Don't shoot your foot when looking for vending machine locations...

When finding locations for your vending machines, stay in control:

• Don't agree to every request just so you can get that "great" vending account. Things like cold food vending machines in a location of 20 employees or that request to import chocolate covered ants is not going to be filled by any vending operator that knows his / her business; so, don't feel like you will blow the deal if you say "no". However rather than just blowing them off, it is good to explain why it is not really feasible so that they realize other vendors will not be any more accomodating to their extreme requests.
  
• Don't agree to vended product commission requests without first evalutating their current vending room. If they want a commission, ask them what they are currently getting & see if the prices on products in their vending machines now coincide with this number. They will probably not demand a higher commission; if they can get a quality vending service, they may forget the commission all together. It also helps to explain that the commission will affect the price that their employees pay for snacks & drinks. Many companies consider low prices from the machines as another employee benefit that they can claim. Let them know about superior service, freshness guarantees, event service & other benefits you provide.
  
• Try to get all of the business even if they say a contract has them locked up for the soda machines. They often don't really know what the contract says, & most allow for removal of the vendor in the event of poor service. Let them know that vendors usually will only provide snack vending machines if they also have the drink vendors. They have probably heard this before and may be ready to finally pull that contract from the back of the file drawer.

Remember, they NEED your service & you NEED to make a profit. If you come across very professional, they will usually agree with your recommendations by the end of the visit.

Vending Machine Locators - games they play!

Although using a vending machine locating service can help you to find locations quickly & the quality can vary dramatically as discussed below, but that is not the main concern you should have in hiring a locator to place your machines.

Along with the great opportunity that the vending business brings, there are also those that will take advantage of new vendors that are anxious and have no idea what they are doing. Regardless of how much research you have done, if you are just getting started, you're vulnerable!

Vending locators often want 50% of the money up front with the remainder due after the job is done. However, I've heard hundreds of stories about locators that would not return calls after they received the 50% deposit. So, it is best to find a locator that allows you to pay them the huge majority of payment after the job is done. Or just hire them to do a few machines at first to see how they do and then add a few more. Don't give a large group at once or you will not get the same quality of work since they no you have nothing more to offer (ie. no more work).

It is also best to find a locator that will let you watch as they find locations. This way you can learn to do it yourself for the next time. More importantly, this allows you to verify that the location really did agree to the placement as well as the terms that you expect, such as commission percentage - if any. I've heard stories of locators doing a job well, but later the vending operator learned that the locator had promised an exhorbitant commission in order to get the location. Yet, they always failed to tell the vendor about this!

In other cases, the locator has found locations, while out by himself, and later met the vendor at a meeting place to tell him about all the wonderful locations he has found. He may even give the operator a group of business cards for each location. Then, he asks for payment & may have some " emergency " that requires him to return home ASAP. He will assure the vendor that if any of the locations aren't perfect, he will replace them for free. Yet after he is paid, don't ever expect to hear from him again. His cell phone # will be uselessafter the vendor has paid him. Also I wouldn't be surprised if this stack of business cards in the vendors hand is totally worthless. You can walk into any business and get a business card for the manager without even speaking to him / her. I've seen it many times, he has their business card, but he never talked to them about the machines. That means he never got approval, and the vendor does not have a location. I've talked to vendors who had 30 cards for contacts at new "locations", but after all was said and done, he spent the day loading machines on a trailer only to learn that not a single location had agreed to anything. Be smart, take my advice...

Don't just go to the location, but make sure that at some point before the locator leaves town, you speak to the person that gave permission; at which point, you can also make sure that he agreed to your terms.

How to Find Locations for Your Vending Machines

Do you have a vending business? Do you plan to start one? Do you have some vending machines but not know what to do with them? One things for sure; in all cases you need locations. This is the ultimate "must have" in vending! There are many creative methods of getting locations for vending machines as well as some "not so creative." If you have been in vending for less than a year, you probably have only seen the "not so's." Starting with the basics, you can either hire someone, a vending machine locator, to find locations for your machines, or you can do it yourself. Doing it yourself is optimal, but using a locator can offer some advantages.

If you are brand new and nervous about approaching businesses, riding with a locator can help you learn what questions will arise without fear of appearing as a novice in your own business. Also, if you are extremely limited on time, a good locator can help to keep your life in balance. Then, if you have a garage full of machines and just want them out & making "something," a locator can probably find locations much faster than you can. However, quality is usually sacrificed for speed. And locators are All About Speed. Most locators will go to a commercial area, pick a street & go from one door to the next all the way down hitting Every Single door they see. This means they hit the great potential locations as well as all the lousy ones in between. They will not take great care in cherry picking each location to approach as YOU would. Overall, 1/3 of locations found by a locator will be great, 1/3 will be absolutely pathetic, and the other 1/3 will be somewhere in the middle. So, if you use a locator, expect to have a considerable percentage of machines that will need to be re-located due to low income. But, at least they will be collecting money, not dust! :-)

Now, if you're not scared to talk to people, YOU CAN locate them yourself! In the beginning, it may take more time than you like, but practice makes perfect. You will learn a new skill that could be worth tens of thousands of $$ to your business. Not only will you save on the locator fees, but the improved quality of your locations will result in more and more profits accompanied by much more proficient use of your valuable time. Of the many angles vendors use to find locations, you will find / develop one that works best for you and refine it as you go.
I will cover some of these tactics in another post as well as the "Do's & Don't's" when using a vending machine locator, but remember this...

• A locator will find below average locations fast
• You will find above average locations slowly
• Either action is better than inaction
  

For more common sense in vending, visit www.USEDvending.com & www.4MEGA-Vending.com