What has this to do with the hospitality management? Two things:

Firstly we must never forget that the competition may not be the hotel or restaurant down the road, but may be the option to stay at home, get married on a beach, go camping, hold that meeting as a webinar.

Secondly the importance of building a relationship with your customers. This does not mean flying them half way round the world, but demonstrating that you value their custom, and sharing with them some of your story, your values, getting to know your team, spending some time talking to them and getting to know what is important to them. This builds trust and loyalty, and is a key step in building a lasting long term relationship with your customer and the prospect of repeat business.

Building the guest relationship is covered in more detail in the Hotel Success Handbook

Caroline Cooper

The chances are if you run a bed and breakfast, what you serve and the way you serve your breakfast probably gets a lot of your attention as it’s often the only meal you’ll be providing. But do hotels give breakfast the same focus?

For many hotels breakfast provides a great opportunity for additional profit. But we’ll be doing nothing to capitalise on this if we don’t look after our existing breakfast customers.

You probably serve more breakfast than any other meal; but does it receive the same degree of care and attention as lunch or dinner?

All too often breakfast is used as a training ground for new or inexperienced front of house staff. I frequently experience waiting staff at breakfast who have little more than a basic understanding of what’s available, the basics of hygiene when clearing and setting up tables, and dare I say it, of the English language.

How welcoming are your guests made to feel at breakfast? Do they get a surly request for their room number, with absolutely no eye contact as the waiter or host checks their list? Or do they get a nice genuine smile and a welcoming “Good morning”?

Breakfast service can be confusing for those not familiar with your hotel. Simply telling a guess it’s self-service (which is what I heard yesterday at breakfast) doesn’t really tell us very much, especially when the guest is still stood in the doorway and can’t even see into the restaurant or where the buffet is located. Should they wait to be allocated a table, or can they just sit anywhere they like? Will you be serving fruit juice, tea and toast, or do they go and help themselves? If you have just one type of egg on the buffet, are others being cooked to order?

A smooth and speedy operation is paramount on busy weekdays when everyone appears to descend on the restaurant at once. The necessity for speed of service may differ at weekends from midweek. Few business users during the week will be prepared to be kept hanging around waiting for their pot of tea and toast, whilst those on a leisure break are more likely to be wanting to take their time and not feel rushed. Recognising guests’ expectations and being able to adapt their approach and style of service will be an important factor in how your guests perceive the level of service.

One of the most frustrating things with breakfast buffets or self-help items is the complete lack of logic in the layout. Just a little thought applied to the order in which a guest would want to collect their items can avoid bottle necks and prevent frustrated guests who may not be at their best first thing in the morning.

Ten tips for avoiding bottlenecks (and mess and wastage)

1. Encourage your team to take the customer journey*, serving their own breakfast and seeing everything the guest sees. Some things to check:
2. Fruit Juice – are the glasses next the fruit juice? Are all the various juices labelled so guests can work out what they are without having to taste them? It’s not only frustrating for the guest to discover that what looked like grapefruit juice is in fact pineapple, but does nothing for your wastage levels and food costs either.
3. Cereal – Are your bowls, cereals and milk arranged logically for guests to pick up the bowl, help themselves cereal, then pour on their milk. It sounds obvious but I so often see guests having to backtrack to get their milk.
4. Milk -Recognise that pouring milk needs two hands – one to hold a cereal bowl another to pour the milk so is there anywhere to place their fruit juice, tea, or anything else they’ve already picked up?
5. Pastries – The logical flow goes for toast, breads and pastries, butter / spreads and conserves. The guests sequence is plate first, bread then spread then jam. It just frustrates them to find they’ve sat down and forgotten their butter….
6. Tea – If guests make their own tea, is it easy to make? Where I stayed this week all the pots were already laid up with teabags; fine if you wanted normal tea, but there were no other pots for brewing specialist teas. So guests had to empty teabags out of the pots to make their tea. Crazy! And nowhere to leave the wrappers.
7. Hot drinks – Depending on what you use for hot water or coffee, check how well this dispenses. Is it pre measured? If so, is does this over fill the pot, causing spillages. Or does it short measure encouraging guests to take a second measure.
8. Utensils – Check your utensils match the item. If you serve fruit, is this cut into spoon sized chunks, or elegant slices? Either of course is fine, but just make sure that the serving utensils and plates or bowls you provide are suitable – i.e. slices can’t be eaten (or easily served) with a spoon; they need a knife and fork, so only providing bowls to be served in is illogical. I frequently see ladles used fruit salad, stewed fruit or bowls of yogurt. Have you ever tried serving from these ladles? A shallow spoon would make life a lot easier for the guest; why complicate things?
9. Toast – Cold rubbery toast is a big criticism of many a hotel breakfast. But do rotary toasters perform any better? You’ve just plated up your bacon and eggs and head for the toast, only to find either there’s a queue, or the settings on the toaster make it possible to get the toast anything between completely underdone and burnt to a crisp. And of course why you’re trying to perfect the colour of your toast your bacon and eggs have got stone cold. I’m not saying rotary toasters are a complete no-no, but firstly check the settings so that toast only needs to go through once to make it look and feel like toast, and position it so that guests can cook their toast before plating up their hot food.
10. Hot dishes – If you use lids on your hot dishes, are the dishes labelled, so guest don’t need to open each one to find the bacon? Is there somewhere to safely put the lids without having to do a balancing act. Or move them without dripping condensation on the floor and counter? Check your utensils’ handles don’t get too hot and guests burn themselves. And while on the subject of hot food, hot food put onto cold plates does stay hot for long. Whatever your style of service ensure you warm your plates as much as possible within the realms of safety.

Look and learn how well your layout works for your guests. Watch for your bottlenecks, and re arrange accordingly. What are the things that guests constantly ask for when it’s there already? How much toing and froing is there from table to buffet?

Make your breakfasts memorable, for the right reasons, and leave your guests relaxed with a positive last impression and an incentive to come back.

Some can rely on their location, or the building, or history. But what if your hotel has none of that?

One way of capturing the interests of your guest or prospects is to imagine your perfect guest sharing some of the same passions, values or interests as you. It’s a lot easier to sell something you have an interest in, you are passionate about or that’s important to you.  If you don’t love what you do, or feel it’s important, it will show. It will be very hard for you to deliver a good service if you are dealing with people with whom you share no values, interests or enthusiasm.

Anyone who knows me will know that I love my garden, and love visiting other gardens. So if it was my hotel an obvious target market would be other garden lovers. This would not only allow me to attract guests who share my interest and passions, it provides a theme, which can be built on. Such as – sharing knowledge of local historical or famous gardens, forming joint ventures with a local plant nursery, garden designer, gardening author, manufacturer of garden products, or market gardener (or all of these); designing menus planned around locally grown produce.

I could tie in with any specific gardening events happening locally, such as RHS flower shows, Gardeners’ Question Time, etc. Or host my own Gardeners’ Question Time calling upon local gardening celebrities. I might include talks from experts, transport and free entry to a number of local gardens of interest (maybe as exclusive guests of the owner). You get the idea……

To take another example, Hotel TerraVina in the New Forest, where Nina and Gérard Bassett used Gérard’s knowledge and passion for wine – Gérard is the only person in the world to hold the combined titles of Master of Wine, Master Sommelier, Wine MBA and, as of April 2010, World’s Best Sommelier. (And I was pleased to have the opportunity to interview Nina and Gérard as part of my interview series  – How to Give Your Hotel a Competitive Edge.) As a result Hotel TerraVina attracts both hotel guests and restaurant diners who have an interest in wine, and Gérard is happy as he has an opportunity to cater for people who are interested in what he’s offering. By employing others who share this interest and knowledge Nina and Gérard are able to be consistent. And all this provides them with great PR opportunities.

But what if your theme is not so obvious?

Start by listing what you enjoy, what you are passionate about, and what’s important to you. Can these be incorporated into your business? Then consider your interests. What are the hobbies or pastimes you enjoy (or used to before you ran a hotel and had more free time!) What particular knowledge or expertise do you have? This could be nothing to do with the hotel industry, it might just be an interest or from a former career.

•  So it could be something you love: be that golf, shopping, dogs, cars, cooking – you’ll then know the types of things others enjoy who share your love, so cater for these interests.
•  Something you value: such as supporting your local community, being in the countryside, or energy conservation, so give examples of the steps you’ve taken to contribute to these.
• Or it might be a particular hobby or expertise you can share with your guests: your knowledge of Italian cuisine and offering cookery lessons, your interest in classic cars, and attracting like minded enthusiasts and promoting classic car events in the area, or you might have a specific skill or talent to pass on to others.

Very few of us could honestly say there is nothing we can get excited or enthusiastic about, but I’d certainly recommend checking there is enough of a market there of others who share our passion before modelling our whole business around it!  Then we’ll want aim to recruit people who at least have a remote interest.

And once you have identified what it is that you have that others don’t, make sure you share this at every opportunity.

If your business reflects your interests, value or expertise the likelihood is you’ll attract other people who share them. Having a specific interest or expertise also makes it easier for you to find a forum or networking group where you can get your name known, as well as finding potential opportunities and prospective joint ventures.

Then tell and show your guests how you incorporate these into your business. Show your guests in as much detail as possible what you do that is different, so they can see all this before they choose you. It could be why they choose you.

It’s very easy to be enthusiastic and passionate about something that interests you, and this enthusiasm will translate into bookings if managed smartly. It means you are more likely to attract the type of guests with whom you can build up a good rapport and a better prospect of repeat business.

If your passion appeals to your perfect guests, it will make your job of marketing your hotel and making it unique so much easier.

Nina and Gérard Bassett were just two of my 10 guests on the interview series How to Give Your Hotel a Competitive Edge.

The average labour turnover for the UK hospitality industry is around 30% (considerably higher in London). With the average recruitment and training cost per employee estimated at around £1500, this equates to a £886 million cost to the industry per annum. So it’s far more important to retain the staff that you have than to treat them as a disposable item.
If you want to retain your best people you need to give them what they want.

Communication – Training and development – Good leadership

Communication
Communication is a two-way process, not only do people need to know what’s going on, they want to be heard. Daily briefings need to include what’s happening that could affect the operation or the customer experience in any way (e.g. maintenance, staff shortages, unavailable products or services), as well as any feedback from staff on their observations or ideas. Let your team know how the business is performing, and what this means to them. Communicate any changes that are happening in the business before they happen, and how this might affect them.

Training and development
The first six weeks is critical to any new staff; it’s during this time that make up their mind whether or not this is the right job for them. Rather alarmingly it is reported that 33% of hospitality businesses don’t do any training. If this is the case, how on earth do people know what is expected of them on a day-to-day basis, let alone know how they can contribute to the business or develop their career?
Training your staff in the mechanics of the business operation puts them in a better position to contribute to cost control and income generation. If people understand how the business makes its money they are then in a position to contribute to this and put forward their own ideas.
Make training a part of day-to-day management, so it’s not seen as something that is additional or optional. This goes for both staff and supervisors/managers. Identify those who have an interest in developing their CV and are willing to take on training responsibilities as part of their own development.
Think about your succession and grow from within. Give people the opportunity for career progression as well is enhancing the skills to do their existing job. Think also about life skills; for example offering English lessons. And make use of the training grants available through the tourist organisations, colleges, and government-funded schemes.

Good leadership
All of the above points contribute to good leadership and I could go on the hours on the subject, but there are three areas in particular I’m going to home in on here.

Direction
We’ve already talked about communicating what’s expected. Set standards so that people can measure their own performance.  Be consistent, ensuring the same ‘rules’ apply to everyone. Focus on telling people what you want to achieve, i.e. the end result, rather than dictating how to do it.  This gives people flexibility to adopt their own style and you’ll be surprised how often they end up improving the process.  Lead by example so there are no mixed messages. And make sure you provide the appropriate tools, resources and training to do the job effectively.

Look and listen
Ensure that you and your management team are approachable. Provide support when it’s needed, and be receptive to when this is required. Not everyone will be confident enough to ask for help. Consult staff and listen to their ideas; they may be able to offer better ways of doing things.
Take time to talk to staff to build relationships and show an interest in them as individuals. Listen to and act quickly on any concerns. Identify what’s important to them recognising that with the varied cultures and backgrounds of your staff that their values and priorities may sometimes be different to your own.

Recognise
Recognise and reward performance and achievements. This includes giving constructive feedback-what have they done well and how it has contributed; where they have fallen short and how this can be improved. Celebrate and share successes; identify and utilise people strengths, delegating and giving them control and ownership where appropriate. Be sure to recognise all departments, including back of house staff, e.g. housekeeping is often the most undervalued department, but is commonly the most profitable aspect of a hotel.
Encourage and reward loyalty by conducting regular pay/benefits reviews. Think about incentives that are within reach of any member of staff who performs well. This might mean focusing on a different theme each month so that everyone has an opportunity to be recognised for their particular skills or strengths.

Wikipedia describes upselling as ‘a sales technique whereby a salesperson induces the customer to purchase more expensive items, upgrades, or other add-ons in an attempt to make a more profitable sale’.

Upselling usually involves marketing more profitable services or products, but upselling can also be simply exposing the customer to other options he or she may not have considered previously. Upselling implies selling something that is more profitable or otherwise preferable for the seller instead of the original sale.  But is it just about increasing the customer spend, or is it also about giving the customer a better all round experience, giving them something they might have forgotten to order, or never even thought of?

McDonalds of course are the masters of this – have you ever not been offered fries or a drink to go with your burger. And when was the last time you bought an electrical appliance and not been told the benefits of an extended warranty?

What to promote
So in order to do this effectively the first thing is to determine which are the products or services you wish to promote.  It obviously makes sense to be promoting high profit items, but there can be a danger in using this as the only criteria.  Unless what you are promoting is perceived as value to the customer, it’s unlikely the sale will be achieved, and does little to build your customer’s loyalty or trust.  It’s also important to distinguish between high selling price and profitability and appropriateness to meet the customers’ needs.  For example upselling to a more expensive bottle of wine when it does not appeal to the customers tastes.

Product knowledge
Staff need to fully understand each of the products and services available:

• What are the high profit items
• What are the component parts of any packages
• What’s not included, but may be relevant to offer to the customer
• What are the ingredients in a dish
• What does it taste like
• What are the best accompaniments to a dish

Allow staff to experience all the products and services first hand – this will not only make them more memorable, there will be more willingness to promote if they are confident to talk about it, and it will certainly be easier to evoke emotional appeal through vivid descriptions of taste, smell, feel, if they’ve experienced them themselves.

Spot the opportunities
Let them identify all the situations that lend themselves as an opportunity to upsell – not just in their own department – but across all areas.

• Options on accommodation – room upgrades, special packages, champagne in rooms,
• In the restaurant – bottled water, suggestions for starters, accompaniments, side orders, deserts, desert wine, specialist coffees, after dinner drinks
• Bar – branded beers, snack items, pasties with their coffee

I’m sure you’ll have many more specifics for your own operation
It’s also about timing – for example selling desserts – ask too soon and people say they are still too full, and go straight on to coffee, ask too late and they have gone off the idea, and want to head off home.

Behaviours
Teach staff the mechanics of upselling

• The need for open questions to identify what the customer wants
• How to listen actively to customers’ requests or preferences
• How to respond, and make suggestions, or offer alternatives that best meet the customers needs
• How would they describe each of your products and services?  Rather than a script, allow them to develop their own dialogue, one that comes naturally to them, rather than something they have to remember and run the risk of forgetting.

Practice makes perfect
It’s all very well knowing what to say, but you know how sometimes when you come to say something the words just don’t trip off the tongue as you might hope!  Let you team practise in a safe environment, based on different scenarios.

Plan for objections
Whether an objection is perceived or real, staff need to know how to deal with these.  One awkward question can shatter confidence, so train staff to get to spot and handle different situations.

• Distinguish between a definite ‘No’, and a simple request for more information before buying
• When it’s just a matter of timing – they are too full now, but ask me again in 10 minutes
• They want something more, but you’ve just offered the wrong thing
• Explain the need to identify the nature of the objection by asking open questions
• How to demonstrate empathy and understanding of the customer’s perspective
• How to gain trust by matching the response or offering to meet the customer’s needs

Give incentives
Link your upselling activity to some goals.  This might simply be a target to sell x number of a certain product or service, or may be linked to specific financial profit targets.  Whatever goals you set ensure these are clearly measurable and achievable, that any incentive is equitable so everyone is motivated to contribute, and that you give regular updates on progress.

Guide and support
Don’t assume because you’ve told people how to do something they will be able to just go out and deliver it consistently. Observe how your staff handle the upselling conversation and give them feedback after the event on what they did well, what they could do more of, and give the appropriate support and guidance on areas where they need more help.

With so much attention on getting income up and costs down, have we lost sight of some of the basics?

In my recent interviews with a number of prominent hotel professionals in my series “How to Give Your Hotel a Competitive Edge”, one of the messages that kept coming up over and over was about getting the basics right. Whilst most hotels get most tings right, most of the time, it only takes one little slip up before we end up with a disgruntled guest. These are some of the points raised:

The Welcome

Do your guest always get greeted with a smile and made to feel special?

• How well do your staff anticipate guests needs before they ask for things?
• Do you give attention to detail and have any special little touches for guests?
• Do you know what constitutes a good welcome for your guests? Do they like to be fussed over, or would they prefer to be left to their own devices?
• When staff service a room do they routinely put everything back to the standard layout, or leave things the way guests have laid them?

The condition and cleanliness of all areas

Do you have a strict audited cleaning programme in place? And does this ensure that the bedroom and bathroom are spotlessly clean (including under the bed, on top of wardrobes, under the basin)? And when was the last time anything saw a lick of paint? Take a look with a fresh pair of eyes and check whether anything looks tired and in need of a facelift. It’s a good idea to walk the customer journey at least once a week to check this out.  Better still ask others to do this on a rotating cycle; different people will pick up on different things, and even if you can’t address everything at once, at least you’ll know where needs attention and can schedule it into your maintenance plan and budget.

And when it comes to refurbs do you go all out on one or two rooms, or do you spread your budget to the benefit of all areas? There’s no one answer to this question, but think about the impact on your guests, your staff and your business as a whole. Is upgrading just one room benefiting only a very small proportion of your business, whilst other areas visible to all guests are left wanting?

The practicality

How practical are your hotel rooms? Unless you experience a night’s stay for yourself you wont be able to see what works and what doesn’t. I recently stayed in a very snazzy hotel, and it looked great, but when I met with my colleagues at breakfast we were all complaining that none of it was practical. Definitely a case of form over function on that occasion.  Ask yourself these questions:

• Do I have to strip the desk or dressing table of marketing bumf before I can put anything down?
• Is there anywhere to hang the hand towel? Or hang the bath towel so it can be reused?
• Is there anywhere to put down my toiletries in the bathroom, or put my makeup down where I can reach it and still see in the mirror?
• Does the kettle lead reach the socket without having to put the kettle on the floor, and still leave free power sockets accessible if I need to plug in my laptop or phone charger?
• Does the showerhead and water pressure give a decent shower?
• Is there anywhere to hang my dressing gown – either in the bathroom or bedroom?
• Can I see myself in the mirror whilst holding the hairdryer?
• Can I sit comfortably at the desk without banging my knees, and have enough light at the desk to read by without sitting in my own shadow?
• Can I open a window without using brute force?
• Can I comfortably watch TV from the chair?
• Do I have to strip off half a dozen unnecessary pillows before I can get into bed (and make extra laundry into the bargain)?
• Do you have to get out of bed to switch out the light?

A good night’s sleep

When was the last time you slept in one of your own hotel beds? Even if guests don’t make use of the hotel facilities or get up early enough for breakfast, the one thing that all your guests will expect is a good night’s sleep. So check out your beds. A good quality mattress and base is key; and unless you check your beds regularly you wont know when they need replacing.

A good night’s sleep will also be affected by light, noise and temperature.  Do the curtains meet in the middle and cut out street lighting and the sunrise?

Is there any noise from outside such as bottle disposal from the bar, air-conditioning units, traffic, your own bar or other local bars?  Or internally from lift shafts, banging pipes, neighbouring rooms. I remember one sleepless night being disturbed by music throughout the night, only to discover it was from a radio in the night manager’s office in the adjoining room.

And how is the room temperature? Is the air conditioning or heating system clear to adjust without having to call reception?

Perceived value for money

All of the above, of course add to the perception of value for money, but value for money will mean different things to different people. So how well do you understand what is important to guests? Is what they receive as good as or better than what guests are expecting?

You should be constantly looking for ways to add value for guests, and particularly look for items that are low cost to you, but high perceived value to your guests. Is everything provided that would be expected at the price point your guests have paid? People’s expectation of what’s included at breakfast, for example, will be very different if they are paying £12.95 rather than £4.95. Do you let guests know everything that is included in their rate? And do you include everything they might expect to be included, such as free WiFi.

Value for money also means a clear and transparent cancellation policy – having to pay for something you have not used will not be seen as good value!

Consider how you compare with your competition, and if you are competing with brands and budget hotels focus on the personal touches that you can add that they can’t offer.

I’m sure you, like me, have made purchases – maybe bought a new pair of shoes, ordered a new car, or booked a holiday – only to reflect afterwards if we’ve done the right thing.

With a car it may have been an over zealous salesman, and now you start to see the car everywhere, or you hear tales of unreliability. When you’ve bought that new pair of shoes (I’m addressing the ladies here!) and you wonder if you will ever get any wear out of them. And with the holiday you start to read of poor experiences or learn that you have to fly from some remote airport that means leaving home at some forsaken hour to get your flight.

So what has this to do with your hotel guests? Why would they ever feel remorse?

Well, let’s think about that period between making the booking and arriving at their room.

Do your guests get:

A stony silence for the intervening period?

…..Or do you:

• Send a personalised confirmation email summarising their booking
• Send details of the events and activities happening locally during their stay so they can plan ahead
• Offer to make dinner, theatre or event reservations for them
• Send them directions and journey times from their home postcode to reach you (this also helps reduce the risk of stressed late arrivals)
• Advise of the best and most cost effective routes from the airport or railway station

Frustrated at having to make a detour due to the local roadworks, missing the turn into the car park or finding the car parking full?

….Or do you:

• Advise them of any traffic problems by email or text
• Allocate ample parking for your expected guests opposed to the car park being full of employees’ vehicles
• Warn guests in advance if you have limited parking and advise of the alternatives
• Ensure the hotel entrance and car park are well sign posted and lit so guests can easily find the entrance
• Tell guests in advance of any security measures needed to enter the car park

A poor first impression

….Or do you ensure:

• The car park is clean, tidy and well lit
• The route from the car park to reception is well sign posted
• Staff on breaks, waste bins, and delivery areas are all out of sight
• The walk to the entrance is easy to navigate with heavy bags (and potentially the pouring rain)
• The main entrance is clean (including any signage), welcoming, and obvious from the street and the car park
• The first thing guests see as they walk in the door is a smiling welcoming face…

A disappointing welcome

….Or do you ensure:

• Staff are warm, friendly and welcoming to guests – no matter what their role
• The route from reception to their room is easy (eg lift working correctly, clear signs, clear of discarded room service trays, key cards work properly)
• The room is fresh, well maintained and at a comfortable temperature
• The bathroom is spotlessly clean

…..and if there are any problems your team are trained and work as a team to address these and deliver great customer service.

If you are in any doubt about any of these areas, take the customer journey, reviewing all potential routes; and encourage your team to do the same, as they may well notice things that you have become oblivious to.

The way your guests perceive you before they arrive and the welcome they receive will be a key factor in influencing the overall guest experience.  A poor perception is likely to cause them to pick fault with everything, looking for confirmation of their first impression.

Always remember you only have one chance to make that first impression. Make sure it’s a good one.

Please follow this link to get more ideas to help  www.zealcoaching.com/hotel-marketing-workshop

Caroline Cooper

I’m sure there are many more ideas, but these are the basics…..

1. Plan menus around seasonal availability
2. Create costing cards for every menu item, and update ingredients costs as they change
3. Include methods for all recipes, train chefs and provide the right tools to follow these methods
4. Establish yields of all recipes, and check these are being achieved though production and sales controls
5. Check suppliers prices before ordering, and adapt menu if costs reduce margin
6. Only ever order what you need – chef will only be tempted to use more if it’s there, or it goes to waste
7. Negotiate drop discounts with your main suppliers – if they can save on delivery costs they might be willing to negotiate
8. Only ever buy products on offer if you know you can incorporate into the menu without it affecting your sales or margins
9. Check invoice prices against list prices
10. Don’t accept expensive substitutes for out of stock items
11. Check all deliveries are complete, adequate shelf life and in good condition – never accept anything which is not to standard
12. Keep stores tidy, with everything having its own place – its far easier to control
13. Keep stores locked, with access only from those who need it
14. Ensure stock rotation to avoid spoilage
15. Take stock regularly, weekly if possible, but as a minimum monthly – to get accurate stock consumption figures (this also encourages low stocks and good rotation)
16. Keep your menu choice limited to avoid low stock turnover – customers usually perceive this anyway with very extensive menus
17. Keep records of patterns in menu popularity to help planning and ordering
18. Batch cook as orders come in to meet demand
19. Check what comes back on plates – and ask if wastage is due to poor quality or too big a portion?
20. Keep a wastage book to track all wastage – you’ll be amazed how much goes in the bin and for avoidable reasons
21. Investigate cost of blast chiller if you don’t already have one – it could pay for itself in short space of time
22. Ensure all chefs/service staff are trained in portion control

23. Supply the right size serving equipment for a standard portion – if a portion of chips is 8 oz and you provide a 10 oz scoop that’s 25% over and your margin gone

24. Educate staff in the budgets and margins involved in the businesses – if they think you make a fortune on each dish they wont respect food costs

25. Have guidelines for staff meals and what they can and cant eat or drink

….And a bonus point…

26. Accidents do happen – but ask staff to let you know when there has been anything out of the ordinary to affect wastage

Why reinvent the wheel. I have a range of costing tools and other business management resources, which can be found here.

• No baby sitter – can you offer a babysitting service
• What to do with the dog – recommend kennels (or allow dogs)
• Poor transport network – provide a free taxi service to and from the station or airport
• If I stay away another night I’ll miss my gym session and end up eating more than I should – a common concern for business users, so set up temporary membership arrangements at the local gym, and provide a healthy option light or calorie counted meal
• The kids will want their bikes, but we don’t have a bike rack – offer bike hire or team up with a local hire shop ~
• There’s nothing to do if the weather is bad – set up a kids’ play room and indoor entertainment area, and provide games and indoor activities
• I don’t have time to do my laundry, get my hair cut or legs waxed – provide a laundry and pressing service, or offer complimentary or discount vouchers for your own spa or a local beauty or hair salon

You could take the attitude ‘that’s not my problem’ or you can see these ‘problems’ as great opportunities for additional services. Without having to think too hard or spend too much, people can have a ready-solved problem if you’ve put together a package ‘just for them’.
For more articles and resources

• A guest wants an early breakfast, before your kitchen staff normally arrive – offer a continental breakfast or a tray instead, or at the very least a take away cup of fresh coffee.
• You receive a request just 10 minutes before service for an alternative to the set menu for a big party – you don’t have a choice, but listen to what the guest needs to avoid and offer an alternative combination without this item.
• Your weekend guests ring ahead and say they haven’t been able to get a dog sitter. You don’t take dogs, but can you find a local kennel who can accommodate the dog?
• Your guest asks for a particular brand of whisky for an important client he is entertaining. You don’t stock it, so do you refuse, or phone your neighbouring hotel or pub to see if they have it in stock.

Encourage your staff to get into the mindset of looking for an alternative solution, even if the initial question has to be answered with a ‘no’, it can be followed by ‘but I can do x for you’, or ‘I know someone who could do this for you’.
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