Paper #2 “Cutting for Internal and External Customers; Evaluating Your Product Presentation”

“Cutting for Internal and External Customers; Evaluating Your Product Presentation”

                On Monday of RMC I attended the reciprocation presented by Amy Steward and Jason Behrends. This was one of my favorite presentations of the entire week. It was hands on, exciting, and educational all at the same time. Although I don’t get into presentation of products, it was very interesting to learn how to deal with a product, and how to make it catch the customers’ eye.

                When dealing with customers, I learned that you need to be prepared to present both the cost, and the data behind a project. Consumers want to know what’s in the product, how expensive is it, how easy it is, if it’s healthy or non-healthy, etc. They briefly explained this part of a products presentation, helping us better understand why it is important to know our products. You need to know about a product to sell the product.

                The next part of the reciprocation session was the hands on experience. We needed to present a plate for a “key customer”. The plate had to be set up as though we were going to present it to this customer, whether it be in person or through photographs. They had four different products; sliced ham and turkey, Mc Donald’s 24 piece chicken nuggets, Mc Donald’s 10 piece chicken nuggets, and a pre-cooked ham. Four different groups had to come up with different presentation styles using the products and a few given additives such as packaging, sauces, plates, and other food items.

                After the groups had compiled their presentations, Amy and Jason explained what was good about them and what was bad about them. They explained how, with the lunch meat, that a white cutting board brought out the color of the meat, compared to a black cutting board which made the two different meats look the same colors. They also explained how sauces, such as mustard, honey, ketchup, and barbeque sauce made the chicken nuggets look more appetizing, as well as how the containers should be placed to present a better view of the product.

                After explaining the presentations, we learned about versatility and how different cuts and presentations make the meat look more appealing. With the ham, we were shown that making it more versatile helped with attraction. They cut some ham into ¼ inch slices, cubed some into ½ inch cubes, as well as left some of the ham whole. We also learned that sometimes simpler is better. You need to show specific items while not overpowering with other products such as greens or containers.

                The presentation always depends on the targeted customer. While some customers won’t like the presentation, others will fall in love with it. Different products are presented in more versatile ways to target a larger set of customers, making a product more popular. This reciprocation really taught me a lot about the presentation of products and how to ensure your customers target.