Discussion Brainstorming

Check out the points below and challenge them, take them apart, and try to understand what they may mean. In most cases they can mean many different things:

1. Selling is a process not an action.

2. Be aware that when you use one word or phrase over another when selling it makes a difference in the result.

3. To be a top sales performer, you need to continually learn about yourself.

4. The beginning of each selling situation is crucial and is more important than the closing.

5. Think, listen, and watch like a salesperson.

Important Truths About Pricing - Part 3

1. Don’t be afraid to haggle with buyers when it is needed.

2.  Never defend your higher price; simply explain it.

3.   Raising prices is a right, not a chore for a businessperson.

4.   You will sell a $10 menu more easily to a buyer if you also have a $14 menu for them to compare.

5.  Pricing options are the key to winning a buyer over. By letting the buyer participate in determining how to spend their money, you give them a sense of confidence that lets them buy from you more quickly.

6.   Always give an answer to a customer who asks what something costs. It doesn’t have to be the final price, but at least it needs to be a range of prices the catering might cost. No buyer wants to be put off when asking, “How much is it?”

Proper Food & Labor Costs For Off-Premis Caterers by Carl Sacks

The Basic Catering Equation for Off-premise Caterers

Revenue                                                                               100%

Subtract Prime or Direct Costs                                         - 55%

(food, beverage, rentals, party staff, hourly kitchen labor)

Gross Profit Margin                                                         45%

Subtract G&A (fixed) Costs                                              - 35%

(salaries, rent, utilities, insurance, truck leases, benefits, supplies, office expense, etc.)

Pretax Profit                                                                       10%

Important Truths About Pricing - Part 2

1. The catering salesperson—not the client—usually is the one who thinks the prices are too high.

2. Never raise prices without lowering some. It is a process of adjusting prices.

3. Tell your buyers what others are spending on the same type of functions and why.

4.  Don’t be mysterious about prices or costs. Let the buyer hear you speak naturally about this important topic.

5.  Always give buyers three price solutions to elements of the event: a low, medium and high price option.

6.  Learn techniques of careful price adjustments moving from a higher starting point to a lower one, with the buyer leading the way.

Important Truths About Pricing - Part 1

Try to ascertain what your position is on these rules and axioms on pricing. You really don’t have to agree, or disagree, with them to gain some insight into your beliefs on pricing. Discuss them at one of your next sales meetings.

1. Pricing is a major part of your success or failure.

2. Pricing for caterers needs to be carefully thought out. It cannot be the same for everybody or every party; even McDonald’s charges differently for a Big Mac in different parts of a city.

3. Using a traditional mark-up policy for every event type, such as cost times three, will lead to trouble in most catering companies.

4. If your price is too high, you know, because buyers don’t buy. If your price is too low, buyers will never tell you!

5. The real question to ask is, “How much is this particular client prepared and then willing to pay?”

6. All prices should reflect volume discounting that the shopper understands.

7.  Prices for customized catering should reflect the value as perceived by the buyer along with what the market will bear. Caterers can do a better party with more money to spend!

8. The definition of fair pricing means that the client has an outstanding event, the guests become future clients of the caterer—and the company prospers!

9. Don’t buy back your business from the clients. “That’s okay Mrs. Smith, I’ll reduce your charge by $50.” This is buying back the business from clients. If you really want to give the client a break of $50, you should put $50 of your own money back into the company!

Common Elements Shared By Great Salespeople - Part 3

Is in constant search of competitor data. A great salesperson knows the competition. They understand competitors’ advantages and disadvantages over their own company. They know their prices and procedures. They’ve seen marketing and selling materials used by the competitors.

Answers typical buyer objections before they arise. I know you’ve heard this before. Great talents always anticipate the objections that might be coming from a buyer and answer them before they are asked. Often it is placed in the context of, “Last week a client pointed out to us that (give the objection), but after a little thought they decided that (give your answer).”

Is always honest in their approach to selling. Honesty is the cornerstone of all sales. Don’t confuse honesty with telling sales stories like “that date is really busy” that build urgency. We mean that honesty while making the deal is extremely important.

In theory, is ready to sell 24 hours a day! You never know when a buyer is going to be around, so always have a card and a smile ready to go! I know a caterer who sold an event to a policeman who had pulled him over for speeding!

Isn’t afraid of making mistakes. Mistakes result because of either lack of preparation or taking a chance. Great sales talents always are ready to risk it all if they think that’s what’s needed to get the buyer into action. These talents are not afraid to get out on a ledge and take some risks to make a sale happen today instead of tomorrow.

Important Tip In The Kitchen!

Even the best kitchens need discipline and critique. The culinary leader needs to be able to speak openly and frankly about the results of the culinary team’s efforts. “Chef James, I know you worked very hard on that recipe, but unfortunately is still isn’t correct,” is the way this is handled. Critique the results, not the person. These words are just as important as a critique of a problem: “Chef James, your work today was flawless and much appreciated.”

Guest Article - Swinging For The Fences - Part 3 - by Jon Wool

In our series exploring the parallels between Major League Baseball and the catering game, we've covered the subject from the perspective of both the owners and the managers. The MLB season is now in the midst of what are commonly referred to as the “Dog Days of August” and it’s time to turn our attention to the people who really make it happen.   Assuming that the management has put all of the pieces of the team puzzle in place, at this stage, the game is strictly in the hands of those on the field: The Players. 

By mid August, the end of the regular season looms and the playoffs are in sight. This is when would-be contenders fade fast and the most resilient, talented, and disciplined teams surge ahead. Players are responsible for staying healthy, making smart behavioral choices, narrowing their focus, and playing harder than ever. Ball teams are made up of power hitters, speedsters, dependable fielders, and domineering pitchers; each player working to maximize his individual success and that of his team. The same can be said of catering companies. Here, salespeople, cooks and chefs, operations staff, and event servers must work in harmony for the benefit of the clients and the team.

Catering company employees are responsible for keeping their energy high, approaching each event enthusiastically, and staying alert to handle any curveballs.  In order to achieve success, the entire staff must be dependable and work together trustingly.  Chefs rely on smart work from the sales team.  Servers depend on good decisions by the operations team.  Sales people must trust their event staff to serve their clients well.  If the entire team can work together, the caterer will be hitting home runs.  If resentment and egos get in the way, there can be no hope of becoming the champions.

Success all boils down to player execution. Home run titles, strike out records, MVP and Cy Young awards are fantastic but it is a World Series trophy that sums up the success of the team.  Likewise, reaching personal sales goals, moving up to Sous Chef, or learning a new service style is valuable for personal growth but catering companies are judged based on whether or not they hit it out of the park on event day.

And who does the judging?  The Fans.  But that’s for next time…

JON WOOL

Common Elements Shared By Great Salespeople - Part 2

Asks good, probing questions. Questions maintain control in any sales situation. The best salespeople learn to ask a variety of important and not-so-important questions that give them information about the event and an understanding of the “buying attitude” of the clients.

Uses sales aids while selling. Involves all of the buyers senses, i.e. smell, hearing, seeing, touching and tasting. Don’t just talk about a special chair; show it. Demonstration will sell more than explanation. Try to get the buyer to involve each of the five senses. For example, let the client feel a china plate instead of just looking at it.

 Sells the concept of not embarrassing the buyer in front of others. The best salespeople have learned that buyers are buying them (the salesperson) not the menu. When giving a party for friends or strangers, all hosts want to be free from embarrassment.

Takes the risk out of buying when possible. No buyer wants to be a fool. The great salespeople assure the buyer that nothing will go wrong and that if it does, this is what our company is ready to do for you. Telling a client that they must pay for the guaranteed number of guests is not the same as saying that if a few don’t make it to the event, we will make some sort of an adjustment.

Listens to the meaning of what the buyer is saying, not just the words. A great salesperson is always listening and carefully analyzing what the buyer has just told them.

Decides ahead of time what they are going to sell to the buyer. Ordinary salespeople let the buyers buy what they think they want. Great salespeople sell the clients what they “really” wish!

Acts professionally at all times. This deals with such things as dress, speech, courtesy, and manners. It also deals with a need to stay in control of what is happening.

Never apologizes for price, only explains what the price does. The only answer to a buyer’s remark about your prices being higher than others is, “Yes, we do have higher prices; let me explain why.”

Common Elements Shared By Great Salespeople - Part 1

You can’t be sure what characteristics determine who will be the better salesperson. Nothing takes the place of talent, timing and luck when it comes to making sales. However, many of the better catering salespeople have and use these characteristics:

Uses time properly and isn’t afraid to stop a selling situation to move on to someone else. This is a rather advanced concept. Very few catering salespeople are willing to stop a sales presentation because they have decided the buyers in front of them are not likely to result in a successful sale. The ability to take this action will result in increased sales volume and prevent burnout in the salesperson.

Is always honest and user-friendly to the buyer and those influencing the purchase. When a salesperson realizes that buyers are looking for honesty, magical things happen. This is especially true when the honesty is in direct response to a question from the buyers. User-friendly means more than just being happy or getting coffee for them. It means the salesperson, after deciding what the buyer’s hot buttons are, makes it clear that the client’s wants will be met and fears will be avoided.

Speaks clearly and precisely at all times, particularly during a selling interview. This may seem obvious, but I’ve often watched salespeople who really don’t understand how they sound to the buyers. To understand how you sound, tape some presentations. Do it while speaking over the phone or during a real selling situation with buyers present, then critique how you sound when you replay the tape.

Understands why the sale was missed. The best salespeople never think they “lost” a sale. Instead, they believe that they “missed” something that permitted the buyer to select the competition over them. They think about what they said to the buyers and what the buyers said to them during the missed sale. In many ways, it’s like football players watching the tapes of last week’s game.

Plans sales calls in advance and makes a plan for each day. This is one I watch for when determining if a particular salesperson is great. Anyone can react to callers who come to them, but great talents are proactive and go after sales before they come into the company’s system. These great talents know whom they are going to call and whom they are going to see long before they actually do it.

More Tips On Kitchens

Over a period of a couple of weeks, call each member of your kitchen team, one at a time, into your office, or other space away from the kitchen, for a private interview. Your purpose is to seek information about the attitude and atmosphere in the kitchen. Ask questions like:

·   What is your job in the kitchen?

·   Have you received enough training for your job?

·   Are you happy with your job?

·   What do you think of our food?

·   Who do you most like to work with in the kitchen?

·   Who is the hardest worker in the kitchen—other than yourself?

·   Who isn’t carrying their load in the kitchen?

·   If you could press a magic button, what equipment would you want to have in the kitchen that would help you do a better job?

If these interviews are done properly, you will soon learn whom, if anyone, should be trained better, or removed from your kitchen staff. You will learn about what the staff feels about their work and your company. Check with your human resources department to insure that the questions you are going to ask are within legal limits in your locale.

Costs That Determine Price

Proper price cannot be achieved unless caterers themselves understand all the costs that need to go into the price. Much more than the food and labor needs to be considered when creating a fair price for an event, including:

Food cost. Everything that goes into the food production for an event needs to be tallied to create the final price. It is a mistake to take into account the meat but forget the half box of parsley you’re sending. Parsley costs money!

Labor cost. This is usually considered to be the wages of kitchen staff that prepares the menus. These usually are hourly wages.

Operational cost. These usually are the fixed costs of your business or the costs of being in business. Rent, truck payments and other fixed costs tend to get into this section.

Cost of sale. This might be as simple as the commission to a salesperson or advertising. This is a wide-open category. Some caterers place their plastic wrap, fuel and other disposables into this category. If you know that you will need to give gratuities to security guards etc., this is where you can include it.

Delivery. The wages of the delivery staff, gas, maintenance, etc., go into this category.

Set-up cost. Often there are costs in setting up an event that seem to be missing from the price. This could be wages for staff who physically set up the event or charges by a rental dealer for doing the same.

Pre-party cost. Food samplings, parking fees, gas for salespeople going to and from a client’s location, are a few examples of pre-party costs. Some caterers also assign a cost to the production and delivery of the proposal.

Insurance. Some portion of your premium needs to be placed into each and every price you build. Some caterers add a line item to the invoice for insurance coverage. In some cases they are charging 3 percent for insurance coverage on all invoices. The client can eliminate this by giving the caterer a certificate of insurance that makes the caterers the primary beneficiary of the client’s policy.

Degree-of-difficulty penalty. Caterers are learning to add just a little bit for the more difficult kinds of events or for more demanding clients. Tent events are a good example of events for which the caterer should charge a little more.

Extra meals. The client should pay for all extra meals that will be needed to feed the band, DJ, valet parkers, photographer, etc. Often caterers will put into this section only the actual food cost instead of the retail price of the food expected to be consumed.

Discussion & Thinking Points

Your thoughts....

1. A great salesperson plans ahead. They make that plan based on what they want to accomplish with the shopper and they do some research about a corporate prospect's company before they arrive for the appointment.

2. A caterer's refund, deposit, and cancellation policies play a big roll in their success. The more user-friendly the are, the more sales will be made.

3. Aggressive, but not necessarily expensive, marketing is a must for caterers.   

4. The Mystery of catering is what makes it so exciting! 

5. There are no retirement homes for caterers ... a caterer needs to create their own retirement fund. 

6.  Be sales driven... not culinary driven. Salespeople are the ones who know the client’s wants and fears best.

                            

   

Roman's Guide To Evaluating Your Kitchen

A catering kitchen is either out of control or working well. There seems to be no middle ground. The symptoms of being out of control in the kitchen are: lack of inventory controls, tardy staff, lack of written recipes and procedures, poor sanitation, sending too much food, orders that are mispacked, food and equipment not leaving for events on time and a chef, or kitchen leader, who is not cooperative with the entire culinary, sales and management team.

An official kitchen evaluation begins with a rather simple action: Someone sits in the kitchen and does nothing but observe. What do you watch for? Just use your common sense and measure your kitchen against the out-of-control symptoms listed.

Many owner/managers believe that it just isn’t cool to sit and watch their kitchen at work. Often the owners think, “My staff will think that I don’t trust them.” During an evaluation, trust is not the issue. What would happen if the airlines felt it wasn’t cool to evaluate pilots?

Walk around from time to time and get close to the action. Taste some of the food being prepared. Just the way your staff gets you the food samples tells you a lot about how they respect their food and their sanitation level. For example, if they simply get a kitchen utensil, load the sample onto the utensil and then give it to you, you know that they are not as concerned about style and sanitation than they would be if they put the sample onto a disposable or china plate (or other container) and gave you a normal piece of metal or disposable flatware to use. This is what evaluating is all about; you need to look at the small details and past the obvious.

Things to watch for in your kitchen evaluation include:

·   How are the kitchen leaders sitting? Is anyone facing the back door? Is anyone sitting close to the back door to watch what comes in and out of the kitchen? Minding the entry and exit doors are important to eliminate losses from stealing and to catch errors before they happen.

·   Do your chefs kick the oven door closed, or otherwise roughhouse your equipment? Kicking the door closed is a culinary sin; it causes damage to some parts of the stove, like the gas safety, that can require a costly repair. Is your equipment really clean?

·   Does your staff sample freely from foods being prepared? Do they eat while they are working? A professional kitchen doesn’t permit eating while working. It is unsanitary and dangerous. Imagine eating a sandwich while slicing meat on the slicer. A separate area in the kitchen should be used for eating during breaks.

·   Are there signs of staff smoking in the kitchen? It’s unlawful and creates a liability.

·   Does your hand sink work? Are there soap and towels at the sink? Some caterers have all staff stop what they are doing and wash their hands every hour on the hour. Handwashing comes with the job in the kitchen! Even if rubber gloves are used, handwashing is a must; dirty hands are the culprit in many food-borne illnesses.

·   In the walk-in cooler, are like foods shelved together or are there flats of strawberries here, there and over there? Organization is crucial in any cooler storage system. Use a first-in, first-out process.

·   After a can or package has been used and put into the garbage take it out and shake it, scrape it and look inside. Is all of the food out of it? You may find peas still stuck at the bottom of package of frozen peas. There may be some baked beans at the bottom of the can. When things start moving fast in a kitchen, culinary staff sometimes overlook things and take shortcuts.

·   Take a pan of food from an order ready to go and check to see if the food is in the same amount as requested on the order or packing list. If the order calls for 42 chicken breasts, how many are really going? Too many or too few, either is a problem.

·   See if anyone fails to wash their knives every time they move from one food group to another. Do the culinary staff have thermometers in their pockets? Are they using them? Do your staff clean their workstations as they go?

·   Try to determine whether there is fear of asking questions in your kitchen.

·   Moving fast in a kitchen is a good thing, but it also can signal that the timing is not correct. A quality kitchen makes mistakes. The question is how many and when are they caught and corrected.

Reminders On Catering In A Tough Economy - Part 4

4. More action plans

a.   Mention and speak about past events you have catered.

b.  Acknowledge the new economic realities.

c.   Present a wide variety of price solutions.

d.  Be very user-friendly... be a good listener.

e.   Give info only when you get info.

f.    Qualify the shopper

·   date of event

·   approximate number of guests

·   type of catering

g.  Don’t ask their name until after qualification.

h.  Don’t ask their budget... tell them the price range based on

qualification information.

Reminders On Catering In A Tough Economy - Part 3

3. Core action plans

a.     Unlike other caterers, you must project that you are very busy!

b.    Speak and act positive at all times.

c.     Imply and offer multiple pricing solutions.

d.    Make a list of your ten top clients – work them!

e.     Believe in customer harassment. Personally speak with them... now!

f.      Send your best customers something.

g.    Relearn the power of “snail mail.”

h.    Go to the event – use your star power.

i.      Hold open houses to troll for new clients.

j.      Seek referrals from regular clients.

k.     Cross-market your product lines.

l.      Have your best people answering the phones.

Reminders On Catering In A Tough Economy - Part 2

2. The caterer needs to rekindle customer loyalty.

a.   Can’t assume loyalty.

b.  You need to remind past clients of the reasons you have already earned

their trust.

c.   Consider holding a customer appreciation event.

d. Touch each of your more important clients at least once a month with a phone call, emailed newsletter, phone call or U.S. mailed letter.

e. Develop a new "loyalty" program.

Guest Article: Fall in Love with Old Cape Cod By Jon Wool

Every summer, my family vacations on Cape Cod because, in the words of the old Patti Page song, we're “fond of sand dunes and salty air/Quaint little villages here and there....”  As anyone who has visited the area can tell you, behind each of those sand dunes stands a seemingly endless string of restaurants and clam shacks with identical menus and interchangeable names (Ahab's, Capt’n Parker's, The Yankee Clipper…).  Each establishment boasts “The Cape's Best Lobsters/Chowder/Fried Clams.”  You can almost imagine that every buttery lobster roll or fried seafood plate is cooked in the same gigantic kitchen.  

Yet, for all of their similarities, some of these spots thrive year after year while others last only to the end of the season.  Why do these restaurants have varying levels of success when they are all offering the exact same menu? The difference is in the execution:

• The successful spots offer exceptional hospitality.  Note the smiling hosts, caring managers, and well-trained servers. At the shack with the longest line of diners, you never have to ask a sluggish waiter to wipe ketchup from the duct taped vinyl booth or to bring silverware with the meal.
• Success is also based on operational systems that are simple and dependable. Sunburned families can trust that their piping hot dinner will arrive at the table before the cranky younger cousin finishes a second baggie of oyster crackers.
• The best restaurants are well tended with clean rest rooms, new looking menu boards, and freshly painted trim. Patrons aren’t greeted by the unappetizing scent of cheap disinfectant, stale beer, old cooking oil, or the dreaded “fishy” smell.

Even in the most casual settings, the secrets to success in hospitality are not a mystery.  Placing a premium on care, cleanliness, and consistency makes all the difference. The companies who do this are the most financially stable and earn an ever-growing fan base.  

Having returned to Chicago some ten pounds heavier, I find myself dreaming of my loved ones, laughing around a table filled with succulent lobsters, a quahog or two, and a round of ice cold beer. Patti Page was right:

If you spend an evening you’ll want to stay

Watching the moonlight on Cape Cod Bay.

Reminders On Catering In A Tough Economy: Part 1

1. The shoppers’ needs and buying habits are changing. Buyers are looking for certain things when they shop for catering.

a.     Less costly catering and good events. It is normal for buyers to haggle when the economy is not strong.

b.    Catering that is “image” correct. In other words, buyers don't wish to look like they are acting foolish and spending wildly with their catering purchases.

c.     Caterers that will be staying in business.  They know that some caterers are going out of business. So, let your prospects know that you are sound and going to be around for a long time.

d.    Catering that is easy to buy.This is not a time for caterers to make prospects "jump" through hoops to make a purchase. 

e.     Expect them to be blunt, aggressive, and think they are in charge. Use this to your advantage during the selling process.

f.     Buyers may think caterers are a “wounded” industry. Tell them about your recent and future bookings so they know all is well!