It wasn't a BBQ; but many of the same business practices apply. Clean, good food, fast service, friendly staff....what's not to like. I usually went there twice a week. Sometimes alone, but mostly with my sons when they visited me. l was spending about $150-200 weekly there; and encouraging friends to go there. That lasted about a year; and suddenly a "no firearms" sign was posted on the front door. My sons, most of my friends, and myself are licensed to carry legally. It does not violate Georgia law to carry concealed in such a business establishment; but the owner does have the right to prohibit weapons in his place of business. I don't know why the owner suddenly chose to go this route....nor do I care. My sons and I haven't been back in four years. Most of my friends also chose to avoid the place.

I have no way to know if this stance towards firearms helped or hurt the overall business. The place is still up and running with quite a few vehicles in the parking lot when I drive past to go to our new hangout.

[luke duke]

Originally Posted by RangerJ

Well, finding a place in Texas that is not saturated is becoming more and more difficult. Your currently in Chicago, not sure what your background is or if your from Texas, but you'll need an "A" game to survive here these days.

We started popping up after competing for a few years, this led to a trailer, which has me now going on 4 years in a brick and mortar. I moved from downtown Houston to the suburbs.

To your original question, in my experience, you make enough to cover your costs and put a little in your pocket doing pop ups and trailers. So, if you have no overhead and very few bills and if this is a passion, your fine.

This was not the case for me, so there was a dip into retirement ( not advised) to pull it off / survive. I was in those days, trying to build a brand.

While you do assume substantial over head in the brick and mortar, you also pick up some more profitable items over proteins like soda, tea, beer, etc.

And as was mentioned, we all play with higher margin items, you have to.

I could go on and on, but there is quite a bit of history of this on this website, many of your answers can be found.

These are my experiences, while I'm sure there are similarities, I suspect each guy or gal slinging que for a living has a different story.

We moved and you can see our operation at either pappacharliesbbq.com or cypresstrailhideout.com

Good luck in your journey!

Papa Charlie’s makes some good food. I recommend stopping by if you’re in the area.

#goofyque