Brad Marley

Here in Detroit, we tend to get excited when we catch up with the rest of the United States.

In 1987, we thought we were entering world-class transportation territory when the Detroit People Mover opened. But nearly 25 years later, there is talk of shutting it down. A 25 cent fee-hike last month doesn’t bode well, either.

In 2011, talks of a second Detroit-to-Windsor bridge heated up, only to fizzle when — gasp! — everyone involved thought it would be more fun to argue about the pros and cons instead of actually, you know, doing something.

Maybe that’s why we are so excited to officially enter the 21st century of dining with: a food truck.

In July of this year, El Guapo Grill, the first legal food truck in Detroit, opened it’s hinged-windows to customers downtown, and all it took was 60 visits to City Hall to get the permit. (If that’s not the heart and soul of Detroit, I don’t know what is.)

The sight of a food truck prowling the streets of Detroit gives the city a legitimate big-city feel, something we’ve lacked for, well, forever.

But besides the food, what I really dig about the truck is its use of Twitter to fuel the fires of fandom.

(Before I get into my story, I’d like to point out that, for all of the talk about how one person or company should use social media to increase business, the premise is pretty simple: Please your customers.)

Last weekend I saw a tweet that said they were going to announce a new menu item for the following Monday. I was curious, so replied that they shouldn’t leave us hanging. That’s mean.

In response, I received a direct message telling me what the special would be, and they also claimed they were only telling me. Whether I was the lone recipient of the secret, or they just said that, is a moot point. Their plan worked. I couldn’t resist Korean short rib tacos, so I gathered up a few of my colleagues on Monday and we took the People Mover (I know – so ironic) to the site where the truck sits.

The taco was tremendous. But what really stood out was how they got me to buy into their special item.

They treated me like a person and shared some special information.

That’s it.

I’m sure they know by now that their food speaks for itself. But by adding a personal touch to their marketing effort, they drew in four extra customers that probably would not have come out in the cold rain.

It was so simple, yet, so effective.

One can only hope that there are more food truck permits gathering dust in the queue at City Hall, because it adds another dimension to working downtown.

But if we’re stuck with El Guapo for a few more months, I would be okay with that.

They know what they’re doing.