Picture the sun warming your face as you listen to waves lapping on the beach. You look toward the beautiful blue waters and you're filled with excitement as you see waves splashing the sand.
Just as you grab the surf board, a voice echoes "Welcome to Malibu Subs. How may I help you?"
Located at the University of Southern California (USC), Malibu Subs gives their customers virtual scenery. While patrons order, they can feast their eyes upon a large flat panel display showing extreme surfing around the world.
"I like to call it eater-taining," said creator and director Michael Gratz of the award-winning Hospitality Services Division at USC.
Malibu Subs, the 34th dining venue on the University Park campus, celebrates California's surfer culture while adding a healthy new twist on the traditional submarine sandwich. "Our students requested fresh and healthy, made-to-order sub sandwiches," said Donald Ranasinghe, director of operations at USC.
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The surfer theme, which was developed by Gratz and his team at USC, is true to the lifestyle of the region and makes students feel at home, thus creating a connection with Malibu. But it wasn't until Malibu Subs began working with Epicure Digital Systems that their brand came to life, both visually and emotionally, through high-tech digital marketing — marketing that helped drive the brand of Malibu Subs in terms of building relationships and convincing customers they were buying a high-quality product.
"We looked at avenues on how to help bring this brand to life," said Gratz. "We looked at the successful sub brands out there and realized they were lacking in terms of building a customer connection. We looked at digital signage as a way to bond with the people at USC."
This approach has paid off for Malibu. Gratz said this experience helps set their establishment apart from the rest.
"The concept of localizing a brand is not new," Gratz said. "It's the marketing behind you that gives you that punch you need."
Brand identity
Epicure's brand identity system involves every area from menu development and design to digital signage, motion graphics and promotion, to name a few. For Malibu, the message was creating a brand to be perceived as healthy. The idea was to create a unique experience for everyone who bites into a Malibu Sub.
Epicure president Harvey Friedman said they analyze their client's menu needs and consider "everything from placement of items, types of sandwiches, names and more."
At Malibu there are four digital display screens, two of which display the menu and have moving marketing messages with revenue producing promotions such as "double meat," as well as educational promotions that highlight healthy items such as guacamole.
The suggestive selling that flashes across the screen creates momentum. "Most people are consistent when they order," Gratz said. "Their thought process opens up when they see these messages. It's one way to branch out and offer something different and help customers think outside of what they're ordering."
