For professionals in the business of serving food and drink, trained in the art of creating a successful dining experience, it may be difficult to stomach critiques from customers. After all, what do they know? Well, it turns out they know absolutely everything even if they know nothing.
Who knows best
According to Peter Nolan, chief brand officer for Roti Mediterranean Grill, “the customer who comes in twice a week, or 100 times a year, makes him or her an expert on the brand, and [it] would be foolish not to take his or her opinion into account.” Nolan firmly believes restaurateurs should listen to customers in order to “connect their insights into what the brand is trying to accomplish.”
So, sure, a customer may be commenting on an expertly prepared plate of food, but if it does not satisfy, then does it really matter if it is textbook perfect? The overarching goal of any eating establishment is to provide customers with something that will get them back in the door for a second, third, or hundredth time, so why not take a second to learn what that something may be.
Getting the dirt
Peter Nolan provides a list of tips to obtain valuable customer feedback:
Take the time to actually listen to your customers. Most importantly, hear what they have to say and respect their opinions, even if they are not a food professional.
Engage in casual conversations with customers. Be the most curious person in the room, and talk to anyone, and everyone, about the highs as well as lows of their experience.
Speak like your customers. If you want to understand customers’ insights, then you not only have to speak to them, but they must also speak to you. Using their language goes a long way to ensure this happens.
Know what you want to know. It is possible to obtain valuable information from a conversation initiated with no direction in mind, however asking about specifics will grant you access to much more understanding.
Don’t be afraid to poll. Not all customers will complete a formal survey, but some will, and those are a great way to incorporate customer feedback.
What matters most
Customers are the life force driving every successful business and, as Nolan explains, “integrating customer insights into your company’s innovation efforts can have a huge impact on a brand’s success.” By aligning vision and expertise with the desires of the customers, unforgettable dining experiences can abound.
At the end of the day, as Nolan puts it, “If you love and respect your customers and treat them well, they will come back again and again.”
How does your company find out what the customers are saying? Let us know @gosirvo.
The fast casual dining experience is all about blending the speedy service you need to fit the demands of your hectic schedule and the delicious food your stomach is loudly demanding, and these two restaurants are using technology to reach the perfect balance.
Wow Bao, a Chicago-based restaurant serving up Asian fare with a modern twist, introduced kiosk ordering in 2009 in order to speed up the ordering process without increasing labor costs, according to Wow Bao President Geoff Alexander. An added bonus- customers love the control the kiosks afford them when ordering dishes. Plus, staff doesn’t have to worry about making mistakes when entering orders. Truly a win, win!Although Alexander agrees that technology comes with its own set of problems, such as occasional minor malfunctions and the rare crash. However, the tech investment has most definitely paid off for the franchise as Wow Bao received its return in only eight months because of increased sales as well as labor savings.
Panera Bread is a popular name in the world of fast casual, and to continue its reign, plus beat out mounting competition, CEO Ron Shaich says “Panera Bread will be different in the future.”Welcome to ‘Panera 2.0’, a series of integrated technologies aimed to reduce wait times, improve order accuracy, and create a more personalized experience for the customer. The upgrade will include the integration of a mobile app for ordering and paying for food to go, as well as a designated counter for pick up without the wait.For dine-in customers, both kiosks (similar to Wow Bao) and an online ordering system will be available in addition to cashier stations, both of which will be able to remember your food preferences. The days of picking onions off of your sandwich are nearing an end! Plus, meals will be delivered directly to your table for added convenience.For now, only designated ‘Panera 2.0 Cafés’ will feature the 2.0 technology, however the company expects to have implemented the upgrade in the majority of its locations by 2017.
What are your thoughts about the growing presence of technology in the restaurant industry? Comment below, or let us know @gosirvo.
With both sales and employment continuing to gain ground in December, the industry’s business environment starts the year out strong.
Restaurant sales totaled $49.6 billion on a seasonally adjusted basis in December, according to preliminary figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, making it the eighth consecutive monthly increase in sales volume, as well as the strongest on record. National Restaurant Industry’s Chief Economist Bruce Grindy credits the recent run of strong sales gains to declining gas prices, which fell more than $1.40 during the last 6 months. Consumers used savings at the pump to dine out. December’s total eating-and-drinking-places sales signaled a 5% increase since June, raking in an additional $2.3 billion as compared to the mid-summer’s month seasonally-adjusted sales volume.
Employment within the restaurant industry mirrored sales, also registering continued gains in December. Preliminary figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics indicate a net gain of 43,600 jobs among eating-and-drinking-places during the final month of the year on a seasonally-adjusted basis, marking the 58th consecutive monthly increase and strongest gain in two years.
The industry is not only surpassing its own historical employment growth, but moreover the country’s. Restaurants added jobs at a 3.1 percent rate in total for 2014, more than a full percentage point above the 1.9 percent growth rate of the U.S. as a whole making this the 15th consecutive year in which restaurant job growth outpaced the overall economy.While economic challenges remain, one of those being elevated food costs, the general outlook of the restaurant industry is promising. If economic fundamentals continue to improve, 2015 will be a great year for restaurants nationwide.
Want to be part of the restaurant industry? Find your way in at gosirvo.com.
Here’s a short film (funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign) that investigates exactly how difficult it is for servers to earn a living on tipped minimum wage, which is currently $2.13 per hour for tipped employees. In the 18-minute documentary, several servers go on the record to describe how their wages hover just above the poverty line, how restaurant industry lobbyists have appealed to Congress to keep wages low, and how tipped wages are closely tied to gender politics. Go, watch the film above.
