Automatic Merchandiser - 39

VENDOR'S DAUGHTER

Start Thinking Macro
In Your Micro Markets
If you're not seeing gains in
revenue in your micro market,
it's time to think bigger.
By Jennifer Skidmore Calderon,
Contributor

I HAVE SPENT MOST OF THE LAST

six years angry at the misleading promises of success with micro markets.
"They will revitalize your company."
"They will increase sales 4x."
"They will make you rich."
As the director of business development at J&J Vending, these are the
empty promises I received from the
vending industry. (OK, I may have
made up the last one.) NAMA's website
is filled with information suggesting that market sales continue to rise.
Technology companies continue to
offer new kiosks and mobile payment
systems created specifically for micro
markets. It feels like everyone knows
how to make micro markets a success,
while you are looking at yours like a
collection of failed Pinterest recipes.
The reality is that markets are frustrating. People do steal from you, the
kiosk does break down, customers can
be a little high maintenance and no matter how pretty you make that planogram
look, drivers may still randomly place
an iced tea in between the variety of iced
coffees you had lined up for them in
your plans (#merchandisingfail).
But like most things in life, it isn't
that everything is wrong; it's more like a
perspective shift is needed. And a perspective shift is what I received. There
was no catalyst, no big "Aha!" moment,
but through a series of conversations
with competitors, some education
from 7-Eleven and changes imple-

mented by our micro market manager,
I have learned that micro markets can
increase sales. You just have to stop
playing small.
I'd like to share some strategies J&J
has borrowed from the larger convenience and grocery store industries.
RAISE YOUR PRICES

There is a good chance that if you
started with vending machines and
then transitioned to micro markets,
you did not adjust your margins to
reflect convenience store pricing.
Go to a few convenience stores
within your territory and record
how much they're charging for a few
specific products you also offer in your
micro markets to compare prices. For
example, you could compare prices for
a 20-ounce soda, a bag of chips and a
candy bar.
If you are like J&J, you will need to
raise your prices to match the pricing your research found. We recently
added a quarter to the sell price on all
20-ounce sodas and chips. In some
cases, we doubled the price. We used to
sell cheese squares for $0.40; we're now
selling them for $0.88.
I was worried that customers would
complain or that we might lose an
account, but we stayed the course and
raised the prices. Because, the truth is,
we are a convenience industry, and customers do need to pay for convenience.
I think the vending side of our
industry lost sight of that. We wanted
business desperately, so rather than
getting the best margins possible, we
started paying the customers a portion
of our sales. We undervalued what we
provide for customers.
You are providing a great service to
your customers by transporting food

Samples are one way to introduce people
to your products.
Healthy Generation Vending

safely to their office, rotating product
based on their purchasing patterns and
waking up early so that they can have
fresh breakfast when they get to work.
You are providing a convenience, and
your pricing should reflect that.
OFFER SAMPLE DAYS

Sampling days are a huge value add that
cost you nothing. Key contacts love
sample days because they offer perks
to employees and break up monotony.
Direct customers love trying new products without taking the risk of purchasing something unfamiliar. Product
makers love them because they grow
brand awareness and encourage direct
customer feedback.
You will love them because happy
customers are loyal customers. If you
make your key contact look good to
their team members - remember, they
are the hero, you are the guide - there
is a higher chance that when something
goes wrong, they will respond with
grace over anger. And when someone
asks your customers who provides their
micro market service, they'll be happy
to share your contact information.
Also, any time you give your direct
customer a reason to go to the market,
you increase the likelihood of sales, not
only on that day, but also on days to
come. Visit www.TheVendorsDaughter.
com/episode52 for more on samples.
REQUEST FREE FILLS

Every item in your markets needs to pay
rent for the space it takes. If you have

October/November 2019 * VendingMarketWatch.com

http://www.TheVendorsDaughter.com/episode52 http://www.TheVendorsDaughter.com/episode52 http://www.VendingMarketWatch.com

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