The good news is, with the right marketing approach, you’ll have new prospects and customers coming to you. If having new customers walking in the door sounds good to you, consider these smart ways to promote your business.
Let’s say for the sake of example, that you’ve got a food truck business.
You’ve got your hands full with running the business, getting fresh produce, keeping things safe, and keeping up with technology. The last thing you want to do is deal with online marketing…but you’ve got the nagging feeling that you should.
Here’s a smart plan of action that won’t cost an arm and a leg for your company.
Get Friendly with Facebook
You’ve heard about Facebook. You use Facebook. Now, it’s time to promote your small business and have Facebook work for you. If you are seriously non-tech-savvy, don’t sweat it.
Hire a person who loves this stuff. Have him or her set up your page, take photos, and create interesting posts. There are so many people who love doing this, that you won’t have a problem finding the right one to showcase your business.
Get Connected
What kinds of things are you doing to help your community? What things are newsworthy? New deals. New specialty foods. New partnerships. New offers to help charities and nonprofits.
If you’re connecting with your community, share the good news about all the ways you are helping people. You may want to post your news in local media, community forums, and city websites.
Get Mobile
If you’re running a food truck, you know that people are searching online. People use their smartphones to find out where you are located when you’re open, and what the daily specials are that they don’t want to miss.
The good thing about your food truck is that you’re already tuned in to the mobile listings. Now, just make sure that you’ve got everything wired for people to find out about your awesome food.
Get On The Map
A lot of people use Google Maps to search for local offerings. If that means finding your food truck or restaurant, you’ve got to get on the map. Check out the details for getting on your local map – and you’ll find a lot more people flocking to your door.
Get Wired
There’s nothing like technology to make a food truck take off. It’s not only the technology end for the customer – local search, map search, and mobile search to name a few.
It’s also getting a kitchen display system for your staff. This technology means that every order will get taken, tracked, and delivered. If someone orders a salad with avocado, but there’s none in stock – it will show up right away.
Just imagine. No missed orders. No irate customers. No frustrated employees. Just clear order taking and clear delivery. Satisfaction all around, from start to finish.
If you’ve been doing old-school order taking and think it’s the way to go, think again. You could enjoy fewer lost sales, fewer lost customers, and more happy customers giving your rave reviews. It’s your choice if you want a fast growing business or not.
Get Safe
With all the concerns about food safety, you’re following CDC guidelines to the detail. Make safety part of your signature brand. Highlight your compliance with all safety features. Even if it doesn’t seem like much to you, you’re making an effort to keep food clean, chilled, stored, and of the highest quality for customers.
As you make the effort every day to stay safe, help your customers know everything you’re doing. It’s an easy win for everyone.
Get Farm Friendly
Are you living in an area with nearby farmers and small food producers? If so, are you making contact to feature fresh produce? More and more food trucks are using their locations to feature small farms. This is a way to support local agriculture and help consumers get fresh food. Many farms specializing in organic foods are happy to sell directly to food trucks or restaurants to generate extra local sales.
Sum Up
Most small businesses can learn a lot from the best practices of food trucks. In many regions, food truck owners are trend-setters. If you’re running a food truck biz, make sure everyone can find you online, on maps, and in mobile search. Organize your marketing to feature all the ways you serve your community.
