How to Partner with Other Businesses to Grow your Food Truck Business

The food truck business is hot right now.

But there is a lot of competition out there.

Are you looking for ways to grow your food truck business?

We have a tip for you.

This tip is kind of old school in the business world. Companies in many different industries have been using it for a long time and it’s continued to be a way for business to grow.

And the great thing about the strategy is that it’s often a triple win situation.

What is a triple win situation?

That means it’s a win for three different parties.

We’re talking about how you can take your food truck business and partner with another complementary business to help each other grow all while better serving your shared target customers.

That’s a win for you, your partner and the customer.

Why Partnering with Other Businesses is Beneficial

No matter what industry you look at, some of the most successful businesses are those that have created partnerships with other establishments.

Here are a couple examples…

Starbucks and a Hotel partner to put a Starbucks inside the hotel. The hotel needs to offer premium coffee to guests. They allow Starbucks to use the space and Starbucks gets access to the guests. Both businesses benefit and grow.

Microsoft and Dell. Microsoft provides the software and Dell provides the hardware. Both have existing customers and together they combine those customers to create a large pool of customers for both companies.

A wedding photographer partners with a popular wedding venue. The photographer suggests that her clients use the venue and the venue suggests that their clients use the photographer.

When you partner with another business, you expand your reach, increase your exposure and boost your success.

And it can work great for food trucks too!

How to Connect with Other Businesses

Here is a look at some of the easiest and most effective ways to build a partnership:

Deliver Menus: Print up some menus and deliver them to local businesses. Employees of local businesses who are looking for a quick bite to eat will have access to your menu and will be more inclined to order from your truck. It goes without saying that the more establishments you deliver menus to, the more success you stand to have.

Offer Catering: Many businesses host corporate events, and these corporate events require catering. If you offer a catering service to local businesses (and you do a good job), you’ll increase your exposure by sparking the interest of other business owners and lay people who are looking for catering services.

Claim a Spot: Try to stake your claim on spot in front of a local business. When you are in the same place on a regular basis, you will increase your customer base, as employees and customers alike will come to expect seeing your truck in the same location, which will help to increase your success rate. Perhaps you can offer special deals for special foods in exchange for their promotion of your service to their employees and customers. (tweet this)

Get Moving: While staying in one place is certainly an effective way to connect with other businesses, don’t underestimate moving. One of the beautiful things about owning a food truck is the fact that you have the ability to be mobile, which means that you can increase your exposure and your success because you can move from one place to another. And of course, don’t forget that as you move from location to location that you should drop off menus to the businesses in each area.

Don’t forget to include your website, your social media profiles and methods to contact you so that businesses can easily connect with you and call for your services when they are interested.

Make Use of Social Media: One of the easiest ways to connect with other businesses is through your social media profiles. Check out local businesses in your area and send them invites to ‘Like’ your Facebook page or to follow you on Twitter. The more businesses that connect with you via social media, the more success your food truck will enjoy.

Find Businesses That Need Food: Your best bet is to find businesses that need food to better serve their customers. Think outdoor movie theaters, baseball diamonds, etc. Some of these offer food already. One way you could get access to their audience is to offer a portion of your sales. (tweet this)

Conclusion

If you have a knack for cooking and creating, a food truck is a great way to market your talent and to cash in on it. By connecting with other businesses, you can increase your exposure and really maximize your success.

Do you run a food truck? If so, what ways have you connected with other businesses in order to increase your success? Share your stories with us; we’d love to hear them!

Photo Credits: Phillip Pessar and Ricardo Diaz