How to Hold a Successful Product Demo
At The Companion Group we’re often presented opportunities to showcase our products in front of a live audience. Whether it’s an industry trade show or a live pizza cooking demonstration featuring our Pizzeria Pronto, we’ve learned that these product showcases are important, and that they’re one of the best ways to help customers understand how to use a product. After hosting numerous pizza demonstrations, we’ve learned quite a bit about how to have a successful event experience, and we’re sharing this knowledge with you.
Most often, our goal at a live food demo is to showcase our Pizzeria Pronto Portable Pizza Oven. A live product demonstration of cooking pizza for consumers at local (and sometimes far away) retailers has proven to be an extremely successful marketing tool. The Pizzeria Pronto is a product that looks enticing on store shelves, but it looks even better with piping hot, crispy, delicious pizza for a live audience.
The food demos we set up are usually held under a single pop-up tent canopy, with a few portable tables to hold ingredients and equipment. At any given event, we can expect to make anywhere from 30 to 120 pizzas, depending on time! Not only do most people love pizza and stop by for a free sample, but many find it fun to watch the people who are making it. Between pizza dough flying through the air and watching a pizza rise to bubbly perfection as it cooks, it’s really a fun process to see happen in person. We aren’t the only ones to demonstrate the Pizzeria Pronto; many of our retailers have had very successful pizza events across the country.
Setting Up for Success
In a live demonstration scenario there are a few key elements to being successful. Let’s take a look at some of the best ways to engage your audience and have a successful cook.
When a potential customer has the chance to see, smell, and taste a pizza from the Pizzeria Pronto they’ll leave your demonstration with a fond memory. Rather than just thumbing through your catalog or viewing the oven on a website, this gives customers the perfect chance to evaluate if they like the product and if it’s something they want to buy.
Will I Have Enough Food?
Okay, so food these days isn’t cheap – but it is important to bring enough of it! When feeding large groups of people, it’s smart to estimate how much food you think you’ll need. Make a test pizza the day before and measure or weigh your pizza ingredients. You can do this with measuring cups or a scale, although the scale will be a little more accurate. It’s always best to buy a little extra, especially of the more affordable ingredients. Consider keeping your pizza to three toppings or less so you won’t be overwhelmed if things start to really get busy.
Do I Have the Right People
I’ve yet to attend a single demo where there wasn’t constant engagement between staff and potential customers. It’s wise to make sure your event staff is both knowledgeable and professional. Discuss how the oven works and what the features or selling points are before you arrive at the event. Having the right team members staffing your booth or display can make all the difference when it comes to attracting new customers.
A Few Final Tips
- If you plan ahead far enough, produce is much more affordable and fresh by shopping at your local farmers market.
- Membership-driven food retailers that sell product in bulk are great places to find affordable pizza ingredients in large quantities.
- Set up your portable “kitchen” so that things “flow” from start to finish. Assemble the area you’ll use to actually prepare the pizzas first, then follow with the pizza oven and finish by setting up a serving and slicing area. If your work stations are set up in proper order, things will flow much more smoothly during the event.
- Local health codes are important, both for compliance concerns and to eliminate the risk of a foodborne illness. Check with your local health department for tips on how to maintain on-site sanitation.
- The Pizzeria Pronto is capable of cranking out 10-12 pizzas per hour. If you cut your pizzas in 8 slices, this makes about 80-96 slices per hour. Judging how big your crowd will be and using these numbers will help to give you an idea of how many pizzas to prepare for.
The Show Must Go On
Product demonstrations can have considerable costs, but as they say, “It takes money to make money.” A live food demonstration is hands-down the best way to showcase a cooking appliance. With any luck these tips and tricks will help optimize your product demo experience and set you up for success!
