Build an exceptional pizza, tasty pasta dish or a delicious salad and the customers will come — if you get the word out. But how do you tempt the masses without spending massive amounts on advertising? Clint Harris, co-founder of Promise Pizza ...

Dave, I just opened my first pizzeria a couple of months ago. Labor has consistently been running between 20-22 percent. At times, I feel short-staffed, but I really can’t afford to hire new help right now until I get sales higher. Do you have ...

Did you know that a 14-inch pizza actually has nearly twice the surface area of a 10-inch pizza? It’s true, and all it takes to show customers that fact is a little simple math. Let’s turn back the clock to your school days, where we&rsqu...

When Ray Perkins, owner of Chubby Ray’s Louisville Pizza Company in Louis­ville, Kentucky, was approached by a group of Girl Scout Brownies to do a pizza workshop for one of their badges, Perkins agreed, even though he’d never really wor...

What does the word “brand” mean to you? Unless you are the marketing director of a large organization, it may carry little importance, as people will likely not make the mental connection when they hear your name. Your marketing dollars are in sh...

A mascot can help you boost sales, but you have to create the right mascot and use it effectively. Whether it’s a costume that an employee wears or a cartoon character on your logo, the mascot can help you differentiate your­self from competit...

In 1970, Pogo, a famous and beloved cartoon character, uttered the phrase, “We have met the enemy, and he is us.” While the reference was made with regards to man’s negative impact on the environment, those words certainly apply to ...

What do you want to be doing 10 years from now? If you’re the owner of a family-owned pizzeria, and your dream is to kick back on a sunny beach with an umbrella drink in your hand while a suc­ceeding generation continues the business, then it’s ...

In a business setting, the importance of maintaining privacy extends beyond the scope of one’s personal privacy to that of each employee. Con­fidentiality should be at the top of every pizzeria owner’s maintenance checklist. How safe is your sta...

How does one get a loan when lenders are reluctant to make them? While the lending market remains sluggish, loans are being made, albeit in limited quantity to qualified borrowers. John Graziano, CFP, CPA with Future Financial Planners, Inc., in Hazl...

It takes hustle and finesse to get a picture-perfect, palate-satisfying meal from your kitchen to the diner’s plate in the next room. It’s trickier still when you’re filling dozens or even hundreds of plates at an event located miles away. Such...

When TJ Banning opened his first Rosati’s Pizza in suburban Chicago in 2000, he carried low standards for his delivery driver hires. “If you had a pulse and a car, you were hired,” says Banning, who’s swapped his early wayward...