Good standards for a selling restaurant
Many people think of a salesperson as someone who convinces others to buy something they don't really need. But sales is much more than that.
What does it mean to be a salesperson?
According to sales expert Christian Hofbauer, sales is about creating added value for customers. It's about helping customers make better decisions and achieve their goals.
“We are all salespeople,” he says.
– Sales is about helping others and influencing others, whether we are selling a product, a service or an idea.
In the restaurant industry, sales are a crucial part of the operation. It's not just about getting guests in the door, but giving them an experience that keeps them coming back and recommending the place to others. To succeed in this, a holistic strategy is required.
The key to success: Who is your ideal guest?
– It all starts with the overall strategy: Who am I for? If you think: “I am for everyone, and it’s completely random”, then you are going to have challenges. You can’t be everything to everyone. Instead, imagine a customer group and understand the segments you want to target. Set a goal to “understand your ideal customer better than anything else in the world”.
– Who are your ideal guests? What motivates them to come to you? What kind of added value do they want? How do they think? How do they act? How much money are they willing to spend? What are they willing to spend the money on? What are they interested in? What do they dislike? You have achieved a lot when the guest in the right segment notices that: “I feel comfortable here, this is the experience I want.”
Where do we start?
Christian highlights Pascal and Statholdergaarden as examples, where he himself was behind the scenes at the start-up in the 90s:
– Both places have a clear driver with a clear idea and concrete images of how he envisioned the restaurant to be. It should create emotions, something "one-or-the-other" that provides extra value for customers. There was a thought about what the quality of service and food should be to hit the exact segment of guests he envisioned.
It can be about a well-designed interior, the attire of the waiters, the quality of the service, the quality of the people. It can also be about what you don't see: That the staff is constantly attentive to you as a customer, that the table is cleared, and whether the atmosphere is calm and harmonious – or fun and vibrant.
– No matter what kind of place you run; these four “rules” are the essence that you have to familiarize yourself with and become really good at, says Christian:
1. You must have a comprehensive strategy and a defined target group to reach.
2. There must be quality to the dining experience, and you must deliver every time.
3. There must be extremely good service, so your guests feel seen and cared for.
4. You must be good at digital marketing.
The employees are crucial
For a basic strategy to work, employees must be on board. Recruitment and training are critical.
– Most managers take the standards they set for their employees too lightly, says Christian.
– A restaurant should have a clear quality manual that defines how service should be delivered every time, how to meet guests and how different situations should be handled. If you have clear standards, it is easier to create a stable and good experience for guests.
Word of mouth and digital focus
Your guests are often your best marketing. Positive word of mouth has enormous value. Recommendations from existing customers, friends and acquaintances are far more credible than advertising. At the same time, it must be noted that dissatisfied customers often spread negative experiences faster than positive ones.
A dissatisfied guest can easily tell 25 people, while a satisfied customer may only share their experience with 6-7. Many have also probably experienced that it can be difficult to score well in online reviews, for example. It takes a lot to achieve plus points, and the small, negative ones drag it down.
One absolutely critical success factor for achieving good sales in today's market, according to Christian, is therefore well-thought-out digital marketing. Research shows that 98% of us start our shopping experience online, and we buyers are critical:
What does the website look like? What do the pictures look like? What is the atmosphere like? We also want to check the reviews: What do people say about this place? How is it ranked? The quality, the service I want and the price I am willing to pay for this; this must resonate with me as a customer. Here it is important to work purposefully to reach exactly the customer group you are looking for.
– But sales is not just about getting guests in, he emphasizes,
– It's just as much about getting them to come back repeatedly over a long period of time, that is, that they become loyal. Then it's extremely important that you deliver the first time, and then we're back to the quality standard you've set for yourself.
A plan – and a dose of patience
Working systematically towards a given segment can take time.
– It is often said that: “you have to stick with it for two to three years”, says Christian.
– The same will apply to a café or a restaurant: You must have enough resources to be able to stay in business long enough to build up the portfolio of customers in the segment you want, until it turns around.
But, as with most things in life: Patience and determined work usually pay off in the end!