Establishing the need for catering
From box lunches and party platters to parties complete with off-site food preparation, catering is one of the fastest growing segments of the foodservice industry. Faced with declining guest traffic, operators in all segments are eying the double-digit sales growth reported by chains that have invested the resources in developing this business.
Technomic’s landmark 2007 study on the B-2-B catering market (LOOP: Large Orders Off-Premise) revealed an $18.5B opportunity with significant potential for driving growth as an alternate revenue stream for restaurant operators. Prime opportunities identified via the original study for chain restaurant catering included:
- Breakfast, lunch and snack offerings for office/business meetings and training sessions
- Large orders for hospitals and medical offices, particularly orders by pharmaceutical sales representatives
- Bulk orders for business promotional events (i.e., open houses, auto dealership and furniture store events, etc.)
The 2007 study revealed that at that time, business decision-makers were much less price-sensitive than typical restaurant consumers. During the recession, however, operators reported seeing more breakfast meetings and greater price-sensitivity among business customers and sought current data regarding usage and spending behaviors. In addition, operators were interested in understanding whether and how changes on the horizon for healthcare might impact catering usage by pharmaceutical representatives.
To provide operators with information and insights related to business usage of off-premise catering in the current economic environment, Technomic conducted this in-depth study into decision-maker usage and preferences in the business and medical markets. This study updates information provided in the 2007 study, measures changes in decision-maker priorities, usage and expenditures and identifies the possible impact of healthcare reform on chain catering business.
Establishing the need for catering
Information objectives for this study included:
- Current market size and growth for catering use in the business and medical markets;
- Identification of key decision-makers and influencers for off-premise catering in the business/office and medical markets;
- Understanding of decision-makers’ use and preferences for off-premise catering options;
- Business spending for off-premise catering, including shifts over the past four years;
- Usage of chain restaurants vs. independent restaurants, caterers and retail foodservice as well as usage of specific brands for these occasions;
- Daypart/occasion usage;
- Insights into future spending/usage plans;
- Comparative findings from Technomic’s 2007 B-2-B catering study to reveal shifts in preferences, usage and expenditures;
Establishing the need for catering
To know more about the survey, please check out the following link:
Large Off Premise Order- Technomic Survey Large Off Premise Order- Technomic Survey
Another brief consumer survey conducted by Technomic (a US based research firm) for the 2008 Trends & Directions Conference revealed there is also substantial opportunity for off-premise catering with the consumer market for personal entertaining and social occasions. These early findings highlighted an opportunity for chain restaurants to increase their share of this business.
To provide actionable insights and information regarding these opportunities for revenue growth to chain restaurant operators and retailers with foodservice offerings, Technomic launched this in-depth study into consumer usage and preferences for off-premise catering options from Limited-and Full-Service chains, independent caterers and foodservice retailers (e.g., supermarkets, warehouse clubs.)
This study was designed to provide operators with an in-depth analysis of the key usage patterns and drivers for social catering occasions. The primary information objectives of this study are to provide participants with:
- Understanding of the size of the opportunity
- In-depth quantitative and qualitative decision-maker insights relating to catering by restaurant and retail operators for consumer social occasions
- Identification of best practices elements (promotion, sales and execution) that can be adopted for creating or enhancing a profitable restaurant or retail off-premise catering program
To know more about this research, please check out the following link:
Parties Off-Premise - Technomic Survey Parties Off-Premise - Technomic Survey
What Do Our Customers Want?
- Accuracy – Customers want what they order. Repeat every order back to check for accuracy.
- Knowledge – When a customer is placing an order, they appreciate a team that knows the menu and can answer all of their questions. Customers place a high value on accurate information and want to frequent a restaurant where its employees know the menu.
- Friendly – Customers want to be treated kindly and with respect. Be excited that each customer has chosen to bring their business to your restaurant and be happy to assist them with their order.
- Convenience/Speed – Customers want an easy process for ordering and expect to pick their order up at the requested time. Take care of the customer and plan ahead to ensure you are prepared to fulfill the order.
KFC Catering Customer Survey was conducted to identify the benefits KFC catering offers to customers
To know more about the survey, refer to the following link
Research Topline Summary - KFC Catering Research Topline Summary - KFC Catering
Who are customers?
Marketing is a way to drive customers into your restaurant for catering orders and is necessary to increase awareness and grow your catering program.
Before you can begin marketing, you first must know who your customer is and what they want. There are 2 main customer groups of focus:
Business-to-Business |
Social |
Who are customers?
Business-to-Business
Business to business catering may be for various occasions and events at offices. It is important to understand how are such events catered and who is the decision maker. Given below is a matrix that summarizes this.
- Events – Office meeting, client meeting, working lunch, celebration
- Sources - Full service restaurants, QSR, Local caters, Fast Casual
- Decision Maker: Admin, Pharmaceutical Rep, etc.
Catering Calls
Calling local businesses in your trade area is a way to proactively make them aware of your catering program and to offer your services. Calling allows you to:
- Build a relationship with a potential customer.
- Get the word out about KFC catering.
- Answer any questions that potential customers may have about KFC catering.
How to Call:
- Arrange to be in a quiet place where you will not be disturbed.
- Have a warm professional greeting to inform the person you are calling, what your name is, and that you work for KFC.
- Example: “Good morning! My name is Mike and I’m with KFC. We wanted to let your company know that we offer catering at our restaurant. May I ask if you often cater company lunches or get-togethers in your organization?”
Who are Customers?
- Be prepared to offer menu information and/or pricing. Have a menu in front of you to assist in answering any questions.
- Get the name of the person and their contact information so that you can follow up with them in the future.
- Potentially offer a deal for their first catering order (such as 10% off or a free catering side) in order to drive their catering business into your restaurant. Your hope is that they will be impressed with your food and service so that they will continue to come back again and again.
- Leave your name and contact information with the person so that they can follow up with you if they are interested in placing a catering order with KFC. If they seem interested, plan a follow-up visit to the business to meet your contact in person.
Not every person/company will be interested in KFC catering. Stay positive and keep calling! If you feel that you are having a hard time, utilize your Above Restaurant Leader to help you practice or to give you suggestions.
In-Person Visits
By visiting local organizations in your trade area, it allows a customer to put a face with your name and helps to build a better relationship that shows you really want their business. Preparing for In-Person Visits
- Look professional and wear KFC branded clothing. You are the face of the brand, so you need to present a clean, polished look.
- Have business-to-business (B2B) kits to hand out. Be sure that it includes the introduction letter, business cards, and a menu for you to leave with the business.
- Plan your route and know the businesses that you will need to talk to. Make the most of your time and map out the best way for you to reach everyone quickly.
Who are Customers?
- Briefly research the businesses you will visit. This will help you add a personal touch and set you apart from other caterers. It helps to know things like when doctors’ offices have their scheduled lunch time, if a business is new to the area, when a non-profit has their next fundraising event, etc.
- Smile, relax, and have fun meeting new people!
- Be patient. Companies aren’t expecting your visit, so they may be busy. Allow them time to finish what they are doing so that they can give you 100% of their attention.
- Present the B2B kit and reference what materials are included.
- Ask for a business card from the person you speak with.
- Always thank the individual for their time.
- Make a note of individuals and businesses that you speak with so you can follow up at a later date and to let your Above Restaurant Leader know who you’ve met with
Following Up on In-Person Visits
- Send a thank you note. Give the card a personal touch by writing a brief note inside. Make it a habit to send the thank you note the same day that you visited the business.
- Give a follow-up call. Wait a week or two, then call a business to see if they had any questions or if there’s anything that you can do for them.
Who are Customers?
Social Catering
Like business to business catering, social catering may also be for various occasions and events at offices. It is important to understand how are such events catered and who is the decision maker. Given below is a matrix that summarizes this.
- Events – Family parties, birthday, life event, holiday
- Sources - Full service restaurants, QSR, Local caters, grocery
- Decision Maker: Mom, friend, spouse etc..
Posting POP is the easiest way to drive awareness about your catering program to your current customer base.
Tip! Utilize your POP and Packaging elements in different ways to promote catering:
- If a customer orders a family meal, place a catering menu inside their bag for them to take home and reference in the future.
- If a customer orders a family meal that is 16 pieces or larger, place the meal into a catering bag (instead of a t-shirt bag) so that they see the logo and know that KFC caters.
- Always keep catering menus well stocked on the front counter for customers to take as they please.
- Utilize the Catering Display inside your restaurant.
Catering Concepts – Kiosks and Caravans
As we get into more and more ways to increasing catering sales, concepts like Kiosks and Caravans are the way to go. These concepts are meant for large caterings like sports events etc where it is not possible to deliver cooked food as the quantity required is huge. These concepts offer flexibility to cook fresh food at the event premise and offer the best tasting hot food to the customers. Given the importance of brand image, food safety and operational standards, one must ensure that these conditions are strictly adhered to at all times
Given below is the example of guidelines for operators
Criteria
Best Practice – KFC MENAPAK:
Approvals
- Requests for Yum approval to be made minimum 10 days prior to event start
- BOH Layout & Menu to be approved by Americana Ops before being sent to Yum for approval
- Kiosk to be on the latest KFC design & signage using durable materials to avoid fading, peeling, etc.
- Kiosk approvals will be issued for a maximum of 3 months
Extension Fees:
- 1st extension - Free
- 2nd extension - USD 1,000
- 3rd extension - USD 5,000
- 4th extension - Full IF
Catering Concepts – Kiosks and Caravans
Food Safety Standards
- 2 Hand wash sinks required if dealing with raw chicken
- In case of COB transferred from an existing KFC, kiosk should be within a 10 min drive time & COB will have a reduced hold time of 60 min
- No fillets or strips to be transferred from an existing KFC restaurant on account of hold time
- Ice machine to be included if distance from nearest KFC store greater than 10 min
Operation Standards
- Cooking line for full menu: 2 6 heads, 1 8 head, 1 4 head & 3 vat fryers
- Cooking line for limited menu (COB/Fillet & Strips): 2 6 heads, 1 8 head & 3 vat fryers
- Minimum 3 single door refrigerators & 3 freezers required
- Delivery station “dispatching area & pouches rack” to be considered if plan for delivery
Layouts of Kiosks & Caravans
Click here to check for some best practices from different markets best practices
