Host Hacks: How to Deal with Angry Customers

Host Hacks: How to Deal with Angry Customers

by | Jun 15, 2016 | Career

Unfortunately, there are many situations at a restaurant where a visitor may expect more than they’re given, and as a host, you’ll need to rise to the occasion and act as the face of the restaurant. Use the following tips to keep your cool and handle angry customers like the pros in the meantime!

Remain calm

The number one thing you can do is take a deep breath and bite back any indignant responses or angry feelings. Remember that you are at work, and the customer’s concerns aren’t personal to you: you’re there to keep as many people happy as possible.

In addition, your anger will likely make the situation worse, by fueling your customer’s negative feelings even further, rather than bringing them down to a manageable level.

Show them you care

Go a step beyond nodding and calmly responding to your customers. Truly reach out to them by finding their real concerns from what they say. When you can respond by letting the angry customer know that you hear and understand exactly what upsets them, they’ll feel much more taken care of, acknowledged, and thus, helped in their situation.

You may not be able to solve every issue, but do answer all complaints by saying, “I understand, Mr. Smith.”

You may not be able to solve every issue, but do answer all complaints by saying, “I understand, Mr. Smith. You had hoped to be seated sooner and want to know what we can do about it. I will speak to a manager/see what I can do/follow up with you in a moment.”

What you do here is twofold: you both make the angry customer feel heard, and you help stem further explanation of the issue from them by making it clear it’s been taken seriously.

Show empathy and apologize if appropriate

The next step is to show that you, as a representative of the restaurant, care for the customer’s concerns. Whether or not you personally feel for that person, you need to be professional in your ability to take care of the situation, and part of that is to show empathy for frustrations.

This can vary depending on the situation. For a customer intent on causing a scene, no matter what the case, you may decide to apologize for the difficulty they’re having and suggest they return when the restaurant is less busy and their needs can be tended to more thoroughly.

For a customer with valid frustrations that you can’t personally fix, apologize for their situation and show your sympathy. Then, move on to the following step.

Resolve the issue, as best as you can

Show that you’re working to fix the problem, and take what steps you can to address any customer issues, within reason. When you’re faced with a conflict that can’t fully be resolved, but requires action, offer what you can: a free meal, a drink, etc.

Be sure to check with management to know ahead of time exactly how you are authorized to assist in these types of situations.

Be sure to check with management to know ahead of time exactly how you are authorized to assist in these types of situations. If you do find yourself in a conflict that you can’t resolve alone, too, do be sure to bring in a manager, server, or some type of assistance–both to show you’re doing what you can to resolve the problem and to have a support system yourself.

From time to time, customers will show their frustration with you, as the face of the restaurant. By remaining calm, empathetic, and reactive, you can keep the situation light and diffuse tension, often ending the issue. Use your support system when you need it, and remember to remain unflustered and authoritative; you’ll control the situation like a professional every time.

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Restaurant Best Practices for Alcohol Delivery and Receiving

Restaurant Best Practices for Alcohol Delivery and Receiving

by | Jun 13, 2016 | Business Toolkit, Management

Alcohol delivery and receiving are important for the industries in which a large portion of revenues comes from alcohol sales. Within these industries, such as restaurants, finding more affordable, faster and efficient services for alcohol can become one of the most important aspects of the  business. By using these four practices that successful restaurants have in common, your involvement can become one of the most improved parts of the day-to-day operations.

 

Faster Delivery Times

Through automatic ordering, businesses are able to have faster delivery times without having to remember to order their usual shipments. These deliveries would be automated from the alcohol warehouse directly to the company. This can then give way to an easier payment solution through an online method of direct deposit, or easy card pay without having to authorize payments every time a shipment is required by the company.

If the restaurant is new to the alcohol warehouse, ID verification, as well as verification of the business for selling alcohol is essential.

There can be downfalls. While every restaurant wants faster delivery times, alcohol may have minor setbacks that make it a longer process. If the restaurant is new to the alcohol warehouse, ID verification, as well as verification of the business for selling alcohol is essential. These are two very important documents that have to be thoroughly checked in order for the warehouse to distribute the alcohol to the company. However, after the initial check of these documents, then the transition and delivery and receiving process should go much smoother.

Minimal Hassle

Have minimal hassle when ordering and receiving the correct order that was placed with the company. With the latest in technology advancements, the alcohol delivery and receiving process can go much smoother, while also helping both companies have an easier time communicating with one another.

When a regular schedule is established, so can automatic shipments, payments and inventory tracking be established by both companies.

No longer will the need to call, place the order, authorize the order and payment, have delivery, sign for receiving, and putting away be necessary. This can all be done automatically, with minimal hassle through the use of a program that inputs the amounts of alcohol that you currently have left, and then determines when you may need more.

Easier Payment Solutions

Through the use of easier payment solutions, the correct amount that is charged for the alcohol shipments can easily be paid. This is a way to automatically pay for shipments that are being sent to your restaurant. However, having a schedule and relationship established should be done first prior to authorizing automatic payments for each of the shipments every month. Once this relationship is established, however, it can then become much more efficient not only for the restaurant ordering and paying for the alcohol, but also for the warehouse that is fulfilling the order.

Inventory Tracking

The ability to track the current inventory of the alcohol that is on hand can provide a much more efficient way for restaurant owners to know when they are getting low. This, then, prompts them to notify the appropriate companies for the next shipment. Which leads them to use the first point, allowing for faster delivery times through automatic shipments.

Having the inventory tracked through an app or other means can allow the restaurant to run more effectively without having to write the amounts down and keep track of shipments.

If restaurants used technology that was able to provide these four points, and connected with their alcohol shipment companies easier; they could all benefit. The process of ordering, delivery, and receiving alcohol would be more efficient, more effective and provide numerous benefits to those using the service. This can greatly benefit both the restaurant that is ordering the alcohol and the warehouses that are meeting the shipments for them.

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Electronic Ordering in the Restaurant Industry

Electronic Ordering in the Restaurant Industry

by | Jun 10, 2016 | Management

By now, everyone’s familiar with online ordering. Pizza Hut claims to have made the first sale over the Internet. Some fast-food businesses take almost half their orders that way. The next wave in restaurant technology is just getting started, though: Electronic ordering at the table.

In 2014, Applebee’s deployed ordering tablets at all its restaurants. The Presto tablet, produced by E la Carte, lets customers order and pay electronically. They can even play games on the device for a small surcharge. Chili’s has also automated ordering, using Ziosk tablets.

At Panera, people pre-order rather than sitting down first, but it’s also found tablet-based ordering useful to reduce lines. It chose an iPad-based system because many people are familiar with Apple’s iPhone and iPad.

Each company approaches the market a bit differently. E la Carte stresses efficiency and the opportunity for impulse orders, Buzztime promises a “mix of fun and functionality,” and Ziosk offers the ability to enroll customers in loyalty programs and let them buy branded merchandise.

With some devices, users can even take pictures of themselves and upload them to social media, giving the restaurant a little free publicity.

The point isn’t to put humans out of work. Speeding up the process electronically lets people order more quickly and lets the server concentrate on bringing food out and handling personal requests. Reducing the wait to order can mean more customer satisfaction and the ability to serve more people, increasing revenue and tips. It can also reduce customers’ anxiety about paying by credit card since no one takes their cards away to process them.

Customers will need time to familiarize themselves with the new style of ordering. Even if they constantly use their phones for purchases, this style of ordering at the table is something new for them, and not everyone is up on the latest tech.

Initially, deploying the devices will result in some confusion, and employees will have to assist customers. It may actually seem slower than in-person ordering for a while.

The software on the device needs to be as simple and straightforward as possible. It’s supposed to make the ordering experience easier, and a bad design could just scare people away. Customers need to be able to undo their mistakes and review their order before submitting it.

However, a mildly skeptical take from The Motley Fool points out some shortcomings in Applebee’s approach. Customers still need to order drinks in person. This is understandable for legal reasons, but since people usually order drinks first, it leaves a delay at the start of the process it’s supposed to speed up. The author also noted the lack of any way to leave feedback through the tablet. The latter point could easily be fixed, but it’s hard to see how restaurants could fully automate drink ordering. An “I am over 21” checkbox just won’t satisfy liquor licensing boards.

Data security is also an important issue. These tablets are Point of Sale devices, and retailers and restaurants often overlook how vulnerable they are. Wendy’s recently suffered a breach that affected PoS devices at 5% of its restaurants. The affected restaurants were franchises that used a different PoS device from the company-owned locations. Security is a particularly difficult issue for franchisees that don’t have the information technology resources of large chains. Franchisers can help the situation by making uniform technology available to franchisees and issuing recommended security procedures.

Keeping the devices behind a firewall and not directly visible to the Internet greatly reduces their vulnerability.

Accessibility is bound to become an issue. The tablets’ software should be flexible enough to let visually impaired users operate them, and servers will need to continue taking orders from anyone who just isn’t comfortable using a machine.

It’s inevitable that electronic ordering will continue to grow in restaurants. The businesses need to look at what their competitors are doing and decide when and how to make the transition. Employees will win if they brush up on their computer skills and plan on adjusting their people skills to the new situation.

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Host Hacks: How to Seat Restaurant Sections

Host Hacks: How to Seat Restaurant Sections

by | Jun 8, 2016 | Career

Hosts are responsible for providing customers with a great first impression of the restaurant but also have to organize the seating flow. This can be challenging because seating restaurant sections means not only satisfying customer requests but also servers. The pressure-filled job takes skill and adaptability, but these hacks can help!

Talk to your servers

This may sound lame, but trust me when I tell you that communication solves many problems. Talking with your servers helps gauge how they’re feeling that night—are they interested in a section full of 2-tops with high turnover?

Same goes for seating; if you know you’ll have to seat guests in an already busy section, give the server a heads up. Let him or her know what the situation is, and if they need a hand, they can ask another server to cover the table.

Whatever the case may be, you’ll find a happier team overall when you’re able to accommodate as many preferences as possible.

Rotate sections

As much as possible, rotate the sections in which you seat customers. For example, in a restaurant that has four servers, this ensures that each server gets one of every four tables.

This technique also guarantees the best possible service for each and every table, as no one server is overloaded with new tables at the same time. In an ideal situation, no two tables in any one server section should be at the same place in the “meal cycle” (e.g. no two tables are putting in their drink or appetizer order or need clearing at exactly the same time).

Keep track of tables

As a host or hostess, it’s crucial that you keep track of which tables are occupied and where each one is in the meal cycle so you know how long they will continue to be occupied. This is important for seating new customers and walk-ins.

It can be tricky though especially if you don’t have a good view of the section. If this is the case, be sure to do a lap every once and awhile (after asking someone to look over the host stand while you’re away).

Pro-tip: When you notice guests leaving, find out what section they were seated in so you know the flow.

Be fair and flexible

Just because you know one of the servers can handle three ten-tops doesn’t mean you should load them up at the expense of the other servers. Same goes for the servers you dislike; even though they may not be your best friends, you should still treat them fairly.

Nothing breeds internal discontent faster than the appearance of favoritism, or revenge.

If a particular section has been rough to seat (maybe it’s a slow lunch hour and all of your guests want to sit in booths), then ask your servers if someone else wants to cover a table in that section. Your server with the empty section won’t be bored (or angry) anymore, and the server assigned to the busy section would probably appreciate the help.

Make cuts

Few things are more frustrating to an owner than seeing a lot of staff standing around joking in the service areas or on the patio–or worse, at the host stand. If you clearly have more help than necessary, it’s time to make a cut.

And don’t forget your closing server. If one server’s section is starting to wrap up but they have an empty table you need to seat, find out if your closing server is able to take that table prior to seating your guests. It’ll help prevent any confusion among the staff as to whose table that actually is.

Pro-tip: When it comes to making cuts, I always recommend taking volunteers first (if you’re able to).

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5 Challenges Faced By New Restaurants

5 Challenges Faced By New Restaurants

by | Jun 6, 2016 | Management

The restaurant industry continues to be a difficult place for entrepreneurs to explore business opportunities, but by understanding common challenges, future owners may be able to develop unique strategies to increase their chances of success.

Effective inventory management

Restaurant owners should keep a keen focus on managing expenses. One crucial component of keeping costs low is effectively managing inventory. Failing to do so may result in unforeseen expenditures and supply overages or shortages throughout peak business periods.

Those responsible for managing the inventory and menu pricing should fine tune the ordering process to limit waste and to continuously monitor fluctuating costs which impact gross profit on menu items.

Pro-tip: Ingredient costs fluctuate frequently, so check prices regularly.

Keeping up with market trends

Before a potential business owner decides to open a restaurant, he or she must become familiar with the market. In addition, conducting periodic research into current and projected future trends is critical to staying a step ahead of competitors. A comprehensive analysis of existing trends and the viability of similar restaurant ventures in the community is a good way to forecast potential revenue in each quarter.

Hiring staff

Successful restaurant owners know the importance of having the right employees; an organization must be sure to have a good team in place to make it in the hospitality industry. Placing greater emphasis on hiring and training staff can help meet this requisite and also reduce costs over time.

This starts with sourcing high-quality candidates by not just advertising open jobs but also having detailed job descriptions that include specific responsibilities and requirements. And, it ends by thoroughly reviewing each and every applicant so that when it comes time to hire, it can be done with confidence.

Pro-tip: Take advantage of the interview; by asking candidates questions that allow for assessment of their knowledge and skills, it can provide powerful insight into whether or not he or she will make a good addition to the team.

Minimizing turnover

It is important to keep in mind that once the proper employees are both hired and trained, keeping turnover to a minimum should be a top priority. Why? Because turnover is expensive; the cost to replace an employee is about 16-20% of their annual salary.

One key concern is maintaining a positive corporate culture that will keep employees engaged and wanting to come back. For workers to remain enthusiastic and motivated, they should be given a clear set of processes, manuals and procedures as well as specific goals and rewards for meeting those goals.

Staying on top of technology trends

Technology is constantly evolving in the restaurant industry and smart restaurant owners will jump on the bandwagon. From hiring to inventory to customer service, technology can help to maximize business outcomes.

Pro-tip: Utilize a software program that is compatible with your existing POS system to track customer trends and demographics. These can provide great insight about customer likes and dislikes!

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