How The Red Chickz brought true Nashville soul to the West Coast

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

Podcast host Mandy Detwiler talks to Shawn Lalehzarian, co-founder of the West Coast Nashville hot chicken brand The Red Chickz about the brand's aesthetic…

More than a post: Turning influencers into content engines for your restaurant

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

At the Restaurant Franchising and Innovation Summit, marketing experts discussed the evolution of influencer marketing from a secondary tactic into a core…

Rethinking Peak Performance in the Digital Restaurant Era

Traditional performance metrics such as ticket time and drive-thru speed measure efficiency but fail to capture the full guest experience. Many organizations…

Presented by Service Management Group

The Complete Guide to Team Communication for Restaurant Franchise Owners

Running a restaurant franchise on texts and group chats is messier and riskier than you'd think. Here is a complete guide to improving and organizing team…

Best Team Chat Apps for Multi-Location Restaurants in 2026

Managing team communication across multiple restaurant locations is challenging, and cannot be done properly on text threads and huge group chats. Compare the…

Why small businesses treat loyalty like a luxury — and why that’s killing them

by David Strauss — SVP Sales, SumUp

In an era of declining general traffic, the most successful QSR operators are those who treat loyalty and retention as a core operational priority rather than…

Design experiences that earn loyalty from day one

Traditional experience management starts after the interaction, but with Ignite Communities, people are brought into the process much earlier.

Presented by Service Management Group

The real cost of a broken customer experience (CX): Revenue loss, operational drag, and brand damage

The true cost of a broken CX extends far beyond a single transaction. It compounds over time, affecting revenue, operational efficiency, employee engagement…

Blaze Pizza, Farmer Boys, Mike's Red Tacos, HigherMe experts discuss recruitment, retention

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

Industry experts at the Restaurant Franchising & Innovation Summit emphasized that sustainable restaurant profitability and successful scaling depend on…

Little Caesars VP of franchise development talks brand growth, solid operations

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

Podcast host Mandy Detwiler talks to Bryan Ketelhut, VP of franchise and business development for Little Caesars.

Bango: From a 300-square-foot acai shop to leading a 'Better for You' movement

On this episode of the Founderology — Built to Breakthrough podcast, I talk with Ryan Thorman, Founder and CEO of Bango and a contributor to the Founderology…

How Flying Dolly’s is cooling down the Gulf Coast

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

Flying Dolly’s is a community-focused boutique creamery that pairs nostalgic, artisanal ice cream with authentic New Orleans-style snoballs, leveraging a…

McDonald's adds under $3 menu, $4 breakfast meal starting April 21

April 2, 2026

McDonald's will expand its McValue menu starting April 21, adding a tier of items priced under $3 and a new breakfast meal deal at participating U.S.

Synergy in a slice: Inside the dual-concept model driving Hungry Howie’s Texas expansion

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

Entrepreneur Jay Dhaliwal is leveraging a high-traffic "one-stop-shop" model in Fort Worth by operating a lean Hungry Howie’s franchise within a co-branded gas…

Nestlé: Co-creating the future of breakfast

Building a global insight community for the largest food and beverage company in the world

Presented by Service Management Group

The due diligence gap: Five questions every franchise buyer should be asking

by Amanda Duplantis — President, FranNet

Buying a franchise is often described as "being in business for yourself, but not by yourself." It's an exciting prospect, trading the corporate ladder for an…

Team Communication for Restaurant Staff: A Better Alternative to Group Texts

Group texts aren't built for restaurant teams. Here's why food service businesses are switching to dedicated team communication apps, and what to look for.

Cicis Pizza takes No. 1 spot on Pizza Marketplace's 2026 Top 100 Movers & Shakers list

by Mandy Wolf Detwiler — Editor, Connect Media

Cicis Pizza took home the top honors as Pizza Marketplace's annual event in Las Vegas; Moto Pizza won a tech award from XRobotics and Pizza Nova's Domenic…

How to Choose a Team Chat App for Your Business

Choosing the right work chat app for your team requires asking the right questions. Let’s dive into how to decide which team chat is best for your needs.

The Team Communication Risk Report

Most restaurants don't think about their team communication risks until something goes wrong. This report shows you exactly what those risks are, and how to…

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