While going out and getting clients is the best way it is also possible to advertise and have a few come direct to you (but don't rely heavily on this as it will be slow and sporadic).

Unless you can find some other unique method of targeting small business owners locally then the methods that are most likely to work are the Yellow Pages and online (try to rank in the organic search results when somebody searches for vendors in your area or pay for 'pay per click' ads). If business owners suddenly decide that they want to explore opportunities to have vending machines on their site these are the two places that they will start looking.

The best way is just to develop a system of going out and securing your own locations. Work on brainstroming suitable locations, getting in the door and arranging an appointment with 'decision makers' and from there it comes down to pure sales skill which you have to develop over time.

You can advertise and it's likely that you will receive at least a few enquiries from people wanting a machine on their premises. Be prepared to talk commissions with this lot though as there is usually a reason why they are so proactive in contacting you - they want to squeeze every last dollar of profit out of their business that they can - they will want to know what's in it for them.

Yeah - with toys it seems to be not just the toy that they get but also how it comes out of the machine. Anything round is great as you can have them roll down through a maze of tracks etc to put on a show for the kids.

I agree. You have to find your own locations.

If a locator finds a great location for you, wouldn't they just be better putting a machine their themselves. Anyway, if I was a locator that's what I'd do - put my own machines in the best spots and sell the average and inferior locations.

Does seem like a good deal (but many have been fooled before)

Routes seem to be harder to sell than a lot of people think, particularly in times like the present. You could try to find out the real reason why he is selling to see how desperate he is. Unless you think it is too great a deal to pass up be prepared to drag out your decision over a period of a month or so and keep hoping that he calls you with lower offers.

Going out to service the route with him will help you to get an idea of the true route income. Going twice to some machines with him will also help you to see the activity in the time between visits. It would also be worth going back to some of the locations alone and watching the buying action for a few hours.

Steve