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Sunday, November 13, 2011

Starting of Mobile Business

   How to Start a Mobile Food Business
In the word of mobile business technology there is many way to perform. have many things to do. But we are not enough aware about it. we always think the big to bigger. But don't want to understand that every thing isn't think in big sense.  It is wise to think some thing in small but the thinking will be ofcourse big and best. In this sense i want to post a business idea for a new investor who want to launch a business.

Even though street food is enjoying a resurgence, this is a tried-and-true business model that's fed generations of eaters. Today, there are approximately 3 million food trucks operating in the U.S., more than 5 million food carts, and an unknown number of kiosks. 

If you multiply the following six mobile options with the myriad cuisines and foods you can serve, possible locations, and the time of day you are open, your options for a mobile food business are endless. 

           


Food kiosks

Food kiosks are temporary booths or stands used to prepare and sell foods like pretzels, ice cream and hot dogs. The low overhead, flexibility and ease by which a kiosk can be opened and closed are among the reasons why they’re so popular. Because they are usually operating indoors, kiosk owners typically sign licensing agreements at malls, stadiums, movie theaters or other locations. Many major food businesses such as Ben & Jerry’s franchise express kiosks. 


Food carts and concession trailers 

This style of mobile food business has been around for decades and is a multibillion-dollar industry. Cart owners prepare food in advance or purchase ready-made food like ice cream bars. Then, the food is heated up or pulled from the freezer. Food carts used to focus on simple fare like ice cream and hot dogs, but have expanded their menus in recent years to include dishes like kebobs, gyros, salads, and fish and chips. 

Food carts usually either have room for the vendor to be inside and serve food through a window, or they utilize all the cart space for food storage and cooking equipment. Concession trailers, on the other hand, are often found at fairs, sporting events, or other places where they can be unhitched and sit for awhile. Unlike most carts, trailers allow for cooking and have room for two or three people inside. 

Carts are less expensive than food trucks, and are usually pulled by a vehicle or pushed by hand. They're fairly easy to maintain and, in many areas, require less licensing than the full-sized food trucks.


Food trucks

Larger than carts, trucks can carry more food and handle more business. However, food trucks need more space to park both when doing business and when off-duty. 

A food truck can carry more sophisticated equipment for storing, serving, cooking and preparing foods. Food trucks can serve traditional quick lunch fare, be stocked with food from concessionaires, be run by a chain restaurant like In-n-Out or California Pizza Kitchen, or serve gourmet fare by an up-and-coming chef. They can do big business in corporate parks and places that have limited access to restaurants. 

There are two types of food trucks: the mobile food preparation vehicle (MFPV), where food is prepared as customers wait, and the industrial catering vehicle (ICV), which sells only prepackaged foods. An MFPV costs more than an ICV, and both cost more than a food cart. A used hotdog cart may cost under $2,500, while a retro-fitted used food truck typically costs $30,000 or more. A new MFPV could cost upwards of $100,000. Complying with additional health department rules and regulations can also drive up food truck costs. 



Gourmet food trucks

Basically the same as a food truck, the gourmet food truck takes food quality to a higher level. Of the 4,000 food trucks licensed to do business in the Los Angeles area, only about 115 are considered gourmet. They are run by ambitious young chefs who offer cuisine not typically found in food trucks, such as specialty crepes, Korean-Mexican fusion, osso buco or velvet cupcakes. Many gourmet trucks have specialties and themes. In addition, they let their clientele know where they’ll be parked through their websites and social media sites like Twitter. While food trucks need not have kitchens, gourmet trucks are more likely to have food prepared on the spot -- and high-end food at that. 




Mobile catering businesses

Mobile catering trucks are similar to mobile food trucks, but are hired for specific events. The client chooses food from a catering menu, and the truck then serves the food at the event. 

The differences between catering trucks and food trucks are primarily in the manner of doing business. One particular advantage of a mobile catering business is you're not risking as much in inventory because you are cooking and bringing food as ordered for the party. You also have a specific destination, so you need not worry whether your favorite destinations will be busy or not. 



Bustaurants

As the name implies, a bustaurant is not a truck but a bus, often a double-decker with the lower level for the kitchen and the upper level for customers to sit and eat. This is a new concept and hasn't really been proven yet, especially since the idea tests a rash of licensing issues. They also require more room to park, and are more costly to start because the buses need to be fully refurbished. 

Excerpted from Start Your Own Food Truck from the Start Your Own Series from Entrepreneur Press. This series presents the business essentials for starting and running more than 55 of today's hottest businesses and delivers the best practices from successful entrepreneurs. 

It's tough to go anywhere these days without finding a sign that begs us to "like" a business on Facebook or to follow it on Twitter. Yelp stickers in front windows are more prevalent than those from the Better Business Bureau. And all we have to do to learn about a business we're thinking of patronizing is drop its name into a web search box and wait for the results. 

But exactly how are businesses using the plethora of social tools to convert possibility into revenue? I came across two examples in vastly different industries. If you have a brick-and-mortar location, here are two businesses that offer tools for turning virtual relationships into concrete revenue. 

Marination Mobile (Seattle)
Who said you couldn't cash tacos at the bank? Founded in early 2009, Marination Mobile is the brainchild of partners Kamala Saxton and Roz Edison. Coupling the vast success of the Los Angeles food-truck business with a wine-drenched evening, they hatched the idea for a truck-based dining experience that's gone gangbusters. 

So where does social come into play? Their business plan has never been without it. "We knew that if this was ever going to be a success, we had to include the people we wanted to serve in our business plan," Saxton says. In business-planning vernacular, that means they included social web strategies in their marketing efforts four months prior to when their food truck served its first taco. 

What's the secret sauce? They discovered Emily Resling, who not only had a knack for social marketing, but also understood their brand--she drives Marination's online personality in ways they could have only dreamed about. She has even developed a style guide for the brand. 

Today, Marination Mobile isn't just mobile. Contrary to the traditional practice of brick-and-mortar restaurants launching food trucks, they've gone back-assward and now have opened a storefront location. In two years, they've gone from concept to two business locations, and the owners thank their audience for making that happen. 

"Hey, we sell $2.25 tacos. That's not unique," Saxton says. "What's unique is the audience we've built. We have well over 10,000 eyeballs on us between Facebook and Twitter. That means we have 10,000 supervisors and managers waiting to tell us when we do something great--or when we don't." 

Animal General Hospital (Port St. Lucie, Fla.)
When Dr. Enrique Borrego opened his veterinary practice in 1990, location and word-of-mouth were all a vet needed to bring in clients and their furry friends. Borrego opened his current location in 2000 to better serve his neighbors in the quiet Florida town. But in 2004, Port St. Lucie became one of the fastest-growing communities in Florida, and soon there were multiple vet practices within walking distance of his office. It was clear he had to find a way to differentiate Animal General Hospital. 

He tried local magazines and the Yellow Pages, but over 18 months netted no new clients. At a loss, Borrego turned to Rich Urban, a former vet tech with a savvy set of marketing tools that could reshape the local vet practice. 

"I love animals. I wanted to be a doctor, not a vaccination clinic," Borrego says. "I knew there had to be a better way to market my practice, and Rich held that key." 

Urban built a client-care strategy that spanned from the moment of first interaction to long after clients had gone home from their latest appointment. Using YouTube, Facebook and e-mail marketing, the strategy has produced some astounding results. Borrego estimates he spent $27,000 over 18 months for Yellow Pages ads. In a single 18-month online campaign combining Google advertising with Facebook ads, $3,600 in spending brought in a remarkable 250 new clients and $75,000 in revenue.
In fine we can conclude that there is many many way to do business it is the unique way to doing business for new investor or low risk takerr but high rate benefit maker. I hope in my post i'm able to understand the low invest and money making process. unique entrepreneur can take this money making process and led a good life by servicing the people. 


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