Did you know that the Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival made 29.6 million dollars in 2019?
There’s no doubt that there is good money to be made as a festival food truck. Yet, there are so many mistakes that can take a bite out of your profit.
Here are 5 common food truck festival mistakes and how to avoid them.
1. Failing to Know the Competition
One of the most common mistakes people make when joining a festival food truck event is forgetting to inquire about the competition.
The number of attendees is important to know, but you also need to find out how many other vendors there will be. You’ll especially need to know if there is already another vendor selling the same cuisine.
Depending on the size of the festival, it might not be worth your effort to attend if the competition is fierce.
At the very least, be sure to ask the event organizer to put your stall far away from any direct competitors.
2. Having an Expansive Menu
Another mistake is trying to reel in more customers by having a wide variety of menu options.
The more choices on your menu, the longer it will take you to move customers through the queue. When choices are plentiful, and lineups are long, many customers will simply choose elsewhere.
Consider cutting out the items on your menu that take the longest to make. Festival food trucks need to keep up a high speed of service.
There’s no reason not to have a festival menu that is simple for you and your customers. Plus, lowering the number of your offerings means that you can buy ingredients in bulk for cheaper.
3. Wrong Pricing
A rookie mistake many food trucks make at festivals is with menu pricing. Remember, foodies are attending in order to sample as many options as possible.
Having a few low-cost menu options will bring new customers to your stand. Remember, lots of people will have cash with them. Keep that in mind when pricing items and keep it simple.
Items for $2, $5, and $10 makes paying for it and getting change easy peasy.
4. Not Buying Enough
You buy double the ingredients you think you will need. Yet, you still run out. Then, you have to rush to the store to buy ingredients at a higher price point.
Not only is that bad money management, but it’s also stressful and drives customers away.
Be sure to come to the festival armed with more ingredients than you think you could possibly go through. As long as your truck has plenty of dry and refrigerated storage, it’s OK to have leftovers.
Having extra after a busy day is better than the alternative.
5. Ignoring Social Media
If you aren’t posting on social media before, and during the food festival, you are missing a huge opportunity to get your name in front of festival foodies.
Plus, all the other vendors will be promoting on social media, so you should too.
Be sure to use the festival hashtag in the weeks leading up to the festival. Make a point of engaging with people who are excited about the upcoming event.
Post pictures of your festival menu a day or so beforehand. This allows foodies to plan what they will eat on the festival day.
Also, make sure you let people know your location during the festival.
Have A Successful Festival Food Truck
There you have it! 5 of the worst festival food truck mistakes people make, and how to avoid them.
Are you in the market for a new food truck? Contact us today to discuss your needs.