This document discusses the importance of conducting market survey research for developing a new catering business. It explains that market surveys should investigate four key segments: customers, competition, community, and labor pool. Information from the survey is used to create a customer profile and identify a target market. It also stresses analyzing the competition to determine factors like menu items, pricing, and service that customers consider when choosing a caterer. Understanding community demographics and economic conditions as well as the available labor pool are also outlined as important for feasibility. The document advocates applying survey findings to menu pricing and management to increase sales and profits.

1. Applying Market Survey
Information for food Business
Tapmaster Hoboken llc

2. CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
 Describe the initial concepts and activities related
to new business development.
 Explain a market survey profile, the development
of a target market, an analysis of the competition
and feasibility.
 Discuss the foundation for the formal business
plan.
 Discuss the development of the business concept.

3.  Market survey research is essential to the
success of every catering service.
 The four major interest segments that a
market survey must investigate are the
customer, the competition, the community
and the labor pool.

4.  Statistics and data from the market survey yield
information that can be used to assemble a profile
of the average customer.
 The customer profile is a major means of
identifying the target market on which to focus
marketing efforts.

5.  Customers base the decision on which
catering services to use for a private
function on four major factors:
availability, location, facilities and
service.
 A thorough survey of the competition
with respect to these factors identifies
those restaurants and catering services
that are directly competing for the
same target market.

6.  The availability of trained food service
personnel is critical concern of every
catering business.
 Catering service does, however, offer
prospective employees the benefit of
flexible hours and guaranteed income.
 Both of these factors have a significant
perceived value in the part-time labor
pool.

7.  Caterers who can develop a core of reliable part-time
employees, both production and service, will be secure in
their ability to service customers.
 The application of market survey information
throughout the menu program can increase sales,
as well as customer volume.

8. Menu pricing is one area in which this
information can have a significant
effect.
By thoroughly analyzing the menu
process of the catering businesses
identified as direct competition, a
pricing structure can be developed to
reflect current acceptable menu prices
and customer needs.

9. 1. DEVELOPING A CATERING
BUSINESS.
 Successful development of any business rest
on a foundation of information identifying the
market for the products or services offered
for sale.
Define target market
Discuss how information on the target
market is gathered: (gathered through
market survey research conducted in
the community).

10. The four market segments:
 Customer
 Competition
 Community
 Labor pool

11. 2. MARKET SURVEY
INFORMATION.
 Market survey information profiles
the target market and begins to
identify characteristics and trends
important to the success of a
catering business.

12. 3. CUSTOMER.
 Determining a customer profile is
difficult due to the span of age
groups participating in catered
functions.
 Because of the shortage of time to
prepare food, many single and two-
income families to turn to catering
services.

13. 4. COMPETITION.
 Competing businesses can often provide valuable
information to new and developing operations.
 Existing foodservice operations indicate the presence
of customer and community need.
 A complete analysis of the competition requires a
comparison of the variety of catering services, their
menu items, and their pricing structure.
 Explain the package-pricing format.

14. COMPETITION.
 It includes food and beverage
services along with entertainment
or theme programs.
 It is important to identify the
number and type of services
contained in the packages of each
competitive catering business in to
accurately compare prices.

15. 5. ANALYZING THE
COMPETITION.
 A comparison of competitive catering
services reveals trends in private party
formats, cuisine menus, theme and
entertainment concepts.
 Prospective caterers can use the
information to the competition survey
form to identify the direct competition
and determine how their catering
services can compete in the
established marketplace.

16. ANALYZING THE
COMPETITION.
 When the pricing structure for similar
services is reasonably close, customers
consider four additional major factors:
 Availability
 Location
 Facilities
 Service

17. 6. COMMUNITY.
 Economic health of a community is the
single most important contributing toward
disposable income habits.
 Community Demographics are also critical to
the level of disposable income available.
 Communities, as well as individuals, adjust
their dining and social activities according to
the current economic situation.

18. 7. LABOR.
 The availability of both skilled and able to
work the flexible hours required by catering
services is essential to the success.
 Labor is one of the most critical supply areas.
 Trained wait staff is difficult to find and
retain.
 Labor turnover is often high.

19. 8. LOCATION.
 The primary consideration for off-
premise caterers is the distance
traveled to function locations.
 On-premise catering companies
must consider how guests will
access the facility and the location
of other businesses offering
catering services.

20. 9. FEASIBILITY STATEMENT.
 Determine the feasibility of making
a profit.
 Estimate the amount of revenue
and profit that can be achieved.
 Discuss the importance of
forecasting.

21. 10. APPLYING MARKET SURVEY
INFORMATION.
 Market survey information can be
applied to catering menu
management in a number of areas
of a menu program and is
particularly helpful in menu pricing.

22. Management should review the
following questions:
What is the competition charging for a similar
catering menu? Are portion sizes and quality of
food items similar to the competition?
How important is this menu to the total menu
program?
Will a lower selling price and the resulting
higher food cost of this menu cause the overall
food cost to be too high

23. Management should review the
following questions:
Will volume sales of this menu
create the desired profit at the
lower menu price?
Will the average catering
customer accept this price as
meeting their perceived value of
all the menu items included in
the menu?

24. Key Points Review:
 Market survey research is essential to the
success of every catering service.
 The four major interest segments that a
market survey must investigate are the
customer, the competition, the
community, and the labor pool.
 The customer profile is a major means of
identifying the target market on which to
focus marketing efforts.

25. Key Points Review:
 Customers base the decision on which
catering service to use for a private function
on four major factors: availability, location,
facilities, and service.
 The availability of trained foodservice
personnel is a critical concern of every
catering business.
 The application of market survey information
throughout the menu program can increase
sales as well as customer volume.

26. Key Points Review:
 Menu pricing can have a significant
effect.
 By analyzing the menu prices of the
catering businesses competition, a
pricing structure can be developed
to reflect current acceptable menu
prices and customer needs.

27. Review Questions
 Name and discuss the importance of
each of the four market segments
which contribute to the success of a
foodservice operation.

28. Customer
 The customer profile includes age,
average income, occupation, and a
family profile.
 This information can be used to
target direct marketing efforts
toward the customer group that
matches the profile.

29. Competition
 The market survey profile, development
of a target market, an analysis of the
competition, feasibility estimates must be
developed to determine if the business
concept is feasible.
 All of these activities produce the
information that provides the foundation
for the formal business plan and a basis
for deciding whether to continue
developing the business concept.

30. Community
 Owners and managers need to estimate the amount of
revenue and profit that can be achieved by these
efforts based on the predicted volume of business.
 In addition, it must also identify the number of catering
functions available to be booked within the target area.
 This becomes the projection for new business
development.
 Forecasting is based on the number of functions, group
size, and average check rather than table turnovers and
daily receipts.

31. Labor pool
 By thoroughly analyzing the menu
prices of the catering businesses
identified as direct competition, a
pricing structure can be developed
to reflect current acceptable menu
prices and customer needs.

32. Thanks