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 

 valerie@hippiechowgranola.com 

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 

 sara@justbecandid.com  |  www.justbecandid.com

Best Practices:Marketing for small business

Susan HensonBusiness Development Specialist

Missouri SBTDCKansas City, MO

hensons@missouri.edu

32

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?

39

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

41

•Packaging•Email campaigns•Social media•Internet advertising•Direct mail•Coupons•Customer Service•Convenience

one size

Doesn’t fit

all

42

Questions?

Susan HensonMO SBTDC

hensons@missouri.edu816-407-3492

Clay County Extension Center1901 NE 48th St

Kansas City, MO 64118

43

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 jmann@ennovationcenter.com 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 jmann@ennovationcenter.com for more

information