Business Article

How to Write a Food Industry or Catering Business Proposal

2011-07-31T16:55:00.000-07:00

Do you need to write a proposal to promote your food-related business to a prospective client or to get funding? It doesn't have to be an intimidating process. The goals for any business proposal are: introduce yourself, highlight your products and/or services, describe the costs, and convince the client that you are the right choice for the job or you are worth investing in. To speed up the proposal writing process, you can use pre-designed templates and get ideas from sample proposals.

Whether you are describing a catering service, pitching a food service (deli) to be installed within another company, buying or selling a food franchise or food vending business, requesting that a grocery store of specialty store chain carry your food product, or even asking for funding to start up or expand a restaurant, the proposal structure will be similar. Here's the basic structure to follow: introduce yourself, then summarize the prospective client's needs, describe your services and costs, and finally, provide information about your organization, your credentials, and your capabilities.

For a food-related business, you will also need to include some detailed information about your services, menus, or products that are of interest to the specific client. For example, a catering service might need to include menus and décor themes from which the client can select, and a food vending operation might need to explain how machines will be operate and which items will be stocked.

Always keep in mind that the purpose of a proposal is to persuade your potential clients to give you their business or loan you their money. You must prove that you can deliver the products or services they need. A simple price list can never substitute for a real proposal.

Proposals should be targeted to a specific client. This means you need to gather information about your client so that you can present a proposal tailored to that individual client's needs. It's never a good idea to send all prospective clients the same sales letter. Clients are much more likely to accept a proposal tailored just for them.

So, let's get back to the order described above. Start your proposal with a Cover Letter and a Title Page. The Cover Letter should deliver a brief personal introduction and contain your company contact information. The Title Page is just what it sounds like: the name of your specific proposal (for example, "Proposed Catering Plan for Your Awards Banquet", "Proposal to Place Food Vending Machines in Community College Buildings" or "Business Plan Funding for Hot Stuff Bakery").

After this introduction section, add topics that describe the needs of your client. If you are presenting a proposal for a complex project, you may need to write a summary to precede the detail pages. In a proposal for a corporate client, this is normally called an Executive Summary. For a less formal but still complex proposal, it's more often called a Client Summary. In this summary and the following detail pages, you should demonstrate your understanding of the client's requirements, goals, and desires, as well as discussing any restrictions or limitations you are aware of. This section should be all about the client.

Next is your chance to advertise yourself. Follow your introduction section and the client section with pages that describe what you are offering. These pages might have general headings like Services Provided, Samples (offering the client to pre-sample selections from your menu or food products), Benefits, and Services Cost Summary, Product Cost Summary, Entertainment (if provided with food service) as well as more specific pages that detail the products and/or services you can provide and explain the associated costs, the number of people that will be served and so on.

Your specific business will determine the specialized topics and pages you need to include in your proposal.

A catering service might need to include topics like Specialization (to highlight a specific niche you excel in) Services Provided, Options, Cost Summary, Events, Entertainment, Rentals, Special Needs, Policies and a Contract and Terms.

A deli or fast food franchise might want pages such as a Location Analysis, Future Potential, Financial Information, Income Project, Feasibility Study and other business opportunity templates describing the business opportunity.

A company selling a product to a store might include Product Cost Summary or Price List, Distribution, Market and Audience, Marketing Plan, Ingredients, Packaging, Footprint, Cost/Benefit Analysis, Quality Control and Benefits.

Specialty businesses such as event planners, party planners and wedding planners typically have to incorporate catering services as just one component of a larger proposal and will deal with additional topics such as the Venue, Performers, Products, Logistics, Packages and so on.

A business proposing to provide school lunches for students would need to provide additional details to show they can handle the volume and safety requirements. You can add topics for Requirements, Facilities, Safety Plan, Training Plan (for how your employees are trained), Certifications, Insurance, Quality Control, Experience, Capabilities, Capacity and so forth.

If you're asking for funding to start a food business (anything from a coffee shop or bakery to a full size restaurant), you'll want to add pages such as a Competitive Analysis, Industry Trends, Market and Audience, Marketing Plan, Insurance, Liability, Time Line, Funding Request, Services Provided, Products, Company Operations, Balance Sheet, Income Projection, Sources of Funds, Uses of Funds, Personnel, Legal Structure and any other topics required by the lender.

In your last proposal section, provide your company details, including pages such as Company History or About Us, Capabilities, Testimonials, Our Clients, or References. Your goal in this section is to convince the prospective client that you can be trusted to deliver the goods and/or services they need and want.

Those are the basic steps for organizing and writing the proposal. But you're not quite finished yet. After you have all the information down on the pages, focus on ensuring that your proposal is visually appealing. Incorporate your company logo, use colored page borders, and/or select interesting fonts and custom bullets to add color and flair. Just be sure to match your company style when making these selections.

To finalize your proposal, it's essential to proofread and spell-check every page. It's always a good idea to get someone other than the proposal writer to do a final proof, because it's very common to overlook mistakes in your own work.

When the final touches have been completed, print it or save it as a PDF file, and then deliver it to the client. The delivery method you should use will depend on your relationship with your potential client. While it's common to email PDF files to clients, a nicely printed, personally signed, and hand-delivered proposal may make more of an impression and demonstrate that you're willing to make an extra effort for the client.

So, to sum up, a food-business proposal can vary widely in content depending on the business and the project. Each company's proposal contents will need to be a bit different. But all these proposals will have a similar format and follow a similar structure.

If you'd like to get a jump start using pre-designed templates with simple instructions and tons of suggestions for content, you can use Proposal Pack which includes all of the material mentioned above. The product also includes many sample food business proposals that will give you great ideas and help you easily create your own successful proposal.

By Ian S Lauder
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6442295

How to Choose the Best International Parcel Services

2011-07-31T16:54:00.000-07:00

Today, it is not uncommon for people to have friends, family, or business partners who live in different parts of the world. And there are many ways to keep in touch with people all over the world, such as text messaging, live video chat, instant messaging, or sending e-mails. But if you want to send a Christmas present to your aunt who lives overseas, for example, you can use an international parcel delivery service. The demand for cross-country and cross-continent delivery has been steadily rising over the years. If you are not familiar with the parcel delivery industry, choosing the right courier can be a very confusing task. Below are some tips on how to choose the best international parcel services:

1. The first thing to do is to check the exact location of the company. If the service provider is close to your pick-up point, it will save you time and money.

2. If you are planning on sending important documents to an international address, opt for overseas courier services instead of the local ones. Many international courier companies offer overnight express parcel delivery to nearby countries.

3. Instead of choosing well-known courier companies, you can opt for an intermediary parcel delivery service provider. The services provided by intermediary providers are often more affordable than the leading courier companies.

4. Always learn about the compensation given by the courier company in case your parcel is damaged or lost. The amount of the compensation varies between companies and services, but usually you can get up to $100 per item. What's more surprising, although intermediary couriers are usually less expensive than the established ones, both offer comparable compensations.

5. If you want to send a valuable item, it is wiser if you purchase shipping insurance for your parcel. The insurance is offered at an affordable price, and it can cover items up to a value of $2000. It is also highly recommended to check the terms and condition before you approve to pay the extra surcharge.

6. There are several types of international delivery services, including the Express and Rapid options. Learn about the features offered in each type of service so you can find the one that suits your needs. Find out about the delivery time, rate, as well as the terms and conditions.

7. Although international shipment usually does not have package size limitation, most courier companies will ask you about the measurement of your parcel. This is to determine which type of shipment you should opt for. Generally larger packages are shipped through air or sea freight, while smaller ones delivered in containers.

You can send documents or packages overseas with international parcel services. If you have a parcel to go, make sure you choose the best courier company for your best convenience.

By Jp Chen Sun Jo
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6453601

Business Tips for a Potential Debt Ceiling Default Crisis

2011-07-31T16:51:00.000-07:00

How exactly does this "debt ceiling" that we are hearing about affect the day to day operations of businesses in the United States? When the government can no longer borrow, does that mean your good credit rating is going to be useless to you? It seems a bit far-fetched, but that's exactly what will happen. Any type of government subsidies or loans you're relying on to do business now will be frozen because the fed won't be able to take on any more debt. It might not happen overnight, but if the debt ceiling isn't raised and the government defaults on its payments, you will pay the price for it.
This is not a gloom and doom prediction; it's simply a statement of fact. If your business is solvent and you're handling your operating costs with your own money, the debt ceiling and defaults of the US government won't affect you - at least not right away. The long term picture will be a little bleaker. Those who you do business with that are not fortunate enough to be on firm financial footing will be unable to cover their overhead, and loans will not be available, so your numbers will go down. You can cut your own overhead to compensate, but that could mean job losses, another strain on the system.
As a private business owner, you have options where it comes to cutbacks and personnel strategies. If you do have to do lay-offs, you can use job applicant tracking software to database those who leave as the first to come back. You can also use recruitment tracking software to keep track of any promising new candidates. There will be plenty of them, because everyone else will be in the same position you are. Keep a positive outlook and have faith that things will get better. When they do, make sure you hire all that great industry talent before everyone else gets to them.
The odds of the government hitting the debt ceiling and Congress not approving a raise of that ceiling are pretty long. It's unlikely to happen, but the situation is still dire for the country and particularly small businesses that are relying on lines of credit and federal subsidies to survive. If the country needs to cut back on expenses, likely casualties will be Medicare and Medicaid, the subsidies given to oil and gas companies, and incentive programs for new businesses and alternative energy. These are all critical to each of us, so some serious planning needs to be done to prepare for those eventualities.
Look for ways to eliminate credit purchases and pay cash as often as possible for inventory and office supplies. If you can manage to get away from financing completely, you'll be in much better shape if things do go bad. The debt ceiling debate is only the beginning. If the government doesn't cut spending, this discussion will happen again, and the solution won't be as simple as raising the borrowing limit
.

By Darwin Redshield
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6458579

Embrace the Real Estate Potential Provided Through Buying a House With a Buyer's Agent

2011-07-30T16:06:00.001-07:00

Purchasing a new home can be a very exciting prospect for any individual who is looking to find a new home for the family or a potential opportunity for a financial investment. There are many factors in the real estate environment that have a tendency to support the seller over the buyer and this can prove to be a very expensive element to consider. When looking into the opportunities of improving your potential when it comes to buying a house, it would be ideal to pursue the resources of a buyer's agent.
When a homeowner is interested in selling a property, the first resource that they turn to in order to accomplish this objective is found with utilising a seller's agent. These individuals are experts in the real estate industry and are working primarily to provide a seller with the opportunity to achieve a significant financial profit on their real estate investment. When you are faced with going against a professional who is focused primarily on the goal of increasing value or property, this can prove financially expensive. In order to counter the resources of a seller's agent, it would prove highly beneficial to pursue your own resource of a buyer's agent.
The first advantage you will be able to discover when looking into the opportunities of investing in a buyer's agent to help buy house is found with gaining access to a level support. There are a wide variety of factors that an investor must consider when purchasing any new home whether they are buying it for personal use or an investment resource. It can often be time-consuming and very expensive when trying to determine if the property represents your greatest opportunity for investment. By taking advantage of a buyer's agent you will be able to discover an incredible resource of support that will help to expand your investment opportunities.
The first support you will discover is found with the opportunities to receive assistance when it comes to finding the best resources for buying a house. You will be able to explain in detail to an individual the exact resources you are looking to take advantage of from a home so they can take the time to identify the best property for you to invest. This will save you a significant amount of time and money when it comes to having to conduct research on your own. When you are able to identify the specific property that meets all of your personal criteria, the next step would be discovering opportunities for financial savings.
One of the greatest advantages you will discover when you take the time to utilise a buyer's agent to help you buy house is found with the real estate experience they have in relation to negotiation. While a seller's agent is attempting to sell a property on behalf of another party at the highest value possible, the negotiation skills of your buyer's agent will allow you to feel confident that you are investing in a property at the lowest price available to you.

PK Property Search & Negotiators is a real estate firm based in Sydney, Australia. It is Sydney's number one buyers agent firm and it recently opened their first website's virtual doors. The website http://pkproperty.com.au offers a way for users to connect with buyer's agents for questions, inquiries into certain properties, or even to receive a fixed price quote or a no obligation property consultation.

By Peter P Kelaher
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6445163

Have You Ever Wondered How Barcodes Were Invented?

2011-07-30T16:05:00.001-07:00

Barcodes have become a ubiquitous part of consumer and industrial life. Nearly every product sold in stores features a barcode, and most businesses use them to track inventory and payroll. But how were they invented?

The story begins in 1948 with Bernard Silver and Norman Joseph Woodland, two grad students at the Drexel Institute of Technology in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Silver overheard the president of local supermarket chain Food Fair talking to a dean about the idea of a machine that could automatically identify product information during checkout. Silver told his friend Woodland about it, and the two started working on the concept themselves.

Their first working system used ultraviolet ink, but the ink faded too fast and was too expensive to be used commercially. The next system, developed by Woodland in his father's apartment, was based on Morse code. A 500-watt light bulb shining onto a movie projector tube could scan a series of long and short lines. On October 20, 1949, Woodland and Silver filed a patent application for this system, entitled "Classifying Apparatus and Method".

IBM hired Woodland in 1951, and he tried to get them interested in the barcode project. While his colleagues and executives agreed it was an intriguing idea, they published an official report stating that the technology necessary to process the barcode information was still too far from fruition to justify more work on the project.

Disappointed, Woodland sold the patent to the Philadelphia Storage Battery Company in 1952. They sold it to the Radio Corporation of America in the same year. The RCA did nothing with the patent at this time. Silver died of a traffic collision in 1963.

In 1966, the National Association of Food Chains discussed the idea of automated checkout systems. RCA offered to develop a system based on the patent that Woodland and Silver had created. Kroger's offered to test it. By the mid-1970, the NAFC had developed a standardized 11-digit code, and sent out a contract tender to develop the readers for it.

IBM execs noticed RCA demonstrating their system at an industry meeting. Remembering that their employee Norman Joseph Woodland had gotten the barcode ball rolling decades before, they set up a brand new IBM facility to help Woodland develop a system of IBM's own.

In 1972, RCA set their system up at a Kroger's in Cincinnati. However, because their barcode lines were printed width-wise, the codes would be unreadable if the ink smeared during printing, which it often did. IBM's codes were printed in the direction of the stripes, so it was more reliable. In 1973 the National Association of Food Chains made IBM's system, dubbed the UPC, the standard.

Despite the long-term benefits it promised them, grocers were reluctant to adopt the system. Even by 1977 fewer than 200 grocery stores owned scanning machines. However, once sales information revealed that barcode-using grocery stores experienced a permanent 10-12% increase in sales, adoption skyrocketed. Barcodes are now a global standard for product sales and identification.

Find out more about Wasp barcode scanners at Wasp Barcode - In the UK see a full range of barcode scanners and solutions from Wasp Barcode UK.

By Judy Hendershot
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6458251

Finding The Most Suitable Vending Machine Locations

2011-07-30T16:04:00.000-07:00

Finding The Most Suitable Vending Machine Locations

By Peter Milazzo

There is no literature on finding convenient places for vending machines. They are often just placed where they are needed. Many things are considered when looking for vending machine locations.

Security is Key. One has to look for a location with adequate security so as to avoid vandalism or theft. An unattended device will most likely be vandalized. They are shops without shop keepers so security is very important. Remember ATM's are also vending appliances and they for one require a lot of security.

Finding the right location is the only way to attract one's clients. One must understand the customer's needs and be able to provide them. Know what the customers is looking for. The customer's taste and preferences. Understand the behavior and habits of the customer.

Foot traffic is a major factor to be considered when picking a location. Ensure there is a lot of foot traffic. Consider places like hotel lobbies, train stations and airport lobbies.

The usefulness of these types of machines should be a priority when picking a location. Think of whether the commodity is of use. The location would at many times establish the type of machine. An office would require a coffee machine rather than a gumball machine. A school canteen would want a sandwich vending machine and an arcade will require a candy dispenser. Pick the commodity according to the place and vice-versa.

Imagine if there is a machine at the lounge of the local airport. The proprietor will be guaranteed maximum returns. This is a place that has maximum foot traffic and since it is a waiting area people are bound to explore their surroundings. It will be convenient for a traveler to get reading material or food from newspaper and snack machines. Hotel lounges and train terminal are also places that have waiting areas. Think of all the possibilities.

Waiting areas can also be a great location for vending device. People often like to eat while they wait. This helps them have the perception that they are not wasting time idle. They believe they have substituted the wasted time with an active deed. People like to eat when they are bored. Snack items would be a good idea. Airport and hotel lounges, hospitals and railway stations should come to mind as suitable locations.

Needs often change therefore be in contact with the customers and find out what are there needs. One has to work together with the customer to achieve the perfect location.

Peter Milazzo has been involved with sales and marketing for over 25 years. He was the top sales person for a major U.S. corporation for many years and is now a successful entrepreneur.He built up one of the largest vending business in Southern California.
http://www.allvendingmachinelocators.com
All Vending Machine Locators Has Located Bulk Candy Machines And Soda And Snack Vending Machines For 16 Years.Thousands Of Machines successfully located for hundreds of vendor.Dozens of references available.
Call 1-888-307-1870

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6445911

Cleaning the Ceiling and Air Ventilator

2011-07-30T16:02:00.000-07:00

By Matt Goudge

When you say cleaning and maintaining the cleanliness of all areas of the workplace, it should really mean all. This includes not only the floors and the walls, but this should also include one of the most overlooked areas of the kitchen - the ceiling as well as the air ventilators.

What You Need

The materials that you will need to clean the ceiling and air ventilator include a ladder, a ceiling broom, a hand brush, cleaning detergent, clean cloth, and water for rinsing. You will also need goggles as well as gloves to protect not only your eyes but hands as well.

Air Ventilator

For the air ventilator, you will need to use the ladder, so make sure that it is very sturdy and very stable so as to prevent any accidents or mishaps from happening.

The first thing that you need to do is to remove the air ventilator from the ceiling. After all, it is so much easier to clean the air ventilator when it is taken down.

Wet the hand brush or the scouring pad with water and then pour in a small amount of detergent. Do not use too much detergent though as it could make rinsing difficult. Plus, you will be wasting water, detergent, and money if you do so.

With the wet hand brush or scouring pad, gently but thoroughly wash all the areas of the air ventilator, making sure to remove traces of grime and dust. Once done, rinse it off with clear water, making sure that there are no traces of detergent left on the air ventilator. After this, thoroughly wipe the air ventilator off with a clean cloth.

Ceiling

Before you clean the ceiling though, make sure that the kitchen equipments, appliances, units, items, etc. are protected with drop cloths. You should also protect the counters, ovens, grills, anything really that needs to be protected from the dust and grime of the ceilings as well as from the drips. Also, you should always clean the ceilings before you clean the walls and the floors so as to save money, effort, and time.

Furthermore, before you clean the ceiling, make sure that you are wearing goggles and gloves. The goggles will protect your eyes from any drips that might fall over your face, and the gloves will protect your hands from the detergent.

As for the ceiling itself, you need to use the ladder to reach hard-to-reach areas as well as the ceiling broom to remove cobwebs. You could also use a vacuum brush to lessen the risk of cobwebs or dirt falling unto any of the surfaces below.

Next, dampen a clean cloth with water and detergent, squeeze it hard to remove any excess fluid, and scrub the ceiling. Make sure that there are no drips dripping down the walls, unto any of the surfaces below, or on the floor. After this, wipe the ceiling off with a dry cloth.

When you are done cleaning the ceiling, be sure to reassemble the air ventilator and place it back on the ceiling.

Last, tidy up the area. This includes wiping off any drips that might have dripped down the ceiling or unto any of the surfaces below. This also includes wiping the floor off any water or detergent that dripped down from the ceiling.

Cleaning the ceiling is not an everyday activity or one that needs to be done every after shift though. However, the ceiling should be cleaned regularly so as to avoid grime, dust, and cobweb accumulation.

Chef Matt G is the guy behind the Stewarding Department, he is a well seasoned all rounder when it comes to all things kitchen related as well is a mad keen blogger in all aspects of the term.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Matt_Goudge

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6448004

Ways to Encourage Your Employees to Achieve Their Targets and Fulfill Their Potential

2011-07-30T16:01:00.000-07:00

Ways to Encourage Your Employees to Achieve Their Targets and Fulfill Their Potential

By Dan C Vassiliou

How do we get our employees to achieve thier potential? How do we make sure we are getting the best out of them? We can punish poor performance, and come crashing down on those who are struggling to replicate prior achievements. How does this keep the "team" functioning, and working towards a particular target or goal, without always having to be tough and pushy.
There are a number of things we can try here, to achieve a continual success from our staff. By awarding small prizes, or awards, after small amounts of time, maybe at the end of each month, we can make sure good performance is rewarded within a timescale that each employee can easily see as being close enough to inspire them. By making each monthly award presentation special, ie by making the prizes good quality corporate awards, a decent amount of money or exciting trip/meal out, you will also encourage those who have not performed so well, to want to be the ones picking up the prizes. I would suggest that you give different prizes and awards out throughout the year. Maybe a nice crystal trophy one month, and a meal for two the next. Perhaps you could copmbine awards for those who have really worked hard on a tough target and give money and a quality corporate award. By changing things around month by month your staff will be constantly inspired to want the different rewards available.
What really gives employees a sense of pride in their achievements, are well run, big awards presentations, where the company says thank you to those who have consistantly reached targets, and achieved company goals and objectives. Here nice corporate awards should be presented, or holidays, impressive cash incentives, or maybe a combination. Trophies and nice giftware will last longer than money, usually, and do a great job reminding an employee of previous achievements, and shows what they are capable of. By throwing an impressive presentation, you are showing your employees you really value their achievements, in a way that goes much further than mere words, or small gift vouchers. You can make the night, or day as big as is viable to the business. A company that just has ten or so employees is not going to throw a ceremony as impressive as a company that employs three hundred.
If we minimise the importance of rewarding good performance, with good quality prize material, we risk having large swathes of the work force just going through the motions. Staff would be doing the minimum to earn their pay cheque, instead of being inspired to go above and beyond the call of duty because they want to be the sales person of the year, or best customer service representative. As bosses, we want to be big awardsable to offer more than just promotion, because what do you do if there isn't a promotion to offer?

If you wish to contact the author you can do so here Corporate Awards. Please use this bio when copying or using this article.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dan_C_Vassiliou

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6421229