Even though growth in the food truck industry is still expanding worldwide, we have noticed that many vendors have not re-opened their service windows this Spring. Many of the problems that these vendors faced were caused by using growth strategies that didn’t actually plan for the growth of their food truck business. Unfortunately, all this does is set your mobile food business up for failure.

Growing a food truck business is never easy, and trying to grow that business in areas where government continually puts roadblocks in place is even harder, which is why using these key principles is more important than ever.

Growth Strategies That Will Actually Grow Your Food Truck Business

Maintain Focus

Someone is always going to be trying to sell you a fancy marketing campaign, a new piece of kitchen equipment or POS system. These vendors will explain that buying this equipment or partnering with their firm is your key to your future success. Unfortunately, many food trucks have failed because they invested in too many things that actually didn’t help their bottom line. You must maintain strict focus on what your food truck really needs and what might be nice, but isn’t vital to your food truck’s profits.

Don’t Forget What Made You Popular

Food trucks traditionally do well because they have a local appeal and feel like they’re part of the community. A common mistake some food trucks make is to try to start trying to appeal to larger audiences by over expanding their menus. It may seem counterintuitive at first, but a focused menu is much more attractive to the common food truck patron, and in the end a small menu is much more profitable, than a menu that requires a large inventory and prep work that over stresses your staff. You’ve been successful up to this point precisely because you had a small menu, not in spite of it.

Be Frugal

Another trap that some vendors fall into, is to start splurging on new products and services the minute they start making a profit. If you’re truck is making money, be happy but don’t immediately head out on a spending spree. If you do spend money on something for your food truck, make sure it complies with the first of our growth strategies. You’ve gotten this far with a lot of hard work and doing a lot of things yourself. Don’t forget those great habits just because your bank account is in the black. Keep your nose to the grindstone and keep building your empire.

Become A Shark

Never stick with a vendor, just because. Pit your food vendors against each other and get multiple bids before committing to one. Continually search for discounts on everything you purchase for your food truck. Search out rebates from credit card companies, insurance providers, and anyone else who provides you a service. Keeping your overhead in check is the key to success, and if you lay the groundwork early and stick with this tip, it’s going to be easier to maintain better profits down the line.

RELATED: Choosing Your Food Truck Suppliers

Keep Selling Your Food

In the end, the basic premise of operating a food truck is to make a delicious food product and selling it to consumers. The first four of our growth strategies are all about making food production as efficient and as affordable as possible. Unfortunately, none of that matters if you’re can’t ring up sales. You need to set the goal of getting as many customers in line at your truck and then have them leave happy as your number one priority for your food truck business.

The Bottom Line

Success for your food truck depends on this basic premise: more money is coming in than going out. If you can master this tactic, you’ll be able to make it through this season and many more down the road. Oddly, most food truck owners find that controlling the amount of money going out much tougher than increasing the amount of money coming in. Finding the right balance between growing sales and controlling costs is the key to growth in your food truck business.

Do you have any additional growth strategies for vendors who are struggling to stay open? Share your thoughts in the comment section below or on social media. Facebook | Twitter