NOAH GLASS of Olo on Treating Every Day Like It’s ‘Day 1’ (Restaurant Influencers - RI023)

When Olo was listed on the NYSE, it was Day 5,769 of the company. But for CEO Noah Glass, it was still Day 1. Watch this interview to learn about using digital data to make guests feel like regulars, on-demand commerce, and why they “Embrace the Suck.”

WHAT DID YOU LEARN on this episode of the Restaurant Influencers podcast, sponsored by the Toast point of sale and restaurant management company? Let us know by leaving a YouTube comment below!

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CHAPTERS:
[01:59] - Noah Glass 2-Minute Drill
[04:03] - Founding Olo
[11:55] - Running it Lean and Mean
[14:31] - Brands That Use Olo
[15:42] - Digital Hospitality Mindset

Noah Glass is a Restaurant Influencer —

Even if you hadn’t heard of Olo by now, if you have ever ordered food from your phone, it’s almost guaranteed that you have used their software.

Led by Founder and CEO Noah Glass, Olo — short for “online ordering” — has partnered with over 600 brands that represent over 82,000 restaurant locations. With those numbers, it is safe to say that Olo has been a part of your life.

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After graduating from Yale, Noah Glass took a job, and literally lived, on Wall Street. At the time, there was an influx of people moving into the area. The increase in population meant larger crowds during historic rush times at coffee shops, diners, and food spots. Frustration mounted, but the long waits for coffee in the mornings made for plenty of time to daydream.

“I thought about if there were a way that you could order ahead, pay ahead, get the order prepared as you were arriving, then have it ready and waiting for you,” says Noah Glass to Restaurant Influencers host Shawn Walchef of https://calibbq.media.

With a Palm Pilot in his hand and digital software, now known as apps, downloaded to help with nearby points of interest, Glass had a starting point for his vision.

Only one problem: smartphones had not been invented yet.

NOMINATE A RESTAURANT INFLUENCER — Do you know someone or a restaurant who is great on social media? Let us know by emailing [email protected] or sending the @calibbqmedia team a DM on social media.

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EPISODE LINKS:
• Olo Website - https://www.olo.com/
• Noah Glass on Twitter - https://twitter.com/nhglass
• Rescuing the Dinner Hour - https://www.amazon.com/Rescuing-Dinner-Hour-Meals-People/dp/1883280044
• Delivering the Digital Restaurant - https://www.deliveringthedigitalrestaurant.com/


SIGN-UP FOR SHOW UPDATES – https://restaurantinfluencers.media
SUBSCRIBE TO RESTAURANT INFLUENCERS PODCAST – https://link.chtbl.com/RIpodcast

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ABOUT OLO (@olo):
Olo is a leading open SaaS platform for restaurants that enables digital hospitality at every touchpoint. Millions of orders per day run on Olo’s on-demand commerce engine, providing restaurants a single source to understand and serve every guest from every channel, whether direct or third-party. With integrations to over 300 technology partners, Olo customers can build personalized guest experiences in and outside of their four walls, utilizing one of the largest and most flexible restaurant tech ecosystems on the market. Over 600 restaurant brands trust Olo to grow their digital ordering and delivery programs, increase efficiency, and delight their guests.
• OLO CEO Noah Glass on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/noahglass/


ABOUT RESTAURANT INFLUENCERS:
Welcome to the Restaurant Influencers podcast series. Every week host and restaurant owner Shawn P. Walchef (@shawnpwalchef) talks with leaders in restaurant and hospitality about their secrets to Smartphone Storytelling and how to show up and engage where customers are spending time online.
The entire team at Restaurant Influencers is thankful for Toast (@toasttab) for being the primary sponsor of this show and allowing us to share the stories of successful digital first restaurateurs all over the world. Schedule a Toast Demo: https://bit.ly/3vpeVsc

• Entrepreneur Media - https://entreprenuer.com
• Yelp for Business - https://biz.yelp.com
• Cali BBQ Media - https://calibbq.media

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RESTAURANT INFLUENCERS IS PRESENTED BY TOAST:

Restaurant Influencers is brought to you by Toast, the powerful restaurant point of sale and management system that helps restaurants improve operations, increase sales and create a better guest experience.

Toast — Powering Successful Restaurants

• Learn more about Toast at https://bit.ly/3vpeVsc