Tag: business;

WHERE IS THE OWNER ?

Thursday, January 10th, 2019

Restaurants are hard work. The hours are long, the work is tiring, and it can be repetitive. But if the owner doesn’t care enough about the restaurant to show up, why should the staff?

No one is going to step up their game until their boss tells them to.

The only person who can inspire and lead is the leader.

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Absentee owners are a recipe for failure, precisely because it is presence and leadership that can turn around a failing restaurant, not an owner in hiding.

Owners often disappear when the sales start to fall or the job starts to seem less fun. But of course, that is exactly the time when the owner is the most needed.

That said, the owner can’t be expected to be there 24/7 and needs a life outside of the restaurant … so work – life balance is essential.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

DOES YOUR RESTAURANT HAVE A USP?

Thursday, December 6th, 2018

A USP is a Unique Selling Point and I believe all restaurants need one.

You see, just saying your food is great, or your prices are fair, is not enough. You must be unique and you must be able to communicate that uniqueness to others, quickly and simply.

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How is your restaurant different from every other restaurant?

How is it unique?

In what way are you the only restaurant to offer a particular dining experience?

I recommend looking at your competition, businesses that are similar to yours, and ask yourself how are we different, how are we unique and how could we make ourselves unique?

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By doing this, your restaurant can be more easily differentiated by customers and stand out in an often saturated market.

If you are not unique,  if you are not different, you may find it hard to succeed.

What are your thoughts on the points above? Let me know in the comments!

DON’T BE CHEAP

Wednesday, November 7th, 2018

In this case, Being Cheap means you are charging for things that should be free.

 

Please don’t be that person !!

 

  • Don’t charge for simple substitutions, for example, potatoes instead of spinach.
  • Always offer water, and don’t force customers to order mineral water.
  • Don’t charge for birthday cakes if you don’t offer them to customers on your menu.
  • Be generous with comping, free tasting, and extra portions of something the customer loves. (Watch the comping …)

 

Generosity will always come back to you in the form of loyal customers and recommendations. But being stingy will come back to you as well.

What are your thoughts on the points above? Let me know in the comments!

POOR SIGNAGE

Thursday, October 25th, 2018

People will not know that your restaurant is there unless you tell them, so I see your Signage as one of the most important ways to tell the outside world who you are and what you are doing.

Consider these points:

  • Is the typeface easy to read? Your sign is not the time for cursive or strange typefaces.
  • Is it high contrast? Black on white is great; dark green on black, not so much.
  • Can you see the sign from the road?
  • Can you see it at night?
  • Is it well lit?
  • Can you read the sign from more than one direction? The sign boards should be readable no matter where you are coming from.
  • Is there a lit menu board outside the restaurant? The menu board is as important as any other sign. Without it, walk-by customers are likely to just keep walking.

 

What are your thoughts on the points above? Let me know in the comments!

NO PRICING STRATEGY

Tuesday, September 25th, 2018

It´s important to think clearly about how you want to price your menu.

You have a choice …. Do you want to be seen as high end? Do you want to price yourself equal to your main competitors, or do you want to have low prices in the hopes of driving traffic?

 

There are three basic pricing strategies you can use depending upon your market.

1. UNDER MARKET — This is the low price strategy. I think the key to success with this strategy is to offer high value at a low cost.

2.  AT MARKET — In this strategy, you are competing at the same level as your peers so you have to offer a compelling USP, high food quality and above average service to attract customers.

3. ABOVE MARKET — In some ways this is similar to the Under Market strategy. You are using price to distinguish yourself. I think in this case, you have to deliver exceptional quality and service to reinforce the value implied by your higher price.

 

How would your business fair in The Price is Right? 

Let me know in the comments below which pricing strategy you prefer. 

 

DOES YOUR RESTAURANT OFFER PARKING?

Thursday, September 13th, 2018

 

This is not always the case … but more often than not, if customers cannot find a place to park, they may not come to your restaurant or at the very least; you are limiting your customer base.

 

So I think that parking needs be taken into account before the lease is signed.

  •  Are spaces included in the lease?
  • Are they adequate to what you will need?

If there is no dedicated parking, count the spaces immediately surrounding your location.

  • Are there enough?
  • How much competition is there for those parking spaces?

 

Is there a public car park that’s close enough to become part of your parking?

Is the public transport good enough to make parking less of a concern?

If ‘none of the above’ apply to you … consider if you will you have enough pedestrian traffic to offset any lack of parking?

Let me know in the comments below your thoughts on this blog post!     

NOT ON TREND

Thursday, September 6th, 2018

Restaurants, like people, have lifespans. They have beginnings and ends. Most restaurants die out before they are 10 or 20 years old.

One reason that a restaurant fails is when the owner has the unreasonable and incorrect belief that they never need to change.

 

 

Just as a restaurant needs a physical update every few years, so does the overall concept as foods fall out of favor, tastes change and what people find fashionable or interesting years ago is now old and stale.

Sometimes an update can be simple such as printing a new menu with a handful of new items. Or adding a new mixed drink program. Or offering live music on the weekend.

Other times, a more extensive revamp is required to keep the brand relevant. This may include a new logo, new interior decoration, a new menu and more.

I guess the moral of the story here is to not take what you have for granted and always keep looking at ways to improve.

 

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