McDonald's and Burger King discovered years ago that if your restaurant is kid-oriented the kids would bring the entire family - over and over again. That's why these two companies pioneered kid's Happy Meals and an entire youth's marketing program. Each year the major chains spend millions to keep those youthful decision-makers bringing the family through the doors.

If you've been in business for any length of time you come to know the important role that children play in the decision making process of where the family eats. You probably also realize that you do not have the financial resources, or the marketing staff, to develop an effective kids program. Fortunately, there are companies out there that have done the research and development for you. A great example is Kidcentives. For the past 28 years, the staff at Kidcentives has been developing kid-marketing programs designed for the very small operator as well as the corporate giants. Kidcentives can supply your restaurant with all kinds of unique kid oriented products like crayons, hats, custom stickers, pizza glasses and activity books. They even have a cast of cartoon pizza characters they call the Pizza Posse, which consist of Pecos Pepper, Pete Pepperoni, Captain Crust, Cheri Tomato and Mario Mushroom. The Pizza Posse Birthday program is one of the most popular packaged birthday programs on the national market. The Pizza Posse program is supported with in-store promotional tools like stand-ups, window clings and a variety of other visuals. The Pizza Posse is a complete kid-marketing tool that will give your kid- marketing program a powerful punch. In addition, according to Tim Clark, director of Kidcentives, "Kids love the Pizza Posse. The characters are fun and kids definitely want to join the Posse." Kidcentives can even design a custom kid's marketing program for your exclusive use.

If you're not aggressively marketing to kids you should be. And Kidcentives would be a great place to get your kid-marketing program started. You can contact Kidcentives at (888) 574-2464.

According to the Vending Industry, 7 out of 10 people use automated machines every day. And that adds up to around $34 billion dollars in annual vending revenues. How many times have you been on your way out the door of a restaurant and stopped to drop a quarter in a vending machine for a handful of candy? That's the key to vending machines - They're the ultimate quick-sell device. In fact, according to ProDesign and Vending Technologies, a manufacturer and supplier of vending machines nationwide, "A strategically placed vending machine can turn a one foot square space into a $100 a month profit center. That's one reason we offer customers our Four-In-One candy carousels absolutely risk free for 30 days. The results are amazing." ProDesign recommends that before you purchase a vending machine, make sure you've researched the company from which you are buying your machine. Are the machines jam-proof and maintenance free? Do the machines offer the customer a candy selection? And is there a money-back policy on the vending equipment?

Imagine adding an extra $200 a month to your bottom line by simply placing two vending machines in your store. The attractive thing here is you get all the revenues of the machine. This is unlike most other vending machine arrangements where you get a small percentage, or nothing at all. Each machine can hold up to 40 lbs. of candy. A ProDesign machine can pay for itself after only a couple of refills. If you're interested in exploring the possibilities of owning your own vending machines, I suggest you give ProDesign a call at (800) 700-1022. I know they will have lots of advice on how to turn a profit with vending machines.

There is no way engineer Gene Tippmann could have sold 10,000 of his Steam'n'Hold units since he invented it six years ago if it didn't do exactly what it promised. And what does it promise?

The ability to both cook and keep a variety of food at its optimal taste point before and long after the rush. One piece of equipment does it all with no hood, water or gas. And that translates into more and happier customers. You can get more details in the ad below, so let's think more about how you are going to use your expanded capacity.

Variety is the spice of life, and nobody knows this more than Baskin Robbins. If they only sold vanilla or orange sherbet I know I'd never go back. Perhaps some of your customers like your location, but don't like your type of pizza? This gives them another reason to try your restaurant. Drop an occasional chicken wing in the corner of their pizza box as a thank you. Maybe they'll call back and order a dozen.

What about those large families that wish they could eat your pizza, but can't because Mom doesn't like pizza. Well, maybe mom will be crazy about your new lasagna, ribs, wings or spaghetti. This fall, get Monday night going with your Ribs and Wings Game Night Promotion.

Do you use coupons or offer specials? Think of the unlimited combination offers you can come up with.

How about the Family Gut Buster? It could include 2 pizzas, six wings, one lasagna, six ribs and two liters of RC cola at the amazing price of [fill-in-the-blank].

You know how popular ribs are here, but did you know there is a pizza chain in Australia called Arnolds Ribs and Pizza which is carving out a rather nice niche in the pizza market by using ribs as a way to get customers to try their pizza?

If you would like more facts on AccuTemp's Steam'n'Hold; call 1-800-210-5907

POP N GO has developed a beautiful popcorn vending machine that pops individual bags of popcorn using hot air. The machine does it all. It dispenses hot fresh popcorn into a nice colorful popcorn cup and gives the purchaser the option of a butter flavoring. The POP N GO machine even has a programmable LED message panel to attract customers. "The beauty of this machine as it pertains to the pizza industry centers on POP N GO's ability to generate new profits while taking up very little store space and it requires very little stocking or refilling. This vending machine is capable of delivering 100 vends without refilling. But of course the biggest selling point for our machine is the 85% gross profit margin" states Mel Wyman, CEO of POP N GO.

There are also ways to use the POP N GO as a promotional tool. You can use it as a fund-raiser by giving a percentage of each individual sale to a local charity or school athletic program. You could even designate certain evenings toward this fundraising efforts...Popcorn Friday Night - Help Raise Money For The Fighting Tigers Cheerleaders. Imagine all the kids at your restaurant buying popcorn, soft drinks and of course PIZZA.

To find out more about the POP N GO vending system you can go to www.popngo.com or call (888) 4 POP N GO.

So how does this tie into your business? Simple. Add a mocha coffee based beverage to your menu and you'll be adding new revenue to your bottom line. Ok, sound's reasonable, but you're probably thinking it's got to be complicated with all the recipes and sophisticated equipment.

Well you're in luck. Thanks to Cappuccine, Inc. you can turn out great tasting specialty mochas and coffee based beverages at a very low cost which results in new revenues. The key to Cappuccine's product success lies in their award winning instant mixes. Their product line includes a Mocha Glacier and Frosted Latte, which includes decaf and non-dairy versions, a coffee-free Vanilla Frost formulation that is a perfect base for fruit smoothies, or a delicious iced drink on its own. And by using a powder base mix all you need in the way of equipment is a blender. Imagine how many of your customers would enjoy a specialty mocha beverage. According to Michael Rubin, founder of Cappuccine, if you serve as few as twenty Cappuccine drinks per day you can add $15,000 to $20,000 to annual store sales. Now that's impressive. In addition to providing a versatile product that is easy to use, Cappuccine Inc. provides point-of-sale material such as posters, table tents, stick-on clings for granita machines and national advertising support from distributors.

Cappuccine Inc. might just be your ticket for cashing in on a profitable trend. If you'd like a closer look at the Cappuccine product line you can check them out at www.cappuccine.com or call (888) ICE-MOCHA.