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Feel guilty every time you raise your menu prices?

24th March 2022 by Emily Dyer-Schiefer

At least once I week I meet a food business owner who isn’t making enough money. Somewhere in the chat, we’ll talk about their costs and prices. And I’ll suggest they raise their prices.

That always triggers at least one of these responses

“Don’t you think people would get pissed off with me?”
“I just don’t know if I could get away with that”
“I feel bad. Like, things are already so tough out there and now we are raising our prices too”
“We’re already an expensive option, and I don’t want to drive away the few customers that we have”
“I want customers to feel like they’re getting great value”

Hmm. These are reflex responses and I know that they feel like the truth, because everyone in the food industry says them. But they’re not.

I need to be honest with you:

Being the cheapest is doing nothing for your business.

You’re underselling yourself because you’re too scared to deal with slight discomfort. So it’s easier to fly under the radar, never quite making money and making things difficult for yourself. You’d rather do that than show up as the most expensive option.

You can’t continue as the low-budget option.

So here are a few quick thoughts on why being the bargain isn’t good for your business. In fact, it’s harming it.

If you’re the cheapest, no one thinks you’re the best. If you’re the best, no one expects you to be the cheapest.

How many times have you glossed over the cheaper dish soap when grocery shopping and picked up the more expensive? Because the more expensive one must be better, right?

I rest my case.

Competing to be the cheapest is literally a race to the bottom.

You’re pricing yourself compared to your competitors. But what if they’re desperate? What if their business is failing? What if they’re pricing based on you?

You don’t know. You’ll keep undercutting each other until neither of you is making money. Have the confidence to charge what you’re worth.

Your goal shouldn’t be to offer the lowest possible price. It should be to provide the greatest value.

If you’ve got the best quality and promise, you’re definitely offering amazing value.

Pick two: good, fast or cheap.

There’s a reason this is called The Golden Triangle.

Good and fast both need people, equipment. Cheap means you’re sacrificing quality in raw ingredients, and you have fewer people on hand so you’re not fast.

The person offering the cheapest is usually cutting a corner somewhere.

It’s better to explain your price and value once than have to apologise forever for a poor quality experience.

I’ll take one uncomfortable conversation and learning over years of shame anytime.

When people STOP buying completely you might be too expensive.

If you’re selling ANY you have proof that people can afford it. Your job is to find more of those people.

Not many people are price shopping to that extent. They’re not going to your competitor because of a fraction in price. They’re going because the value was better communicated.

I know you think that is why they went there. But people are going to your more expensive competitors too. Being a tiny bit cheaper won’t influence someone’s decision. Do you know what will?

When they can see it will be worth it
When it’s presented as the only option
When other people have told them how good it is.

None of these has anything to do with price.

Stop making price your excuse.

Is your costing on track? Pick up my Intro to Costing Workbook below and find out.

My Content Creation Workflows for busy Food Biz Owners

24th March 2022 by Emily Dyer-Schiefer

You know you should create content. But, it’s a pain. This is exactly why it’s the first thing to fall to the side in the face of all your other pressing concerns. You know like, running your business, serving food to people and dealing with your staff.

If you don’t plan for it and make time, it doesn’t get done. So here is the plan I introduce to all busy food business owners.

It’s a simple set of workflows and tips to help you fit it in. All it needs from you is a little bit of time to plan each week, and then a commitment to stay on top of it.

Tip 1: Set yourself up

Step 1

Find a scheduling app you like and can work with. Working with a scheduler will change your life.

The most recommended are

Using Facebook & Instagram’s internal schedulers
Planoly
Later

Using a scheduler means you pre-schedule content to post, and remove it from your brain. You can now create content ahead of time, instead of on the fly (which, let’s be honest, will always be the last thing you do.)

You’ll also now be able to plan your content, which means better quality posts.

(Don’t like planning content? Feel like it ruins your creativity? That’s ok! But then you shouldn’t be reading this article. This article is all about helping you manage the time you have, to do what you need to do.)

Step 2

Find a place to store all your pictures and videos. I upload pictures to Dropbox so I can access them from both my phone and my laptop. You can also use your Google Drive.

Saving your pictures centrally saves you from having to scroll through your phone to find the picture you want. They’ll all be in one place. And you’re less likely to lose them, so you can re-use pictures. It’s great!

Step 3

Set up a spot in your kitchen or restaurant where you can take pictures. Make sure you have good light, and it’s a spot that can sit undisturbed.

Tip 2: Organize

Mark out in your calendar when you will be planning and creating content. Plot out your sessions for the month. Book times when you are able to concentrate and won’t be pulled in 100 directions.

Tip 3: Plan

Once a month, take 2 hours and plot out your posts and reels in your calendar, like the example below.

Decide what types of content you will need: images, graphics and videos.

Use this session to start drafting captions, and gathering your images.

In another 2 hour session get the rest done:

Design carousels if you’re posting any
Design reels cover images
Finish captions
Schedule your photographs and videos for the month

Use a final session to do your filming and editing.

Schedule your content as you go and post it automatically. Set reminders to manually post non-scheduled content, like reels and videos.

Tip 3: Build a content bank

At the start of each week

Decide which orders you want to photograph/film
Write them up in your kitchen or near your desk

When those orders come up

Photograph or film
Upload to your Dropbox or Google Drive

You can edit when you have an hour to spare.

The great thing about content is that it doesn’t have to be real-time. You can post items that were taken months ago. No one will know the difference.

Tip 4: Outsource what you can

If you use graphics, it helps hugely to have a designer set up some Canva templates. You can quickly edit them, and they’ll have your branding already.
If you battle to take pictures book a shoot with a photographer. The benefit of having 2 months of pre-shot content far outweighs the cost.

Steal my Recipe Development Process

20th September 2021 by Emily Dyer-Schiefer

Are you confident that your team can cook perfectly without you?
Do you know precisely how each dish will turn out?
Can you easily calculate order quantities ahead of time, because you know what each recipe produces?

If not, you need this guide.

If your business sells food, you need reliable recipes.

This is the process I’ve used in over 40 food businesses to create reliable, consistent recipes.