February 2011 Entries
By John Nicholas
There is a harsh truth for every food manufacturer. If you can’t see down into your business, eventually, you will lose your business! It might be a gradual loss, but you can’t manage something that you can’t see. Successful foodservice manufacturers must gain greater visibility into their supply chain.
This increased visibility can be a scary thing! If you have been bleeding for a long time, when you first expose the wound, it can look pretty ugly. One of the main obstacles to successfully managing trade spending is fear of the unknown. Many people are afraid to know...
By Greg Hilton
As I pass and continue to approach some age milestones, I am becoming much more reflective about life. From time to time, I realize how little I know and how much I wish that I had listened better in grade school and college. Maybe a little more study time would have enabled me to better answer some of the questions that I get asked.
Questions like:
1. Is Steven Tyler a better American Idol judge that Simon Cowell?
2. Where did Myspace.com go wrong and Facebook.com go right?
3. Is their life after working in the Foodservice industry?...
Answers Systems, leading provider of foodservice trade promotion management solutions, and CHD Expert North America, LLC, the leader in collecting, managing and analyzing information for the Away-From-Home Foodservice market, announced their strategic partnership, formalized this January. The partnership will provide new opportunities for clients of both organizations to leverage new data analyses on their trade promotion programs and gain insights in street operator marketing initiatives, planning, and tracking.
“We are very excited about this new partnership with CHD Expert. The target market reach of the CHD operator database combined with Answers Systems and ContractPro solution’s data fulfillment and analytics provides a...
By Janet Zlokovich
While unpacking my groceries at the check-out line of my local supermarket, I like to look over the discounts I’m going to receive on my purchase. 2 for 1’s are one of my favorite ways to save and usually results in the largest subtraction off my final grocery bill.
Since I am always wearing my Foodservice hat, I ponder the strategy manufacturers have taken to position their products so consumers will notice a sale display and make the ultimate decision to purchase one brand over the competitors. Will the manufacturer receive the ROI they hoped to achieve by...
by Stacy Jackson
As Groundhog Day approaches, along with a blast of wintry weather, I am reminded of a movie that I could watch over and over again. "What movie is that?" you may ask. Why it’s Groundhog Day, of course!
There are obvious reasons to like this movie: Bill Murray’s comedic talents, an interesting storyline, a great Ray Charles song. Beyond that, I like what I see as one of the underlying themes of the movie: lasting change can only come from profound change.
As Bill Murray’s character grows wearier of repeating the same day over and over again, he begins...