An Inside “Cook”: Taco Bell HQ Tour

By Macy Rosen

Two years ago when I attended my first ICON in Dallas, I was soaking in all of the information I could get. I heard from amazing speakers from companies like Delta Air Lines, John Deere and Taco Bell.

Matt Prince, head of public relations at Taco Bell, hosted a session about Taco Bell’s social media, brand strategies and influencer marketing best practices including its Mexican pizza campaign with Doja Cat. Prince was very entertaining and educational, and he also offered mentorship resources and LinkedIn groups. This year, I saw Prince on the ICON agenda again. Although sessions with the same speakers can get repetitive, I knew Prince’s presentation would be worth a second go. 

Closer to the conference, attendees received an email offering a tour of the Taco Bell HQ. Naturally, I jumped at the opportunity. Who doesn’t want to see behind the scenes of Taco Bell? 

Prince’s speaker session was on Monday and it was titled “Redefining Brand Experience: Social Listening and Innovation.” However, when I arrived in the room with about 80 other students, Prince told us there would be no presentation because he did not feel well. 

Thankfully, this just meant that he would be having a more open and interactive discussion so he didn’t have to present lecture-style. It ended up being a full Q&A session. 

The conversations and questions answered by Prince were very insightful. Many topics included the impact of Gen Z on social media, work-life balance and influencer marketing. Prince also shared best practices and insights from Taco Bell’s newest partnership with Omar Apollo. 

One of the questions a student asked was “How do we battle older generations when it comes to trends and wanting to push forward with them without full support from older employees?”

Prince answered this by reminding us that the target audience should help support these kinds of ideas. Prince also said that there may be pushback from older generations' lack of understanding and that it is important to keep everyone educated. 

Main Takeaways:

• Working with companies like Edelman can help battle mistrust with the media and consumers by having a consistent pulse on your company’s trustworthiness (Edelman Trust Barometer)
• Influencer marketing works best when the connection is authentic with the brand. 
  • The influencer must reflect the same values as the company. 
• Make sure you put yourself in a place to be multiple people’s “I know a guy.”
• “You have the ability to connect with anyone in the world with social media and other resources today.” - Matt Prince
• In crisis: listen and understand, don’t respond immediately without true deliverables and information. 
• “Your career is like the game ‘Frogger’, you choose the best path. There is no way to just go in a straight line in Frogger.” - Matt Prince
• In PR, you have to balance math and magic when it comes to having ideas without a full market gauge. 

It was comforting to hear Prince being so susceptive to Gen Z trends and new ideas. Sometimes it is just about proper education and communication between generations in the workplace. 

Behind the Scenes at Taco Bell HQ
Learning so much from Prince during his session made me even more excited to hear from more the Taco Bell team during the tour. 

On Wednesday, about 60 students packed into a shuttle and various Ubers to meet in Irvine, California for the Taco Bell HQ tour. After signing in with security, we were greeted by Prince and a few people from his team who walked us around in small groups. 

Giselle Gallegos, public relations coordinator at Taco Bell and previous PRSSA student, ushered my group. Gallegos showed us around the main floor, which included showcases of the company’s history and memorabilia, a small dining area and conference rooms. 

Next, she showed us where “the world-famous test kitchen” was; where nutrition experts tested and approved the menu items. Next to this “employees only” door was a sensory panel where there were pods for food and flavor testing. 

The public relations and marketing floor was next, and we had the pleasure of meeting Bella Garcia, a former PRSSA friend and current colleague of Gallegos. Garcia is a photographer for Taco Bell, and she was in the process of filming menu items for promotional materials.

After the tour, we followed Gallegos to a conference room where we were joined by the rest of the students and a panel of Taco Bell superstars: Prince; Ronald Quintero, PR coordinator; Priyanka Jain, global communications coordinator and Katie Snyder, senior account supervisor at Edelman. 

Prince moderated the panel and welcomed questions from students. They shared insights on successful campaigns such as the $7 Luxe Box and the Drag Brunch tour which engaged the LGBTQ+ community authentically. 

Students asked various questions ranging from specifics of Taco Bell campaigns to mental health in the workplace. Additionally, the panel emphasized the importance of gathering information early and strategic messaging in crisis management. 

The panel ended on a fun and light-hearted note, which was on brand with what you would expect from Taco Bell based on their fun brand colors and campaigns:

“We’re going to mix it up a little bit. Probably the most important question that we all have is, what is your favorite Taco Bell order?” Prince asked.