Yesterday at a pizza place near work, I found Pizza Marketing Quarterly, a trade magazine for pizza shop owners, among the old magazines available to patrons. A lover of pizza and trade magazines, I
perused it while eating a salad (the pizza at this place wasn't that good).
I've been going to pizza places since I was little, and even as an adult, I routinely seek out the best slices in New York. But I¹ve never thought about the business of owning a pizza place. Pizza shops are small businesses, and their owners have the same concerns as any proprietor.
One of the most interesting ads was for a call center service (read an article about pizza call service from Pizza Market Place, a different pizza trade magazine, here) that takes delivery orders for pizzerias and] sends the request to the store, so managers can worry about the restaurant instead of the phone. Is this a great idea or just a middleman getting in the way? It depends. On Super Bowl Sunday, having someone else take calls makes sense, but on a Tuesday afternoon, it's a waste of money. Sales managers also need to weigh the necessity and the cost when incorporating something new to their business.
For a run down on new sales services that work, check out Dave Stein's column at
Manage Smarter.
I think the lack of balance simply offers the opportunity to be creative in your pricing strategies. For instance, charge a little more during big game times but less on Tuesday afternoon - for that matter, have a several different prices depending on demand. Do it right and you'll have delivery places breaking down your door to help them.
Posted by: Ron Hayes | January 03, 2007 at 12:27 PM
What's unfortunate is that the lack of balance -- Super Bowl Sunday vs. an ordinary Tuesday -- is going to drive up the price of the pizza service, rendering it less attractive.
Posted by: Jacqueline Durett | December 26, 2006 at 01:42 PM