Vending Business Forms and Standard Letters

When you start a vending business you will find that there is a considerable amount of paperwork involved. You will need to establish some vending business forms and standard letter templates that can be changed to suit each situation as it arises. Let's take a closer look at some of the forms, letters and other paperwork that you will need in the vending business.

Vending Business Forms

Vendors use a variety of business forms. It is convenient if you have standard business forms that you constantly improve all the time as your operation evolves. Instead of having to make a new form up from scratch for every situation you can just pull up a standard form on your computer and adjust it as necessary.

Firstly, you will need a form to help you deal with the large numbers of prospects that you will be coming into contact with every week. A basic 'contact form' will allow you to keep a record of every prospect that you talked to and the outcome of your conversation. Also take note of the 'decision maker' at each location, their contact details and the date that you spoke with them.

If things go well and you visit the site for further discussion you can then complete a 'location evaluation form'. On this form you need to note down all of the key information about a location that could affect machine performance such as working hours and employee numbers. You will need to record information on the machines that they presently have in place as well as any specific requirements set out by the 'decision maker'.

Once you have machines in place a record needs to be kept on every machine so that you can keep track of sales volume and inventory levels. Every vending machine that you are operating should have a file with a fact sheet outlining basic details on the machine, the client and the specific location.

Every time you visit that machine you should complete a form to let you know how much inventory was there when you arrived, how much you added and how much cash was collected from the machine.

You also need to keep a detailed maintenance history on each machine and it is convenient to have a form for this purpose.

Optimizing sales and profits at each location is all about testing and tracking. You need to stick with core products that are selling and eliminate those that aren't popular. Variety is important and it is also important to rotate in new products occasionally to see if they work out. You should have a constantly evolving plan for the volumes and combinations of inventory that should be displayed in the 'columns' or 'spirals' of your machines. Many operators set out planograms or charts for each machine that they can quickly refer to when they are out on the road stocking machines.

If you have machines in non-public locations you may attach a number a refund forms to a pouch on the side of each machine. This is an extra service that you can offer to customers who didn't get what they paid for and want to be reimbursed at a letter date.

Vending Business Standard Letters

Over time your vending business should develop a set of standard letters. These can be used for a variety of situations that you commonly encounter in the day to day running of your business. Standard letters are great and save you the hassle of having to write an original letter for every situation.

Simply pull out a standard letter template on your computer that already has your business branding on it and some commonly used paragraphs. Then make the necessary changes to the text that every unique situation will require and you are away laughing.

Standard letters are a great way of managing your relationship with your clients and you can have letters ready to welcome clients, thank them for their business and to answer common complaints or requests.

Other letters can be used to enhance your vending business marketing by requesting a testimonials or asking for referrals.

Surveys

To show your customers that you care and to get some feedback from them you should survey them once or twice a year. Try to find out if they are satisfied with your services and if they have encountered any problems. Try to find ways that you can serve them better and to increase your profits.

Put together a one page survey form that you can easily print out or photocopy when you need it.

Flyers

Sometimes the marketing activities of a vendor require for flyers and other promotional materials to be printed.

When you place a new machine it doesn't hurt to pass around a flyer to employees introducing your company to them. Encourage them to use the machines, to report problems to you and to let you know if they have any specific product requests.

Your promotional efforts may also involve printing special offers and discount notices that you can attach to your machines to encourage customers to focus on specific products.