bake - May 2017 - cake8

NAVIGATING THE COMPLEX ORDERING PROCESS

WEDDING CAKE CONTRACT:

"If they are bargain shopping,
that is probably not your
customer."
- Beth Fahey

1

Payment Policy:
* Deposit
* Final Balance

2

Finalization Policy:
* Can changes be made?

3

Your Liability:
* Where does it end?

total charges, deposit/date accepted, balance due/date
paid, client name, event date and signatures.
Among the often overlooked details are wedding cake
instructions. To steer clear of problems down the road, be
specific with notes for the decorator, cake topper, flowers,
cake stand, color reference, number of servings, size,
shape, cake and filling flavor, icing, and date, time and
place of reception.
EXECUTING THE PLAN
Formalizing a documented process from start to finish is
one of the best ways to avoid mistakes and confusion. Beth
Fahey, owner of Creative Cakes in Tinley Park, Illinois, has
developed a detailed action plan that offers many useful
ideas for any bakery in the wedding cake business.
For starters, plan ahead for how your staff will interact
and follow through with customers. Have pricing
information next to every phone in your bakery, and set
parameters for the duration of calls. Remember that
spending too much time on one call can cost you dollars.
8

2017

THE WEDDING ISSUE

If your bakery has an online wedding gallery (a very
good idea), code each photo so you know which cake that
customers are talking about when they call. Position your
computers near the phones, so there is easy access for your
staff. Finally, train your staff on how to ask customers to
come into the bakery for a consultation.
Price quotes can be tricky business because the age of
online information has opened the floodgates for price
shoppers. "If they are bargain shopping," Fahey cautions,
"that is probably not your customer."
Handling price quotes by email is always a good
idea because it gives you a record. Creative Cakes
uses a "contact us" form for wedding couples to
request a quote. Available on the bakery's home page
(creativecakesbakeryandcafe.com), the form allows
customers to specify type of request, name, email, expected
number of guests, pickup date and time, recommended
budget and special instructions. Brides can include a photo
file with the form.
The key next step is guiding the wedding couple to
a sit-down consultation in your bakery. So should you
charge for consultations? "In our area, it did not fly,"
Fahey says. "But we will charge ($25) a credit card if they
are a no-show. Now everybody shows up."
Each consultation lasts about an hour. At Creative
Cakes, the wedding couple samples cakes, fillings and
buttercream. They peruse a wedding cake catalog that
includes photos and wedding cake information. After
sampling, the Creative Cakes consultant provides them
with an estimate of their desired wedding cake or offers a
range of prices based on guest count and design selections.
Creative Cakes also developed a wedding cake worksheet
in which they can choose from the various options of
designs and add-ons. "Give them information. They will
feel empowered," Fahey says. "They can take the worksheet
with them, but remember that you always want to close the
sale whenever possible." *
http://www.creativecakesbakeryandcafe.com
bake - May 2017

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