On this episode of the Gross sales Hacker Podcast, now we have Brandon Barton, CEO of Chunk and a hospitality tech entrepreneur and professional. Be a part of us for a improbable dialog about the way to make the soar right into a know-how profession from a non-tech profession.
When you missed episode 217, test it out right here: What it Takes to Lead 1,200-Individual Firm like ZoomInfo with Tim Strickland
What You’ll Be taught
- What it means to create an unimaginable expertise for folks
- How know-how is impacting the restaurant trade throughout world labor shortages
- The transferable expertise wanted to make an trade or profession soar
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Present Agenda and Timestamps
- About Brandon Barton and Chunk [02:46]
- The way forward for eating places and new know-how [9:48]
- Brandon’s journey to changing into CEO of Chunk [12:01]
- The transition from a non-tech trade to the B2B tech trade [17:30]
- Fundraising as a PR exercise as an alternative of a gross sales exercise
- Paying it ahead [28:09]
- Sam’s Nook [30:25]
Present Introduction [00:10]
Sam Jacobs: Hey, everyone. Sam Jacobs. Welcome to the Gross sales Hacker podcast. Immediately on the present, we’ve acquired my good good friend, Brandon Barton. He’s the CEO of Chunk. He’s a longtime restaurant trade veteran. It’s a fantastic dialog about the way to make the soar from a non-technology profession to a know-how profession and why it’s truly not such a tough transition in any case as a result of the concepts and ideas are nonetheless the identical. It’s nonetheless about serving your buyer and offering a fantastic expertise whether or not you’re working at Union Sq. Hospitality otherwise you’re the CEO of one of many fastest-growing restaurant know-how firms on the market.
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About Brandon Barton and Chunk [02:46]
Sam Jacobs: Immediately on the present, I’m extremely excited to have my good good friend and estimable colleague, Brandon Barton. Brandon Barton is a hospitality tech entrepreneur who has used his expertise working in operations on the high hospitality teams to construct and scale early-stage tech merchandise that assist restaurateurs.
He’s presently CEO of Chunk, the best-in-class digital ordering answer for eating places, main the corporate to unimaginable progress inside high QSR manufacturers like Chick-fil-A, Taco John’s, and Fazoli’s. Chunk’s objective is to raise hospitality in every single place, and this absolutely is Brandon’s ardour as nicely. Brandon, inform us in your phrases, what do you all do?
Brandon Barton: Chunk is a first-party digital ordering answer for eating places. We’re a B2B firm. We create digital ordering experiences on behalf of restaurant manufacturers. You might have used Chunk prior to now and never even identified it as a result of it feels just like the restaurant’s the one producing that or placing out that product.
Our main product and the one which has been most profitable is our kiosk ordering product. You’ll be able to go as much as a display and order digitally. We do that for some unimaginable manufacturers across the nation, and it has been an unimaginable journey.
We now have AI and machine studying algorithm that sits behind the product, and it pushes recommendations which usually result in a rise in what the shopper spends. That’s differentiated us within the market.
The way forward for eating places and new know-how [9:48]
Sam Jacobs: Let’s speak about the way forward for eating places. How far do you see this going? Are we going to be digitally ordering inside? How far into “tremendous eating” does know-how intercede?
Brandon Barton: I’m tremendous ahead on know-how for eating places, however I additionally wish to protect this excellent interplay that you’ve got together with your servers in high-end tremendous eating experiences.
I discover worth after I go to a household restaurant like Applebee’s in getting that second drink from a digital display or from my very own telephone, however I’m a giant fan of preserving what has made eating places particular for hundreds of years, which is folks having the ability to embrace the visitors which can be in entrance of you and provides them that service. I don’t suppose it goes that far, however I additionally don’t suppose that we’re accomplished inventing kinds of eating places.
Brandon’s journey to changing into CEO of Chunk [12:01]
Sam Jacobs: That is the primary time you’re a CEO. Stroll us by way of just a little bit about your background.
Brandon Barton: I believe anybody’s journey in case you have a look at the final two issues that they did, add them up, and you may determine the place they went subsequent. I give that recommendation to folks which can be on the lookout for jobs. I used to be a bus boy making an attempt to make it make a dime as a 14-year-old child in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.
I went to varsity as an engineer, however I didn’t perceive that I may even have a hospitality profession. Fortunately, that school was Cornell, and so they have a hospitality program. Converted and fell in love with eating places.
I went to work for Patina Group, then to work for Danny Meyer’s Union Sq. Hospitality Group. My subsequent place was of service or a beverage director. I knew I wished to depart eating places and get entangled in one thing with just a little bit extra scope.
I discovered a manner out of eating places by assembly the CEO of Avero whereas he had lunch on the restaurant. he mentioned, “Are available, have an interview.” The subsequent day they supplied me about 2.5 instances my wage, and I jumped at it. I famously mentioned, “I don’t wish to work on this laptop stuff. I don’t wish to work in tech.” Yeah, I fell in love with it, the entire means of having the ability to train restaurateurs the way to higher use tech in order that they will run their companies higher.
I’ve all the time been obsessive about eating places and wish them to run their companies higher, cleaner, and extra effectively. My manner to try this is to show them what tech is on the market that may assist them to try this.
I used to be in Avero for eight years, then I acquired an interview and acquired the pinnacle of gross sales position at Resy, the fourth individual within the firm. Now I’m sitting, after having years of expertise with account administration to buyer success and gross sales and enterprise gross sales and mid-market at Avero, I acquired to go put my very own playbook in place, and that was a blast.
The transition from a non-tech trade to the B2B tech trade [17:30]
Sam Jacobs: How did you handle? Did you discover the transition to formally being in B2B tech troublesome? You’re promoting to eating places, however you might have transitioned now to a brand new trade. Was that straightforward?
Brandon Barton: I perceive eating places. I would as nicely have a number of bachelor’s and grasp’s levels in hospitality primarily based on the locations I’ve labored. I discuss to folks about eating places, and I simply so occurred to go to Cornell as an engineer and actually perceive the tech facet of issues and the way one thing might translate. So, I didn’t have that a lot hassle.
However I’ll say generally, there are such a lot of transferable expertise. And anybody listening is considering, “Man, I don’t wish to go to X trade or Y trade.”. Go study it. You may need to make a lateral transfer, however that’s okay since you’re going to widen your community a lot. You’ll be able to take any of these expertise.
The ability of caring for folks interprets to every little thing. When you care genuinely in regards to the individual that you’re working with, promoting to, or offering service to, nothing else issues. Simply care about them, take heed to them, perceive their downside, and assist determine how that may work internally in no matter your present gig is.
And so eating places, you’re sitting there promoting wine, it occurs to be much like promoting software program. You simply don’t know that on the time.
Fundraising as a PR exercise as an alternative of a gross sales exercise
Sam Jacobs: What do you attribute your success to?
Brandon Barton: I believe the success is on the reps. I’ve realized just a little little bit of understanding it will possibly’t be a gross sales pitch and the way to get my message proper. You simply acquired to get reps at it. That 10,000 hours factor is so correct. Work on one thing for a very long time, and also you’re going to be higher than lots of people at it.
I strive arduous, and I work arduous, and that comes from my sports activities type of mentality. You say, “I suck at one thing. Guess what? I’m simply going to try this time and again and over till I don’t suck at it.”
Paying it ahead [28:09]
Sam Jacobs: What are some concepts, folks, or issues that you simply suppose we must always concentrate on which have contributed to creating you who you’re?
Brandon Barton: I believe everyone ought to learn Danny Meyers’s guide known as Setting The Desk. It’s about hospitality, however it’s not. It’s about enterprise. There’s loads of classes in that guide that he taught to us in individual and occurred to place right into a guide as nicely
Sam you’ve had an impression on me. I positively consider you as a mentor, and a good friend in loads of methods you might have influenced the way in which that I do issues.
I even have an excellent good friend who used to run Eleven Madison Park, which was named the primary restaurant on the planet underneath his management. He’s popping out with a guide known as Unreasonable Hospitality. So, I’m going to level to hospitality books.
Hopefully, there are folks listening that might take these classes and put them into their practices as a result of hospitality is every little thing. When you care about folks and also you’re going to have real empathy, you’re going to have a contented life.
Sam’s Nook [30:25]
Sam Jacobs: Hey, everyone, Sam Jacobs. Love that dialog with Brandon Barton, a fantastic CEO, first-time CEO getting into the sneakers. He was employed at Chunk as COO and acquired promoted.
He’s accomplished many nice issues to drive the corporate ahead. He additionally brings authenticity and vulnerability. He’s managed many transitions extremely nicely. I additionally simply suppose it’s actually fascinating that he began off in hospitality, however earlier than that, he was an engineer. He brings each a structured set of techniques orientation to the idea of making an unimaginable expertise for folks, and he realized that underneath Danny Meyer.
Brandon was the beverage director at Tabla after which moved on to Resy, the place he constructed the gross sales group virtually from the underside up.
What’s occurring within the restaurant trade is extremely fascinating. There’s this labor scarcity worldwide, so that you punch in your order on the display, after which it comes out later. And for higher or for worse, it’s typically a greater expertise.
You could have the flexibility to overview your whole choices very clearly on the display. I believe what’s occurring within the restaurant house is basically fascinating. I believe Chunk’s doing extremely fascinating work, so I actually loved that dialog
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