Today we’d like to introduce you to James Sargent and Tanner Mattson.
James and Tanner, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
We are both lifelong residents of Phoenix, attended the University of Arizona, and met in college. After graduation, we moved into an apartment in Old Town Scottsdale. Since that time, James has held positions in digital marketing at G/O Digital and currently, V Digital Services. Tanner began working in healthcare staffing and currently works at Republic Services in business development. Tanner also sits on the Scottsdale Rising Young Professionals (SRYP) board that is part of the Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce.
On one random hungover, Saturday afternoon, we needed some greasy food. It was that very day that we both decided, “Hey, all of our friends should know of all the cool restaurants in Old Town that we go to. Let’s take photos of what we get/eat and make an Instagram account.”
Our first Old Town Review Guys adventure led us to The Montauk where we indulged in a prime rib sandwich and fish tacos. Hangover cured! Since that first day, we have reviewed and posted over 25 different restaurants, eateries, bars, etc. We have also run month long promotions for restaurants by offering a discount when you use our promo code. We promoted Scottsdale Tennis Week, as well as multiple themed bar crawls.
We tell our story by reviewing and showcasing Scottsdale. Everyone loves to talk about food, drinks, and a fun social environment or experience. We cultivate that experience. Our voice is rooted in this city.
Has it been a smooth road?
Of course, the path to success always comes with struggle. We started by facing a number of struggles. We struggled to find our voice from the very beginning; we then asked ourselves, “How do we set ourselves apart from the rest?” We answered that question by being ourselves and having our unique voice and tone. We ultimately just want to be different than every other Instagram food account and we do that by being ourselves on the page.
One struggle that resonates with us is when we contacted Second Story Liquor Bar about coming in and setting up a review. We quickly received an email back, stating that our following wasn’t high enough for us to even come in; “hit me up when you have built up a better following.” This is what motivated us to keep going with our vision. We were taken by surprise from the response, as all we wanted to do was help to promote the bar. Since that time, our following has grown threefold, and we continue to use that email response as our inspiration for our future success.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
From a financial standpoint, Old Town Review Guys are cash flow positive. We have done a tremendous job leveraging our platforms (Facebook and Instagram) in a number of ways to boost our cash flow. Our primary income/ROI comes from running promotions for restaurants. We proved this business model by running a 30-day promotion for Kyoto Scottsdale, a local Japanese (teppanyaki/sushi) restaurant. During the 30-day promotion, we showcased Kyoto by offering patrons a free drink or appetizer with the purchase of an entrée after mentioning our name (OTRG). The restaurant was able to track the metrics, which resulted in over $2,000 of additional revenue brought to the restaurant during the 30-days. We took an undisclosed percentage of that revenue after the promotion ended. We have run similar models for local themed bar crawls using discount codes, as well.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
James: I define success by the amount of growth with our Instagram handle and the different levels of success that can be attained. We started with an idea of what we wanted this business to do, and throughout the years, goals changed but the vision stayed the same. At the root of it all, growing our page, finding our voice, and leveraging our knowledge photography and food has been a great way to not only help us but also help out the various restaurants and establishments we review.
Tanner: In my opinion, defining success in the world of social media is growing a loyal fan base, increasing user engagement and producing valuable content without losing sight of your target market. We don’t post nutrition plans or weight loss products that guarantees you will lose 20 pounds overnight. We post pictures of food and drinks from local restaurants. The one question I get asked the most is “Hey, when is the next Old Town Review?” To me, that is a success.
Our future endeavors hope to include continual fan growth of our Instagram and Facebook accounts, running more promotions with restaurants, and reviewing restaurants in the luxury wing going in at Scottsdale Fashion Square.
Contact Info:
- Email: oldtownreviewguys@gmail.com
- Instagram: old_town_review_guys
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/oldtownreviewguys/
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