Slim Chicken’s Secret Sauce? Customer Experience and a Smart Strategy

Recently, I read an interview with Patrick Noone, CMO of Slim Chickens, and his quest to make the Fayetteville, Arkansas-based chain a household name. What really caught my attention was the foundation of their marketing plan: the customer experience.  

Furthermore, Slim Chickens is leveraging AI to enhance this experience while maintaining its core identity. Slim Chickens, dates back to 2003 with buttermilk, hand breaded chicken tenderloin as its flagship product, that served as a catalyst for nearly another 300 locations in less than 25 years. Though the growth won’t stop there with another 1,000 locations being planned globally.  

But How Did They Do It? 

Such success begins with the customer and the experience they create, and more importantly, how they resonate with their journey.  

As The Wall Street Journal interview highlights and as stated by Chief Marketing Officer Patrick Noone, it “starts in the kitchen,” with much of the chain’s menu being handcrafted. This is an important point of differentiation. With the guest in mind, Slim Chicken’s redesigned its menu to capture what their customers wanted and offer the customer experiences that had not yet been satisfied.  

With the use of artificial intelligence (AI), the chain could capture and understand what the unmet need of their customers was—and how to deliver accordingly. This enabled it to develop a media strategy unique to the markets in which its stores are located—in fact, even at the store level, taking a “not-one-size-fits-all” approach. 

Lastly, Slim Chicken’s has stayed true to its mission from day one by keeping music at the core of the experience, as well as offering a platform for music artists in those markets. 

Staying Customer-Centric 

In short, the interview highlighted two key elements necessary for any business to succeed—first, keeping the customer at the center of your strategy, and second, creating a great customer experience.  

This is a central theme in many of my articles, but is nevertheless an important, often forgotten component to your success. My previous articles have highlighted both successes (Crumbl Cookies, Dutch Bros, and Coach) where brands have kept both points at the center of their strategies, and failures (Southwest Airlines, Starbucks, and Kohl’s) where these lessons were not adhered to.  

Having said that, I would like to provide not only the highlights, but also the key takeaways applicable to any business.  

1. Keep the customer first—While seemingly self-explanatory, here are a few questions to consider: Do you truly know your customer? Are you solving their unmet need? Do you understand their buying journey? Do your sales and marketing plans support their journey? Are you customer-centric? 
2. Create a great experience—If you have satisfied the first bullet point, then you can focus on creating a great experience for your consumer throughout their journey. The ultimate goal is to delight them consistently and continually. As often touted, it costs more to acquire a customer than to retain one.  

As I mentioned earlier, these are straightforward points that are often overlooked in the pursuit of contending with the competition. Thus, when in doubt, use these as simple checks and balances to fall back on when building and refining your strategy. Remember, though, that there is no finish line!  

How Can We Help?  

Let’s talk. Our Branding, Strategy & Marketing (BSM2) practice focuses on understanding the evolving marketplace and consumer behavior. We work with brands to develop market strategies that are connected to consumer needs. Our comprehensive expertise helps brands, retailers, and services of all sizes make competitive comebacks and, more importantly, captivate consumers. 

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About the Author

Eric Rittenhouse works at BSM Partners as Business Development Manager. His areas of expertise include business development, sales and trade marketing while helping brand companies uncover and execute on opportunities to strategically dominate their niche in the consumer product space. He has completed the Blue Ocean Practical Introduction certificate by the Blue Ocean Academy and is Action Selling Master Certified by Action Selling and The Sales Board.