Check It Out: Online Marketing

I have found an exciting site on the web that allows users to build their own pages. You can use it for almost anything but it serves as a good marketing tool allowing you to highlight your business and link to your homepage. Please check out my effort at www.squidoo.com/TimothyCavinder/

Another good online networking site is LinkedIn. Please visit my profile at www.LinkedIn.com/in/timothycavinder

Enjoy, and let me know what you think.

Ezine Writing

Be sure to check out my business articles on www.eZineArticles.com

Reaching the Restaurants: Marketing to the Food Service Industry

The food service industry is a huge market that is growing rapidly. According to the National Restaurant Association sales are expected to top $511 billion this year. That's a lot of chow! In fact for every dollar a customer spends on food 48 cents of it is spent in restaurants. There's no question that consumers enjoy dinning out. Thus, the food service industry must work diligently to satisfy this growing demand. It's a tall order no doubt and to be successful requires a great deal of time commitment. As such, if you're attempting to get your product or service noticed in this sector you need to keep a few points in mind. Most notably, food service professionals, owners, chiefs, etc. are severely pressed for time: many put in 80 hour weeks. Your mesage needs to be completely focused on their needs and pressing challenges. One of the biggest challenge facing the industry is being able to do more for less. Budgets are tight and the bottom line can quickly become out of sync. A marketing message in this industry needs to keep in mind that this is a diverse market full of many independent operators. Try to address your message to individuals as much as possible. A tradtional blanket type of marketing campaign probably isn't going to show up on the radar for most food service professionals. They've seen it all before and with numerous vendors vying got their attention they simply don't have th e time to listen to another stale marketing message. So stand out! Show up in more then one place more than once e.g. letters, post cards, e-mail, etc. When you do have their attention zero in on how your product or service is going to address one of their pressing challenges. And don't forget to market your message on a personal level, remember this is a diverse market with a lot of independents in the field. Keeping these tips in mind should help elevate your message above the clatter in the kitchens.

Know The Power of Your Words

When is the last time you gave your business a good self examine? If its been awhile it might be time and in doing so one of the most important question you can ask is simply: Are you what you say you are? Is your product or service in tune with what you advertise? If it isn't, then you could have a very damaging problem on your hands. The words you chose to represent your business image eventually will trickle down and effect your bottom line. So choose carefully.
If you think advertising that you're selling "Gourmet Hamburgers" when there isn't anything gourmet about then, then you're only hurting yourself. Why? Because now you've just created a 'mini-cancer' within your organization. Your employees aren't stupid (hopefully) they know the difference between gourmet and what's on the menu (gourmet doesn't mean melting different kinds of cheese on them.) Knowing that the product passing through their hands isn't what its advertised to be only diminishes their respect for the company. They will wonder what else isn't right, what else are you attempting to pass off as something that it isn't. Respect in employee relations is necessary to have, easy to lose, and difficult if not impossible to regain.
Quite simply, make sure your product or service is what you say it is. Your customers aren't stupid. They'll know the difference and they'll grow resentful and take their money with them. Words in business hold a great deal of power. Choose carefully and the difference will correspondingly be reflected in your bottom line.