Marketing Project – Food Truck Vendor
Marketing Four P’s
Marketing is a food truck business function that identifies consumer needs, determines
your target markets and applies menu items and services to serve these markets. It also involves
promoting such food products and services within the marketplace. Marketing is integral to the
success of your food truck business. A strategy commonly utilized is the marketing mix. This
tool is made up of four variables known as the 4Ps of marketing. The marketing mix blends these
variables together to produce the results it wants to achieve in its specific target market.
Regulations around food trucks can very wildly depending on locations. They must meet
many similar codes and regulations that restaurants do because of food safely laws (“How to
Start a Retail Food Business”) . They must also be knowledgeable able of all the local sanitation
regulations. A lack of regulations though is linked with a growth in the industry (Odendahl
2012). Vending laws also play a big part, when and where can your truck operate? Your location
influence this a lot. Liz Leslie (2013) used Indianapolis as an example on how regulations
influence the food truck business;
“Two years ago, a city ordinance threatened the burgeoning food truck scene by prohibiting
vendors from selling food between 10:00pm and 6:00am. Since the initial brouhaha, Indianapolis
mayor Greg Ballard has largely been on the side of food trucks. Now, with its low regulation,
Indianapolis is seen as a welcoming town for food trucks, as compared to other more regulation-
heavy cities like Chicago or New York.”
A natural regulations that’s outside of any ones control is the weather (Gaur 2013). Rain, snow,
and tornados can restrict when you can be open, and how many consumers will choose you over
an inside option. The weather can also be used to your advantage, like an ice cream truck on a
hot summer day. Because they are like any other small business they must pay taxes, insurance
on the truck and equipment, and any licensing fees.
Product: If you are considering starting a new business or adding a new product, then
make sure the product bundle will fit your business’s strengths and weaknesses, and that it will
provide an acceptable risk/return tradeoff. For instance, if your business is very good at timely
response to customers, then timely service should be an important part of your product bundle.
Products of course are your menu items and services that your food truck provides for sale to
your local market. When developing a product, you should consider quality, design,
