our universe - Toppers Pizza Franchise Opportunity

A note from Scott Gittrich 1
1 Scott Gittrich
– verb, noun, adjective, solar power
1. founder of Toppers Pizza
2. having wealth or great possession
3. abundantly supplied with resources

Table of Contents
Section one: Welcome To our universe . . . . . . 07
Section two: The PeoPle We Feed . . . . . . . . . . 11
Section three: The language oF love . . . . . . . 31
Section Four: The reasons Why . . . . . . . . . . 61

Section one
WelCome To our univerSe

SuCCeSSfullneSS
as previously stated, the reason we’re successful, first and foremost, is our pizza. We make our
dough daily, we have a list of specialty pizzas no one else can claim and we have a signature item,
Topperstix, which drives people nuts (and adds a nice bump to many sales tickets, wink wink).
anyway, that’s the last we’re going to reference these things, so re-read the first sentence and
implant in your mind that our pizza is delicious and honestly, you should try it sometime soon.
great, now that that’s out of the way, there’s another reason we’re such a successful franchise.
There’s an untapped market out there. a market that devours pizza at such a ravenous rate, it’ll
give a dietitian a heart attack. But here’s the thing about this market of people… we were the first
to talk to them directly. not only that, but we’re still the only ones talking to them. in the same
manner they speak. We’re talking with them, not at them. and it turns out, they like that. a lot.
it didn’t come about right away, but a while back we decided it would be a good idea to appeal to
impressionable young adults by building our brand around a look, feel, voice that would appeal
to them. But in reality, what we started wasn’t what the brand has become. We are who we are
because of our consumers. They’ve formed our brand. it’s a symbiotic relationship. We’re the rhino.
our fans, the bird. once they noticed us, liked us, realized we were like them, they ran with it. They
told their friends. and became the brand enthusiasts most will kill for.
SECTION ONE SECTION ONE
A brand isn’t something that exists on shelves. It may sit there, but it doesn’t
live there. It lives in the hearts and minds of people. Your brand is the sum
total of perceptions about your product in the heads of your relevant audience.
Source: Wall street Journal 2.22.10, along with every good marketing book
08 09

Section two
The PeoPle We feed

demoGrAPhiCS,
SChmemoGrAPhiCS.
We’re All ABouT SeGmenTATion.
WhiCh STArTS WiTh A mindSeT.
see, the problem these days is that demographics can’t paint a rich enough picture of a prospective
customer. We’ve got to move beyond the superficial layer. We’ve got to move beyond, “see that
pretty girl over there,” past, “i’m going to talk to that pretty girl over there,” and make the move
to, “hi, how are you? That’s an interesting bracelet. looks like the work of an artist in Buenos aires,
no?” Put another way, we found you have to dig deeper if you want to make a strong connection.
A SimPle QuiZ To demonSTrATe hoW PSyChoGrAPhiCS WorK.
WhAT do you See?
12
A HAMBURGER
MILK
A JACKET
MY CHILDHOOD PET, BARNABY
When you talk to two people of the same demographic makeup you can get a variety of responses.
like the cow quiz. you may have seen that and thought, “That’s a hamburger,” whereas someone
in your same demographic might a see a cow as the reincarnation of sir Francis drake (although,
we must admit, that response rarely comes up). Point is, it’s all about how the individual thinks of
themselves and then of you.
To make the deep connections to create loyalty, especially in a category such as pizza, which is
already over-saturated and highly competitive, psychographics are the key. Please pause for a
quick bit of academia:
SECTION TWO
PSyChoGrAPhiCS
In the field of marketing, psychographic variables are any attributes relating
to personality, values, attitudes, interests or lifestyles. They are also
called IAO variables (for Interests, Activities and Opinions). They can be
contrasted with demographic variables (such as age and gender), behavior
variables (such as usage rate or loyalty), and firmographic variables (such
as industry, seniority and functional area).
Source: Wikipedia , where all content is true, unbiased, faithfully researched and
acknowledged by ivy league professors
What’s made us so successful over the years has been the simple fact that we’re the only ones who
do what we do. now, that doesn’t mean we’re the only people making pizza. There are even people
making great pizza from scratch, though they don’t usually have our great variety of unusual and
popular house pizzas. But it’s how we’re putting ourselves out there. it’s what we’re saying and how
we’re saying it.
if you’ve read the book “Blue ocean strategy,” you’re already familiar with this (and if you haven’t,
google it – but only after you’re done reading this white paper, of course). The gist of “Blue ocean
strategy” centers around making the competition irrelevant. in other words, own a position, don’t
position against others.
For us, our Blue ocean strategy is as follows: Toppers highly-focused marketing efforts have been
designed to make the competition irrelevant. By successfully differentiating our brand, we hope to
no longer compete directly with other pizza chains. We seek to operate in an uncontested
market space.
13

SECTION TWO SECTION TWO
another company who does this well is southwest airlines. They entered a terrible marketplace
that analysts said would be a blood bath. most of the major airlines played the same game with only
the slightest of nuances. southwest eliminated many of the rules/criteria in the industry, reduced
focus on some of the rules below industry standards, raised focus on some of the rules above
industry standard, and created a new set of rules of their own. The way they were able to do that
was by targeting non-consumers (family/shorter trips v. business trips) and they looked across
industry boundaries at alternatives (cars v. planes) as their competition instead of just focusing
on traditional airlines as the sole competition. only by de-emphasizing some of the existing rules
were they able to lower costs enough to compete in this new market.
so enough about the southwest airlines customer, let’s talk about the Toppers customer. While
each is different from the other, there are some things we do know about them, especially as it
relates to the web and the kind of sites they often visit.
14 15
Important Indexes: webSite categorieS
topperS cuStomerS are likely to go to
Fantasy Sports
Humor
Fashion/Cosmetics
Bridal
Gaming Information
Movies
Video
Teens
Parenting
Baby
Boring Things
Really Boring Things
Extremely Boring Things
Things The Average Person
Absolutely Can’t Stand
0.0x 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0x 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2.0x
Source: quantcast.com

advertising is oK... if it’s done right. “millennials aren’t opposed to
advertising,” says nancy robinson, vice President and consumer
strategist and millennials expert at iconoculture. “They actually
quite like it. it’s a game. you can be real or you can be real clever.
authenticity is a hallmark for them, but they’re also engaged and
amused when someone is clever enough to skirt the issue.”
source: entrepreneur magazine
“striking the right balance between sophistication and idiocy.
irreverence done right gets cred.”
source: iconoculture
go-to sources of information: apps, Facebook,
fantasy sites, the crew, youTube, collegehumor.com.
source: iconoculture
“millennials are seeking out first-time products that
represent their individuality.”
source: nPd houseworld consumer, Fall 2006
“36% of college student millennials would prefer to see
a reflection of themselves in advertising.”
source: consumer Behavior 2007
“successful products for millennials will be good-tasting foods with
brands that ‘speak to them.’ raised in a brand-conscious world of
fashion and games, millennials will define their ‘sense of reality’
around brands.”
source: Preparedfoods.com
“creative marketers can capture younger millennials with ‘tools for fun.’”
source: Preparedfoods.com
“communicate on a personal level. create a two-way dialogue with your
audience. give them an opportunity to speak to you. Whether you let
them rate your products, share comments, or share their experience
with friends, providing a forum to socialize is essential.”
source: marketing to millennials
SECTION TWO SECTION TWO
BoTTom line
Why do all these charts and sidebars seem important? Well, it all boils down to
this statement, which we will put in bold for added emphasis:
If consumers relate to your brand they are more likely to purchase from you again
and again. This emotional connection allows us to compete in the hearts and
minds of consumers – not at a price point.
We get people to relate to us because we get them. We’ve become more than
a meal. We’ve become an emotion to our customers. When they order Toppers,
they’re ordering a memory, they’re ordering a joke, a memento. and they want to
share that emotion with others. and they want to experience it. again and again.
That emotion is just an order away (now available for delivery online!).
16 17

SECTION TWO SECTION TWO
There Are ThinGS you need.
And ThinGS you WAnT. We Give BoTh.
Needs States Marketing
The leveraging of the fundamental human needs (as outlined by maslow’s
hierarchy of needs) to create messaging that forges emotional bonds
between product and consumer.
in the 1940’s, abraham maslow developed a psychological theory based on humans’ intrinsic
needs known as maslow’s hierarchy of needs. The most basic needs are on the bottom, the most
advanced on top.
Within this view of humans’ intrinsic needs is a notion of “needs states marketing.” Basically, it’s
consumer-centric rather than product-centric marketing. it’s messaging that addresses a person’s
fundamental survival needs, as well as higher order needs. such as the need to be loved.
When looking at Toppers, we not only pay off a fundamental survival need (food), but we also pay
off higher order needs like “respect of others” (badge of appeal) and “friendship” (talk with them).
The physiological need for sex is a biggie for us (no pun intended) because of our targets’ constant
fixation on sex.
SELF-ACTUALIZATION
ESTEEM
LOVE/BELONGING
SAFETY
abraham maslow’s hierarchy oF needS
PHYSIOLOGICAL
morality,
creativity,
spontaneity,
problem-solving,
lack of prejudice,
acceptance of facts
self-esteem, confidence,
achievement, respect of/by others
friendship, family, sexual intimacy
security of: body, employment, resources,
morality, the family, health, property
breathing, food, water, sex, sleep, homeostasis, excretion
18 19

SECTION TWO
The importance of tapping into these needs is enormous. By hitting the basic human needs in our
messaging, we actually make what we say seem more important and humanly relevant. This makes
the believability of better-tasting pizza possible. When someone orders Toppers, they already have
the perception that it’ll taste amazing because we’ve connected with them on a primal level. in their
hearts, their minds, their stomachs and their gonads, they know it’ll be great before the first bite.
a good example of just how need states marketing works is Budweiser. any psychologist worth his
salt knows the importance of “the greeting” and how it influences the trust/receptivity/connection
that you have with someone. The “wassup” campaign set the stage for a brand founded in belonging,
and, on top of it, used a catchy, almost kinesthetic phrase (you still with us?). anyway, just remember
this (belonging + catchy phrase that’s almost kinesthetic) when you look at our advertising.
fAnS Are irrATionAl, unBiASed And
Genuinely nuTS. We love our fAnS.
earlier, we made an off-the-cuff remark about people tattooing themselves with the Toppers logo.
Well, that actually happened. and no, it wasn’t due to a lost bet or lack of payment for purchase.
We really are that loved. how’d we get to that point?
enthusiast2 marketing . We empower our customers. once they start drinking the Kool-aid3 , or in
this case, devouring our pies, they start doing the marketing heavy lifting for us (figuratively). The
way this works is a two-fold strategy that identifies heavy passionate users of the brand and, in
turn, provides them tools to activate and proliferate the brand on your (our) behalf.
Who are these enthusiasts and how do we find them? Well, that’s a great question. an enthusiast is
a person who is especially passionate for a particular service or product. They are heavy users of
the brand and may or may not broadcast their love for the brand.
2 Enthusiast [en•thoo•zee•ast, -ist]
– noun
1. a person who bottles enthusiasm
2. a religious visionary or fanatic
20
3 Kool-Aid [cool•aid]
– noun
1. grape drink
2. propaganda brewed for
mass consumption
SECTION TWO
an influencer4 , on the other hand, is typically a pack leader who has the capacity and ability to
impact his followers. Previously these people were reporters, media distributors, Pr professionals,
they smelled nice and in some instances, could throw long touchdown passes. now, with everyone
having the ability to produce content, media distribution has been democratized and influencers
include bloggers, Twitter users, along with shut-ins who sometimes smell of old cheese. if they’re
anything, it’s loud and they can create a giant impact on a community.
Most companies look at it with the classic 80:20 rule – 20 % of customers
are responsible for 80% of business. Influencers were identified as 1:99,
where 1% of consumers are responsible for 99 % of the outbound buzz.
ENTHUSIASTS
80:20 RULE
ENTHUSIASTS
80:20 RULE
Why are the numbers overlapping so much? We’re activating enthusiasts. and by doing that, we’re
turning people who love us into people who will influence. These people in the overlap section
are owners of the brand. They are customers with a voice. We want them to develop content and
context, which in turn gives them some ownership and a piece of the brand. They’ll jump off a cliff
for us because we’re one of them. We’re in it together.
4 Influencer [in•floo•uhns•er]
– noun
1. chuck norris
2. exercising the powers of
human beings
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INFLUENCERS
1:99 RULE
INFLUENCERS
1:99 RULE
E I
E I
Toppers views it like this:
ENTHUSIASTS INFLUENCERS
ENTHUSIASTS INFLUENCERS
E I
E I

SECTION TWO
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and most importantly,
sales. it’s a self-sustaining environment with its own currency of both intangible intellectual prop-
erty and tangible exchange of goods and services. (source: Flip the Funnel)
We’ve set up all the tools for our enthusiasts to become more likely to influence others. We’ve done
it through things like our social media sites and having gumball machines filled with beer pong
balls at every store.
We hAven’T CreATed A monSTer.
We’ve CreATed A PiZZA-CrAZed nATion.
ToPPerS nATion.
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and most importantly,
sales. it’s a self-sustaining environment with its own currency of both intangible intellectual property
and tangible exchange of goods and services.
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and most importantly,
sales. it’s a self-sustaining environment with its own currency of both intangible intellectual property
and tangible exchange of goods and services.
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and most
CONSUMER
• PASSIVE
• ACQUISITION TARGET
of course, showing you just one view of Toppers enthusiast marketing wouldn’t
be showing you the whole view of the pie. here’s another way to look at it:
PARTICIPATION
• ENGAGEMENT
• CONNECTION + WOW
22
ENTHUSIAST
• PASSIONATE
LOVER OF BRAND
• HEAVY USER
OWNER
• BRAND EVANGELIST
(OR ENTHUSIAST WITH A VOICE)
• ACTIVELY MOVES
THE MISSION FORWARD
VIA WORD-OF-MOUTH
SECTION TWO
First things first, there’s the trial period. Where the taste of Toppers first reaches a person’s lips.
it’s usually an earth-shattering moment, if we do say so ourselves.
From there is participation. The part where customers have their first engagement and connection
to our brand. To make the most of this phase, we look at customer service, obviously an important
part of the Toppers experience. There’s also the product, putting a good-tasting pizza out there.
and then we have something a little different known as callworks.
okay, you probably didn’t actually just call the store, so we’ll explain. When a customer calls
Toppers, they first hear a witty greeting, something like “Thanks for calling Toppers. since it’s
so close to st. Patrick’s day, we ask you order responsibly.” From there a customer can hear
the daily specials, also told in a witty manner, sometimes as celebrity impersonations (imagine
hearing christopher Walken read specials, then impersonate a koala over the phone and you’ll get
an idea). The reason for this is to extend the brand attitude over every possible platform. We’ve
heard numerous customers ask to be put back on hold to hear the rest of the automated answering
message before they order. Through things like callworks, we’re forming that initial bond and,
when done well, we can imprint and develop enthusiasts.
The next step is converting the enthusiast to an influencer, where we form the Toppers nation. This
is done by harvesting the passionate pizza eater, the people who not only eat Toppers often, but
won’t order anyone else’s pizza. We equip them with tools and stories and perks to share their love.
hence, if you check us out on Facebook, you’ll see we have tons of fans (as of press time there are
26,000+ of them). We then have contests, like the crowdsourcing ‘spank our ride,’ where fans are
asked to design a car with Toppers messaging.
By taking these steps, we’re giving our most loyal fans ownership of the brand. They can literally
see their input and their voice in our product. When a brand enthusiast formally takes on a brand’s
cause/mission, they’re at the point of ownership. These enthusiasts can be employees or people
who actively spend money and their own time on furthering the brand. We saw an example of this
when a group of loyalists started their own Facebook page demanding the return of a menu item we
cut, the gyro Pizza. every comment on our Facebook posts would have these fans asking where the
gyro Pizza went. They recruited people to join their mission of getting their beloved pizza back on
the menu. it didn’t take us long to realize we should give them what they wanted. and now the gyro
Pizza is back on the menu and is performing better than ever.
23

SECTION TWO
By taking these steps, we’re giving our most loyal fans ownership of the brand. They can literally
see their input and their voice in our product. When a brand enthusiast formally takes on a brand’s
cause/mission, they’re at the point of ownership. These enthusiasts can be employees or people
who actively spend money and their own time on furthering the brand. We saw an example of this
when a group of loyalists started their own Facebook page demanding the return of a menu item we
cut, the gyro Pizza. every comment on our Facebook posts would have these fans asking where the
gyro Pizza went. They recruited people to join their mission of getting their beloved pizza back on
the menu. it didn’t take us long to realize we should give them what they wanted. and now the gyro
Pizza is back on the menu and is performing better than ever.
PiZZA’S AlWAyS Been SoCiAl.
Why noT TAKe AdvAnTAGe of ThiS medium?
• Toppers increased its fan base from 3,000 to 25,000 in under a year
• The spank your Buds contest fan page grew 7,000 fans within 6 weeks
• Toppers Tuesday was launched in 2010 to reward Facebook fans and drive
incremental sales on the slowest day
• in addition to daily contests, we launched two big contests that connect
social media strategies with real life interactions
• Toppers has many fans in markets in which there are no locations, including
chicago where there are over 1,000 fans on the Facebook fan page
BoTTom line
Through the various social media networks, Enthusiast Marketing has never
been more valuable. By building our nation of followers, we’ve created a
system where before we enter a new market, enthusiasts will begin enabling
launch buzz and amplifying our messaging through their Facebook fans.
As long as we keep delivering on our end by talking their talk, keeping the
relationship strong, they’ll do a lot of the heavy lifting for us.
They’ll spread the word.
24
1 INITIAL CONSIDERATION SET
4 POST-PURCHASE EXPERIENCE
SECTION TWO
We’re Kind of liKe A CulT.
noT reAlly, BuT SorT of.
in The sense ThaT We have susTainaBle success. once We geT a Fan, We KeeP Them.
so, liKe a culT. oKay, come To ThinK oF iT, We are in FacT, a culT.
another key to our success is retention marketing. it’s getting harder and harder to gain loyalty
with increasingly simplified exposure to multiple brands. But what we’ve done is figured out a way
to connect, as mentioned earlier, with the dual purpose of increasing occasions beyond trial and
increasing lifetime customer value.
THE CONSUMER
DECISION JOURNEY
25
2 ACTIVE EVALUATION
3 MOMENT OF PURCHASE
on the chart, marketing’s efforts are focused on stages (1) ensuring that our product is a player
in the initial consideration set (trial) and (2) ensuring that our product is visible during the active
evaluation phase of the journey. This is marketing’s basic function. The connection with the
consumer and the product itself helps to complete the circle and keep them in the circle.

SECTION TWO
how does this relate to what we do? Well, we’re able to do both of these things on a modest budget
because (as you’ll see later on) our on-point messaging reaches the right target at the right time.
in effect, this helps yield a high rate of return for franchisees.
in the consumer decision journey, people will make their initial purchase from companies with
whom they feel a connection. Future purchases will be made with companies they feel familiar with.
at Toppers, we swing both ways. errr, we play for both teams. umm, we’re bi…no…we eat from both
sides of the hot dog. hmmm. at Toppers, we embody both. We satisfy both.
here Are A feW more inTereSTinG
TidBiTS ThAT mAKe our ComPeTiTion
ShAKe in Their KniCKerS:
• 96% of customers who have a bad experience don’t report it. 91% of those
don’t do business with you again.
• Dissatisfied customers tell 10 or more people who will never do business
with you.
• It costs five times as much to recruit a new customer as it costs to keep an
existing customer.
• The probability of selling to a new prospect is 5-20% while the probability
of selling to an existing customer is 60-70%.
• When we talk about loyalty, we’re not talking about punch cards. Loyal
customers form emotional bonds with your business that aren’t going to be
broken when the place down the street offers their product for a discount.
We’re looking at you, Domino’s and Papa John’s.
• Loyal customers effectively deserve a seat at the
table for choice-making opportunities.
26
SECTION TWO
other than us, cmpanies... whoops, sorry about that typo, we were too busy patting ourselves on the
back. anyways, other than us, one company who also excels at retention marketing is Zappos.com.
on any given day, approximately 75% of purchases are from returning customers and those repeat
customers order at least 2.5 more times in the next 12 months. Zappos’ repeat customers have higher
average order sizes. First-time customers in Q4 of 2006 racked up an average order of $111.98 and
returning customers during the same quarter spent an average of $143.22 per order. That’s a sizeable
amount of clams when you think about all the people ordering from their site. Take a look below if you
don’t believe us.
$1B
900M
800M
700M
600M
500M
400M
300M
200M
100M
$0M
ZAPPOS.COM GROSS SALES Source: © 2009 Zappos.com, Inc.
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
27

RETENTION
MARKETING
SUSTAIN
SECTION TWO
Who doesn’t love a good venn diagram?
let’s take a look at how needs states, enthusiast and retention marketing work together to pay
off our psychographic snapshot of our consumer. using three high-level strategies, our marketing
is able to satisfy, sustain and empower our customers. needs states marketing satisfies our
consumers’ basic needs via targeted messaging. retention marketing sustains our customers’
spending via loyalty. enthusiast marketing empowers our customers via the creation of strong
bonds. yes, it’s the three-way we all aspire to find.
NEEDS STATES
MARKETING
SATISFY
ENTHUSIAST
MARKETING
EMPOWER
BoTTom line
Since we’re not barking up the wrong tree all the time and trying to promote
trial, we’re getting more bang for our marketing buck. We’re promoting a
high lifetime value for each customer. More pies going to fewer people. This
yields a higher ROI for franchisees.
28
SECTION TWO
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and most importantly,
sales. it’s a self-sustaining environment with its own currency of both intangible intellectual prop-
erty and tangible exchange of goods and services.
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and most importantly,
sales. it’s a self-sustaining environment with its own currency of both intangible intellectual prop-
erty and tangible exchange of goods and services.
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and most importantly,
sales. it’s a self-sustaining environment with its own currency of both intangible intellectual prop-
erty and tangible exchange of goods and services.
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and most importantly,
sales. it’s a self-sustaining environment with its own currency of both intangible intellectual prop-
erty and tangible exchange of goods and services.
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and most importantly,
sales. it’s a self-sustaining environment with its own currency of both intangible intellectual prop-
erty and tangible exchange of goods and services.
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and most importantly,
sales. it’s a self-sustaining environment with its own currency of both intangible intellectual prop-
erty and tangible exchange of goods and services.
essentially this represents a new marketing system where organizational process supports a new
customer-centric ecosystem, one that is powered by loyalty, word-of-mouth, and.
Millennials live online. They’ve grown up with computers and prefer texting
to talking. For us, this means dollar signs. Our online ordering site averages
$4 more per order and helps to reduce labor costs across the board.
29

Section three
The lAnGuAGe of love

Retirees
Boomers
SECTION ThrEE
CommuniCATionS
AlloW mySelf To inTroduCe...
mySelf.
now let’s take a quantified view of our psychographic profile. as you know by now, our brand is
positioned against a specific psychographic makeup. it just so happens that a large number of the
people within this psychographic profile fall into a concentrated demographic profile. Take a look below.
Gen X
Gen Y
Millennials
32
PSYCHOGRAPHIC
TARGET
SECTION ThrEE
Where we place the importance of demographics is in media buying. media has to be secured based
on a demographic (i.e. the numbers that our psychographic profile translates into). With that in
mind, our prime media buying target is males 18-34. This explains the attitude and tonality of our
communications. We’ll tell jokes this group gets. We’ll make references to things they surround
themselves with.
By efficiently securing paid media, we’re able to pinpoint our psychographic target with the
smallest amount of spill. We know exactly who we’re interested in, so we’re not wasting money
on media. This may result in higher roi for our franchisees.
GeTTinG PeoPle To KnoW ABouT uS,
our ouTlooK on mediA PlAnninG,
AKA, ChArTS And more diAGrAmS.
PAID EARNED OWNED
The way we view channel management allows us to compete, or really, to take it a step further and
exploit the competition. since we’re small, nimble and an enthusiast brand, we’re primed for these
channels and can compete on a bigger stage. in other words, we’ve leveled the playing field. People
still know about us even if we’re not on the big stage as some of our competitors are.
33

SECTION ThrEE
you Are noW fAllinG inTo A TrAnCe. A SleePy
TrAnCe. relAx. you Will do AS We SAy.
The exact way we talk to our consumers can be described by a process known as hypnotic
modality. This is any process that forms, creates, or modifies subconscious belief systems.
hypnotic modalities are used in advertising, politics, any arena designed to persuade or alter
someone’s beliefs. in fact, we’re doing that to you right now. you probably have your computer
logged on to toppers.com, with a napkin tucked into your shirt, ready to devour our tasty pizza.
34
SECTION ThrEE
35

SECTION ThrEE
3 elemenTS of hyPnoTiC modAliTy
Are ACTivATed in ToPPerS AdverTiSinG
Authority/One-upmanship. This is achieved by establishing some
sort of reason for respect/trust. We establish credibility using
language, wit and creativity that our target aspires to. We say
stuff like, “We come fast, no apologies,” and “Pizza prepared on
equipment that also makes sunshine, rainbows and lucky rabbits’
feet.” nobody challenges audaciousness.
Overload Sensory Experience. The use of sights, sounds, words/
messages, smells to create an overload of information to trigger
the fight-or-flight instinct and open up the subconscious. Toppers
messaging, seen by our Prime Prospects at every turn, elicits an
involuntary emotional response. usually hunger, laughter, utter joy
and the urge to spend ungodly sums of money on pizza.
Temporary Logic/Rationalization. introduce doctrines, paradigms,
laws. We’ve done this with Toppers-specific language. using terms
like house Pizzas, Tall Boy, Topperstix, which have turned into part
of the vernacular of the Prime Prospect. For our loyalists, Topperstix
is to breadsticks as Kleenex is to Kleenex, errr, facial tissue.
By taking these steps, we’re giving our most loyal fans ownership of the brand. They can literally
see their input and their voice in our product. When a brand enthusiast formally takes on a brand’s
cause/mission, they’re at the point of ownership.
These enthusiasts can be employees or people who actively spend money and their own time
on furthering the brand. We saw an example of this when a group of loyalists started their own
Facebook page demanding the return of a menu item we cut, the gyro Pizza. every comment on our
Facebook posts would have these fans asking.
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like any relationship, it’s all about trust. By differentiating ourselves and connecting with our
consumers on a deep emotional level, we’re able to build trust. This trust creates a life-long
consumer and advocate for our brand, increasing the efficiency with which we buy media, and,
as a result, the roi for our franchisees. see, it’s all coming together now.
really, you can go cross-eyed reading theories all day about marketing. heck, you may currently
be cross-eyed (if it’s a birth affliction, we apologize for the glibness of this remark). But at the
end of the day, much of what’s been discussed ends up in the work. so, with that said, let’s
take a look at the work.
Where we place the importance of demographics is in media buying. media has to be secured based
on a demographic (i.e. the numbers that our psychographic profile translates into). With that in
mind, our prime media buying target is males, 18-34. This explains the attitude and tonality of our
communications. We’ll tell jokes this group gets. We’ll make references to things they surround
themselves with.
By efficiently securing paid media, we’re able to pin point our psychographic target with the smallest
amount of spill. We know exactly who we’re interested in, so we’re not wasting money on media. This
adds up to higher roi for our franchisees.
Where we place the importance of demographics is in media buying. media has to be secured based
on a demographic (i.e. the numbers that our psychographic profile translates into). With that in
mind, our prime media buying target is males, 18-34. This explains the attitude and tonality of our
communications. We’ll tell jokes this group gets. We’ll make references to things.
BoTTom line
We’ve evolved. It doesn’t take Charles Darwin to tell you that if you don’t, you
won’t make it. Since our humble beginnings, some 20 years ago, we’ve been
creating strong connections with our customers in that, we’ve tweaked our
messaging. Tweaked it to continue speaking to our core customer base, those
18-34 year old men. It’s been a heck of a journey. We’ve had a lot of laughs.
Made a few bucks. And now, this is your opportunity to join us.
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Where we place the importance of demographics is in media buying. media has to be secured based
on a demographic (i.e. the numbers that our psychographic profile translates into). With that in
mind, our prime media buying target is males, 18-34. This explains the attitude and tonality of our
communications. We’ll tell jokes this group gets. We’ll make references to things they surround
themselves with.
By efficiently securing paid media, we’re able to pin point our psychographic target with the smallest
amount of spill. We know exactly who we’re interested in, so we’re not wasting money on media. This
adds up to higher roi for our franchisees.
“our incredible marketing machine helps make our stores perform at a high level, in a way that is
different from the commodity driven endless coupon pizza business. This branding strategy is
similar to abercrombie and Fitch, apple, chipotle, starbucks and Five guys, to name a few. an
ecstatic fan base is willing to pay more for the experience and quality. This allows our franchise
partners the opportunity to pursue a higher than average roi per store. our model is scalable. once
the first store is up and running, the profits can be shifted into getting store Two going, which can
be put towards store three and so on. Point is, in the right hands with the right capital and the right
mindset this can be an incredible pizza business. This can be a great business model that may be
replicated in markets all over america. hell, all over the world. The fact is there are a lot of cute
franchise concepts out there. most of them don’t make money – or make so little that it’s like buying
yourself a job. The problem is that the vast majority do not have a 20-year, time proven business
model. We own company stores because we know opening a Toppers can be a great investment. in
fact, if you think about it, why wouldn’t any logical, smart and experienced franchise food operator
not want a piece of this?”
Scott gittrich | Founder, Toppers Pizza
Where we place the importance of demographics is in media buying. media has to be secured based
on a demographic (i.e. the numbers that our psychographic profile translates into). With that in
mind, our prime media buying target is males, 18-34. This explains the attitude and tonality of our
communications. We’ll tell jokes this group gets. We’ll make references to things they surround
themselves with.
By efficiently securing paid media, we’re able to pin point our psychographic target with the smallest
amount of spill. We know exactly who we’re interested in, so we’re not wasting money on media.
39

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Where we place the importance of demographics is in media buying. media has to be secured based
on a demographic (i.e. the numbers that our psychographic profile translates into). With that in
mind, our prime media buying target is males, 18-34. This explains the attitude and tonality of
if you’ve been reading this book in chronological order and haven’t just been skipping ahead to
the sections with the most pictures, then you’ll remember what the section with the zombie cat
shooting laser beams from its eyes was about. you’ll remember that we strive to create unique and
adoptable branded elements that are distinctive to Toppers. These Toppers-specific words, images
and concepts are easily identifiable as being owned by us. it’s like we’re creating mini-brands
within our brand. By doing this, we reinforce our connection to Toppers nation and establish new
relationships with those who are new to us. here are a couple ways we’ve done this recently, with
the introduction of two new products, the Tall Boy and the myZa.
The goal of creating our new personal pizza was to do two things. Beef up lunch sales and create
more trial for our house Pizzas. From this, the myZa was born. From a branding perspective, we
played up the selfishness of having a pizza all to yourself.
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We sought out to create a signature Toppers Pizza. To accomplish this, we combined our two most
popular items; our pizza and Topperstix. The end result was a new category in itself. While the deep
dish pizza goes deep, the tall pizza rises to the top.
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The evolution of our logo. as times change, we’ve continued to evolve our logo and messaging to
reach our core customer.
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NOW AVAILABLE
Buffalo Chicken Topper
Meat Topper
SECTION ThrEE
FEED THE NEED TOP PE RS. CO M
in this piece, we talk about our house pizzas and show the variety of offerings, something that no
other chain can claim. of course, it’s said in a way only we can say it. This is an example of how we
use “authority” when talking with our customers. We talk on their terms, with a mom joke.
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Big Topper
Cool C-B-R Topper
Toppers Classic

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This began as a simple ad to announce a new pizza topping, buffalo chicken. it was so popular among
our fan base that we turned it into a T-shirt and sold it online. The line, “something this good should
be cuddled with,” is by far the top-selling piece of Toppers clothing and can be seen on countless
women across the midwest. meaning we’ve got influencers out there literally wearing our ad in public.
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This ad was used to announce our new offering, the myZa, a personal-sized pizza. To create more
of a lunch offering, we added the myZa to the menu. of course, “introducing the personal-sized
myZa,” as a headline wouldn’t do.
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ad messaging that talks to the one-upmanship of our brand. We’re not afraid to take a jab at the
competitor every once in awhile. it’s not something we can build a brand on, but it’s nice to take
a shot here and there.
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This is an example of how we like to talk about ourselves. self-deprecating, yet with a point. our
pizza has great taste. There’s always the urge to talk about price, but it’s no way to build a brand
and a following. We’ve built a brand on attitude and flavor. This particular line pretty much sums
up what we’re all about.
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This ad was featured on “The Tonight show with Jay leno” during the headlines segment. While
Jay leno thought he was making a joke about a man licking a pizza in an ad, the joke was on him.
We received free ad space on a national program and our Facebook page lit up with people thanking
us for actually putting something funny on “The Tonight show.” This ad would be an example of
‘overload sensory experience.’
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To launch the Tall Boy, we used the ‘overload sensory experience’ element of hypnotic modality in
our messaging. using hyperbole to describe the height of the pizza and exaggeration with the idea
of topping a pizza with mountain goat, Toppers customers reading this would think, “i must try this
amazing new creation.” We also ended up creating a whole new category of pizza. The tall crust.
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our direct mail pieces are our main vehicle for reaching our customer base. This is the menu mail
piece, which, as you can see, continues our brand messaging on front, touching on various hypnotic
modalities. This particular piece hits the ‘sensory overload.’ inside the menu, product descriptions
are written to get our customers smiling while their mouths water. included on the cover of every
menu is the special offering of the time period. This particular menu talks to the Tall Boy promotion.
50
The sauces are handmade. The veggies are cut fresh. The dough is made daily.
The cheese is hand-grated. (Okay, go ahead and insert a cut the cheese joke here.)
262-473-4343 • 230 E. MILWAUKEE STREET
WHITEWATER • OPEN 11AM - 3AM EVERY DAY
262-473-4343 • 230 E. MILWAUKEE STREET
WHITEWATER • OPEN 11AM - 3AM EVERY DAY
OUR CRUST IS THE FOUNDATION OF OUR
SUCCESS. SWEET, DELICIOUS SUCCESS.
Wanna know what makes Toppers so great? It’s a secret.
As in, a secret recipe for our dough. When these secret
ingredients come together, something magical happens.
Fireworks. A laser light show set to angelic choirs from
the heavens. And really, really good, mouth-watering
smells. It all begins when we make our dough fresh
every morning. Imagine dough fresher than a daisy.
Fresher than the morning dew. Fresher than your mouth
after your mom made good on her threat to wash it out
with soap. And that’s just our crust. Feeling hungry
already? You should. Our crust is the tops.
SECTION ThrEE
Spank your buds with our famous Topperstix. Our
handmade dough topped with cheese and garlic
butter. Yep, they taste as good as they sound.
BACONSTIX
MEATS
Pepperoni, Canadian bacon, diced pepperoni, bacon, thick-cut spicy
pepperoni, hand-pinched Italian sausage, buffalo chicken, grilled
chicken, ground beef, sausage, anchovies, steak, taco meat, gyro strips
VEGGIES
Mushrooms, onions, pineapple, spinach, black olives, noodles,
banana peppers, green olives, jalapenos, green peppers, tomatoes,
garlic roasted tomatoes, green onions, potatoes, artichoke hearts
CHEESES
Pepper jack, feta, cheddar, provolone, extra mozzarella.
CRUSTS
Hand-tossed, crispy, thick
PEPPERONISTIX TACOSTIX ORIGINAL BREADSTIX
SINGLE $X.XX TRIPLE $X.XX
CINNAMONSTIX BERRYSTIX 262-473-4343 • 325 W CENTER STREET
HOUSE PIZZAS TOASTED GRINDERS
WHITEWATER • OPEN 11AM - 3AM EVERY DAY
Our House Pizzas will get your buds watering like no other. There’s only one place to get these bud spanking pies.
Available in thick, crispy or hand-tossed crust.
Our grinders are perfect for the lunchtime bud spanking.
Available on freshly made whole grain wheat bread or classic Italian.
262-473-4343 • 325 W CENTER STREET
WHITEWATER • OPEN 11AM - 3AM EVERY DAY
12" MEDIUM $X.XX 14" LARGE $X.XX 18" PARTY $X.XX GYRO GRINDER
Gyro slices, onions, fresh tomatoes and
mozzarella smothered in Tzatzki sauce.
BUFFALO CHICKEN
Diced buffalo chicken and pepper jack cheese
topped with ranch and mild buffalo wing sauce.
262-473-4343 • 325 W CENTER STREET
WHITEWATER • OPEN 11AM - 3AM EVERY DAY
TACO TOPPER
Covered in taco sauce, taco meat, mozzarella, cheddar, tortilla chips, lettuce,
tomatoes, black olives and green onions. Sour cream and salsa on the side.
COOL C-B-R GRINDER
PIZZA GRINDER
Grilled chicken, bacon slices, mushrooms, fresh Traditional pizza sauce with loads of mozzarella
tomatoes and mozzarella topped with ranch. and your choice of 2 pizza toppings.
PHILLY STEAK & CHEESE CLUB GRINDER
262-473-4343 • 325 W CENTER STREET OLD SCHOOL SAUSAGE AND PEPPERONI
Philly steak with onions and green peppers
smothered in provolone.
Ham, turkey and bacon covered with provolone,
lettuce, tomatoes and mayo.
WHITEWATER • OPEN 11AM - 3AM EVERY DAY
A $10 order gets the goods delivered.
BE THE MAN! CONTACT US ABOUT FRANCHISE OPPORTUNITIES TODAY!
TOPPERSTIX
A classic, sweet tomato sauce topped with thick-cut spicy pepperoni,
hand-pinched Italian sausage, garlic roasted tomatoes, loaded with
extra mozzarella.
MAUI TOPPER
Ham and pineapple with a sprinkle of real bacon on a slightly
sweet sauce.
CHICKEN TUSCANO TOPPER
HONEY MUSTARD CHICKEN CLUB GRILLED CHICKEN
Grilled chicken, ham and bacon smothered in Grilled chicken smothered in provolone and
pepper jack cheese and topped with lettuce, topped with lettuce, tomatoes and mayo.
tomato and honey mustard dressing.
LOADED HAM AND CHEESE
SOUTHWEST TURKEY CLUB Piled high with lean ham, provolone, lettuce,
Zesty Chipotle sauce with turkey, bacon, tomatoes and mayo.
pepper jack cheese, lettuce and tomato.
Our pizza sauce topped with fresh spinach, garlic roasted tomatoes,
SINGLE $X.XX TRIPLE $X.XX
grilled chicken with a mozzarella and feta cheese blend.
ULTIMATE PEPPERONI TOPPER
A thick layer of our original pepperoni smothered in extra layers of
mozzarella, provolone and sprinkled with diced pepperoni pieces.
TOPPERS CLASSIC
Pepperoni, sausage, onions, green peppers, mushrooms over tomato sauce
smothered in mozzarella.
MAC ‘N CHEESE
Layered with tender macaroni noodles and smothered with a mound of
mozzarella and cheddar cheeses.
MEAT TOPPER
Pepperoni, ham, sausage and bacon over tomato sauce
smothered in mozzarella.
6" $X.XX 12" $X.XX
MyZA
Spank your buds alone with a personal-sized
pizza cut in to four slices.
1-TOPPING $X.XX
ANY HOUSE PIZZA $X.XX
ADDITIONAL TOPPINGS $X.XX
DIPPIN' SAUCES
Pizza sauce, nacho cheese, ranch, garlic butter, BBQ,
honey mustard, salsa and sour cream.
ADDITIONAL SAUCES XX¢
BIG TOPPER
Pepperoni, onions, mushrooms, ham, sausage, banana peppers, green
peppers, tomatoes, black olives and extra cheese.
COOL C-B-R
Chicken-Bacon-Ranch with mozzarella, tomatoes and mushrooms.
Your choice of meats, veggies, and cheeses.
WINGS
BUILD YOUR OWN ZA
Sometimes you know exactly what will spank your buds better than anyone else.
Choose any one of our fresh toppings and build your own spankalicious ‘za.
1-TOPPING
12" MEDIUM $X.XX 14" LARGE $X.XX 18" PARTY $X.XX
ADDITIONAL TOPPINGS
12" MEDIUM $X.XX 14" LARGE $X.XX 18" PARTY $X.XX
CALIFORNIA TOPPER
Spinach, artichoke hearts, tomatoes, feta, mozzarella and a ranch sauce.
BUFFALO CHICKEN TOPPER
Mild buffalo/ranch sauce, mozzarella cheese, bacon bits, Fire Bite
boneless wings topped with more mild buffalo/ranch sauce.
PHILLY CHEESESTEAK
Steak with crisp onions, green peppers and mushrooms smothered in
mozzarella and provolone cheeses.
VEGGIE CLASSIC
Sweet green peppers, fresh mushrooms, black olives and onions over
our homemade tomato sauce.
GYRO TOPPER
Facebook fans spoke. We listened. Gyro slices, onions, mozzarella and fresh
tomatoes over tzatzki sauce. Better than how you remember it.
BUFFALO WINGS
(6) $X.XX (20) $X.XX
Mild, BBQ, Hot, Oven-Roasted, Sweet Chili (12) $X.XX (50) $X.XX
BONELESS WINGS
(1/2 LB) $X.XX (2 LBS) $X.XX
Fire Bites, Honey BBQ, Oven-Roasted, (1 LB) $X.XX (5 LBS) $X.XX
Sweet Chili
ADDITIONAL DIPPIN' SAUCES
Ranch, smoky BBQ, honey mustard, bleu cheese, hot and mild.
ADDITIONAL SAUCES XX¢
Our wings are less of a spanking and more of a bullwhip to your taste
buds. Juicy chicken, baked with your choice of flavors and sauces.
HANGOVER HELPER
Ham, onions, green peppers, potatoes, bacon bits, topped with mozzarella
and cheddar cheeses on a buttery crust.
SMOKY BBQ CHICKEN
Grilled chicken, onions, bacon bits, and a smoky BBQ sauce all topped
with pepper jack and mozzarella cheese.
POTATO TOPPER
Twice-baked potato smothered with cheddar, bacon and green onions.
QUESADILLAS
ORIGINAL CHEESE $X.XX
CHICKEN $X.XX
STEAK $X.XX
BEVERAGES
COKE, DT COKE, CHERRY COKE,
SPRITE, MELLO YELLOW,
OR BARQ'S ROOT BEER.
Sour cream on the side.
CHICKEN CLUB
2 LITER $X.XX
Grilled chicken, Canadian bacon, bacon strips and mozzarella atop
a buttery crust, drizzled with honey mustard.
20 OZ. $X.XX
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DIPPIN' SAUCES
Salsa and sour cream.
ADDITIONAL SAUCES XX¢

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at Toppers.com, we use messaging similar to our posters. The language and tone all work together,
consistently. in this instance, we are using ‘temporary logic,’ by animating the hands to high five on
the website. This will elicit laughter (hopefully) and create a Pavlovian response to laughter with
hunger (again, hopefully). on the landing page, we also always have a button to click on to see the
daily specials in the upper right corner, along with an easy to navigate menu section.
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This is a screen shot from our online ordering page. We’ve been offering online ordering for a few
years and found that ticket sales increased by 10% when the order was placed online. We really like
online ordering.
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For store openings and other major events, we unveil the big guns, the major attention-getters. The
Toppers ambulance, aka, the mobile Taste squad. it shows up with sirens blaring, fully stuffed with
Topperstix chix in nurses uniforms. This would be considered ‘overloading the sensory experience.’
The downside of this is that our nurses can’t perform cPr, nor do they have the ability to lower
blood pressure.
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another way we keep our visibility up is by wrapping the cars of the corporate employees who travel
from store to store. These cars have messaging written across them in the Toppers voice and are
big attention-getters when they show up at stores.
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“hAT’S off To PiZZA mAKeover”
“ToPPerS PiZZA muShroomS in AreA -
ChAin’S GroWTh ACCelerATeS Beyond
ColleGe-ToWn BeGinninGS”
“SmAll BuSineSS. BiG ideAS”
“reSTAurAnT frAnChiSe Try
TruCKin’ AS A WAy To GroW”
“ToPPerS PiZZA reAdy To ShAre BuSineSS
model WiTh The nATion”
“ToPPerS PiZZA WAnTS A BiG SliCe of A
SmAll Pie - SouSed ColleGe KidS Are
A GreAT GroWTh mArKeT – if you CAn
hAndle The lATe niGhTS.”
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“ToPPerS PiZZA looKinG To GroW”
“SmAll BuSineSSeS ThAT Are
ACTuAlly hirinG!”
“more ThAn friendS - ToPPerS PiZZA
uSeS fACeBooK To Build BrAnd
loyAlTy And inCreASe SAleS”
“hAve fAnS, noT CuSTomerS - ThiS
delivery ChAin TurnS CuSTomerS
inTo fAnS WiTh ouTrAGeouS
mArKeTinG TeChniQueS.”
“one’S To WATCh - ToPPerS PiZZA”
“ToPPerS BeCominG A PiZZA
PoWer PlAyer”
WISCONSIN
STATE JOURNAL
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What do you do when you have a brand that’s enthusiast-driven? you sell them T-shirts, hats
and beer pong balls with your logo and messaging all over it. Think Pizza hut could get away with
this? ever seen a non-domino’s employee wearing a domino’s shirt? The Toppers schwag store
was created to give our customers more ways to show their love of Toppers. and show their love
is exactly what they do. imagine having your own store where people wear your shirt, while eating
your pizza. it’s a nice image, no?
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59

Section Four
The reASonS Why

SECTION FOur
The four BiG reASonS
To join uS.
or, WAiT, ThiS iSn’T done yeT?
maybe we could’ve just sent you this portion of the booklet and called it a day. But then again,
nobody goes to a fine steakhouse, orders the cheesecake and bails. But this is the final course.
The digestif. Four reasons why you should give us a call:
loW riSK
We’ve tested this. We’ve fleshed it out. Kicked the tires. Everything’s in order.
It works. We’re so confident of the success that we’re invested in it ourselves.
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SECTION FOur
Ground floor oPPorTuniTy
The good news is Toppers has been a secret in the Midwest, developed in
Whitewater, Wisconsin, then expanded to various markets in six states.
Because we have spent all this time figuring out how to make ourselves
great, we’ve kept the concept small and in the family. But now, we’re ready
to take things up a notch. We’re looking for partners who see the genius in
our approach. Who get it. Who want to rule the world along with us. Take
a look at our available locations. Actually, scratch that, take a look at our
current locations. If we showed you a map with available territories marked
in red, you’d think the map had chicken pox.
reneWABle reSourCeS
We know how to talk to our target and they dig it. They keep coming back,
they bring friends. Friends who are hungry and sometimes members of the
football team. The strategy is elegantly simple: greet targeted newbies
every year with enthusiasm, create a bond and continue to provide fantastic
service for a lifetime. Again, it helps that our product is legitimately good. If
that weren’t the case, we’d be writing this on the back of a napkin of some
dive bar hoping we could get some pocket change. But instead, the product
is great and we can bring you more customers who are more loyal than those
of the other big chains.
Be True To your SChool
We never plan on being everything to everybody. But if this sounds like your
kind of place, we would love to talk to you more about it.
SO GIVE US A CALL ALREADY!
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