Article

Ice cream and cookie truck newbies tap PR expert to raise awareness

Stephen and Diane Tchen have invested in the services of a professional public relations consultant to raise customer awareness for Kream Kong. The consultant has delivered a wealth of media coverage.

A Southern California blog, fieldtripmom, attended a Kream Kong media event and posted several photos. Photos courtesy of Alma Bosek of fieldtripmom.com.

October 24, 2018 by Elliot Maras — Editor, Kiosk Marketplace & Vending Times

The novelty phase for food trucks has passed, but that hasn't stopped people passionate about their food truck vision from launching new concepts.

Stephen and Diane Tchen, a husband-and-wife team, are among today's food truck newbies. In launching their Kream Kong truck, which specializes in homemade ice cream and cookies, the couple spent more than a year on their business plan, as reported in part one of this two-part series. 

The Tchens are largely self-taught in making homemade ice cream and cookies, and they are also teaching themselves the ropes of managing a business. And although their funds are limited, they have invested in the services of a professional public relations consultant to raise public awareness of Kream Kong.

Outsourcing customer awareness

"He's gotten us in front of a lot of food bloggers," Stephen Tchen said of Southern California-based media consultant, Bob Bradley. 

Bradley, who has a background in public relations for an ice cream retailer, contacted the Tchen's when he saw their Instagram page.

Bradley told Food Truck Operator that he has placed more than 50 features about Kream Kong in social media, print media and print publications in recent months. 

"My job for Kream Kong is to obviously secure as many quality press features via magazines, newspapers, blogs and social media 'influencers' as possible," Bradley told Food Truck Operator. "Between the aforementioned sources, people follow these mediums because they are: a) comfortable with the medium — some like print, some like Instagram, etc.; b) they provide filtered, curated content about the niche of food that cuts through traditional marketing that can be overwhelming and hard to trust; and c) people love food and love to visually see the latest trends and get ideas on what to check out next.

"Having PR helps push the message out for earned media, and creates that snowball for them to eventually be discovered organically," Bradley continued. "Some businesses strike gold right out the gate, but most don't know about marketing. Having a PR push for earned media increases the chances of capturing eyeballs and earning customers."

A wealth of media exposure

Following are some of the media placements Bradley has secured for Kream Kong.

• On Aug. 1, the Orange County Register, Orange County's largest newspaper, ran a feature story about the company. The article, which also ran on the publication's website, explored how the Tchens started the business, mentioned an event they were participating in, and included Kream Kong's Facebook and Instagram pages.
• On Aug. 20, Greer's Blog ran an article about an upcoming Kream Kong appearance at a public event in late August. The article included a picture of the Kream Kong signature cookie, described the Tchens' background and offered summary of their products. Greer's OC has 30,000 Orange County subscribers, according to Bradley.
• On Aug. 29, foodbeast, which Bradley said is the web's biggest foodie social media promo network, posted a video demonstrating the preparation and serving of Kream Kong's signature product. The post attracted 20,528 views and received 38 reader comments.
• On Sept. 1, the blog willstudyforfood described an August trip to a blogger's event that featured Kream Kong. The blog post described several of the menu items, which were accompanied with pictures.
• On Sept. 17, the Southern California blog girlsonfood.net ran an interview with Diane Tchen about her role in developing the ice cream truck. The post included pictures of the truck and some of the products served.
• On Sept. 23, Kream Kong held a media event attended by fieldtripmom.com, a Southern California blog. The blog included several pictures of products and the food truck, and described ice creams and toppings that the blogger and her family members tasted. The blog also listed events the truck would be attending and included its social media details.

The Tchens are hoping that this publicity will help them secure regular parking spots for the truck. Meanwhile, they are learning about permit requirements for various cities in South California, whose fees can vary significantly.

They are also hoping to win a spot in one of the area food truck parks, which have waiting lists, and are looking into working with food truck booking services. Their long-term goal is to open a brick-and-mortar restaurant.

"Everyone loves our product so far," Stephen Tchen said.

About Elliot Maras

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Elliot Maras is the editor of Kiosk Marketplace and Vending Times. He brings three decades covering unattended retail and commercial foodservice.