Running a restaurant is not an easy business. It requires a lot of effort which sometimes is so exhausting that you miss a bit or two. It is both pleasure and burden but at A4Everyone we believe that every business might perform better in terms of profitability. That’s why we listed 9 tips & hints that might act as profit boosters for any restaurant business.
1. Seasonal specials
Serve fresh, customers will love it. Promoting season food is crucial for customer satisfaction because we all love to eat fresh. This approach should be heavily communicated with customers via waiters, menu, blackboard, social media and blog.
2. Promotions
In all of us, there is more or less a bargain hunter. Since the discounts might be a costly way to attract more customers let’s get creative. Why not offer the chance to win a free meal once a day? Or before billing a returning customer on a specific day you might drop dices for giving away a discount. It is fun, it is engaging and it is beneficial for the client who`ll share the story with local friends and mates which are nothing less than potential customers.
3. Kids bring two more customers
If your place is family friendly you should put an emphasize on kid`s user experience. Kid`s meal deal and waiters promoting kid-friendly selections from the menu is just the beginning. Continue with doodle books to be colored by kids, the parents will be extremely grateful. Throwing weekend brunches? Why not hire a magician or someone good with balloon animals! This will make kids eager to get back where they have fun. And that is for sure.
4. Online ordering
Thanks to mobile, this is a whole new sales channel and it shouldn’t be underestimated. It might be done via restaurant` website or through dedicated online marketplace which already has huge customer base. It is measured that online orders are between 10 and 30% larger than on spot and they might act as loyalty vehicle. Via online ordering you are going to increase sales volume without additional staff costs.
5. Sales forecasting
Modern data analytics might bring demand prediction and sales forecasting at your business fast and easy. This will make your team more efficient in terms of stock and inventory. Such approach will reduce shortages while you are not spending on overstock. It also will determine the trending products which is important if you want to keep up with the customers’ preferences. Use A4Everyone free trial sales forecasting tool at our website.
6. Make first-timers coming back
A study made from Harvard University states that if you increase returning customers by 5%, the profits might jump up to 125%. Returning customers are crucial for every local business. This means that the maître or the waiter should recognize the first-timer and to ensure perfect customer experience from A to Z. Because you got just one chance to make good first impression. Keep it nice, don’t be stingy on smiles and try to remember customer`s name in order to create proper welcome when he visits you next time. Customer retention is crucial KPI in every business, esp. restaurants.
7. Social Media & Blogs
You don’t have to be Photoshop master to create impactful visuals of the food you are serving to your clients. But it helps. Luckily, modern day smartphones are able to do the photo job perfectly for your business needs. So, let us remind you that a picture is telling more than a thousand words. Share pics and vids, people love them. Include tips & hints from your chef, before and after shots of the food and do not forget to praise your staff. Employer of the week/month, someone finished a college or a new baby at the team – all of these are nice things worth to talk about. Offer rewards for social media check-ins or snap some Pokémon in front of your restaurant door. It is crucial to establish your own unique presence that builds a relationship with your customers.
8. Staff ranking
It is crucial to reward your best employees, especially waiters since they are the main contact point between customers and business. To do this properly you need staff ranking tool measuring not just quantitative but also qualitative KPIs. Because there might be a waiter who works fewer hours but his/her profitability for your business might exceed the average. This is really easy to be done with A4Everyone` sales forecast tool by just adding another column of sales representatives’ data. By proper evaluation, you`ll know how to help underperformers and to encourage over performers to keep excelling within your business. If you need further information, do not hesitate to drop us a line via our Contact web page.
9. Menu Engineering
Do you know that your menu entries might be mathematically modeled in terms of profitability? Boston matrix has wide application in the restaurant industry and is known as Menu Engineering. It gives you a fast glimpse of your offerings divided into 4 groups depending on their popularity among customers. By having such information you`ll be able to access actionable insights and to improve menu in terms of profitability. It might increase this crucial KPI between 3 and 15%.
A4Everyone team is currently working on such data analytics application which will be extremely helpful if you feel some changes in the menu should be made.
So stay tuned for more!