SOCi Reinforces Commitment to Restaurant Industry: Adds Industry Veteran to Advisory Board, Announces Partnerships with Rita’s Italian Ice and Bob Evans

SAN DIEGO, May 2, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — SOCi, the marketing platform for multi-location brands, has further cemented its position in the restaurant industry with two new partnerships and the addition of Ellie Doty to its Industry Advisory Board. These developments come on the heels of SOCi’s recent strategic partnership announcement with Punchh from PAR Technology, which integrates SOCi’s industry-leading localized listings management and reviews solutions with Punchh’s loyalty and engagement platform for restaurant brands.

Rita’s Franchise Company, LLC has chosen SOCi as its platform of record for localized marketing as the brand goes digital-first to nurture happy, loyal guests, and utilizes SOCi Listings, SOCi Social, and SOCi Reviews. For a treat brand that is fully franchised, ensuring consistency and having control of the brand is paramount, especially in a system where franchisees have varying levels of confidence when it comes to managing digital channels.

“Our strategy has become digital-first to ensure we connect and engage with our consumers where they are most active – online,” said Madalyn Weintraub, senior director of marketing, Rita’s Franchise Company, LLC. “Rita’s has invested in new technology and resources, like our partnership with SOCi, to create smarter marketing strategies, improve efficiencies, and develop the brand in ways to help drive traffic, sales, and increase franchisee profitability.”

With close to 440 locations in 18 states, homestyle restaurant chain Bob Evans has also selected SOCi as its localized marketing platform of record, currently utilizing SOCi Social to curate localized content at scale, and SOCi Reviews to manage its reputation and review response for each of its online review platforms. The restaurant brand will soon be utilizing SOCi’s integration with Olo and Listings tool to update location and menu information, providing a single source of truth for each location’s specific offers.

“The benefits we’ve seen since utilizing the SOCi platform have been invaluable to our marketing strategy, and we’re looking forward to bolstering it further with SOCi Listings in the coming weeks,” said Robert Fradette, VP of marketing communication, Bob Evans. “As a growing company that values our local communities and treats everyone like family, it was important to be equipped with a marketing platform that allowed us to efficiently connect with our customers on a local, personalized level, while also offering scalability.”

These new partnerships come with the addition of SOCi’s newest strategic industry advisor, Ellie Doty, who will be consulting with SOCi on how to best serve the restaurant vertical from a localized marketing technology perspective. Doty has an 18+ year career in marketing and brand building for multi-location, iconic restaurant brands across the globe. For the past seven years, she has worked with brands including KFC, Taco Bell, Chili’s, and Burger King to cross-functionally craft and execute growth and turnaround strategies while building and leading diverse teams, creating relevant innovation and navigating the shift to a dynamic, data-driven digital world. Most recently, Doty was announced as the newly named chief marketing officer of Dolphin Entertainment (NASDAQ: DLPN), a leading marketing agency in film, entertainment, hospitality, and tech.

“In my years of restaurant marketing experience, I understand the value in selecting the right SaaS partner to help achieve progressive sales traffic and growth,” said Doty. “SOCi has created a leading solution for multi-location marketers, and developed a platform that uses technology to automate marketing tasks and provide strategic recommendations. I’m thrilled to join its Industry Advisory Board and help bring SOCi’s toolset to even more iconic restaurant brands.”

To learn more about SOCi and how it supports multi-location brands like Rita’s and Bob Evans through automated marketing workflows, visit www.meetsoci.com/who-needs-soci/brands/.

About SOCi
SOCi is the marketing platform for multi-location brands. We empower businesses like Ace Hardware, Jersey Mike’s, Kumon, and Ford to scale localized marketing efforts across all digital channels in a way that is brand directed, locally perfected, and data connected. Through the use of advanced AI and machine learning, the SOCi platform provides users actionable insights and recommendations while automating time-consuming marketing tasks for hundreds or thousands of business locations. With SOCi, businesses can strengthen their digital presence across local search and social pages, while protecting their online reputation. Our AI-powered platform drives improved customer engagement and market leading results at scale. To learn more about how SOCi can help fuel your localized marketing success, please visit us at www.meetsoci.com or message us at [email protected].

About Rita’s Italian Ice & Frozen Custard
Rita’s Italian Ice & Frozen Custard opened its doors in Bensalem, Pa. in 1984, and has been dedicated to spreading “Ice, Custard, Happiness!” ever since. Now, Rita’s is the largest Italian Ice concept in the world with over 600 shops. Guests around the world visit Rita’s to celebrate their everyday moments with freshly made cool treats in a fun-filled atmosphere. Known for its famous Italian Ice, made daily featuring real fruit, and award-winning Frozen Custard, Rita’s serves a taste of happiness with each delicious treat. For more information about Rita’s Italian Ice, please call 1-800-677-7482 or visit www.ritasice.com.

About Bob Evans Restaurants, LLC
Bob Evans Restaurants is a chain of family-style restaurants founded and headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, which owns and operates nearly 450 locations in 18 states, primarily in the Midwest, mid-Atlantic and Southeast regions. Guests have been enjoying signature farm-fresh meals like the Farmer’s Choice Breakfast, made with fresh-cracked eggs, and the slow-roasted, hand-carved turkey dinner among other classics for over 70 years. True to his humble farmer roots, founder Bob Evans believed in treating strangers like friends and friends like family, and this hospitality is still on display at every Bob Evans Restaurant location. As a private company, Bob Evans Restaurants is focused on bringing America’s Farm Fresh to its guests at every meal, each and every day. For more information and restaurant locations, visit BobEvans.com, or follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

SOURCE SOCi, Inc.