GroupCast Assists Taco John's During E. Coli Scare

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GroupCast Case Study
GroupCast Assists Taco John's During E. Coli Scare

The following is a product description and testimonial for GroupCast Messaging Systems.
Taco John's is an independently owned and operated chain of more than 400 quick-service restaurants
in 27 states. The company prides itself on serving generous portions, menu items
prepared fresh to order, high quality ingredients, and special West-Mex® recipes, seasonings
and sauces.

Working with these 400 restaurants, many of them franchises, requires a steady hand and an
extra helping of communication. In 2005, The corporate office recognized the need to have a
system in place to pass along information quickly to owners and managers, and so GroupCast
Messaging Systems was added as a vendor to provide instantaneous phone contact through the
use of our automated system.

For the first 12 months, Taco John's did not use the system. Primarily signed as a emergency
measure, the company had no need to activate the service, but opted to continue service at the
end of the first year.

In December 2006, news broke of a health crisis for restaurants when outbreaks of E. Coli were
reported in the Northeast. The contamination of food at quick-service restaurants was suspected
by health officials, but communication of the problem was hampered by news reports
and restaurants needed quick answers to their food safety questions. As reports of the contamination
spread across the nation, Taco John's needed a messaging response system to update
store managers and owners on what foods were safe and what would need to be quarantined.
Shutting down the stores and throwing away safe food would cause serious financial
harm to independent franchises, but customer health had to take the primary role, and accurate
information was needed to avoid endangering the public health.

Using the GroupCast Messaging System, Taco John's was able to provide near instantaneous
phone contact with all of their locations, recording customized messages and broadcasting
them to a series of phone lists entered before the health crisis. The preparation of the corporate
office allowed each location to identify the contaminated product and reassure customers
as to the safety of Taco John's products. As the food and the supplier was identified, Taco
John's was able to provide the correct information to the franchisees in a timely manner, thus
protecting their customers, and their reputation.

The E. Coli outbreak that started in September 2006 was ultimately linked to 199 infections,
31 kidney failures and 3 deaths. It was one of the worst contamination cases to
hit the United States in years. The contamination source was ultimately traced to raw
spinach and raw green onions. Retail grocery stores were first impacted by the subsequent
recalls, but fast food establishments that used the vegetables in food preparation
were put to the test. The crisis management and emergency response plans of these organizations
were used, often for the first time.

When such a contamination occurs it is important to quickly notify all personnel involved in the
distribution and preparation cycle so that actions can be taken to protect the public. Furthermore,
the pinpointing of the source does not always occur during normal business hours, so
the communication process must work well during and after normal business hours. Crisis
management plans often rely on email notices to spread information, but e-mail breaks down if
the recipient is off-line or at home. Voice broadcast is an effective means of staying in touch
with your contacts when time is a factor.

GroupCast Messaging Services was there when Taco John's needed them. Based on that response,
they allowed us to write this testimonial, and we are grateful for their support.
Having the GroupCast Messaging System at hand was a smart emergency measure, but Taco
John's has realized a fuller potential to mass communication with their franchisees. Using the
Message of the Day product, Taco John's can now provide daily information efficiently to every
store. One person at corporate headquarters records a message and sends out the voice
broadcast. Should a store need to replay the message for other personnel, they can dial a tollfree
number to listen as many times as needed.

What began as a emergency plan has transformed into an effective corporate communication
device. Now you know the story. So what can GroupCast do for you?

About the GroupCast Messaging System

What's the solution for an all hours, multi-point message distribution service? Voice broadcast!

Voice broadcast allows a centrally recorded message to be delivered simultaneously to tens,
hundreds or thousands of phone number within minutes. According to the FCC, over 96% of US
households have phones and over 75% of US adults carry cell phones. As such, the telephone is
the most ubiquitous contact point for employees and customers alike. As a case in point, voice
broadcast is used by thousands of schools across the country to notify parents of cancellations,
emergency announcements, rumor abatement and general reminders. If a school can use voice
broadcast to cancel school at 6 AM, it can be used during a contamination crisis.

Voice broadcast from GroupCast is easy to use, unbelievably inexpensive and fast to set up.
GroupCast can supply your organization with a self-service account under which multiple
broadcast lists can be stored. A simple toll-free recording line allows for message creation and
a 2-step process allows broadcasts to launch from any PC with internet access or any touch
tone phone. Easy-to-use features allow external lists to be imported and broken down into
sub-lists for targeted messaging. Real-time reporting of call results allows the sender to see
how each call was answered. Finally, in-call interactive features allow the recipient to confirm
receipt, replay the message or transfer to a live person.

In times of crisis, voice broadcast puts the power of the telephone at your finger tips reaching
hundreds of thousands with a common message. It's important to note that your recipients will
hear the same message at virtually the same time, so there is instant company-wide notification.
Furthermore, if your organization as a course of business, maintains telephone number
records on your customers, voice broadcast can be used to reach out quickly to your customer
base. GroupCast has the capacity to launch over 200,000 calls per hour, so even the largest
needs can be quickly accommodated.

GroupCast, LLC, is a St. Louis-based company that provides innovative solutions for automated
communications, including voice broadcasting, text and fax messaging. GroupCast markets its
services under the trade names GroupCast, SchoolReach, TeamBlast and StorkCalling.com. More
information can be found at www.groupcast.com or by contacting Paul Langhorst at 636-660-
8026.