7 Ways You Can Grow Your Food Truck Business
Advanced automation software such as OnlineCheckWriter.com can help your food truck business to grow and capitalize the greatest share of industry profits.
Did you know that the US mobile food industry was worth 1.24 billion during 2020?
While the figure has gone down slightly from last year, food trucks continue to be the profitable and solid business model.
However, you will need to strategize if you want to be as profitable as possible. It does not matter if you already own a food truck or planning to launch a new one.
These tips will surely help you to get new customers and bring in more revenue for your food truck.
So, let's dig-in into them one-by-one:
1. Have a Memorable Food Truck Concept
As a food truck owner what's the most important thing for you?
Making money... right?..
But equally important is the concept of your food truck.
A strong unique food truck concept, not only encourages remembrance but will also increase the publicity by word of mouth.
Your food truck is a brand in itself!!
If you are planning to start a food truck, do look for a food truck for sale in your locality. Have it customized as per your theme.
If you already own a food truck, make sure it highlights the concept of your business.
So, what does it mean to have a strong concept?
Your food truck ought to have a solid plan, a clever but easy-to-remember name and a well-thought menu that resonates with your brand.
For instance, take ‘Grilled Cheeserie’ of Nashville, Tennessee. Their name, their truck and their tagline, all resonate with the theme of their business. Their menu has a lot of speciality offerings such as the B&B of Tennessee and the Pimento Mac & Cheese.
The goal is to create a buzz and get a lot of people to talk about your truck.
2. Offer Something Unique, Different from Other Food Trucks
Food is one industry where going against the common practices might help you make more money and carve out a niche for your food truck.
If your city is filled with endless carts serving hot dogs and sandwiches, then that’s the exact thing you shouldn’t be serving.
This is, more or less, the story of ‘The Halal Guys’. They started with a hot dog cart in NYC. However, to them, the hot dog was not a satisfying meal. So they switched to a menu of chicken, gyro meat, rice, and pita. Currently, they are one of the most famous food trucks in the US, with their franchises in California, New Jersey, Connecticut, Virginia and other major cities. They also have an international presence in Canada, the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia.
3.Equip your Food Truck with Mobile Booking, Ordering and Payments.
Mobile phones are highly relevant in the food and restaurant industry. The same is applicable for food trucks. There are a lot of things that you should keep in mind to make your food truck business mobile-friendly.
Make sure your food truck is listed on popular local websites and apps. Your website should be optimized for mobile phone screens. You can even try to make an app for your food truck.
Your customers should be able to place an order and pay through mobile. If you haven’t considered food delivery yet, then give considerable thought to it.
Finally, to never miss on any opportunity, give a seamless payment experience to your customers. Online Check Writer is the most popular cloud-based software for small and medium businesses across the USA. It has all the features that a business needs, such as unlimited check printing, ACH payments, Accounts receivable management, Invoicing, Payroll Processing, automatic bill payment, and a lot more.
4. Offer Fresh Seasonal Varieties
59% of customers are more likely to purchase an item if it is ‘seasonal’. Tried and tested items are good if you want to operate within your domain.
But you must improvise as per the need of customers. Being seasonal is not only limited to offering dishes made out of seasonal produce.
For example: your truck can offer hot cocoa during winters. Similarly, offer chilled desserts or iced drinks in the summers.
Varying your menu seasonally means bringing in more customers and making more money during different seasons. Your loyal customer base would also stick to your food truck if they are craving something seasonal.
Additionally, it also gives out a message that you are committed to serving your customers. Your mouth-watering servings also contain fresh and healthy produce.
5. Collaborate with Other Local Business
Having a sales funnel in place is a sure way to get steady cash flow. You can create this sales funnel by building a relationship with other businesses and offices.
For implementing this idea:
You should consider visiting nearby offices and dropping off your menu there.You can also try giving out free samples. Partner with these offices by offering lunchtime meals with delivery.
This will help spread the word about your food truck to the locals. It will also allow you to embed yourself into the lunchtime culture of various businesses. Make sure you take advantage of the latest office catering trend.
Speaking of catering, food trucks around the nation are offering services for corporate events, weddings, and parties, as an alternative to an old-fashioned buffet or sit-down catered meal.
Food truck weddings are most popular! They offer a unique and less expensive alternative. Purely from a consumer standpoint, the cost per person of a food truck wedding is $25-50, as compared to the $70 average of a sit-down event.
6. Food Truck Park and Food Truck Festival
Food truck parks are the best way to directly engage with your target audience. It’s a sure way to bring money and promote your business without needing the efforts to do anything radical.
Similarly, food truck festivals are a great way to make your brand visible. You will reach out to a lot of hungry diners that are enthusiastic to try new flavors and dishes.
The world’s largest food truck rally in St. Petersburg gathers more than 200 food trucks from across the USA.
You can also attend local festivals and fairs. This way you’ll be maximizing your visibility and positioning your food truck where crowds of hungry diners will be congregated.
But don’t just barge into the festival scene without any homework. If you don’t plan thoroughly it may result in wasting your time and money. You may be required to pay a fee before selling at a fair. Make sure you know everything beforehand.
7. Social Media is your Best Ingredient
There’s hardly any industry where the importance of social media is not prevalent. Social media marketing is recommended everywhere, for all businesses. It is all the more important for the food truck industry, given its fast-paced nature.
Therefore you need to have a strong social media presence. Update your Instagram pages regularly with the products you are offering and the forthcoming places you are planning to visit.
Always make sure you engage your audience with social media rather than trying to push your offering like a salesman!
This content is accurate and true to the best of the author’s knowledge and is not meant to substitute for formal and individualized advice from a qualified professional.
© 2022 Mohammad Khan Yusufzai
