Feb

6

Vending Machine Business Start Up Tips How To Get Started & Find Quality Locations For Your Business

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Often I get contacted by people who are looking at getting started in the vending machine business but don’t know where or how to start. This is one of the biggest questions that I get even before they ask how do I find locations.

I will cover both things within this article. First getting started is very easy. I always tell people that even before they consider buying their first machine a critical step is to do your homework and research.

This way you can figure out what machines are the right ones to buy, how much they cost and really what direction you should be taking to make your vending business a profitable one.

As there are many vending machines out there on the market I personally only recommend a few main manufactures to use in your business. These machines that I recommend are very commonly used in the industry and have an excellent track record for reliability.

For starters I suggest starting with soda machines as they are very inexpensive to buy and have great potential for profit margins. You can buy a can of soda for as little as .30 cents and when soda is on sale you can get it for as little as .20 cents.

Next consider buying a snack machine that sells chips and chocolate bars. These are real good money makers as well. They are excellent profit generators and you can buy these machines used for a fairly good price. You just have to look around to find the right ones.

Often people always ask me what the best way is to find quality new vending locations to place their machines. For starters there are many ways to find locations. In fact when I first started in the business I just simply went door to door asking local businesses if I could bring in my machines.

This did work but it takes a considerable amount of time. Now what I always tell people is that using the internet to find new locations is the very best way. It is really all just about positioning yourself properly in front of your prospect.

The goal is to get your prospect to chase you instead of you chasing them. When you do it this way then you are seen as a credible source of contact and you will have better negotiating power to get your machines out on location.

It is far easier in my opinion to be the invited guest when people call you and invite you to their business for a meeting rather than being an annoying pest cold calling and banging on their doors for their business.

These are just a few ways to get started in the vending business to get your business of to a great start. Use this information to your advantage so you can avoid simple mistakes that a lot of people make before researching the business model that they want to venture into. Don’t forget the best part is that in vending you are your own boss and you can make your business as big or as small as you want it to be.

Oct

17

Start Your Vending Business Right! Get Vending Locations to Set Up and Flip and Sell!

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Here is a strategy to utilize when you have a potential location that you don’t necessarily want to set up yourself. What I like to do is to broker deals for cash and vending machines. Now that you have implemented your free ad listings like we discussed in my Free Vending Report, and you start getting fresh new leads for your vending business, the next step is to obviously build your business by setting up new locations to definitely make you more money. But what about the leads that you get that are out of your working area, or perhaps those leads that you do not necessarily want to set up? What do you do with them?

Well, what to do is, you broker deals for cash and/or vending machines. You see, I get calls all the time from companies. If you have been in the vending business for any amount of time, you know that when people call you, you have to collect a lot of information, to try and find out their needs, what their circumstances are and think about how you will profit and make money.

Because ultimately you know, some of the companies who call you might be a little bit out of your area. You might prefer not to set them up for different reasons, because you just don’t want to do the driving, or the calls might be for services that you do not offer.

So let’s say it is a pop and snack vending contact and these companies say, ‘Oh, we want coffee, food, snacks, and pop, say the whole spectrum. Sometimes you may not want to set up an account with all of that vending equipment so instead of saying, ‘No, sorry, I don’t do that,’ what you do is broker deals for cash and/or vending machines by contacting other vending operators who you know are looking for locations in that area.

Usually what I do is contact other vending operators I already know. I have seen a lot of vending operators in places where I buy my products, wholesalers and stuff. But I don’t know all of their names. But I always have a few people I know who I can talk to in the business. Furthermore, I always have a few guys and girls who are looking for new locations and wanting to build their business in certain areas.

They know me from talking to me when I am buying products or when things come up. They know me and that I’m building my business; and they know that I’m doing a pretty good job of it. And they are always waiting for me and asking, “Hey, do you have any locations for sale, or do you have any leads you want to sell me because I’m looking for locations?” What I do is, if I ever need a machine or have a location that contacts me and they are out of my area, I will just simply contact one of these vending operators whom I just referred to. I usually have two or three. I find out if they are looking for locations, and I will call them to work the deal.

Nine times out of ten, they usually want it. The only time they would not want it is if it was, for example, out of their area. But here is the deal. Even if you don’t want to say, let’s say you flipped the location and sell it to them. You make money. What happens if they say, “Well, we don’t want it”. Well you already set up the location. What you do is put up an ad at one of your suppliers and say, “I have a location for sale.” And just flip it and sell it to make some money.

So it is a great way to actually make more money in your vending business. Therefore, if I need a machine, for example, there is a friend of mine in the business who is always looking for locations. He knows that I get a lot of locations. Furthermore, he is always telling me, “Hold it. I need one here. It sounds like your business is expanding and growing. You know I will buy some locations off you. Let me know if you have anything in this area.”

Chris Robertson is an 11 year vending operator who teaches and trains people  in their local area How To Start Your Vending Business Right. Get my Free Vending Report to learn how to get started on the right foot!

Apr

16

How To Start A Vending Machine Business – Locating Secrets!

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Here are some useful tips and tactics to use when looking to find new vending locations.

Think about this question for example. Have I used my local business directory to make a list of companies in my area that I wish to target? Every city has and every community should have one. I believe that most do from what I have seen in my area. It just depends on where you are living.

Basically the business directory gives you a lot of useful information. Here in Canada, it is called the Scott’s Business Directory. I am not sure what the U.S. one is, it might be called Jigsaw or something like that. That is a business directory that you can get information from. How is that important? Well it outlines all the businesses in your community and gives you specific details including the company name, and how many employees work there. That is a big one.

You want to know how many employees, because the more employees that work there the better sales volume should be moving through your vending machines, plus you will then know which ones to target so you are not wasting your time. A few examples of what is listed in the directory are the company name, yearly sales, President, Vice President, the Human Resource Director, the Office Manager and their names. Then you can put together a sales letter, and address it personally to them or you can even just go visit them and drop off information for somebody specific that you want to talk to.

Here is an example of what I have done. First I go to my local library and sit for about and hour and make a list of companies that I wish to target. Then I put together either a basic one page sales letter or direct mail piece postcard type advertisement then send it out in the mail doing a mass mailing.

Now initially one thing that you have to remember is that this is a numbers game! Not everyone that you mail these out to are going to get back to you. In fact nobody may call you at all. This is where the follow up work on your end is crucial. You should be calling your prospect to ask them if they had any interest in your services and see if you can send them additional information that will help them and their company get the best vending services in the area.

Now some people will say sure and some will say no thanks. That is completely alright! We just want to spend our time helping those local businesses who need our help and have a problem to solve. We want to be their solution!

So does this approach work? Yes! Just remember that it is a numbers game. I have done many mail outs like this and have had several companies call me and ask for my help so it certainly does work. Remember this is a business and like any other business it may take a little work to get things rolling and a little persistence to close the deal on some of these locations.

But at the end of the day the pay off can be huge for you when you take action and implement these things. The best part is that all it takes is for one single company to say yes to you and your belief system will then kick into high gear. And that is what will keep you in the race in the end and help you build a successful vending business