Email newsletters have many advantages for communicating with customers - they're personal and private, and can be full of details. You can target particular groups, and measure the effectiveness of different messages and topics. Facebook, Twitter and Instagram may get the glamour vote, but email does the heavy lifting for regular communication about events, menu changes, special offers and community news.

In this podcast, Ken Burgin looks at a number of successful newsletters and describes what makes them so effective - features that are easy to incorporate in your newsletter.

In the first of two podcasts, lawyer Peter Panagiotopoulos of PNA Legal (the 'cafe lawyer') talks with Ken Burgin about the important players in the sale process: landlords, lawyers, brokers, buyer and seller. He also explains what should be in the key documents: lease of the premises, and the contract for sale of the business. 

Other topics covered include legal terminology, how to work out the value of your business, the best time to sell, the best way to use a broker and lawyer, lease problems that prevent an easy sale and negotiation tactics with a potential buyer.

In the second podcast in this series (#12), Ken Burgin looks in detail at how to prepare your business for sale including quick profit improvements and how to put the best face on your business so it's immediately appealing to a buyer.

Peter has been specialising in the buying and selling of foodservice businesses for more than 10 years. 

IMPORTANT: this podcast contains information of a general nagture on point of interest to cafe, restaurant and foodservice operators. It is intended as a general overview only, and may not be appropriate to your particular circumstances. The content should not be relied upon as comprehensive and does not constitute legal or business advice. 

January is a great time to look with new eyes at marketing, cost control, staff skills, bottlenecks and your own personal efficiency and satisfaction. Here are dozens of tips and resources to get the new year off to a great start - share these with your team! 

In the first of the Outsourcing podcasts, we looked at how to prepare a brief, find a contactor and manage the project. In this podcast, we look at 10 different restaurant, hotel, bar or cafe projects that you've probably had on the 'to do' (or 'too expensive') list that are perfect for outsourcing. They range from managing recipes, menu design, brochures, posters, market research and website updates to newsletters and video.

Now it's time to put ideas into action: start with a small project to build your confidence and very soon you'll have outsourcing as an important tool for efficient business operations and marketing.

Professional images of your food, beverages & venue are essential for modern hospitality marketing. Here's how to get great photos to show the quality of your products, service, staff & atmosphere - ready to use for digital, online & print. We live in a very visual world!

How to create more profitable business in November and December, and boost customer numbers in the new year. Plus a question on recipe costing and the Tech Tip of the week.

Promotional ideas for the weeks before and after the actual day.