When a new Master Pizza location opens, LaMarca’s team and franchise partner “nuke” the whole town. That’s the term they use for a marketing blitz that includes everything from direct mail to radio ads to social media. “We drop a menu in every mailbox in the whole city— every household, apartment and business gets one,” LaMarca says. “We include some aggressive offers in that menu drop. It serves as a big announcement that we’re ready to go.” Designed posts on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram also announce the new opening. “We follow up with random ‘in process’ posts and live video posts leading up to the opening,” LaMarca adds. “Along with the social media buzz, we run spots with our radio partners. We’ve also placed grand-opening ads through print marketing companies such as Valassis, Valpak, TMS and Gold Clipper. Some people think print is dead, but we’ve found it’s not true in the pizza business. We still see a huge amount of print coupons coming in at our old and new locations.”
SHEILA PACK
COURTESY MIKE LAMARCA
As a captain of the U.S. Pizza Team, LaMarca has honed his culinary skills in competitions around the U.S. and the world.
As president of Master Pizza, Jeremy Galvin personally responds to customer emails and has been known to provide his personal phone number to prove his commitment to creating a better experience.
ask a fill-in-the-blank question and listeners call in with their answers. So, throughout that show, they’re saying our name over and over again, and they also blast it out on their social media.” TASTE ABOVE ALL In an era marked by flashy, celebrity-backed pizza concepts, Master Pizza at first glance looks like a throwback, from its whimsical pizza-man logo and “Taste Above All” motto to its homey website with printable coupons and simple red-and-white color palette. But don’t let that folksy vibe fool you: LaMarca, a captain of the U.S. Pizza Team (USPT), has a history of dominating culinary competitions and travels the world to hone his craft.
“Some people think print is dead, but we have found it’s not true in the pizza business. We still see a huge amount of print coupons coming in at our old and new locations.” — M I C H A E L L A M A RC A , M A S T E R P I Z Z A Radio is very much alive, too, as any sports fan will tell you. And with pro teams like the Cavaliers and the Indians, Cleveland-area fans have plenty to cheer about. “We do a lot of marketing on sports radio,” LaMarca says. “I’ll drop off food at the local station, and they immediately put me on the air. We do scheduled food drops and call-ins where I’ll phone in about a sporting event. We also sponsor One-Word Wednesday, where they 40
“We love to experiment with new flavors and toppings,” he says. He discovered peppadew peppers at a trade show in 2012. “I picked one up, thinking it was a cherry tomato, popped it in my mouth, walked a few steps and bang! It was sweet, it was spicy, it was freakin’ awesome! I knew I needed to make a pizza with it one day. We came up with the Peppadew Punch, with peppadew peppers, bacon and grilled chicken on top of a cheesy garlic sauce.”
PMQ Pizza Magazine The Pizza Industry’s Business Monthly
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