Buzz Bites Energy Chews - Any info?

[dperry]

And we arent' using this for a sales tool, I am trying to find out why you are all against Buzz Bites, and what we should do to fix the objections you all have.  Also on another note, I have been in bulk vending and have some machines in some restaurants.

Why do you and Vend24 have the same tagline, and why did you join within 2 days of one another this week?

Here's the problem.

1) If the product costs more than 10c for a 50c vend, then product costs too much.

2) You can't get the product unless you buy it as a registered vendor.  that means that a failed vendor can't sell the machines on ebay.

3) Those plastic machines won't last more than 1 year on average on any high-end location.  No single head machine should cost more than $100 shipped with stand.  Period!  Ever!  And that is generous.  The only exception I know of is for Beaver machines.

4) The biz-op requires that you buy their machine from them at their price.

5) You can't buy individual machines, or even in lots less than 30.

Ask spears or polecat about the problems real-world vendors have with substandard equipment.

[Bravo Duck]

And we arent' using this for a sales tool, I am trying to find out why you are all against Buzz Bites, and what we should do to fix the objections you all have.  Also on another note, I have been in bulk vending and have some machines in some restaurants.

I think there a number of flaws in the Buzz Bite business model and I will try to point them out to you.

Single place to purchase product, This is a big risk, what if they go out of business or decide to raise prices- you're screwed and your entire investment is virtually worthless.

Expensive equipment, All costs have to be offset with revenue and the more something costs the more income it requires to cover that investment in a reasonable ammount of time.

Specialized product, It is harder to find good producing locations for something specialized than for something generic.This is borne out in the location discussions on the other board.  Also this may be a fad, Later down the road the"next big thing" comes out and Buzz Bites are yesterdays news.

Equipment quality, These BB machines may be expensive, but that doesn't mean they're made well. There are numerous reports of jamming, they dont respond well to shaking ( if you have a bulk vending business some of your machines will be abused). The big players in the regular bulk vending world don't own this brand of machine ( T Pico ) because of quality issues.

The company that sells machines lied to many people about exclusivity of territory, If someone outright lies to me I almost never will do business with them again. Relationships are based on trust and they squandered theirs.

The previous points were BB specific, The following is general to Bulk vending:

Locating, Its an ongoing issue with any bulk vending company.  Early indications are that you're going to have to relocate at least half your machines to get an acceptable ROI. Every year you will have to relocate your poorest performers and some good locations will tell you to take your machine out for a variety of reasons ( machine breaks and they dont want to mess with it, different manager doesnt want it there, somebody left half chewed product or crumpled up wrappers on the floor, etc...).

Equipment loss, Sometimes when you show up to service a machine it will be gone, the people will say they didnt see a thing or this guy said he was taking it out to service it. Or the business has closed and your machine is gone. It hurts a LOT more with a $350 machine than a $50 machine.  Tom

[caserri]

I apologize that I have been away this week and was not able to address this sooner. I have a couple of issues with this thread.

Duke23 wrote:

And we arent' using this for a sales tool, I am trying to find out why you are all against Buzz Bites, and what we should do to fix the objections you all have.  Also on another note, I have been in bulk vending and have some machines in some restaurants.

 

Duke,

Welcome to the community. You are more than welcome to engage our membership in discussions about your product, however, please understand that we keep a tight reign on those trying to openly market products perceived as being a "biz-op". While your product may be a highly effective energy aid, your company's sales tactics are highly suspect. Until you are able to offer your machines at a reasonable price, in quantities of as little as one (1), you will be perceived negatively by the veteran vendors here on the board.

vend24 wrote:

We're not the same person.

 

The three of you, actually four, (One has yet to post) may in fact not be the same person but according to my back-end reports, two things are absolutely certain.

• You all work for Buzz Bites in some capacity. This is evidenced by the same domain name in your email addresses.
• All of the posts the three of you made to the forum thus far were made from the same computer.

So, as I stated earlier, if you would like to engage in relevant, general conversations about the Buzz Bites opportunity, please do so. Be warned however that deception will not be tolerated here and will be dealt with appropriately. Here is your opportunity to "come clean" about your relationship with each other and with Buzz Bites. 

How you choose to proceed is up to you.

Steve 

 

[ascentvend]

It could be 2 ppl w/ the same company.

Anyway... Here's how I'd suggest fixing buzz bites.

1) Don't sell machines. The world has plenty of good companies that already make high quality and well  priced machines.

2) Make Buzz Bites round and a standard gumball size. You should be able to get the same quanity of product in a 1" size. If it's not big enough, make them 1.13" size. No need to reinvent the wheel.

3) Quit trying to sell a system, franchise or territory. Sell a good product at a good price.

4) Realize you have a good product that will work for a small group of locations. It will work far for some others. It's just a bad idea in most.

 

 dperry wrote:

Now it looks like VendAndy21, Vend24, and Duke23 are all the same person who seems to be a Buzz Bites Biz-Op Rep who is trying to stir up interest.  I`m sure we will be seeing some new posters posting on the subject if his past history is any sort of indication.

[ascentvend]

Oh, to clarify WHY I say Buzz Bites are a bad idea for most locations. I'd say 75%-90% of the vending business is driven by kids. Most parents don't want kids that are all wired out on an energy product.

I've called about your product and was given references to call. Like I really want to waste my time researching a product. No, I want to sell a product. Besides, even Charles Manson had good references when he showed in court. I like to read what others think but I have 2 real refrences I always listen to. My top line income and my bottem line.

If you REALLY want to know what and why people feel the way they do about your product, I've got one big suggestion. The Bulk Operators Super Show (BOSS) is comming up in Sept. Go and see what people say.

Or wait till April and go to the NBVA Show in 2009 but I think you'll get better info from BOSS.

[vendlover]

vend24 wrote:

We're not the same person.

 

The three of you, actually four, (One has yet to post) may in fact not be the same person but according to my back-end reports, two things are absolutely certain.

• You all work for Buzz Bites in some capacity. This is evidenced by the same domain name in your email addresses.
• All of the posts the three of you made to the forum thus far were made from the same computer.

So, as I stated earlier, if you would like to engage in relevant, general conversations about the Buzz Bites opportunity, please do so. Be warned however that deception will not be tolerated here and will be dealt with appropriately. Here is your opportunity to "come clean" about your relationship with each other and with Buzz Bites. 

How you choose to proceed is up to you.

Steve 

 

And that my friends is called getting served. I love it. Steve the sleuth, it's great:D

I have never heard of this 'biz op' until today. And I do agree that there are alot of negatives here, so I would steer clear of this particular product. I do however know alot of people who are into the whole 'quick energy' craze and use sprays, gum, etc. to boost them up when there is no coffee around. So I think the right type of energy gum could be a moneymaker if it was marketed right. Maybe hospitals or other 'round the clock' business break rooms where people will most likely be looking for energy boosts to get through the work day.

[vend24]

That is the thing about Buzz Bites. You don't palce them where kids would be the main consumer. You place them in places where people would like a quick boost of energy without the crash. Each Buzz Bite has 100mg caffiene in them. If you place them in hospitals, where nurses and doctors aren't allowed to have open liquids around but need that boost of energy for their ninth hour of the shift, they will buy a 50 cent Buzz Bite. Telemarketer offices, they are always tired and might like a quick boost of energy, so they go to their break room and purchase one. Most offices have 100 plus people, if you get a few in there that like the product, you will be making money.

[dperry]

Why do you hide the product from the customer?  How do they know if there are any left in the machine before they put in their money?  I can't tell from the picture if there is a way to see if the thing is empty or not.

[vend24]

The product isn't hidden. You can easily see if there are any left in the machine.

[Vending_General]

We also cover most of the machine so we can explain the product and what is in it, and the purpose of the Buzz Bite.

[ascentvend]

OK buty why not make them round and put a sugar coating around them instead of wrapping them?

[vend24]

They have a very long shelf life the way they are.

[jimbo]

Buzzbites.....

These type of companies have been around forever in the vending industry. Remember Peppermint Patties machines? How many of those do see out there now-a-days?

IMO any company that controls the product, the machine (usually overpriced) and selling distributorships is a BizOp and anyone who buys into this type of set-up is doomed to fail.  It will take a long time to recoup your investment, if ever.

Bulk vending is easy, you buy quality vending machine heads and stands, you locate them, you fill with product and if it dosent sell you re-fill with a product that will - Simple, Proven....

For newbies just starting out, dont be fooled, you can learn alot by looking at what the large vending companys in your area are doing. Are they using quality metal vending machines heads selling quality product or are they using a cheap plastic import machine selling a product nobodys ever heard of at a vend price twice as high.

Jimbo

 

[West Coast Vend LLC]

Thanks for your post Jimbo. I think you have clearly warned the newbies and experienced business members on this site. "You have been warned about Bizz-ops". I wish I would have been warned before I bought my first 50 triple machines. I lucked out and found a home for all of them. I am grantful to this website for all the advice I got when I first came on the end of last year.

Thanks again Jimbo.