Selling rooms is the bread and butter of any hotel, but that doesn’t mean other sources of revenue within the property can be ignored! Restaurants, bars, gift shops and other points-of-sale also do make a significant contribution to a hotel’s bottom-line.
Guests today have the convenience of mobile technology – there’s an app for almost everything, including food delivery. Hotels will need to refresh their strategies in order to encourage guests to keep eating on-site.
Pre-Arrival Emailing
Even after a guest has made a reservation, there’s still plenty of opportunity to upsell! Most people open and read their confirmation emails after making a booking, so this space is ideal for promotion. Mention your hotel’s restaurants and bars here, along with happy hour timings.
If the guest has stayed at the property previously, it would be a good idea to look up their preferences and maybe offer them a personalized coupon for their favorite dish or drink.
Not only does this encourage the guest to visit the restaurant, it also reinforces the guest’s positive impression of your property – people love to have their tastes complimented!
Mobile Adoption
Most of you have probably used an app to avail of a service – booking a cab, reserving a seat, or even ordering food. So there’s no reason guests can’t do the same and choose services from other companies that offer the convenience of an app! Adopting the mobile platform is critical to the long-term success of not just your restaurant, but your entire property.
An app also enables you to promote your hotel’s f&b outlets during the pre-arrival stage and even during occupancy via push notifications. Once beacon technology becomes the norm, these POS terminals will be able to detect guests walking past the store and alert them instantly with personalized offers for the very store they’re approaching!
Offer Takeout
Room service – often considered the symbol of extravagant vacationing – is beginning to lose its appeal. Guests don’t like the idea of having to spend a lot on a meal, especially when on a solo trip. Even companies have started to place caps on how much employees can spend on food. As a result, they end up ordering takeout instead.
Just offer takeout within your property, with the option for guests to pay on the spot rather than adding the charge to the room rate. Again, having an app would go a long way in streamlining this process and can drastically cut down on the number of delivery boys frequenting your property.
Study Your Guests
Each individual has their own unique taste but that’s no excuse for making no attempt to be proactive. A quick glance at the reservation table can reveal a surprising amount of information about the traveler, allowing the staff to make the necessary culinary arrangements. Personalizing the stay by offering a special family meal coupon for guests with children, or a free drink ticket for single guests can go a long way in making sure they visit the terminal at some point.
Restaurants, bars, and other such f&b outlets are more than just income generating points within your hotel – they’re one of the many key components that come together to build a great hotel that offers its guests a great experience.