Account Lead Callie Forkenbrock Shares Lessons from IFEC
December 12, 2016
For the December seminar, All Points PR Account Lead Callie Forkenbrock shared the lessons she learned from October’s International Foodservice Editorial Council (IFEC) convention, held in Minneapolis. Callie brought back lots of great information that was helpful for the team, specifically about the importance of fearless networking, storytelling and food trends.
Callie met with more than a dozen food industry editors throughout the duration of the conference who emphasized the importance of prioritizing storytelling in pitches. She shared that it’s important to not only highlighting the brand or concept that is being promoted, but to spend more time telling the stories of the people behind the business, as these tend to resonate well with readers.
Additionally, Callie discussed that it is critical to foster positive relationships with bloggers, as the foodservice industry now caters to more than exclusively print audiences. In an age where consumers primarily check Yelp, Facebook, Instagram and Google for reviews and menu suggestions, a solid online presence is essential.
Finally, she shared some tips for fearless networking – it can be intimidating to walk into a room full of strangers, but the only way to get to know people is to walk up and introduce yourself. The relationships Callie made at IFEC (including many within IFEC itself – in fact, Callie won the “Best New Member Name” award!) continue to benefit our franchise clients for months and years to come, and we all appreciated the opportunity to learn from one of our own team members.
Stay tuned for January’s seminar!
