Holy Cow, It's National Burger Month!

I love when companies get it. Not just social media. Not just the fact that their customers are people. Not just that there is a world beyond profit and loss. I love when companies understand all that and consciously integrate community and humanity into their game plan. Those are the companies I like to take my dollars to. Those are the companies I like to share with others.

Smashburger is just that kind of company. They are very social. And now, I find out that they are also socially conscious.

Eat & Tweet

For the opening of every store, Smashburger engages with the local on-line community. They host dinners and lunches for Tweeps and Yelpers in new markets. In San Diego lots of active social media types were invited for two time slots: a pre-opening lunch and a dinner hour. At these "Eat & Tweets", they treated us to whatever we wanted (seriously... anything and everything!) so that we could spread the word about our experience and all the yummy goodness we were tasting. They got instant feedback about their service, and locals found out about a new place to dine out directly from people they trust. They also find out what locals are interested in and create menu items accordingly. For Salt Lake City, they have a Beehive Burger made with honey mustard and San Diego got a California Burger (that I LOVE) made with a tortilla bun and avocados.

SIDE NOTE: It always amuses me when companies worry about not being able to control the messaging in social media campaigns. They always ask, "What if someone says something bad?" Companies like Smashburger understand that it's a risk you take to get some buzz as well as real time feedback. If something goes wrong, they address it immediately. During our pre-opening party, they got honest feedback from all of us. For the most part, we said it was good because it WAS good. If it was so-so, we would have said as much. So companies that worry? Maybe you need to put out a better product... just sayin'.

Smash Hunger

This month being National Burger Month (did you even know there was such a thing?), Smashburger partnered with Coca-Cola in an effort to smash out hunger. Every Smashburger location is partnering with a local food bank. Smashburger fans are encouraged to bring non-perishable items to their local Smashburger and Coca-Cola will match donations with monetary support. So if there's a Smashburger in your city, take your canned goods down and then enjoy a smashing night with friends and family!

PS: Seriously... their burgers are SOOOO good! Shhhh... nobody tell In-N-Out, okay?