The value of your business to your community is beyond the food that you serve and this is why...

The sight of pizza for my son is exciting. He wants to hold the warm box in his lap on the drive home when we order it for carryout. He loves the smell of it hot out of the oven, the gooeyness of the cheese, and saltiness of the pepperoni. The first bite is always highly anticipated. "Oh, mommy, this pizza is so good!" His excitement is still the same every time.

The staff at our local pizzeria knows his order by memory and brushes pesto on his crust if he forgets to ask for it! He makes them feel special, and they make him feel equally special.

Every week my parents have a pizza date with him and pick him up from school for his special treat and time together. He prefers one particular restaurant because of their staff's friendliness every time he goes there.

He eats pizza on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of every week and from different restaurants each day because of his preferences and the restaurants' individual pizza style. He is a pizza connoisseur.

Your food means so much to the people who eat it and for many reasons. Hopefully, you understand the value of what you offer.

Why your business is important to our community

Ensuring that your restaurant is here for decades to come is very important. We plan our celebrations at your locations, like weddings, baby showers, graduations, retirement parties, and other significant events. We hire you to perform specialized services. You are a part of our memories that we will cherish for a lifetime.

The success of our community depends, in part, on you. You also employ the residents in the surrounding neighborhoods that contribute to financial stability in homes. When a local eatery, especially a landmark, closes down, it causes us to experience heartaches and a longing for what used to be, often leaving a void that could never be filled by another business. I don't get excited or attached to any new or up and coming restaurants because of the attrition rate in the food industry.

Food touches every person and each culture in a different but also familiar way. Community is created when we share meals together. Regional cuisine contributes to the area's identity, and then there are new food trends that spark excitement for something fresh and new. Our lives are centered on experiences with the people and food that we love. By nature, it is essential to our lives and its importance is integrated into all cultural traditions. Before I travel, I have already planned what food I want to eat and where I want to eat it from, but I also leave room for spontaneity!

To ensure that you meet and exceed guest expectations, having a plan for long-term growth and expansion is essential. Business goal planning with built-in metrics broken down into annual, quarterly, monthly, weekly, daily, and hourly increments is an important part of the planning process.

Abrupt closures cause devastation to loyal patrons and employees by permanently removing something that was a normal part of their routine that they craved but no longer have access to. Moreover, the loss of employment for management and staff results in a financial loss to households if they aren't able to find a new job immediately after your closure. People have to deal with withdrawal when a place that they depended on did not give advance notice that they were going to permanently close the business, and a void is left in their absence. Before financial hardship, the failing health or death of an owner, divorce, partnership dissolution, or the many other causes of a business's closure having a plan in place for these types of events happen will contribute to a business's continued success with as little disruption as possible during these transitional stages.

Working with an industry growth coach and/or consultant could help you focus on new strategies and ideas when the business's day-to-day responsibilities could have you in a chokehold. For a family business, have a succession plan that includes what should be done if the surviving members aren't interested in owning, operating, or working in the business. Failing to adapt quickly and appropriately contributes greatly to a business's decline.

The value of significant businesses goes beyond what is on the plate. You are a part of the local economy, you contribute to the success of other businesses, and you might be a local landmark that is a part of your area's community identity or a travel hotspot. Besides being a place to commune, your business might be small but still shows up in a big way.