Why You Should Set New Year Goals for Any Catering Business

To truly succeed, you should consider setting goals at the start of a New Year. And with January just around the corner, there’s no better time than now to start thinking about what you want to accomplish in 2024 and beyond.

But you may be wondering, why the New Year?

Why the New Year is a good time to set goals

First and foremost, after a hectic Christmas catering period January in comparison is typically the quietest time of year for catering. As your customers start to come back to work over January, it’s a perfect time to direct your resources towards setting some goals.

People are more likely to create goals and take action at the start of a new time period. This is known as the ‘ fresh start effect’. What’s more, research shows that there’s a spike in internet searches for goal-related things in January.

So, we see the New Year as a time that separates the past from the future, and as a time to reflect on where we’ve been and where we’re going.

Here’s a closer look at the benefits of setting New Year goals for your business:

• They’re fluid – You can start with small goals and, as the year goes by, you can increase their difficulty as you become more accustomed to the change. This allows for more realistic goals and lasting change.
• They give you a sense of accomplishment – By taking baby steps towards your goals, you’ll feel like you’ve accomplished something and are on the right track. This will keep you moving in the right direction.
• They’re adjustable – If you find a goal hard to carry out from the start, you have the opportunity to adjust it to a lower intensity, or you can try a different method that will still help you meet your goal by the end of the year.
• They allow you to reflect – When you think about the areas in your business you’d like to improve on in the New Year (e.g. increase productivity or sales), you’ll be made to reflect on the previous year’s accomplishments and failures and where you want to go. In turn, this will allow you to set achievable goals.
• They support positive change – When you recognize areas in your business that you’d like to change in the New Year (eg. increase organization or provide better customer communications), you’ll be empowered to take action towards your goals.

What should your goals be?

Before you set your goals, figure out what areas of your business need to or could be improved. Get feedback from your employees and customers and write down all the ideas.

You can also analyze your catering sales for the previous year to gain some insight into what worked and what didn’t. Catering management systems such as FoodStorm can provide detailed analytics on your sales, such as performance by Product, Location and even Time of Day.

Here are some examples of goals to set for your business:

• Increasing catering sales is of course a common goal.
• You might want to increase efficiency in your operations, such as reducing administration time.
• You could hire a catering mentor to help you tackle problems and succeed, or you can train your employees to provide better service.
• You may need to learn how to better utilize your website or do social media marketing to help increase leads and bring in more customers.
• You might have to integrate a tracking system that lets you see what is and isn’t working in your business.

Setting SMART goals

Now, it’s time to choose and create goals that are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic/Relevant and Timely). For example:

• Specific – A specific goal could be ‘rebuilding your website to generate 20% more catering sales in six months’ or ‘gaining five new clients for your business’. You should also include a timeframe for achieving the goal and the things you need to make it happen.
• Measurable – A goal should be able to be divided into smaller goals that you can tick off once it’s completed. If you want to gain a specific number of clients, for instance, you can measure your progress by keeping track of how many new clients you gain.
• Achievable – A goal must be something you have the time, money, and resources to meet. For example, you can gain five new clients as you currently have five available spaces in your client scheduling diary.
• Realistic/Relevant – A goal should be realistic to implement. It must also be relevant to the direction you want your business to head in, such as boosting profit, hiring more staff or increasing brand awareness.
• Timely – A goal must have a realistic deadline for completion.

How FoodStorm can help caterers achieve their goals

FoodStorm has been helping caterers achieve their goals for more than a decade with industry leading catering software. We offer cutting-edge features such as online ordering, order tracking and communication, automated reports and system integration.

For example, our payment and invoicing feature helps you get paid faster for your catering and empower your customers to pay online. It provides secure online payments, credit card storage, automatic invoicing, deposit payments, and more. Our catering software can help you automate your processes, increase catering sales and delight your customers.

We also offer Customer Relationship Management (CRM) features in our software. It gives you access to real-time sales data and customer information, which can help you group or segment your customers, provide tailored customer service, make business decisions and adjust your marketing tactics. You’ll also be able to send targeted marketing communications, record standing order instructions, and predict upcoming catering orders.

Our CRM software can help you achieve greater profitability and customer satisfaction.

Overall, FoodStorm software is a valuable and efficient tool for any catering business aiming to increase productivity and organization. And as you embark on a year with lofty business goals, ensuring you have chosen the right technology partner is paramount. To read more about our service offering click here.

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Disclaimer: This article has been updated June 2024