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Breaking into the restaurant industry is no easy feat.
Many food and beverage distributors face common hurdles such as slow responses, inconsistent orders, and intense competition. The good news is that you can overcome these challenges and sell to restaurants more efficiently by following a few strategic steps.
Below are six actionable tips that will streamline your process and help you close more deals.
Learning how to sell to restaurants, the first step is knowing who you’re selling to.
The needs of restaurants can vary wildly based on their concept, clientele, and menu style. To really hit the mark, you need to dig into what makes each establishment unique.
To figure this out, spend time researching restaurant websites and explore their menus. And don’t forget to go through their reviews. What ingredients do they highlight? Are they emphasizing freshness, locality, or unique flavors?
This groundwork shows you who’s most likely to appreciate your products and saves you time chasing leads that won’t go anywhere.
When you approach a restaurant with specific insights about its menu or philosophy, it shows you’ve done your homework.
And honestly, no chef or manager wants to explain their business to you, they expect you to already know. So while attempting to sell products to restaurants, never skip prior research.
Quality and compliance aren’t negotiable when you’re selling to restaurants. In fact, they’re your entry ticket.
Restaurants, especially those with a reputation to maintain, need to trust that what you’re offering meets the standards they require.
This means getting your products and processes certified to prove that they align with industry expectations. This applies to everything, whether you’re selling POS systems or some other solution.
Certifications are one way to communicate that trustworthiness. They answer questions like are your distribution practices reliable? Are you storing and transporting products at the right temperatures to guarantee freshness? And more.
But in addition to certifications, restaurants also require transparency. They want to work with suppliers who can back up their claims with proof about sourcing, safety, or environmental responsibility.
You need to show that you’re actually dependable and ready to go the extra mile to meet their needs.
Pricing is one of the trickiest parts of selling to restaurants. It needs to be competitive while earning you good profits.
To get this right, you first have to understand the ongoing pricing in the market. What are others charging for similar products? What makes your offerings stand out in terms of quality, freshness, or value?
Once you have this information, you’ll be better equipped to position your pricing in a way that appeals to your target audience.
If you’re charging a higher price for something that stands out, you need to communicate the benefits to justify those rates. Restaurants will only pay more if they see the added value in action.
You can also offer strategic discounts like volume-based ones to encourage larger purchases. Similarly, special pricing for first-time or regular customers can also get you loyal clients.
Restaurants, especially smaller ones, appreciate cost-saving opportunities, so these kinds of offers will increase your chances of closing deals.
Gone are the days when next-day delivery was the gold standard. Today, restaurants want more control over when they receive their orders like specifying the day and time. So distributors should provide options for when and how to sell produce to restaurants.
This level of flexibility sets you apart from competitors who might be less accommodating.
And modern delivery management tools can make this a lot easier. With them, you can optimize your routes and schedules and give restaurants a range of delivery slots to choose from without creating chaos on your end.
You can also incentivize clients to select delivery times that are most efficient for you. Or simply set special prices for delivery times that require you to go the extra mile.
If you can’t deliver on your promises, restaurants will quickly move on to someone who can. That’s why meeting your delivery commitments should always be a top priority.
So avoid overpromising and set realistic expectations from the onset. Fake promises can be a recipe for disaster if you can’t follow through.
Despite doing every right thing, issues like supply shortages or delays can still pop up for reasons beyond your control. The way you respond to these challenges is what really counts though.
For example, you should let customers know as soon as you’re aware of a problem. And don’t just stop at explaining the issue, offer a practical solution that minimizes disruption.
Clear and timely updates help avoid misunderstandings and reduce the need for back-and-forth calls or emails.
To really sell products to restaurants effectively, you need insights into their operations, size, location, competitors, and more. Having this kind of data can be the difference between landing a client or losing them to someone else.
There are foodservice databases like Brizo FoodMetrics with detailed information on thousands of food and beverage operators.
With insights on over 1.9 million establishments across the US, Canada, the UK, and Ireland in one place, you won’t have to look beyond Brizo.
The market intelligence platform also lets you filter restaurants by country, state, city, or country, for region specific insights.
Select the right prospects from the list, apply our how to sell to restaurants guide and launch your campaign for higher returns.
When figuring out how to sell to restaurants, you need to understand your potential customers thoroughly. Once you have that information, targeting restaurants becomes easier as your marketing campaign now has a solid basis.
The more you can align your operations with the unique needs of your clients, the more efficient your sales will be.
And when you top it off with a comprehensive restaurant database like Brizo, you make each sales pitch count.
Instead of chasing down fragmented bits of information, you can have a centralized, up-to-date resource at your fingertips.
So sign up for Brizo FoodMetrics and make data-driven sales decisions for higher efficiency.
Take your sales efficiency to the next level with our FREE 49-page resource: The Essential Guide to Marketing & Selling to Restaurants.
Download the full guide to learn best practices and tips on the steps that come after market research:
