get your business cookin
DESCRIPTION
Slides from a workshop presented by the Ennovation Center in Independence, Missouri. The program features how to market, brand and promote your specialty food business.TRANSCRIPT
Get Your Business Cookin’WorkshopMarch 24th, 2011
Tonight’s Agenda
• Introductions• Ennovation Center Update• 3 Guest Speakers Tonight• Valerie Jennings – Hippie Chow• Susan Henson – Missouri Small Business
& Development Center• Sara Freetly Grubb – Candid Marketing
This is a very open, informal discussion so feel free to ask questions during the presentations.
Update on the Ennovation Center
• Construction mostly completed.• Currently 11 kitchen incubator clients fully
approved and operating.• Over 50 clients who have made application and
are in various stages of licensing and permitting.
• Independence School District has completed their move into the building.
• “Novella’s Bistro” will be open in June.
Where to Start?
“Everyone tells me my food is so good that it should be sold”
5 Must Do’s To Get Your Business Going
• Establish a niche• Find taste testers• Figure out your price• Learn to advertise on the cheap• Write a business plan
Get Your Business Cookin’
March 24, 2011
My Background Industry Profile Pricing Top Ten Mistakes
Agenda
Industry Profile
KNOW YOUR COGS!!! Include raw materials, packaging,
production costs and labor. Gross Profit = Selling Price – COGS Gross Margin = Gross Profit / Selling Price Wholesale gross margin should be 40-60%
Pricing - Wholesale
If COGS = $2.00 and gross margin is 50%, then selling price should be $4.00
$4.00 selling price - $2.00 COGS = $2.00 gross profit
$2.00 gross profit / $4.00 selling price = 50% gross margin
Rule of thumb: double COGS to determine wholesale price
Pricing – Wholesale (cont.)
Retailer margins will vary May range 25-60%; 30-40% on average If wholesale price is $4.00 and retailer
margin is 35%, retail price will be $6.15 $6.15 selling price - $4.00 COGS = $2.15
gross profit $2.15 gross profit / $6.15 selling price =
35% gross margin
Pricing - Retail
Not knowing what it will all cost. Not understanding the competition. Making packaging mistakes. Not understanding pricing. Not managing cash flow.
Top Ten Mistakes
Credit pitfalls. Going for fast vs. deep sales growth. Not understanding sales channels. Fear of mistakes. Not asking for help.
Top Ten Mistakes (cont.)
NASFT website at www.specialtyfood.com. “The Basics: The Business of Specialty
Food”
Additional Resources
Valerie Jennings
Hippie Chow Natural FoodsPhone: 913.254.3580
www.hippiechowgranola.com
Branding & Marketing:Ingredients for Success
Sara Freetly-GrubbMarch 24, 2011
Eat Your Heart Out!
• U.S. food industry is $1 trillion market per year!– Nearly 10% of Gross Domestic Product
• That is a good and bad thing for you– Good:
• Consumable• Essential — not luxury items
– Bad:• Highly competitive• Difficult to break-through
– Convince consumers they need YOUR product over another
So What’s the Right Recipe?!
• To successfully bring your product to market, you’ll need:– A dash of research– A cup of branding– A pinch of packaging– A dollop of marketing
A Dash of Research
• Identify your audience–Who will buy your product?–Why?–When?–Where?– How?– Shape your brand and marketing around
this audience• Reach out specifically to your ideal customer
A Dash of Research
• Know your competitors–What is everyone else doing?• Is it working?
– How are they talking about their product?
– How is it packaged?–What is the price?– How is yours different?–Why buy yours instead of theirs?
A Cup of Branding (the special sauce)
• What is a brand and how do I get one?!– Branding is “sexy” – buzzword in the industry– A brand is more than just a logo…it starts
with a position or promise– …and although it is the visual, outward
expression of a brand — a logo is not a brand– A brand captures your product’s personality– Is something that must constantly evolve– Requires commitment to consistency
A Cup of Branding (the special sauce)
• A successful brand must:– Define your product– Be meaningful– Resonate with the target audience– Convince consumers to buy
• Differentiate you from competition
– Easily translate into:• Packaging• Point-of-Sale Displays• Web site• Marketing• Advertising• Etc.
A Cup of Branding (the special sauce)
• Identify your product– Values/Benefits/Qualities
• Go beyond the obvious
– Unique selling proposition
• Develop a brand strategy – Incorporate all 5 senses
• Look• Feel • Taste • smell
• Create a promise to customers – Brand – And deliver on that promise EVERY time!
A Cup of Branding (the special sauce)
• Be patient. – Brands don’t gain credibility and recognition
over night• Brands are living, breathing things – let it evolve• Protect it, no one else will• Communicate it to anyone who will listen– Shout it from the rooftops!
• Be your own brand champion– Own it– Get buy-in from staff and customers – Think about it everyday
A Pinch of Packaging
• There are a lot of products on those shelves!
• Make the decision easy• Packaging should be:– Visually appealing– Colorful– An extension of your brand– Convenient – Cost-effective
A Dollop of Marketing
• Your secret ingredient!• Know your budget• Develop a realistic marketing strategy– Define your objectives– Short- and long-term
• Create a plan and work the plan– Keep it fluid!
• Tweak the recipe if you need to
• Spend the money!– It’s worth the investment
A Dollop of Marketing
• Incorporate multiple mediums– Advertising
• Expensive but effective• Brand awareness and visibility
– Print (Newspaper/Magazine)– Broadcast (TV/Radio)
– Public relations• “Free publicity”• News releases• Know the right contacts• Get your story straight
– Keep it short and sweet
• Find your angle – and work it!
A Dollop of Marketing
• Use technology– Cost effective– Build a great web site
• Spend the money on CMS – it will be worth it• Extension of your brand – bring it to life online!• Simple, easy to navigate• Make it interactive
– Use social media• But use it wisely!
– Communicate with your customers• Email blasts• Newsletters
A Dollop of Marketing & Promotion
• How do you do it?– Go it alone
• You know food, but do you know marketing?– You have a CPA and an Attorney don’t you
• Time consuming• Budget constraints• Competing priorities
OR– Hire the RIGHT professionals
• Cost vs. value• An outside perspective • Leverage relationships and contacts
Thank You!
Questions?
Sara Freetly-Grubb
229 SE Douglas| Suite 120| Lee’s Summit, MOPhone: 816.554.3608 | Fax: 816.554.3629
[email protected] | www.justbecandid.com
Best Practices:Marketing for small business
Susan HensonBusiness Development Specialist
Missouri SBTDCKansas City, MO
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SBTDC programs help businesses start, grow and succeed by providing unbiased, research-based expertise through one-on-one consulting and targeted training.
Small Business & Technology Development Centers
Overview: Marketing for Small Business
33
1. Explore and Discover
2. Marketing formula
3. Create the program
4. Put it into action
5. Marketing tactics
Explore and Discover 34
Explore and Discover 35
Look Inward and Outward
At your company
What is the value proposition?
What are trends in your industry & the marketplace
What you have done successfully in the past?
Explore and Discover 36
Look Inward and Outward
About competitors
Who are your primary competitors? How about secondary competitors? How are they priced? How/Where do they distribute?, What marketing tactics do they
use?
Explore and Discover 37
Look Inward and Outward
About customers
Exactly who are your customers? What are their characteristics?
Will they understand your product value?
How much will they pay? Why?Where do they shop for similar
“stuff”?
Explore and Discover 38
Who are you anyway? (yes, the “B” word – BRAND…
What do you do best? What makes you different
from competitors? Do your customers “get” who you are? Are you giving customers a unique,
memorable experience?
…Identity & Position)
your marketing formula: the P’sProduct
What can you do to make your product/servicemore appealing?
Place What can you do to make your product/service
more accessible?
Price What can you do to make your prices
more appealing or sensible?
Promotion What can you do to make your promotions
more visible and persuasive?
People What can you do to make your human interactions with customers more
friendly and meaningful?
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Create the Program
• Targeted, Unique, Creative
• Focused, Simple• Consistent,
Repetitive• Emotional• Appreciates
Loyalty• Wise Spending• Measured
40
Take Action
Marketing Tactics - trends for small business
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•Packaging•Email campaigns•Social media•Internet advertising•Direct mail•Coupons•Customer Service•Convenience
one size
Doesn’t fit
all
42
Questions?
Susan HensonMO SBTDC
Clay County Extension Center1901 NE 48th St
Kansas City, MO 64118
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Upcoming Events
“Spring Into Hope”A Shopping Event to Benefit the
Marian Hope CenterIndependence Events Center
Friday, April 15th and Saturday, April 16th
The Ennovation Center will have a booth and current kitchen incubator clients will have the opportunity to sell
their items in the booth.
Contact Jenni Mann at 816.463.3532 or [email protected] for more
information
Upcoming Events
Ennovation Center Client Showcase
Tentative Date: June 8th, 2011
The Ennovation Center will highlight our clients and their products to an audience of restaurant operators
and grocery retailers.
Contact Jenni Mann at 816.463.3532 or [email protected] for more
information