Competition in the restaurant industry can make it a challenge to stay profitable. With constant advancements in technology, new restaurants opening their doors seemingly every other day, and shifting consumer tastes and desires, it’s important for restauranteurs to adapt their strategies to better capture customer loyalty.
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If you’re looking for ways to expand your restaurant’s success and improve profits, implement these strategies into your business model and watch your profits expand.
1. Pare Down Your Menu
Don’t try to please everyone. Offering every type of meal or food under the sun won’t do much for your business; the most successful restaurants are those that offer a short but sweet menu of their specialties. This allows you (and your team of chefs) to hone in on the dishes that set you apart from the competition. There are cost and quality concerns to consider, as well. The more food items you offer, the more ingredients you’ll need to source.
The more ingredients sourced, the more quality sacrificed—your budget will be spread thin across a variety of cooking necessities, which will likely see you looking to spend less on ingredients. The less you spend, the lower quality food you’ll prepare. This will be noticed by customers, so it’s important to consider paring down your menu.
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2. Emphasize Customer Service
Customers attend their favorite restaurants because of the overall experience, not just the food. Customer service can be a make or break factor in your success. If guests find the service is subpar, they’ll quickly shift their loyalty to another dining establishment. If you receive repeated comments about a certain waiter, offer retraining. If nothing changes, termination may be required. Be sure to hold regular customer service training sessions so that new hires are ushered into your business’s process correctly.
3. Happy Hour Profits
If you want to draw in the crowds, offer happy hour specials. This is essential for pulling in professionals after a long day of work and younger restaurant patrons. If you don’t serve alcohol in your restaurant, you could be decreasing your chances of success and missing out on significant profits. The majority of restaurants reports alcohol sales as presenting a significant portion of their revenue.
Forgoing this important part of the dining experience could hurt your business. Whether you decided to forgo a liquor license because of personal preferences, couldn’t find the right permit, or licenses were out of your price range, it may be time to reconsider. Investing in a liquor license can be a lucrative move for your restaurant. Finding a liquor license for sale can be a difficult task, but putting forth the time and effort to do so can boost your revenue within a month’s time.
4. The Advent of Online Orders
We live in a world of convenience, and if you’re not doing all you can to make your customers’ dining experience easier, you’re likely missing out on a hearty chunk of business. Recent studies have shown that 69 percent of consumers have ordered food online with their phone.
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If your restaurant’s website isn’t mobile-friendly, you could be losing out on these customers. Online ordering can make to-go orders easier and more profitable on your end. Instead of ordering over the phone, customers provide their order with data entry—this can cut down on human error, making each order better. As you set up an online ordering system, be sure to include the following facets:
- Allow for item modification
- Offer pickup/delivery services
- Estimated wait times
If you’re not interested in dealing with the setup of your own delivery system, consider joining forces with an existing food delivery service like Seamless. Drivers will come pick up the orders and drop them off with customers, no sweat off your brow.
Making your restaurant more profitable may mean switching up some of your processes and making investments now for payoff later. Implement these strategies into your own business and reap the rewards.
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