Tweeting and Twittering, blogging and other wastes of finger-time...

OK, I'm confused about all this 'social networking' nonsense, being an anti-technology person...
 
So you run a mobile food service, and you are on your way to a new setup. Why would 'tweeting' be any benefit to your business?
Isn't it true that anyone who is on your 'friend list' or whatever they call it, lives in a town you have already been to? So if you are going somewhere new, why would they even know about you?
 
We participated in a webcast marketing program sponsored by one of the Alaska agencies last week, and the lady running it recommended committing  a whopping 15% of your day to twittering! I was dumbfounded....I think she had the luxury of a fat-cat office job, where everyone can spend all day surfing porn sites and looking for people to hook up with - which is why I think everyone is tweeting in the first place.
 
I also read a survey of 1,000 successful American company execs, and they admitted that they got almost NO RETURN on the investment they have made with 'social networking'.  They said display advertising was the exception - if they paid for add placement, they got returns, but the whole blogging and twittering and stuff was a big zero. I would tend to agree, what the heck do i care about somebody's daily activities?
 
Anyway, I'd love to hear from you people and learn more about this, see if I change my mind...
Dave

I don't tweet but from what I've seen and heard, tweeting your location can have its benefits if you're a business and on the move.  Folks interested would be able to find you.
 
On Facebook, I've looked up many businesses/interests that I intend on using.  It's free advertising.  IMO, any kind of business would be out of their minds if they didn't take advantage of it. 

Tweeting and facebook is only part of any marketing campaign
many people use it.
If you have a website, or even print ads that say follow us on twitter then you might develop a following.
you can then just tweet a special or location.
It is only a help for your customers, just like years ago it was a newsletter.
 
If you think it is a waste of time then don't do it.  It is a tool to use if you want
 
Al

Here there is some madass law dating back to 1971 that mobile vendors are supposed to move every 20 minutes.

CC, we have something similar, down here in the badlands of New Mexico we have to move every 4 hours 1000 feet. Told the HD my extension cord wasn`t that long. No wonder he doesn`t like me. Now, take the burrito truck sitting at an old abondon gas station, been ther at least 6 days a week for a year and a half, go figure.

ok... here's the benefit to tweeting. Lets say, you have 2000 people following your mobile food vending business on Twitter. These 2000 people follow you b/c they want to know your location. These people travel for food. You put out a tweet that says your going to be on 21st and H street at 1:30. You may have 100 ppl that follow you, within blocks of that location and plan to come see you for lunch. Hence. you just served 100 lunches to your followers. Some may let you know who they are, some might not.  It's a marketing tool. Use it.  I tweet & use facebook daily for my business. Today I sold 50$ worth of food to people I've never seen before. All which used credit cards. My customers usually pay cash.  I have about 100 followers on my twitter account.

Like finding the golden tickets for a day of Willy Wonka.
 
Kogi started the trend...
 
http://www.newsweek.com/2009/02/27/now-4-restaurant-2-0.html

A few additional points. First there is the retweet.  That happens when someone who follows you shares your information with the people who follow him.  Then some of that person's follows can retweet what you said.  Promotions and new products and such are natural retweets.
 
Second.  It is free advertising.  Free.
 
Third, it is instant advertising.  Let's say your at a location and things are slow.  Tweet a special good for the next 30 minutes. Tweet it and they will come.

If you're stationary, tweet.
If you're mobile, tweet more!
This list was  compiled in May/2009. I'm sure the numbers have grown substantially.
http://www.seriouseats.com/2009/05/a-list-of-street-food-vendors-trucks-carts-using-twitter.html

Several of the mobile food vendors in Atlanta use Twitter. We have a Face Book page with a few followers. We are mostly old school but can see the benefits of modern communications. It takes a while to get to the point that people are actually following you. We wouldn't spend a lot of time doing this, maybe a daily or weekly update. We only update our Face Book page when we have a new event.

JodyP


Several of the mobile food vendors in Atlanta use Twitter. We have a Face Book page with a few followers. We are mostly old school but can see the benefits of modern communications. It takes a while to get to the point that people are actually following you. We wouldn't spend a lot of time doing this, maybe a daily or weekly update. We only update our Face Book page when we have a new event.

That's why you only have a few followers! You need to market your Twitter and Facebook account just like any other marketing effort. If people don't know it's there, how do you expect then to follow it? Let all your customers know you have Facebook & Twitter. Do you have a website? Are you mobile or stationary?

We are going to start to at the next festival. We are going to have place cards at the serving windows promoting our Face Book page and are going to start a Twitter account.

THE WILD DOG


ok... here's the benefit to tweeting. Lets say, you have 2000 people following your mobile food vending business on Twitter. These 2000 people follow you b/c they want to know your location. These people travel for food. You put out a tweet that says your going to be on 21st and H street at 1:30. You may have 100 ppl that follow you, within blocks of that location and plan to come see you for lunch. Hence. you just served 100 lunches to your followers......

 
LOL that's hysterical! In Alaska, a HUGE community is one with over 2,000 people living in it! 2,000 people following your mobile food business!  hahahahahahahah!  LMFAO
 
I can barely type I'm laughing so hard...seriously, the ENTIRE STATE only has 700,000 residents and I think we have about 6 or 7 major roads in an area the size of the entire western third of the Lower 48.
 
There are only 2 (two) actual 'cities' in the state - Anchorage and Fairbanks. I'm close to Fairbanks (100+ miles away). Everything else is roadside towns spread out along rural two lane highways - hopefully paved!
There are lots of towns like where I live, most of them less than 3,000 people and HUGE distances between them. Out there by Freezers-Full he has Wasilla, Palmer, Anchorage and all the towns down on the Kenai Peninsula.
 
OK, so my plan, in the face of these challenges, is to concentrate on seasonal events and fairs. So how do these Tweeters even know about me? How can they become followers? Can you simply put in a search for food vendors in Facebook and Twitter and have stuff come up in a particular region? Or do they already need to be a 'friend' (god I hate that) and are already looking at you?
 
I get it as far as promoting my own Twitter and Facebook on my website and print materials - but how else do these fans and followers find you?
 
Yes, I'm very naive with this stuff, but don't worry, I learn fast! I'd love to hear more actual successes from you people, where the time spent has made a difference in your wallets.
Dave

Now that you've given us your demographics and situation, I have just one word of advice---FAGETABOUTIT! Not enough business to make it worth while.

Tweet about the chocolate. I was not so gracious about holding off on the samples. Smooth as silk and excellent excellent excellent!!
 
I know a few million here that would gladly follow that chocolate!

If you are thinking about having a somewhat permanent location in addition to doing your festivals and fairs, I would think it might be more productive for you to advertise in The Milepost, if that is not too expensive, as that way you would probably get 99% of the tourists that come thru.  I know that I would have stopped on my trip driving thru Alaska some years ago, when I visited Fairbanks as well as Dawson City in the Yukon (one of the most fantastic places I have been to in North America).

Yep! Our Milepost add is already in and done. The sales rep is also a customer of ours!
 
We do have a fixed location in an Alaskan roadhouse just down the highway from a pretty popular destination - the Delta Meat and Sausage Co. where they get tourists buying reindeer sausage.
 
Our food license is currently for 'Confection Manufacturing' which was a sever pain because we are NOT big and rich like Hershey! However, for us to be able to sell wholesale chocs to distributors (our main business) we needed that particular permit. We will modify once we pick up our mobile kitchen and drive it home.
 
I like the comment about not having the right demographics and to forget about it - however, people up here WILL drive 500 to 1,000 miles to do something fun. Those kinds of distances are pretty normal by Alaska standards - just ask 6star! So my 'customers' might come see us at a regional Native Alaskan event down on the Kenai, or drop in and see us up in Chicken for the town fair. Far stranger things happen here under the midnight sun...

Chocolategypsy, you asked the question of how people would know to follow you on FB or Twitter.  I suggest that with every sale you make, include your FB and Twitter info.  Ask your current customers to follow you.  Some will and some won't.  Some will re-tweet your tweets.  If only ten percent of your customers follow you, you still win.
 
Some places around here tweet their specials.  Some even tweet for you to show the tweet to get the special deal.  Tweets can serve as a reminder to your customers that it's time for some more of your products.  Tweeting is the cheapest way to communicate to your current customer base.  Remember this:  THE EASIEST CUSTOMER TO GET IS THE ONE YOU ALREADY HAVE!  People sometimes have short memories.  They may have really enjoyed one of your products in the past, but they need a nudge to help them remember.  Ever heard the old adage, "Out of sight, out of mind"?  That's accurate in business as well as in love.
 
Tweeting your mobile location or tweeting a "today's special" takes very little effort.  Before you leave the house, send your tweet.  You can decide what to tweet each day on that day or you can sit down before the week starts and formulate the tweets for the week.  You may not want to tweet specials everyday, but that's the beauty of tweeting.  You control precisely when and what you want your customers to know.
 
You seem to think that the demographics and geography of Alaska work against the effectiveness of FB and/or Twitter.  I think it's all the more reason to utilize both.  Don't depend on people stumbling on you.  Give them a reason to seek you out to enjoy your goodies. 
 
 
 
 

You have so many reasons why folks would follow you. Folks alone in foo foo markets that would love to order from you. ""Oh honey this chocolate is all that...and all the  way from Alaska!!!" "ALASKA!!!" Yes. Alaska! You heard me.
 

 
 
 
 
 
 The chocolate is sooo good.

Here's my new phrase...."tweets for the week"
 
That's awesome!  LOL
 
OK, I'll have to investigate this stuff further, actually break down and visit the websites. But you know this is going to interfere with Battlestar Gallactica reruns on NetFlix....
 
hey, speaking of unsocial media, did you see the story about the teacher who called her students whiny and lazy? They should elect her PRESIDENT!!

Thanx for the compliments, by the way. I'm glad you like the goodies and for us, it's part of just doing the job right. I guess that's a good reason to be tweeting!

Sweet Tweetin' your way into the hearts and minds of the masses.
 
Ever wonder what is in the 4th bag of the Iditarodders? Hmmm....
 
Well...NYC Metro wouldn't ya like to know? You heard me...Alaska!
 
You were not here back in the day when we had many a thread helping to pick a business name or logo. Marone. Cocktail hour is 10 pm EST.
 
We will keep you in tweets. You will have at least 100 followers if you commit to 30 days of tweetin.
 
x__________ sign there.

 
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/27/business/smallbusiness/27sbiz.html

FriedTater
... down here in the badlands of New Mexico we have to move every 4 hours 1000 feet...

We don't. We set up where they told us to set up and not allowed anywhere else. Different county, different HD... go figure. Maybe we don't want to go to Carlsbad next winter? Maybe Roswell... who knows. If I can just win that Lottery.......
 
We don't twit/face either. I'm not that into it and David can't turn on a computer. We do use a loyalty card (Buy any 10 sandwiches and get ANY one sandwich free) which brings in a fair number of folks. Everyone knows who we are and where we are. Even the campground we stay in tells newcomers about us. But we have noticed that when our business is doing poorly, so does all the other restaurants, when we have a good day, so do the other restaurants. I think that if you do use twit/face then you need to be consistent with it. ANY marketing that you do, you need to be consistent with it.