Organic search is a top way for buyers to discover a breakroom operator’s products and services. It also allows them to understand who you are as a business, where you operate, and what current customers are saying about you. Your company’s organic search results cannot be improved through paid advertising.  Instead, achieving top ranking on search engines is the result of knowing how breakroom buyers shop online and how to influence your SEO. 

Keep reading to learn the tactics breakroom operators can implement to improve their organic search ranking and get their business, products, and services noticed online. 

What is Organic Search?

When a buyer enters a keyword or query into a search engine, the results they see are a combination of paid and organic search results.  After advertisements, organic search results are ranked in priority order.  If your website is fully optimized with industry-related keywords and content, it helps your SEO and allows your business to achieve higher rankings, gain organic traffic, and generate leads. Breakroom operators with high organic search rankings have a better likelihood of buyers of breakroom services finding their website.  

Compared to paid advertisements, organic search rankings cannot be bought. They are determined by the quality and quantity of your company’s online marketing content.

But what types of content benefit your SEO and what can you do to improve your company’s organic search rankings?

A smart website

Your website is the #1 tool to represent your company’s services online, generate leads, and close sales. Your website should host a wealth of content to support and promote all aspects of your breakroom services, including pantry service, micro-markets, vending, and office coffee. But your website’s design and its content not only affect the user experience, it also impacts your organic search rankings. That is why it is important for breakroom operators to create an SEO-focused website that ‘speaks the same language’ your buyers do.  A website with content that is rich in industry-related keywords and phrases specific to the refreshment services industry will make it easier for search engines to match your website with buyers searching for breakroom services.

Informative blog articles

Blogs are a great way to elaborate on topics of interest as well as highlight current breakroom trends.  Plus, blogs boost SEO by positioning your website as a source for relevant answers to prospective buyers’ questions. Blog posts that use a variety of keywords and on-page SEO tactics are recognized as more relevant and can give your business more opportunities to rank higher in search engines. Another benefit? Blogs help your business gain industry authority and trust with breakroom customers.

Social Media Content

Posting regular content to your social media platforms helps your company stay top of mind with existing customers and potential buyers of breakroom services.  In addition, having a social media presence helps increase your online visibility and supports SEO efforts to drive traffic to your website. Create posts with inbound links to your website and encourage those that engage with your content to click through.  This will increase your site’s popularity and credibility for organic search. Posts that tag relevant fellow businesses or clients will increase their exposure – and so will the likes they receive.  The more eyes on your content the better. You may even notice your social media profiles showing up near the top of online searches as well.

Online Business Listings

Finally, online business listings are important for SEO because they provide valuable information at a quick glance. Not only do they increase your visibility in local search, but they also increase your chances of ranking higher than competitors. Your business listing also provides a place for existing customers to review your breakroom business and drive more traffic to your website. 

Managing your online content to maximize SEO will help ensure your company ranks high in organic search and new leads discover your website.  Prospective buyers are looking online for breakroom solutions every day. When your website is optimized, potential customers have an easier time finding the breakroom refreshment products and services you offer and reaching out to you first.

If you’re a breakroom operator looking to improve your online presence and SEO, contact VendCentral. We are 100% focused on the refreshment services industry and develop results-oriented online marketing strategies for breakroom operators.

Client testimonials are a mighty way to influence buyers of breakroom services – and operators who incorporate them into their digital marketing strategy are using a proven tactic to drive sales. Here we explore why testimonials work, how to obtain them, and where to incorporate them in your digital marketing strategy.

Why testimonials work

Buyers in every industry use the internet to search for new products and services and the refreshment services industry is no different.  A great company website can impress and inform but client testimonials go one step further in establishing trust and converting leads to customers.  In fact, 85% of buyers find testimonials as valuable as a personal recommendation from a friend or colleague.

Client testimonials can also have a positive impact on SEO. When testimonials are specific, they often contain “search worthy” keywords.  And, if properly promoted, they can boost your website’s ranking in organic search results. Better rankings drive more traffic to your site. Testimonials that include specific recommendations are also a great way to increase the awareness of particular products or services.  This can lead to upgrades with your existing customers too.

Obtaining testimonials

A great testimonial is often the result of great timing, so always keep the idea of collecting a testimonial top of mind.  Guide your customers toward providing the information you seek by asking them questions. Did your customer recently switch to single-cup coffee equipment? Ask them how their employees are enjoying the convenience.  Did they recently upgrade to pantry service? Invite them to tell you about their employees’ positive reaction to free snacks and beverages. Also ask them to share how your company handled communication, logistics, and service issues along the way.

Make it easy – The key to obtaining testimonials is to make it easy for your customers to contribute.  Email long-term customers to ask for a few words on your company’s behalf – and give them a prompt or a few simple questions to answer. If your customers are willing to provide you with a testimonial but are short on time, offer to co-write one with them or prepare one for them. Remember, if you are writing a testimonial on your customer’s behalf, be sure to get their approval before using it.

If you are reaching out to a relatively new customer, a quick call to check in on how things are going might be a better option.  If they respond favorably them, follow up with a request to quote them in an upcoming testimonial.  They will be pleased to know you value their comments.

Consider video – Video testimonials are growing in popularity, so consider getting a few of your own. According to LinkedIn, 79% of consumers say they have watched a video testimonial to learn more about a company, product, or service. Video testimonials don’t have to be rehearsed.  Many buyers love their authenticity. So, if you are on-site installing a new micro-market or hosting a fresh food or coffee tasting, seize the moment!  Speak with your client directly and obtain a video testimonial on the spot.

Regardless of how you obtain your testimonials, tailor them to be as detailed as possible.  In addition to the SEO benefits, buyers find detailed testimonials more unique, relevant, and tangible.

Marketing testimonials

Once you have obtained a variety of testimonials, it’s time to put them to work!

Showcase them on your website – If your company has acquired a lot of testimonials, it deserves a testimonial page on your website.  But, if you are still gathering them, don’t wait to show them off.  Testimonials are a perfect addition to a company’s home page or about page.  Sprinkling relevant testimonials on pages dedicated to specific breakroom products or services can provide key information right where buyers are seeking it too.

Post on Social Media – A steady stream of positive customer feedback posted on social media has many benefits.  Fresh new content that validates your breakroom services is always a win.  Including backlinks will drive traffic to specific pages on your website that pertain to your client’s testimonial too. Also, don’t forget to tag your clients who provide the testimonial.  Your post will be seen by all of your clients’ connections and your company will gain valuable exposure to prospects who value your client’s opinions.

Share as a Google Review – Ask your customers to post their testimonial (or a portion of it) as a Google Review and offer to show them how.  A positive Google Review will further enhance your company’s credibility and boost its ranking on Google search.

Client testimonials are an important component of your digital marketing strategy and can go a long way in influencing buyers of breakroom services. Unbiased input from customers in similar circumstances can certainly enhance lead generation and validate a buyer’s decision to become a customer. But, don’t underestimate how the process of collecting testimonials can enhance your relationships with existing customers too. The experience shows them you value their honest feedback and care about their input.  The information your clients share can praise what you are doing right, identify employees who are going above and beyond or offer chances for breakroom upgrades.  However, it can also reveal opportunities for improvement. Acting on your clients’ feedback, positive or negative, will help ensure you retain them for years to come.

VendCentral helps operators and manufacturers in the refreshment services industry with digital marketing strategies, website development, written content and creative design.   Contact us for a free consultation.

Gone are the days when placing an online order was considered a luxury. It is now an expectation for customers, including those in the refreshment services industry. But, online ordering not only makes it easy for OCS customers to order products where and when it’s convenient for them.  It’s a legitimate way for breakroom operators to increase sales and cut operational costs.

That is why VendCentral recently teamed with Supply Wizards to help our clients add and promote online ordering capabilities. Supply Wizards specializes in the refreshment services industry. Their online ordering system is fast and easy to implement. Plus, it can function independently or seamlessly integrate with your existing vending management system.

Are you a breakroom operator interested in upgrading from taking orders via phone, email, and fax? Want to explore a streamlined, more reliable process? If so, read more to learn the many benefits Supply Wizards can provide.

A personalized experience for your customers

Supply Wizards allows you to customize your online store by individual customer account. Do you have a variety of pricing, payment terms, or product offerings in your contracts?  No problem.  Each customer has their own login to the online ordering platform and a unique experience based on their contract. You can even provide budget tracking in the system for customers who request it.

Increased order sizes

Online ordering not only increases customer satisfaction and loyalty. It can also boost sales by encouraging customers to order more. Supply Wizards builds an intuitive product recommendation feature into their platform. And the power of suggestive selling is real.  Customers often add on recommended items or additional products available to them through the browse feature. Studies have shown that 52% of customers on the Supply Wizards ordering platform use these features.  This means a bigger average order size for you.   In fact, breakroom operators report an average order increase of 14% after implementing Supply Wizards for their OCS customers.

Influence over what’s purchased

In addition to the recommended products feature, the Supply Wizards platform includes dedicated space for promotional ads. VendCentral can work with you to design promotions that move slow sellers, introduce new products, or reward customers for buying more. For clients on select marketing programs, VendCentral can further promote these specials through exclusive website features, social media, or email campaigns.

Streamlined operations

Staffing shortages have become a significant pain point for breakroom operators. Keeping up with customer orders across various methods can be time-consuming, create bottlenecks in the system, and cause inaccuracies that lead to dissatisfied OCS customers. Supply Wizards streamlines order management for more efficient back-end operations. Orders can now be processed by your team with little to no manual effort. Breakroom operators using Supply Wizards report significant decreases in operational expenses – enough savings that the Supply Wizards system actually pays for itself.

Better inventory management

One of the biggest challenges for breakroom operators is efficiently managing their inventory. Supply Wizards seamlessly integrates into your existing vending management system. Once items are set as out of stock, they are automatically hidden from the customer’s view on the Supply Wizards ordering platform. They will not reappear on the ordering platform until they are acknowledged as back in your inventory.

An online ordering system can be a powerful addition to your website – loved by your existing customers and impressive to new prospects.  With Supply Wizards, adding online ordering to your website is easy and completed in only a few short weeks.  In the end, the only thing breakroom operators wish is that they had done it sooner.  If you are ready to see the Supply Wizards ordering platform in action, VendCentral can help.  We will arrange a quick demo and show you how we can help launch and promote your new online ordering capabilities. Contact us and our team will help you get started!

A brand-new Coolbreakrooms has launched for 2022 – just in time for a year that is sure to be filled with new opportunities for the refreshment services industry.  As an extension of VendCentral, Coolbreakrooms offers an online community where operators and manufacturers can thrive.

Coolbreakrooms speaks directly to breakroom decision-makers. It is a platform designed for operators and manufacturers to promote their goods and services directly to HR and facility managers. With its expansion this year, Coolbreakrooms is developing new industry partnerships. How it can help you reach your business goals for 2022?

Promotes the Industry

Coolbreakrooms’ main initiative is to promote breakroom operators and the refreshment services industry as a whole. Its website inspires breakroom upgrades by showcasing how better breakrooms positively impact employees and improve workplace culture.

The website’s Featured Breakrooms page highlights gold-standard breakrooms that deliver modern technology, satisfying food and beverages and a welcoming environment for employees. It provides customers interested in updating their company breakroom with the inspiration they need to get started.

Coolbreakrooms intends to rapidly expand their featured breakrooms gallery with pictures of breakrooms in all sizes.  This is a great opportunity for operators to showcase their work. Operators are invited to submit photos of their premium breakroom installs for inclusion on the site.  Selected operators may receive free marketing exposure through photo credits, in-depth articles, and social media promotions.

Boosts Business for Operators

Coolbreakrooms is focused on providing more leads to top-notch operators in the refreshment services industry.  It does this by consulting with breakroom customers and matching them with Authorized Providers in their own hometown.  They enhance the service by guiding customers to products and equipment best suited for their workplace environment.

Coolbreakrooms is valuable for larger companies that are interested in breakroom upgrades but have limited time or resources to dedicate to the process.  It’s particularly useful for companies with workplaces in multiple cities, as it provides one turnkey solution for breakroom services across the US and internationally.

To become part of the Coolbreakrooms Authorized Provider network, breakroom operators must satisfy certain quality standards. There is no fee to join.

Drives Sales for Manufacturers

Manufacturers in the refreshment services industry have long found themselves short on channel-specific marketing opportunities. But the Coolbreakrooms website provides a new way to promote products and equipment directly to breakroom customers. Those partnering with Coolbreakrooms can now drive demand for food and beverages, gourmet office coffee, water filtration systems, breakroom technology, and more.

As it grows, Coolbreakrooms will shine a larger spotlight on the best of the best from all business categories.  It will develop key relationships with industry manufacturers and create an impactful way for them to market directly to breakroom customers and influence sales.

The website will promote newness and innovation in a constantly evolving industry and educate customers on the latest breakroom options available.

VendCentral’s goal with Coolbreakrooms is straightforward – to promote breakroom upgrades and support the growth of the refreshment services industry. This year, the new Coolbreakrooms website will generate content geared towards breakroom decision-makers and provide a unique platform for all members of the industry community to participate and benefit. If you are interested in realizing greater demand for your goods and services VendCentral welcomes you to contact them to discuss joining the Coolbreakrooms movement.

If you are a breakroom operator who has yet to utilize email marketing, the new year is the perfect time to make the leap. Done right, email marketing is a valuable part of your overall marketing strategy – and can provide you with a high return on your digital marketing investment.

Here are some of the top reasons to try email marketing:

• 91% of US adults like receiving promotional emails from companies they do business with (MarketingSherpa)
• Email is almost 40 times more effective than Facebook and Twitter combined in helping your business acquire new customers. (McKinsey)
• According to 80 percent of professionals, email marketing drives customer acquisition and retention. (eMarketer)

Getting Started with Email Marketing

Your email campaigns will only work if the right eyes are seeing them. Are your contacts located in a pile of business cards, in your personal email, or stored on your cell phone? It’s time to clean up, organize, and modernize. The process may seem daunting, but it’s worth it!  Organize your contacts into one electronic file so they are easy to access, maintain, and transfer. Make sure each contact is complete with all relevant information included.

Add industry-specific columns to your electronic file to include custom tags for the refreshment services industry and your company in particular. Examples of custom tags may include current services (vending, micro-market, pantry, office coffee, etc.), company size, company industry, and contract end date. This will allow you to filter your campaigns for specific audiences.

Storing and Maintaining Email Contacts

The great news is there are online marketing tools like MailChimp and HubSpot that are available to you for free or low-cost. You can not only store and maintain your contacts here, but you can also create and send email campaigns on the same platform. Take a little time to decide which tool is right for you. Both MailChimp and HubSpot have resources and tutorials available to help you format your contact list properly for transfer (including proper setup for importing your custom tags). They also contain lots of useful information for creating and sending your emails.

Establishing a clean, complete contact database online is something worth celebrating!  But we all know how quickly things change.  Updating your contact list should become routine.  If you have a sales team that contributed to your master list, empower them to take ownership of maintaining their own contacts on the platform after they are transferred.

Ready, Set, Engage

A great email begins with a well thought out plan of what you are going to communicate and to whom. For this article, we’ll assume your message is set and you’ve designed an eye-catching email (if you need help designing digital marketing content, we’ve got you covered). 

Now that your list of contacts is uploaded to your platform of choice, you are ready to start sending emails. Some of your email campaigns will be suitable for everyone to receive but many will be targeted for specific audiences. Avoid sending emails that are irrelevant or don’t provide value to your customers.  It may prompt them to unsubscribe from your email list.  Instead, filter your email list to ensure the right people are seeing your message.

Want to promote your company’s micro-markets? Target this email exclusively for prospects or customers with vending services. Looking to upgrade customers to bean to cup or single-cup equipment? Send your email to customers with traditional coffee service. By understanding and targeting the proper audience, your emails will be more relevant, effective, and likely to convert to a sale.

There is no time like NOW to get those contacts ready for email. Email is a proven way to enhance your overall digital marketing strategy and boost your sales. And by creating and maintaining a detailed contact list online, you will be sure your audience is receiving content that is tailored specifically to them. Compliment your emails with a great website and engaging social media for a multifaceted way to grow your business in the new year.

VendCentral helps operators and manufacturers in the refreshment services industry develop online marketing strategies to grow their business. Contact us to learn more.

You’ve created social media accounts for your business, but how do you actually get people to follow your page? Social media followers are potential loyal customers and advocates for your business. Ninety percent of shoppers say they buy from businesses and brands they follow on social media. A major focus of your social media marketing strategy should be growing your followers and cultivating your existing ones. This will help you increase your audience reach, boost engagement, and build a loyal following. We’ve outlined steps businesses should take to do just that.

Content Matters

You will attract new followers with content that engages and adds value. Consider content that is: 

• Helpful Useful tips and tricks go a long way with followers, and they have high reach potential – meaning followers may send it to friends or reshare it by posting it to their Facebook page, Instagram stories, or retweeting.
• Thought-Provoking Anything that gets followers to leave a comment on your posts is well worth a shot, so ask questions. Does your company install micro-markets? Ask followers what their must-have snack is. Coffee service providers can ask “Do you prefer flavored or traditional roast coffees?” The options are endless.
• Exclusive Give followers the advantage of hearing exciting announcements first on your social media page. This can include sales, new product offerings, or exciting business updates. You don’t need one type of content to work for everyone; try experimenting to discover what works best for your audience.
• Visually Pleasing Some people just love a good aesthetic and seek that during their daily social media scroll-throughs. Remember each post is part of the same story!
• Entertaining You can’t go wrong with a good meme. They’re easy to create and easily editable so that you can make them relevant to your business’s offering.

Follow Relevant Businesses

Following the social media accounts of potential customers in your area can serve as a great discovery tool. They’ll most likely follow your business in return, and this will help your page get suggested to their followers too. However, there are likely other prospects not even on your radar.  We suggest partnering with your local Chamber of Commerce to get access to the names of decision-makers and notified of new businesses coming to your area. Following community organizations, especially those you support can also serve as a discovery tool. By liking and commenting on their posts, you’ll catch the eye of potential customers – and stay top of mind when they are ready to make a purchase.

Partner With Your Suppliers

In addition to following relevant businesses, you should follow your suppliers and partner with them to curate your social media posts. Brands have a wealth of pre-made graphics they are willing to share. This will ensure you use high-quality content that’s engaging and consistent. It also makes it easy for brands to feature you in their own content, which can lead to more exposure and more followers for your business.  

Another strategy is to encourage user-generated content. This popular tactic involves reposting content created by customers. User-generated content (UGC) can include photos, videos, and product reviews that speak to the quality of your business’ products or customer service.

By rewarding customers with the possibility of reposting, UGC encourages engagement and exposure. For you to see their content, make sure they tag your account or incorporate your branded hashtag in their posts. This simple process introduces you to their followers, who could soon become yours.

Be Responsive

Try commenting on the posts of other businesses or individuals in your community. You can answer questions, leave a helpful tip, or just provide some kind words. When people see your comments, they may be inclined to check out your page and eventually follow you. You can search for people and places by location using Facebook and LinkedIn. 

Include Your Social Media Links on Everything

If possible, make sure that non-social media touchpoints can be used to access your social media accounts. Website pages, email campaigns, and other digital assets should include direct, functioning links to your channels. Run a micro-market? Tangible items like receipts or shopping bags can include your social media handles, too.

Use Relevant Hashtags

Give users a way to find you based on their interests, because there’s usually an intention to follow with hashtag searches. Use the names of your products and services, as well as popular terminology among your target audience (think #coffeebreak) to boost your chance of catching a potential follower’s eye.

Use Location Tags 

This is another quick and easy way for people to find your page. Many people search by location — specifically cities — to find new businesses in their area. Others may search by location to find additional content of interest. Using location tags can be a powerful tactic, requires minimal effort, and helps increase traffic to your business. To stand out among the competition, ramp up your strategy by adding a location to your posts and stories.

Hold Contests

Contests and giveaways are great for boosting engagement and gaining followers. To enter a giveaway, one must follow you, “like” the giveaway post, and tag a friend (or several) in the comments. It’s possible that some of those tagged friends will be interested in your content and follow you. Running a contest after an install for VendBucks or micro-market credits is one idea that’s easy to conduct. It will help drive traffic to your social pages, as well as the potential to increase sales.

Some other techniques to incentivize new followers include offering freebies or perks for proof of a follow.  One idea is to hold a coffee tasting event and offer a free danish or pack of donuts to any employee that follows your business on social media. Be sure to have signage that includes your social handles, so it will be easier for those on-site to find and follow you.

Now that you have some ideas for content to post, you need to make sure it’s posted on a consistent basis. A sporadic posting schedule can put people off, because how valuable can your content be if it’s only posted once every few weeks? On a more technical level, consistency plays a big role in how algorithms determine what content your followers will see. To put it simply, consistent posting leads to consistent engagement and new follower growth, which is the goal.

You may have heard of a customer journey map, but are wondering what it is and how businesses can benefit from it.  An effective customer journey map is a great tool to help you get inside the customer’s mind, understand their perspective, and learn how they interact with your company from start to finish. The better you understand your customer’s journey, the better you can improve their experience.

What Is a Customer Journey Map?

Your customer’s journey (sometimes called a user journey) is their experience from the moment they first learn about your business, to when they engage in purchasing your product or service, to when they receive after-sales communication. It is the entire lifecycle your customer goes through to convert from a prospect to a satisfied customer.

So, what is a customer journey map?

A customer journey map is the visual representation of your customers’ journey when engaging with your business. Customer journey mapping is used by many companies to understand every detail of their customers’ experience from discovery, to purchase, to long term customer service and retention. 

Why Is a Customer Journey Map Important?

There are many reasons creating a customer journey map is beneficial for your business. Although no two customer journeys are alike, a customer journey map can help you ensure consistency in providing a great customer experience. It takes time and practice to create a customer journey map that is clear and effective, but it’s worth the effort.

An effective customer journey map can help you better understand and empathize with your customers. In other words, it will help you put yourself in your customer’s shoes. The customer’s experience should be illustrated at every touchpoint, until they achieve “satisfied customer” status. By doing this, your company can identify improvements to make the experience more efficient and rewarding.

Business leaders create customer journey maps that accomplish the following:

Result in a Desired Outcome

Whether it be contacting you for a free consultation or purchasing from a specific product line, your map should have a specific purpose and goal in mind. Are you creating a map to improve customer service, generate more sales, or eliminate specific pain points? Use your map as a tool to clearly identify obstacles on this journey, address them, and then eliminate them. 

Identify Touchpoints

In mapping the customer journey, touchpoints refer to the platforms or locations where customers interact with your business. It can be an advertisement, a social media post, a website, or a Google Search results page.

Customers often go through multiple touchpoints on their journey. For instance, they might have heard of your business from a Yelp review before visiting your website. Identifying all potential touchpoints your customer may go through will help you better understand how you can impact them.

Create Customer Personas

Every customer is unique, comes from a different background, and may have varying expectations. For instance, a facility manager looking for a vending provider might not be looking for the same supplier as an HR manager shopping for an employee retention solution.

Your customer base can be made of multiple types of customers. Part of a compelling customer journey mapping session is identifying and differentiating between each one. Creating different maps tailored to different customer personas ensures your solutions are personalized to that customer type. Personas are powerful tools for predicting different behaviors by customer groups and tailoring your products or services to give them what they are looking for.

Eliminate Barriers

Along their journey, a buyer’s desire to purchase can weaken as doubts creep in. Is this really the right choice? Should I think about this for a few more months? When mapping, anticipate barriers to closing the sale and create plans to reduce or eliminate them. 

Many sales are influenced by price, and they can be lost if a lower-cost alternative is available. Train (or re-train) your team on how to sell value over cost and the points of differentiation that make your offerings unique over the competition. Consider if it is OK to offer discounts or incentives to compete in tough situations and what concessions will make an impact without too much sacrifice to the bottom line.

Be sure your marketing and sales materials are in sync and proactively address the questions and concerns that come to mind along the customer journey.  This can effectively remove small barriers before they become big obstacles to closing a sale.  

Retain

Your existing customers are one of your most valuable assets so it’s important to invest in a plan to ensure their satisfaction and retention. How are you maintaining contact with them post-sale? Your map should address the content you will generate to market to and serve your customers. You should continually evaluate this content to ensure it is timely, relevant, and interesting. 

Keep your customers up to date on news and promotions through regular social media posts, emails, newsletters, and website updates. Blogs, guides, and ‘how tos’ are also excellent ways to help customers without being overly sales-focused. Overall, digital marketing is the quickest and most efficient way to reach your customer base.  It can also attract new prospects to your website to learn more about your offerings.

Listen to your customers’ feedback on your products and services to understand what you are doing well and how you can improve.  Encourage them to share their thoughts and make it convenient for them to do it. Many companies check in with their customers through email surveys or good old-fashioned phone calls. Progressive companies are using apps to make it even easier for customers to share their feedback through a simple text message.  

Mapping your customers’ journey will help you understand their experiences while engaging with your business. It will allow you to identify and better relate to the different types of customers you are serving (or hoping to serve).  And it will help you develop strategies to improve the process from beginning to the end. Considering the factors in this article will help you make your map more comprehensive and effective.  Examples of customer journey maps are readily available online.  Consider using one from your industry as a reference to help you get started. 

You have a great vending company, with a great reputation. You get good quality vending, office coffee service and even micro market customers through word of mouth and references. So why do you need online or digital marketing? Because that is where these interactions are happening more and more for facility and human resource managers, online and in social media channels.

Check out these stats! In a 2014 business to business (B2B) study, nearly all the participants reported doing online research when considering partnering with a new business.

• 77% do a Google search
• 3% check the business’ website
• 41% read user reviews
• Only 12% want to meet in person

The take-away? You need to be marketing your vending company where facility managers and human resource professionals are looking.

Digital marketing is powerful

The high rate of online research, use of reviews, and attitude about in-person meetings versus online purchasing mean that to be considered by the refreshment service decision makers of today, a strong digital marketing effort is needed. Even if your customers are referring you to other people offline, those prospects are researching your vending company on Google and LinkedIn and Facebook and your website. They need to be impressed with what they see, including how you will make their job creating a rewarding employee experience and providing on-site refreshment easier.

Digital marketing has benefits for your sales department as well. With the right search engine marketing and content, your online presence will get qualified leads, not just traffic. These are the facility managers, culture teams, and human resource professionals in your service area that match your ideal customer criteria. You can actively search for them and engage them on social media platforms. Bring them into your sales funnel to start converting them to your customers.

Finally, digital marketing builds long-term bonds with customers. Being seen and well-represented online ensures existing vending, office coffee service, and micro market customers continue to see you as a professional service provider. They can quickly discover your new product and service offerings or contact you in the way most convenient for them. Fostering these relationships turns your customers into brand advocates, who will not mind telling others about your company. They know that when those people go to find you online, they will like the refreshment service offerings and professionalism they see, thanks to digital marketing.

Remember the proverb “keep your friends close and your enemies closer?” This is even more true online. Search vending or office coffee service with your city and who comes up? These are your competitors. Analyze their websites and social media feeds. Create Google Alerts that notify you when they are mentioned online. Armed with this information, you are better able to create a digital marketing strategy that will keep your SEO ranking above theirs and become the name customers know and trust for workplace refreshment solutions.

While vending and office coffee operators are your main competitors, they aren’t the only ones. Convenience stores, fast or quick serve restaurants, even grocery stores are all vying for the daytime quick-meal business. Check out what contests, promotions, and give-aways they are offering. How active is their social media channel? Can you imitate any of their marketing ideas and benefit from being even more conveniently located in the workplace?

Design a digital marketing plan to rival their efforts and then go beyond. Add more content to your site. Get longtime customers to write you positive reviews on Yelp or that can be displayed on your website. Create YouTube videos and articles that feature you as the knowledge expert on vending, micro markets, and office coffee service in your area. Respond on social media to comments, post news, snap pictures of charitable events, recognize employees, and offer customer incentives.

Keep an eye on your competitors and then beat them at their own game to stay front and center to potential customers.

Contact us for your digital marketing needs!
866- 699-8363
marketing@vendcentral.com
www.vendcentral.com