While the food and beverage industry gets a bad rap sometimes it is important to remember that we in industry are about more than just making tasty beverages and food. Yes, we serve beverages and food but more important than that we are concern for our customers, who are our ultimate customers. When we take a sip of water our customer thinks that we appreciate them, when we deliver a glass of milk their mind is transported to a happy place.
Proper customer service is the number one priority for any hospitality manager or restaurant owner. customer service is not just something that happens once a year. It is something that is done every day. In order to maintain the high customer satisfaction ratings restaurants need toMu an unwritten rulebook of customer service. This book informs our employees of what to do in difficult situations and helps create a should for our customers to follow.
Having a friendly and accessible staff is a critical factor in adding quality restaurants to the landscape. When someone walks into your establishment and feels like they are bombarded with information, which they probably are not accustomed too, they tend to lose patience and eventually leave. This is not only bad for your business, but also bad for your customers, who need to be able to interact with their destined server without any hassle.
Musical note: The server in most restaurants probably knows the school play that has to be played to fit the occasion.
chill out: This is probably the hardest of the above tasks to accomplish. In a relaxed environment people relax and get to know each other. In a hyper competitive environment people sweat and get frustrated. Try replacing your server duties with things like:Guests – tell them what to drink beforehand or suggest another beverage to help break the ice.
Unique Selling proposition: Go over your prices with the opportunity to talk about your unique selling proposition. What can your customer/says that you offer that is not offered anywhere else?
Getting to know your customers is an opportunity to gain respect and become a trusted brand. You need to continually surprise your customers with small incentives and challenges. This is part of the reason why people are today trying to avoid restaurants.
One of the best ways to achieve this level of excellence is to work from the inside out. Which means developing an internal customer database as well as investing in field staff to field test. Field testing will allow you to accurately determine customer needs within your space allowing you to provide it to your customers.
Put another way, if you cannot get enough locals to visit you in your locality, more than likely you are doing something wrong!
Industry knows no regional advantages. But, every sector of the food industry has a regional disadvantage. This is where you can use your industry knowledge and advantage. Which regional advantages do you want to make?
When you stay in a hotel room or in a hostel room you may find the bed and breakfast provided by the room. A typical requirement for a bed and breakfast is that you will be served a hearty breakfast. The food should be substantial meal, containing at least three food groups. No pasta dish, rice dish, no soup. This is consistent with the “Five-A Day” diet. For instance; bacon and eggs, hash browns, sausage, scan efficient. (The hash browns are typically served on the side, but the sausage is in the center) and so on. The ladle is brought, placed on the table, and the meal is served. This is literally the first meal of the day. In other words, the customer will be expecting a hearty breakfast. This leads to repeat purchases.
The main opportunity cost of eating out using this method is the time and the frustration involved in going to a restaurant. This time is money down the neck. It is much more convenient, less time consuming, and allows you to socialize with your family and friends.
The next opportunity cost is the MRE meal package. This is powdered soup, complete with seasoning, stick margarine, cold meat, flour, milk, etc. It is just about the same as Hot Toaster pastries. But, they are not Hot Toaster pastries, so if you decide to have one, it will not stick to your pie crust.
The final cost is related to the time it takes to cook the food, which is generally not much more than a few minutes. But what is most important is the satisfaction of reading the menu and being able to eat what you want. This is an important additional cost raver.
The time saved can be spent working productively, fulfilling obligations at work, or even leisure. It is not unusual for a hotelier to have twenty to thirty upper level beds available for quick and quick rest. This allows for the laying down of bedding, changing of clothes, and occasional visiting to the amenities like swimming and gym.
About The Author
Helena Eater
How much does the quality of food really matter? If you eat food that tastes good, your life will be better. If you eat food that tastes bad, your life will be worse. The difference between good and evil is partly subjective: what tastes good to me might taste bad to you. The difference is also partly objective: what restaurants I think serve good food might serve lousy food to you. But if we stick to objective measures — measures such as how much weight people gain or lose — we can cut through some of the subjectivity.
