ever get down on yourself?

[jay22]

i haven't had a good run locating at all lately.  it's partially because i pick and choose where to go(gumball/bouncy ball combo you can't just put anywhere). between business owners almost never being present(giving your card/phone number has a .001 chance of a call back), flat out being told no, getting the kind've no where you can't even ask the owner because someone else asks them, and then the worst kind've no... when they think about it for awhile before rejecting you. one place i went yesterday, had a single dirty looking toy capsule machine where the manager happily told me they don't have to give the guy anything for it.  i nicely showed them my new machine, and said i would actually give them 20% of what it made, still no. also, a bunch of my locations have had new owners come in lately, and almost every single instance this is bad for my machines... they either want it gone, or replace them with their own.  it's tough because i have to work up courage to begin with to go into these places and pitch... getting turned down over and over stings, and is mentally draining.  i know we're not supposed to take it personally, but sometimes it's hard not to, because i feel like the truth is we're selling ourselves as much as the machine.

[gumball guy]

1 hour ago, jay22 said:

i haven't had a good run locating at all lately.  it's partially because i pick and choose where to go(gumball/bouncy ball combo you can't just put anywhere). between business owners almost never being present(giving your card/phone number has a .001 chance of a call back), flat out being told no, getting the kind've no where you can't even ask the owner because someone else asks them, and then the worst kind've no... when they think about it for awhile before rejecting you. one place i went yesterday, had a single dirty looking toy capsule machine where the manager happily told me they don't have to give the guy anything for it.  i nicely showed them my new machine, and said i would actually give them 20% of what it made, still no. also, a bunch of my locations have had new owners come in lately, and almost every single instance this is bad for my machines... they either want it gone, or replace them with their own.  it's tough because i have to work up courage to begin with to go into these places and pitch... getting turned down over and over stings, and is mentally draining.  i know we're not supposed to take it personally, but sometimes it's hard not to, because i feel like the truth is we're selling ourselves as much as the machine.

I feel your pain brother! We all have bad runs like that and sometimes, no matter how thick your skin is, people can just rub you the wrong way. Here's a couple of things that help me in locating:

I use google maps the week before I go out to really comb my target area so I have a good idea what locations I want to hit.

Blue collar areas are my bread and butter. Latino and Asian neighborhoods are home runs as well. Great people who not only patronize the machine but look out for it's well being.

Strip malls loaded with small mom & pop business are great. Start at one end and hit every business.

I will generally try ANY location. If it's there for three months and doesn't perform I pull it and place it somewhere else.

I place nothing but single gumball machines. It's fast and easy. If the place wants/needs a bigger machine I still leave the single until I come back with the bigger setup. Most of the time a double is big enough to service most locations.

I take the machine inside every potential location (a huge benefit of using singles). I always seem to have better luck when taking the machine in with me.

I have a buddy that often goes out locating with me. One of us drives and the other guy just grabs a machine out of the van and goes in and out of locations. It's fast and we can switch up if we need a break from cranky people. We often get 15-20 machines out in less than 4 hours. I would say 90% stick after 6 months. 

Go with a charity if you haven't already. NCCS, Susan G. Komen, Lions Club, Kiwanis Club, Optimist Club, MDA all have been great partners to my business through the years and personally it is fulfilling to know that I'm supporting great organizations. If you do go with a charity make sure it is legitimate and be able to immediately provide proof to the location showing verifiable contact information if they want to follow up with the charity. 

I hold off on offering commission unless I can tell that's what they want. If that's the case, I try to stick with gumballs only. Truth be told, a location has to be a monster in sales for the commission to amount to much for a location. Often they are stunned by how little it is even if I am giving them 40%. 

Keep your sales pitch short and succinct. If the decision maker isn't there don't waste your time (and money) giving them a card just move on. 

Bottom line.....the locating game is always a challenge and most people don't have the courage to even try. You have already crossed that bridge and proven that you have the guts to do it. Now you just need to figure out the system that works best for you. Keep your chin up and good luck!

 

[jay22]

On 6/19/2022 at 1:13 PM, gumball guy said:

I feel your pain brother! We all have bad runs like that and sometimes, no matter how thick your skin is, people can just rub you the wrong way. Here's a couple of things that help me in locating:

I use google maps the week before I go out to really comb my target area so I have a good idea what locations I want to hit.

Blue collar areas are my bread and butter. Latino and Asian neighborhoods are home runs as well. Great people who not only patronize the machine but look out for it's well being.

Strip malls loaded with small mom & pop business are great. Start at one end and hit every business.

I will generally try ANY location. If it's there for three months and doesn't perform I pull it and place it somewhere else.

I place nothing but single gumball machines. It's fast and easy. If the place wants/needs a bigger machine I still leave the single until I come back with the bigger setup. Most of the time a double is big enough to service most locations.

I take the machine inside every potential location (a huge benefit of using singles). I always seem to have better luck when taking the machine in with me.

I have a buddy that often goes out locating with me. One of us drives and the other guy just grabs a machine out of the van and goes in and out of locations. It's fast and we can switch up if we need a break from cranky people. We often get 15-20 machines out in less than 4 hours. I would say 90% stick after 6 months. 

Go with a charity if you haven't already. NCCS, Susan G. Komen, Lions Club, Kiwanis Club, Optimist Club, MDA all have been great partners to my business through the years and personally it is fulfilling to know that I'm supporting great organizations. If you do go with a charity make sure it is legitimate and be able to immediately provide proof to the location showing verifiable contact information if they want to follow up with the charity. 

I hold off on offering commission unless I can tell that's what they want. If that's the case, I try to stick with gumballs only. Truth be told, a location has to be a monster in sales for the commission to amount to much for a location. Often they are stunned by how little it is even if I am giving them 40%. 

Keep your sales pitch short and succinct. If the decision maker isn't there don't waste your time (and money) giving them a card just move on. 

Bottom line.....the locating game is always a challenge and most people don't have the courage to even try. You have already crossed that bridge and proven that you have the guts to do it. Now you just need to figure out the system that works best for you. Keep your chin up and good luck!

 

the bringing machine in with you approach is ballsy and i agree it’s smart as it has worked for me too. i also have been yelled at for doing that though, and a lot of times i just don’t have the nerve to do it. also, now that i mostly always do doubles, it’s a pain to walk in with the double, and even more intrusive. is there a place online we can advertise our machines? 

 

[gumball guy]

56 minutes ago, jay22 said:

the bringing machine in with you approach is ballsy and i agree it’s smart as it has worked for me too. i also have been yelled at for doing that though, and a lot of times i just don’t have the nerve to do it. also, now that i mostly always do doubles, it’s a pain to walk in with the double, and even more intrusive. is there a place online we can advertise our machines? 

 

Occasionally I get someone who is immediately rude to me so when that happens I just smile, tell them to have a nice day then immediately turn around and move on to greener pastures. I don't even attempt to engage them further because about 99% of the time, further conversation with someone like that will just end up frustrating me and not lead to landing the location.

I agree doubles are tougher to lug around so a picture is probably a better approach with those machines. I assume you have them in your vehicle so you can immediately install them.

In regards to advertising, I have never done it before but I have seen other vendors do it on Craigslist and Facebook Market Place. I think that approach would be more beneficial for smaller, full line vending companies because there really seems to be an under served market of medium to small businesses who actively seek out snack/pop machines for their businesses when they can't get service from big vending companies. This line of thinking is why I have never created a website. I have had several competitors who initially created websites primarily to add some legitimacy to their business but eventually they all did away with them. My opinion.....It never hurts to try it especially if it's free to do but I just wouldn't get my hopes up for a windfall of new accounts.