Do you know that restaurants typically generate 30–40% of their annual catering revenue in Q4? With the holidays, corporate events, and year-end gatherings, now is the perfect time to maximize sales outside your four walls.
This is where Danielle Guzzetta (RevGen Marketing) can help. They work with restaurant brands to:
Build or strengthen catering programs from the ground up
Leverage existing operations to unlock new revenue streams
Capture more Q4 catering sales through proven strategies and execution
Even if you don’t have a dedicated catering program yet, there’s still time to put systems in place that will help you capitalize on this critical season—and set you up for success in the year ahead.
If you are interested in scheduling a quick complimentary call to discuss how Marketing can help your brand capture its share of Q4 catering sales.
Save the Date! Wednesday, September 24 at 4:00 EST.
Black Friday is just around the corner—and it’s one of the biggest opportunities of the year to drive sales.
Here’s the question: Do you know how to reach the companies that feed their employees on Black Friday?
Danielle Guzzetta (RevGen Marketing) and Byron Duncan (New Catering Connections) are hosting a Feeding Frenzy Black Friday Webinar next Wednesday, September 24 at 4:00 EST. Get ready to learn exactly how to tap into this high-dollar market and capture your share of the spend.
When the ground shifts beneath a local business, it’s rarely gentle. One week, margins are tight but stable. Next, spending slows, costs surge, and your old strategies feel useless. Economic shifts—whether national, local, or sudden—don’t just mess with numbers. They rattle direction, identity, and rhythm. But grit alone won’t save you. The ones who make it through? They’re embedded and rooted in the community and built to flex. This isn’t theory—it’s real-world. Below are seven actionable, community-driven strategies to help local business owners not only survive instability but also leverage it as a source of growth and reinforcement.
Tune Into the Local Pulse Early
Reacting late costs more than reacting wrong. The most innovative local businesses aren’t waiting for quarterly reports—they’re listening in real time. It starts with reading local economic indicators that signal where things are headed. Think foot traffic changes, commercial lease patterns, new construction halts, or shifts in local consumer sentiment. These early signals aren’t just tea leaves—they’re tactical clues. When inflation rises faster than expected or hiring slows down across town, it’s time to rethink your inventory cycle, renegotiate vendor terms, or shift your messaging from premium to essential. The economy always leaves footprints before it hits you in the face. Learn to read them.
Mobilize Community Strengths
You don’t need to invent resilience—you need to reveal it. Too many businesses waste time chasing grants or gimmicks when the most potent assets are already around them. Tap into churches, nonprofits, neighborhood associations, and civic groups. They’re not just allies—they’re infrastructure. Mobilizing community strengths means recognizing what’s already working and reinforcing it. Host events in underused community spaces. Ask retired professionals to mentor. Let youth groups design your next window display. Don’t ask what’s missing. Ask what’s underutilized.
Reinforce With Education, Not Guesswork
There’s power in knowing what you don’t know—and fixing that fast. During periods of volatility, gut instinct has its limits. Local leaders who invest in structured learning often outperform those relying on memory or legacy systems. Studying business fundamentals for local leaders like finance, operations, and digital marketing can unlock better decision-making during crunch time (this is a good preference). Whether it’s a full degree or a weekend immersion, upskilling isn’t a luxury—it’s a form of risk reduction. The future won’t wait for you to feel ready.
Recycle Dollars Back Into the Block
Survival isn’t just personal—it’s systemic. When local money stays local, it doesn’t just help—it multiplies. A dollar spent at your shop pays your team, who then grab lunch down the street, whose owner pays the print shop you both use. This kind of money, reinforcing local circulation, isn’t abstract economics—it’s oxygen. If you’re not pointing customers toward other local businesses, you’re weakening your own future. Incentivize local referrals. Offer discounts for in-neighborhood collaborations. Turn competition into a coalition, and everyone breathes better.
Subsidize Affordable Business Spaces
If rent’s your most significant stressor, you’re not alone. But high costs don’t have to mean retreat—they can spark reinvention. More cities and regions are exploring creative ways to retain entrepreneurs by subsidizing affordable business spaces. This can mean nonprofit-led commercial real estate models, shared storefronts, time-based lease tiering, or philanthropic offsets. If you’re a property owner, consider structuring lease rates to reward local impact. If you’re a tenant, bring partners to the table. The more businesses survive the rent squeeze, the more resilient the entire street becomes.
Spread Risk Through Small Bets
Don’t put your future on one roll of the dice. In economic uncertainty, the strongest business strategy isn’t bold—it’s plural. Instead of relying on a single giant pivot, consider spreading risk through small bets. That could mean testing pop-up offerings, collaborating on a co-branded product, or running a low-cost pilot for a new service. Think nimble, not grand. Local businesses that invest in micro-pivots often outpace those chasing the next big thing. Momentum likes motion—don’t mistake scale for stability.
Economic shifts aren’t the end of a story. They’re the start of a recalibration. Local businesses have always adapted—not because they had to, but because they’re embedded in the very DNA of a place. If you’re reading this while the ground feels shaky, know this: you’re not failing. You’re flexing. And in that flex, there’s strategy, community, and rhythm—enough not just to survive, but to reshape what comes next.
Discover how ITB Partners can transform your business with expert management consulting solutions—visit ITB Partners to fuel your growth and achieve your goals today!
I appreciate your interest in ITB Partners. For further information about ITB Partners and its Value-Added Strategy, please visit our website at www.itbpartners.com, or contact Jim Weber.
I hope you enjoyed our perspective and would like to receive regular posts directly in your email inbox. To this end, please put your contact information on my mailing list.
Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read. Your input is important to me, so please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts.
Join Byron Duncan (New Catering Connections) and I as we host Part 4 of the 6-Part series: The Catering Customer Journey, Wednesday, September 10th, at 3:00 pm Central time. Part 4 will focus on “Commitment” — and how to move leads from Qualified to Close. Chintan Patel from Meals Now is our vendor of the month.
We will also touch on the October Strategic Targets.
Even if you cannot attend, please still register, as we will send you the recording and link after the call.
We had 175 on our Part 3 series. We are shooting for 250 for September’s call. Please continue to share this message so that more people can take advantage of this incredible and free Playbook: catering-journey-compass.
I appreciate your interest in ITB Partners. For further information about ITB Partners and its Value-Added Strategy, please visit our website at www.itbpartners.com, or contact Jim Weber.
I hope you enjoyed our perspective and would like to receive regular posts directly in your email inbox. To this end, please put your contact information on my mailing list.
Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read. Your input is essential to me, so please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts.
“Why do you want to leave your current employer to work for us?” That question was the topic of a recent coaching session. My client, let’s call him Dave, scheduled a call to discuss an upcoming interview. He wanted to validate his interview strategy and thought my feedback would be helpful. He was particularly interested in my counsel on this one question: “Why do you want to leave your current employer to work for us?” I told Dave that it is a good question and commended him for seeking my advice. I went on to say that this question is typically one of the first asked in an interview. It is an important question that requires a thoughtful answer. It is an excellent opportunity for the candidate to answer strategically and set the tone for the complete interview.
Dave’s inquiry pertained to the second question an interviewer is likely to ask a candidate. The first being, “tell me a little about yourself.” This question is often used as an ice breaker to establish rapport. However, both questions are opportunities that the experienced job seeker uses to capture the interviewer’s interest and guide the direction of follow-up questions. To achieve this, compelling answers are crucial.
I explained that when an interviewer asks, “Why do you want to leave your current employer to work for us?” he is asking you two questions. The interviewer is listening to determine if your motivation to change jobs is sound and realistic. Your answer will reveal much about your ethics and your conscientiousness for job responsibilities. On a more subjective level, he is listening for clues that you may be disingenuous, which could be a potentially poor fit for their needs. The interviewer is looking for red flags that would disqualify your candidacy. They don’t want to hire a problem employee or a poor performer. In this regard, I told Dave that above all, his answer should be upbeat and positive. He must not disparage his current employer. Otherwise, he could be viewed as a troublesome employee, a negative influence if hired. This would likely eliminate him as a viable candidate.
Reasons to look for a new job.
Professional growth- Greater responsibility, challenge
Leadership
Compensation-Benefits
Better working environment/culture
More stable company
Pursuing a new industry/career
Facilitate relocation
Better work-life balance
Employers want to hear a clear, concise answer to the question. They want to understand your intentions for a job search. They want to know if your interest is genuine. They want to know that your motivation aligns with their needs. You must memorize a good, well-rehearsed answer to the question. The interviewer will notice any hesitation in your voice, so practice your delivery until it is second nature. That will alert them to red flags for further exploration.
To answer the question most effectively, one must know the target employer. The candidate must be familiar with the employer’s culture, strategy, and key initiatives, and understand how their skills, experience, and interests align with the company’s objectives. The most effective response will demonstrate that you have researched the company’s situation to learn about its employment needs. Furthermore, you can explain how you plan to use your skills and experience to support the target company’s culture, key initiatives, and competitive strategy.
This is an opportunity to speak about your career interests with enthusiasm and excitement. You can talk about job skills and personal strengths that have contributed to your success. You can point out accomplishments that align with your career goals and those of your potential employer. Concentrate on the plan for your career; career growth and new challenges, to be a part of a broader vision of your ultimate career goal.
The question, “Why do you want to leave your current employer to work for us?” presents the job seeker with an excellent opportunity to make a positive impression and influence the direction of the interview. It provides an opportunity to showcase how your experience, skills, and interests align with their requirements. However, the most effective answer requires the job seeker to complete due diligence on the target employer. They must have a clear understanding of the company’s strategy and key initiatives. The job seeker must understand the company’s culture and their value system. Armed with this information, the job seeker can craft answers that demonstrate how their skills, accomplishments, and career goals align with the employer’s needs.
I appreciate your interest in ITB Partners. For further information about ITB Partners and its Value-Added Strategy, please visit our website at www.itbpartners.com, or contact Jim Weber.
I hope you enjoyed our perspective and would like to receive regular posts directly in your email inbox. To this end, please put your contact information on my mailing list.
Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read. Your input is important to me, so please don’t hesitate to leave a comment.
New Catering Connections and RevGen Marketing are building something incredible – a one-of-a-kind Catering Playbook – but it’s so much more than a playbook. It is the go-to resource for restaurants that want to WIN at Catering. Those who are leaning into these strategies are stealing their share of this $72 billion market. Check it out: catering-journey-compass
If you need help building (or leveraging) a catering program. Go to: revgenmktg.com and sign up for a free consultation. We would love to help you grab your share of this $72 billion market.
The Count Down is On! We are just one week away from Part 3 of our Catering Customer Journey webinar!
Please join Byron (NCC) and RevGen Marketing next Wednesday, August 6th at 3pm Central/4pm Eastern, where we will focus on “Connections” and will take a deep dive into both Inbound Sales and Outbound Sales — and how you can maximize your time to drive the best results efficiently and effectively.
In the ever-evolving landscape of small businesses, getting your story heard is only half the battle. The other half is making sure it sticks. A compelling pitch, thoughtful marketing, and a resonant brand story can be the difference between a customer leaning in or tuning out. For small teams, the challenge isn’t just doing more with less; it’s communicating with clarity and conviction. The good news? A few smart strategies can go a long way.
Start with a Sales Pitch That Hits
A pitch that resonates doesn’t need flashy jargon or theatrical flair; it needs clarity. Buyers respond to narratives grounded in solid research and storytelling, not noise. That means knowing who your customers are and what problem you solve for them, then sharing that story in a way that invites belief, not just interest. One overlooked detail can derail momentum, while one relatable metaphor can anchor it. Whether you’re pitching across a table or a Zoom window, remember: the best pitches speak with precision, not pressure.
Make Presence Your Superpower
There’s a reason some founders can make even average ideas sound magnetic. Executive presence isn’t about charisma; it’s about control. The importance of executive presence training becomes clear when your team is pitching under pressure or leading with urgency. Small businesses especially benefit from learning how to command attention without overselling. It’s in the pacing, the pause, the eye contact. You don’t need to perform, just to show up with calm authority.
Structure Creates the Spark
We tend to think great pitches are off-the-cuff, but most are carefully constructed. Successful founders and sales leads often work from a step‑by‑step pitch structure that starts with a hook, builds credibility, and ends with a clear ask. It’s less about memorizing a script and more about orchestrating a rhythm your audience can follow. The middle matters, too—data points and proof should land where your listener is most open. Small business teams benefit by drafting frameworks they can revisit and refine. When structure is second nature, confidence tends to follow.
Build Confidence One Line at a Time
If your voice shakes or your words wander, even a good idea can fall flat. Confidence in sales doesn’t come from volume or bravado; it comes from preparation. You show conviction when you ask questions, share facts, and adjust midstream to your listener’s needs. Teams that roleplay tough scenarios, anticipate objections, and rehearse timing tend to find their rhythm faster. Confidence, like trust, builds gradually and breaks quickly—make sure you’re investing in both. That investment is often felt most in the subtleties: tone, timing, and trust cues.
Market Where It Matters
Marketing doesn’t need to be everywhere; it needs to be somewhere that counts. Small teams often make the mistake of spreading efforts across too many platforms, diluting their message along the way. Instead, identifying six marketing channels that align with your audience behavior—and sticking to the best two or three—can have a bigger payoff. Whether that’s a podcast guest spot, a customer webinar, or targeted social content, quality wins over quantity every time. Clarity of message and consistency of delivery are what cut through. Give your audience fewer touchpoints, but make each one count.
Tell Stories That Feel Real
People don’t remember taglines; they remember moments. Storytelling is how brands build emotional memory, and small businesses can do this better than most because they’re closer to their customers. Stories that integrate strong emotional responses—a frustrated founder’s breakthrough, a customer’s unexpected win—stick with readers and resonate in conversation. Don’t be afraid to share tension or doubt. The best brand stories don’t sell perfection, they reveal process. That’s where connection lives.
Design a Brand That Speaks Without Words
Your brand doesn’t begin with your logo, it begins with how people feel in the first ten seconds. A visual identity isn’t just color palettes and fonts, it’s posture. When thoughtfully built, it can create an emotional brand personality that mirrors your values without a single line of copy. Think about what your website, pitch deck, and emails collectively signal. Do they feel scattered or steady? Are you projecting the calm of clarity or the noise of trying too hard? Consistency in visuals breeds trust just as much as consistency.
Partner With a Consultant Who’s Seen It All
Sometimes, what your team needs isn’t more effort—it’s perspective. An experienced outside consultant can identify blind spots, untangle confusion, and bring clarity where things feel messy. Especially in marketing and sales, having someone who’s led transformations before can shave months off your learning curve. If you’re hitting growth plateaus or stuck deciding which channel or strategy deserves your focus, consider working with an independent expert. For teams ready to move with precision, ITB Partners’ strategic marketing consultants provide exactly the kind of insight that turns hesitation into progress.
In small businesses, every signal counts. A cleaner pitch, a sharper story, a steadier tone—they’re not just details, they’re decisions. When your pitch structure, marketing rhythm, and brand narrative all point in the same direction, you don’t just look credible—you become unforgettable. And that’s how small teams build something bigger than themselves.
Discover how ITB Partners can solve your toughest business challenges, fuel your growth, and help you reach your goals with their expert management consulting services.
I hope you enjoyed our perspective and would like to receive regular posts directly in your email inbox. To this end, please put your contact information on my mailing list.
Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read. Your input is important to me, so please leave a comment.
Interested in Unlocking 10–15% More Revenue—Without Adding Costs?
There’s a lot of money to be made outside the four walls of your restaurant—and RevGen Marketing can help you take your share.
Catering is a $70+ billion industry, yet most restaurants are either underleveraging it or not doing it.
At RevGen Marketing, we specialize in building catering programs that work with what you already have—no new SKUs, added resources, and zero startup costs. We can get your program up and running in under 60 days.
A well-run catering program can drive 10–15% of your total sales
With the holidays just around the corner, now is the time to act.
Up to 40% of annual restaurant catering revenue is generated in Q4. Let’s make sure you’re getting your piece of the pie.
In an era where every minute counts and every error can carry a steep cost, modern industrial environments are rapidly adopting smart technologies to stay ahead. From sensors embedded in equipment to wearable safety devices and automated systems that think ahead of human operators, the rise of smart technology is transforming how factories, warehouses, and production floors operate. The goal is not simply to add gadgets for the sake of innovation, but to meaningfully increase productivity, reduce injuries, and ensure facilities meet the ever-tightening web of regulatory compliance. Today’s facility managers aren’t just running machines—they’re running ecosystems, and smart tools are their new lifeline.
Leverage IoT to Monitor Everything, All at Once
You can’t fix what you can’t measure, and that’s exactly why the Internet of Things (IoT) is such a valuable ally in the industrial sector. With smart sensors monitoring temperature, pressure, humidity, vibration, and countless other variables, your equipment becomes a source of insight rather than guesswork. This constant stream of data doesn’t just help identify when something goes wrong; it helps predict problems before they occur, slashing downtime and allowing proactive maintenance. Whether you’re running a small facility or a sprawling complex, IoT turns your operation into a living, breathing organism that reports on its well-being 24/7.
Navigate the Tech Maze with a Consultant
Deciding which smart technologies will help, not hinder, your workspace can be overwhelming. That’s where bringing in an independent management consultant can be a game-changer, especially one with experience bridging operations and digital strategy. A consultant acts as a translator between what your facility needs and what vendors are selling, helping you avoid costly missteps and focus on solutions that truly move the needle on safety and efficiency. For expert guidance, it’s worth checking out ITB Partners, where seasoned professionals specialize in aligning technology choices with business goals across a wide range of industrial sectors.
Integrate Smart Oversight Through Industrial Servers
When you’re dealing with dozens of machines and hundreds of sensors, industrial servers make it possible to bring all that real-time data into one centralized location. This kind of consolidation lets teams spot inefficiencies, react faster to anomalies, and make smarter decisions backed by live information. To keep things running smoothly, it’s essential to work with servers that offer enough memory to quickly access and store vast amounts of operational data without lag. You’ll also want systems built with industrial-grade durability so they can stand up to heat, dust, vibration, and other harsh conditions commonly found on the floor, especially for applications utilizing edge servers where responsiveness and reliability are non-negotiable.
Wearables: The Safety Net That Moves with You
Smart helmets, connected vests, and wristbands that monitor fatigue are no longer futuristic accessories—they’re today’s essential safety gear. Wearables can track workers’ vitals, detect falls, and even issue real-time alerts when someone enters a high-risk zone. This not only protects individual workers but creates a culture of accountability and care that ripples through the whole team. For industries where danger lurks around every corner, these devices offer peace of mind and a tangible reduction in incidents, all while generating data that can improve training and workflows.
Find Automation That Thinks Ahead
Automation has been a fixture of industrial life for decades, but recent advancements have given rise to systems that go beyond pre-programmed motions. Today’s robots and automated platforms adapt to the environment, learn from past tasks, and even collaborate safely alongside human colleagues. These systems don’t just replace manual labor—they elevate it, taking on the most repetitive and dangerous jobs so that your team can focus on what requires human creativity and oversight. In the long run, smart automation doesn’t just boost productivity; it reshapes what your workforce is capable of achieving.
Energy Efficiency Through Smart Grids and Controls
Energy waste is both a cost issue and a sustainability one, and smart controls can drastically cut both. Smart grids analyze usage patterns and automatically adjust energy consumption based on real-time demand, reducing waste without sacrificing performance. When integrated with IoT sensors, these systems can even shut down unused machinery or reroute power to where it’s needed most. This kind of adaptive control not only cuts utility bills but supports your facility’s green initiatives, something that’s becoming increasingly vital in attracting clients and staying ahead of regulation.
Train Workers for the Age of Smart Industry
All the tech in the world is useless without a workforce that knows how to use it. That’s why forward-thinking companies invest just as much in training as in hardware. From VR-based safety modules to hands-on tutorials with wearable tech, training programs today are as smart as the systems they support. When workers understand how and why these tools exist, they’re more likely to embrace them and identify issues before they escalate.
The industrial world is no longer a place of brute force and blind repetition. It’s becoming smarter, more connected, and infinitely more adaptive thanks to technologies designed to work with human beings, not around them. Whether you’re investing in wearables, deploying IoT sensors, or building a server system that ties it all together, the goal is the same: make your operation faster, safer, and more resilient. As the line between digital and physical continues to blur, the most successful facilities will be those that embrace smart tools not as novelties but as necessities. The future is already here—it just depends on whether you’re ready to plug in.
Discover how ITB Partners can solve your toughest business challenges, fuel your growth, and help you reach your goals with their expert management consulting services.
I hope you enjoyed our perspective and would like to receive regular posts directly in your email inbox. To this end, please put your contact information on my mailing list.
Your feedback helps me continue to publish articles that you want to read. Your input is important to me, so please leave a comment.
When the ground shifts beneath a local business, it’s rarely gentle. One week, margins are tight but stable. Next, spending slows, costs surge, and your old strategies feel useless. Economic shifts—whether national, local, or sudden—don’t just mess with numbers. They rattle direction, identity, and rhythm. But grit alone won’t save you. The ones who make it through? They’re embedded and rooted in the community and built to flex. This isn’t theory—it’s real-world. Below are seven actionable, community-driven strategies to help local business owners not only survive instability but also leverage it as a source of growth and reinforcement.
“Why do you want to leave your current employer to work for us?” That question was the topic of a recent coaching session. My client, let’s call him Dave, scheduled a call to discuss an upcoming interview. He wanted to validate his interview strategy and thought my feedback would be helpful. He was particularly interested in my counsel on this one question: “Why do you want to leave your current employer to work for us?” I told Dave that it is a good question and commended him for seeking my advice. I went on to say that this question is typically one of the first asked in an interview. It is an important question that requires a thoughtful answer. It is an excellent opportunity for the candidate to answer strategically and set the tone for the complete interview.
