First, I have decided to call my business Susgatous. What do u think? There is a personal story behind the name. Anyways, I am trying to find a commercial kitchen I can barter with so I dont have to spend on that. I am willing to work for the kitchen, bake etc. I am going to incorporate, get licensed, etc. Right now I want a small bus. production that does not have a lot of overhead cost. I am going to beauty salons and other establishments with a sample of cakes to get their feedbacik and start spreading my name. I want to hand them out surveys to get a sense of what flavors people like and what they want. What do you guys think thus far I was hoping for ideas on how to conduct these surveys and what questions to ask. I appreciate ur help, slaps (let me know if all this sounds too easy) and encouragement.


Thanks!

Sus

Hmmmmm...not sure people are going to find it easy to remember your name. It may be meaningful to you, but it isn't to the rest of us. There's nothing for us to "latch on" to.

As for surveys...I never EVER take the time to fill them out. I think it would be more productive to just talk to people about your cakes rather than making them "work" to provide you the information you need.

You're certainly working hard on this. Good luck!

I agree with Crimsicle about the business name. It doesn't conjure up anything about cakes. Maybe if you add something more to the name? Or maybe have a signature caked named Susgatous? If you want a brutually honest opinion about the taste of your cakes, try to find some teens. They are BRUTALLY honest! I take mine to my high school students at times, and they are never bashful about voicing their opinions! When I used a non-dairy whipped cream frosting, many of them told me that it tasted "wierd;" one said it "sucked," although most liked it. Hang in there! You're on the right track!

First, let me say congratulations on taking the next step into the "business world"....but, I have to agree with the others on the name. I, personally, get annoyed by business names that I'm not sure what it is or even how to pronounce it. I usually just skip right over them and go to a business name that is easily remembered.

Also, I really have to agree with lsawyer on using teenagers for feedback. Talk about your brutal honesty. Mother in laws are also great for that.

Well gatou mean's cake in french....which is why I thought it would be fine. Su is my nickname. Is Su's Gatous any better? It's basically Su's Cakes. I also was thinking of being called "Cake Chick" There is a new trend for twenty somethings to enter marriage and that is the group I am trying to target 20-35 buyers who want to step away from traditional cake experience and wants someone a bit more sex and the citiesque


Well I would take a little survey with a couple of cakes samples. I am not sure the survey would be very complicated.l Just choose which one of the white cakes you prefer kind of q;s. This is more a way to get my name out there.

Actually, gâteau is French for cake, and cakes is gâteaux.
I agree with the other ladies. If you want people to remember your name, they have to be able to pronounce it or recognize something about it. If you want to use a French word in your name, use the French spelling so people with think 'ah ha, something fancy, a foreign word' that will catch their attention more.
Also, Susgatou makes me think either (pronounciation) "s-uhs-gah-tow" or "s-uhs-gah-t-uhs" I wouldn't think of Sue or Susan or Suzeanne, etc, so I wouldn't have any idea what Susgatou meant.


I, like the others, don't think you will get very far with the surveys. It never hurts to try, but most people aren't willing to go that far out of their way. I really like the idea of using the teenagers! Great tip! But, if you want to go with the surveys, I would do an oral survey when you give out your samples. A lot of people don't like being put on the spot like that though.

Some questions you could ask are: do you like the flavor? what other flavors would you prefer? is it moist enough? too moist? too sweet? etc, to kind of get a guage...I am interested to hear how this works out for you. I wonder if anyone else on the board has tried this and what their results were? Maybe someone will post and give you some great pointers

Good luck with your business!!

I pretty much agree with everyone else's comments on the name. If you have a name that requires the potential customer to have to 'work' to figure out how it's pronounced, what it means, and what it's supposed to represent...well, they'll move on so quick that you won't even have a chance. I think Su's Gateaux might work better than Susagtou.

As for the surveys, I agree with the other comments on that, as well. People find it annoying to have to fill out a questionnaire or survey...UNLESS they get something (most likely free) in return for it. If you're determined to do the survey, I would offer a free cake (something small & simple for you, though) or a decent sized discount off their first order...or something like that. It increases the liklihood of people actually filling it out and getting it back to you. Otherwise, you could do all the work to prepare the survey, spend the money on paper/ink to print it out and then never see it returned to you....so then what was all that effort worth??

I have an idea that might work for you....it would help you get feedback on your product, as well as make it known that this is what you're doing now. You could throw a 'Cake Rating' party...like a cake tasting but for a crowd, instead of a bride/groom, and part of the gimmick would be the surveys that you give to each person before you start serving the cakes. You could invite, friends, family, friends or your friends and family, work associates, neighbors, etc. You could also ask that each person you invite try to bring someone with them, a friend or family member of theirs, that doesn't know you - this would serve 2 purposes: 1) You could get really honest feedback on your survey, 2) It creates an opportunity for you to widen your circle of customers a bit to outside your immediate family and friends. People talk...ALOT...and if they like your cakes and have a good time, they'll likely share it with others..."Hey..we went with so-an-so to a cake party at someone named 'Susecita's' house. She's just started her cake business....the cakes were delicious! And beautiful too!"

This could get the word out as well as give you the feedback your wanting on your cakes...all at very little expense to you and a plus is that you wouldn't be running all over town taking small cakes to people and then trying to collect your surveys that will probably have not been filled out. If you don't have sufficient space at your home to do something like this, surely a good friend or family member would be willing to loan your theirs for a few hours one Saturday evening or something like that. Hope this helps!

Great idea JennT!!

I agree with JennT. I held an open house last summer for my baking business and I had 25 people come. I just held it for my friends, bunco group, book club, etc. I made tons of baked goods and it went over very well.

Goodluck!
Julie

Those sound like great ideas! I can probably actually get a room at the university. I could also probably use a friend's space. The problem is getting the people to come. As some of u might know, I live in a college town. College kids dont buy cakes I have found out. Their parents do....


The survey idea I actually got from this site so Im curious for the person who posted this how it turned out. The surveys would definitely come with a cake or two to try. I also like the ideas of the discounts on the surveys. If I DO throw a party I can also hand out the discounts then. Oh Im excited about this. Now I only need to find a commercial kitchen for barter and I am rolling....

Hmmmm so as for names Su's Gateaux's then? Cake Chick? My name is french: Sussette so I could also just do Sussette's Gateauxs....

The kicker for this is that I don't need to be earning any sort of income until July so I have time to test recipes throw a party and spend a summer cake making....Im so excited about this now!
-S

Glad you're encouraged!! Gateaux is really the plural (cakeS) of gateau (cake) so you wouldn't need the 's on gateaux...if I'm wrong on that someone please correct me.. I really like the sound of Sussette's Gateuax! Perfectly French sounding, I think!

What about just Gâteaux Sussette ?

or

Les Gâteaux de Sussette

Your name is beautiful, I would definitely use it.

I might be the one who mentioned the survey - I was thinking more of just a sheet that people could make notes on, not a "formal" survey.

Give them a nice piece of paper, that says something like "please let me know what you think", with your name on it, and an addressed, stamped envelope for them to send it back to you (or you can stop by the next day if it's convenient), just to get peoples' comments.

I think you're on the right track, though - I'm enjoying the process from your posting about it, and look forward to eventually getting my business going as well.

Laura.

Susecita -

Something you said above reminded me of something my ex's university used to do. Maybe they still do...not sure.

Anyway....at parents orientation, they gave the parents a bag full of flyers and stuff. Mostly about the school, but some about the community - places to stay nearby, etc. One of the things was a person who baked birthday cakes and cookies and other homemade goodies to deliver to the student. A "mom" away from home kind of thing. I thought it was a neat idea at the time, and have no idea how well it worked. But, if you've got a way to get to the person who does orientation materials and presentations, maybe this would be a good way for you to go. Maybe place an ad in the student newspaper, too.

iloveicing - GREAT suggestions with the name!
Crimsicle - that's really a wonderful idea you shared there! I live in a college town, too...may need to give that a go myself! It's got me thinking about making up a sort of 'Student Care Package' type of thing...with cookies, brownies, etc...and a quart of milk, too! lol Could even do a student birthday package where the parents, or whoever, could order a bday cake and I would deliver it with candles, plates, utensils and the whole deal. hmmmmm....my gears are turning!!

Cake Sussette
what a nice name

I'm with i_love_icing.........those are great suggestions for your bus. name!