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Planet Antares Inc - A blog to discuss the vending solutions provided by Planet Antares.

Monday, March 29, 2010

How Is Product Selection Crucial For Success of Planet Antares Vending Business

Since its inception, vending industry has been skyrocketing with no looking back. Perhaps, this is the only industry that has been successful in providing employment opportunities to people despite recession and other economic crisis. This simple business can be taken up by anyone keen in standing in his own legs.

With the success of this industry, several vending products are introduced into the market. Hence choosing one from amongst them is quite challenging for any operator. Moreover, the choice of vending products is influenced by several factors like kind of vending machine used, location in which machines are placed, demand for the product and target audience.

Things which operators need to keep in mind while choosing vending products are:

• Prefer suppliers based in your near by locality. This will save a lot of time for the operator while procuring stock. Another thing the operator needs to ensure is that the products vended are fresh and have not past their expiry date. This is important because you do not want to lose your customers by offering them outdated stock. This will not only affect your sales but also create ill will and bad image for your company.

• Product demand: .Identify the products that have maximum demand and stock them in your machine. Keep updating yourself with latest products in the market and try offering them in your Planet Antares machines. This is a good way of attracting and satisfying customers.

• Target customer needs: Children and youngsters constitute major portion of customer base for vending business. Try to understand their needs and requirements and offer products that can satisfy them. Product suppliers are also a source of vital information about the right kind of products suitable for your machines. This will help in boosting sales.

• Go for branded products: Branded products are renowned internationally and hence they get sold easily as compared to unbranded ones. So try to offer them along with unbranded ones. This would grab attention of customers and even enhance sales of your unbranded items.

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Thursday, March 25, 2010

How To Expand Planet Antares Vending Route

All of us start businesses with the view of further expansion if not immediately, at least at a later point of time. The common practise adopted by operators taking up vending business for the first time is to start on a small scale with may be one or two machines and gradually expand it over a period of time.

Most of us might not be aware of the fact that vending machines have been through a lot of phases before reaching its present form. Still the first thing that strikes our mind when we talk of vending business is coffee and junk food machines. Vending industry has surpassed this stage and healthy vending is the modern mantra of this business now. Healthy vending machines dispense low calorie cookies, candy bars, fruits, grain bars, baked chips and many more.

When it comes to business expansion, operators have several choices. Few of them are mentioned below:

• Try to add more machines. Try increasing the product length (add similar kind of products). For instance, if you sell Coke, then add Pepsi to it.

• You can also increase the product line i.e., if you are selling soda, then add sandwiches to it.

• Identify areas that need vending services and offer to locate your machines there. You can also identify prospective locations in your existing vending route.

• If the vending route is becoming too complicated to handle, then employ a worker if required.

• Try to advertise by distributing brochures or pamphlets. These direct channels of advertising can help in market penetrating.

• Also try and utilize the indirect mode of advertising i.e., through word of mouth. Ensure that your customer is satisfied and suggests your product to other customers.

So be on the look out for new expansion options.

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Tuesday, March 16, 2010

Understanding Customer Needs Very Important For Success of Vending Business – Planet Antares Guidelines

Vending is a customer centric business. Hence understanding customer needs and wants is the basis for running this business efficiently. But how can you know what customers look for? This is what most operators are concerned about. Understanding customer requirements is do doubt very important and one way of doing this is by proving the location with a state of art machine that is capable of vending a wide range of products. The other methods which an operator can adopt are mentioned below:

• Suggestion box: This is an age old technique that is in practise in several business models. Since there is no direct interaction between operator and customer, placing a suggestion box near the machine is highly beneficial. Customer feed back related to the products you vend and service you provide can be gathered using this.

• Survey: Random surveys need to be conducted on a timely basis. This helps in understanding changing tastes and preferences of customers.

• Regular monitoring: Regular monitoring of products vended helps you assess the most fast moving one and also the ones with least demand. Slowly you can replace slow moving ones with those that have maximum demand.

• Data:
There are few vending manufacturing companies that supply you with customer preference data. This helps you know which product has maximum demand.

Other things apart, these are the minimum requirements which customers expect from Planet Antares vending machines:

• Convenience: The main reason why vending machines have gained prominence is due to the convenience they offer. In today’s hectic lifestyles, most of us do not have the time and patience to wait in long queues to purchase products. This is one reason why we switch to simpler and faster means.

• Branded or standard products: Modern customers are willing to pay anything for branded and established products.

• Best quality products: Customers are not at all willing to compromise on the quality of products they purchase.

• Environmental friendly equipment: User and environmental friendly equipment if encouraged by all.

• Reasonable and competitive prices: High quality products reasonably priced is the choice of one and all.

• More choice options: Customer always looks for a wide variety to choose from.

• Flexibility in mode of payment: They prefer acceptance of various modes of payment.

• Quick and prompt services: Quick and prompt servicing is the key to success for any business.

An operator who understands this and provides the same to his target customers is definitely successful in his venture.

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Friday, March 12, 2010

How to Make Planet Antares Vending Business Successful

We all are familiar with the fact that vending is a very promising business that generates high revenue. However, just like any other business model, success cannot be obtained in a day. A thorough planning, careful analysis of market and competitors and designing strategic plans can alone make you successful in this billion dollar industry.

Few tips on how to make your vending business a big success are mentioned below:

• Always set realistic goals. These act as motivating forces which inspire you to work hard and thus achieve success.

• After deciding on the product you would like to dispense, your next move would be to identify a strategic location where people stay or gather in huge numbers. Some of the most ideal places for installing your machine are lunch rooms, bus or railway stations, shopping malls etc. The choice of location is once again influenced on the kind of product you offer.

• When it comes to purchase of a vending machine, operator has two choices. He can either purchase one or hire. It is much cheaper to purchase a used machine or rent one. However, when it comes to performance efficiency, new ones from reputed manufacturers like Planet Antares are far more superior that old or refurbished machines.

• Since the advent of internet, a wide variety of information relating to various aspects is available on the net. All you need is just browse and look for special offers or compare prices of various manufacturers and purchase one at the best possible bid.

• One of the major issues with used or refurbished machines is currency changes. Hence it is imperative for the operator to check if they work with the present currencies and see how easy it is to receive desired product since this would satisfy your customers and bring them back to you for repeat purchases.

• Availability of spare or replacement parts is also crucial. More and more companies offer metal machines which are far more reliable when compared to old plastic ones. The best part with them is that repairs are far easier when compared to the traditional ones.

• The percentage of profits you would be sharing with the premises owner also influences your success.

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Monday, March 8, 2010

New Vending Machines-Where and How to Purchase – Planet Antares Tips

Vending is one of the businesses that can be started easily and also gives you complete freedom in determining the type and number of vending machine you would like to start with. But before you go ahead and purchase a vending machine, thorough market research needs to be conducted. This helps in identifying various models of vending machines available in the market, their features, distributors offering them and their prices.

Starting a vending business is quite simple and does not require any specific knowledge or prior experience in determining the size of your machine or the location you would like to install it. Always start with a new vending machine. This has got dual advantages added to it. A new vending machine is not only efficient and attractive but also comes with warranty. Using a new vending machine for dispensing unique products especially targeting kids is got to be a big hit.

Before purchasing a new vending machine, you need to check the number of distributors existing in your locality. Once you decide on the vending machine you want to start with, you also have to consider the availability of suppliers of bulk products and at the same time identify some of the most attractive locations.

Purchase of a new vending machine is always advantageous when compared to a used one. These machines are highly efficient, come with latest features, do not break down frequently and maintenance costs are also very low. New vending machined also gives you an edge over older ones especially when you have taken up vending business for the first time.

Besides this business owners would be more than willing to partner with you when they get to know that the machines you possess are new. This would ensure them that the machines would not give any scope for complaints from customers regarding service interruption or coin getting stuck in the machine due to worn out parts.

One thing operators need to check before purchasing new vending machines is whether they have been tested or not. These small tips if followed can keep your customers satisfied by offering uninterrupted services.

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Wednesday, March 3, 2010

How to Start Planet Antares Vending Business

Vending is one of the very few businesses that do not require any technical qualification or specific skill set. This is perhaps the main reason for increasing popularity of this business among all business classes. This does not mean that this is a very easy business. Like every other business, vending requires a lot of ground work and proper planning in order to enjoy returns.

Vending operator has two options when it comes to starting this business. He can either start from scratch or take over an existing vending route. Some people prefer purchasing an established vending route. This is also a great way of starting the business as it would not involve much work either for setting up or running this business. All that is required would be to pick up from where the previous operator has left. You are least bothered about identifying locations or suppliers for your machines.

Finance is one of the prerequisites for starting any business. Every prospective vending operator needs to analyze the estimated costs for taking up a vending business. This cost depends on two factors, the make and number of vending machines required. Several models are vending machines are available in the market at reasonable rates. So, choose the one that best fits your financial limitations and is also low on maintenance. Planet Antares machines are ideal if you are looking to start a vending business.

Location is the next important factor that influences the success of your business. Prefer a location that has maximum customer traffic. Schools, offices, restaurants, shopping malls, bus and railway stations are some of the most popular locations. Make sure that the location you have selected is easily accessible to your target customers. Besides location, price of product should also be taken into consideration while starting business. This is because the price of the product and your target audience bear direct relationship.

All these factors directly or indirectly influence the success of your business. So operator should carefully and strategically plan his moves to become successful.

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