Ordering catering equipment can be a demanding task. Buying online can make it easier, but only if you choose the right vendor. This article helps you make the right choice when it comes to selecting a vendor for your catering equipment need.
Selecting the right supplier of catering equipment is a important decision, one not to be taken lightly. You will want to ensure you are dealing with an honest company, getting a good deal and the best equipment for your needs.
Until relatively recently there were only two options available to enable you to select a vendor of catering equipment: call them on the phone or go and visit them in person. This isn't always reliable as you cannot see the equipment on the phone and visiting a company many hours away isn't very practical. Once again the internet has come to the rescue, with on-line shopping, or e-commerce, it is now possible to view product images and descriptions, compare deals and research suppliers all without leaving your chair.
Not all on-line retailers are the same
So now we have established that selecting catering equipment on-line is the way to go and far more efficient than the old methods, we still need to ensure we select the best supplier and the right equipment. There are several things to look out for when visiting a potential vendor's website.
Does their site look professional and business like? Rather like a physical shop or showroom you can tell a lot about the company you are dealing with by how their website appears. You wouldn't purchase an expensive piece of equipment from a dodgy looking shop with misspelled signs and messy shop floor, nor should you from a business with a dodgy looking, messy and badly laid out website.
Does the website display prices? Many businesses use their websites as little more than on-line catalogues, displaying products but giving away little information. These companies hope that you will be tempted by the pictures to pick up the phone and place an order. This is an inefficient way to run a website. Now days people expect the website to work much harder, they expect to see multiple images, full descriptions and lists of benefits. Any vendor of catering equipment not doing this on their website is either lazy, afraid of revealing prices or simply out of touch with how the modern world does business.
Does the website allow you to actually buy on-line? Setting up an on-line shop takes a bit of time and money so only companies that are serious about selling on-line will go to the bother. If a supplier has a well thought out on-line store or e-commerce shopping cart, as they are sometimes called, you can take it a sign of professionalism and good business practice. If the on-line store is packed with features like customer reviews, comparison, wish lists and order tracking you will know that this company means business and is likely to be professional. And good on-line store will also make life easier for you the customer and that is always a good thing.
Shop around
Once you have selected a vendor of catering equipment that meets your requirements in terms of having a professional website that allows on-line purchasing it is time to compare. If you have a short list of potential suppliers the deciding factor will probably be price. You might think that location should be a factor too but it needn't be if the price is low enough. For example if you are based in Sydney and looking to buy a cake display for your cafe you might be tempted to use a Sydney based supplier, but what if a firm in Brisbane meets all the criteria listed above and offers the cake display at a price that is lower even when shipping is taken into account. I know what I would choose.
So, in summary, choose a supplier with a great internet presence including a fully featured on-line store and, of course, low prices and you won't go far wrong.
Selecting the right supplier of catering equipment is a important decision, one not to be taken lightly. You will want to ensure you are dealing with an honest company, getting a good deal and the best equipment for your needs.
Until relatively recently there were only two options available to enable you to select a vendor of catering equipment: call them on the phone or go and visit them in person. This isn't always reliable as you cannot see the equipment on the phone and visiting a company many hours away isn't very practical. Once again the internet has come to the rescue, with on-line shopping, or e-commerce, it is now possible to view product images and descriptions, compare deals and research suppliers all without leaving your chair.
Not all on-line retailers are the same
So now we have established that selecting catering equipment on-line is the way to go and far more efficient than the old methods, we still need to ensure we select the best supplier and the right equipment. There are several things to look out for when visiting a potential vendor's website.
Does their site look professional and business like? Rather like a physical shop or showroom you can tell a lot about the company you are dealing with by how their website appears. You wouldn't purchase an expensive piece of equipment from a dodgy looking shop with misspelled signs and messy shop floor, nor should you from a business with a dodgy looking, messy and badly laid out website.
Does the website display prices? Many businesses use their websites as little more than on-line catalogues, displaying products but giving away little information. These companies hope that you will be tempted by the pictures to pick up the phone and place an order. This is an inefficient way to run a website. Now days people expect the website to work much harder, they expect to see multiple images, full descriptions and lists of benefits. Any vendor of catering equipment not doing this on their website is either lazy, afraid of revealing prices or simply out of touch with how the modern world does business.
Does the website allow you to actually buy on-line? Setting up an on-line shop takes a bit of time and money so only companies that are serious about selling on-line will go to the bother. If a supplier has a well thought out on-line store or e-commerce shopping cart, as they are sometimes called, you can take it a sign of professionalism and good business practice. If the on-line store is packed with features like customer reviews, comparison, wish lists and order tracking you will know that this company means business and is likely to be professional. And good on-line store will also make life easier for you the customer and that is always a good thing.
Shop around
Once you have selected a vendor of catering equipment that meets your requirements in terms of having a professional website that allows on-line purchasing it is time to compare. If you have a short list of potential suppliers the deciding factor will probably be price. You might think that location should be a factor too but it needn't be if the price is low enough. For example if you are based in Sydney and looking to buy a cake display for your cafe you might be tempted to use a Sydney based supplier, but what if a firm in Brisbane meets all the criteria listed above and offers the cake display at a price that is lower even when shipping is taken into account. I know what I would choose.
So, in summary, choose a supplier with a great internet presence including a fully featured on-line store and, of course, low prices and you won't go far wrong.
About the Author:
Ambassador Catering Equipment is Australia's leading on-line retailer of high quality catering equipment, commercial cooking equipment, commercial fridges, food displays, coffee machines and much more. Based in Brisbane, Ambassador Catering Equipment can deliver all over Australia.
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