Posted by Russ Ford on Wed, Jan 13, 2010 @ 01:58 PM
This could be a dream come true!!
Last weekend my wife Laurie was down in Orlando running the Goofy Challenge at Disney World. This crazy race is a ½ marathon on Saturday followed by a little 26 mile jog on Sunday. Not hard to understand where the name comes from. She was also fortunate enough to run both races in 35 degree weather with a bit of freezing rain thrown in.
In any event I found myself home on Sunday night with my 7 year old Gracie and a little tornado we call “Smiley”, our 2 year old named Noel. Grace decided she wanted to go to her favorite restaurant Outback Steakhouse. One small problem, without mom home we are talking serious “ZONE DEFENCE” for dad. Not wanting to disappoint Gracie and deprive her of that Bloomin Onion I had to think fast.
So thinking they are probably not on a big wait and won’t be using those guest pagers we at HME Wireless are famous for, I called to see if I could do a bit of not “Call ahead seating” but “Call Ahead Eating”.
This amazing concept may take the country by storm much to the delight of parents with kids under 4. The concept is sort of a cross between a “To Go” order and “Call Ahead Seating”.
You simply call in, place your order as if it was to go and show up. Instead of taking it to go you are seated and within seconds your 2 year old is eating some sweet potato fries and sipping on her milk. Your 7 year old has just enough time to finish the puzzles in the kids menu before her dinner is on the table and you are living large. As the happy parent your reward is exactly 14 minutes and 37 seconds to enjoy your meal before you hit the fourth quarter and time is running out.
So if you have a local restaurant that would love to have more guests and is a bit flexible “Call Ahead Eating” is worth a shot.
A special thanks to Ray , Heather B and the rest of the team at Outback Buckhead in Georgia for “hooking a brother up”. Outstanding execution all the way around. I think the note on the bottom of the Outback check says it all with Call Ahead Eating you can “Live Adventurous!”. Cheers
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Posted by Russ Ford on Tue, Jan 12, 2010 @ 11:48 AM
First in a series of posts
Choosing the right guest paging system for your restaurant can be challenging with numerous companies and "solutions" available. There are several factors involved including range, pager type or style, system size, signal, frequency, quality, durability and strength of the company to name a few.
Over the next several posts we will review the key aspects of making that decision starting with the obvious question.
Do I really even need a guest paging system and if so how do I tell what size system to purchase?
One of the more easy hurdles to overcome is this question. Simply put if you go on a wait even as few as 2 shifts a week you can see great benefit from a guest paging system. Notice I said "shifts". Most times operators think about this in terms of Friday "night" or Saturday "night" but if you do a great lunch business and want to turn tables faster, then guest paging is for you. Since the pricing of this technology has come way down over the last few years virtually anyone who goes on a wait can afford a system.
The next question to answer is what size system will meet our needs? As a rule of thumb I always suggest you get one pager for each party waiting during your busiest shifts. Remember it is not the number of people but the tables they are waiting for that matter. Thus using parties will give you the best answer. There is really no "standard" number of pagers. Generally we suggest starting with the smallest system, as adding pagers to an existing system is just a phone call away. This gives you the ability to get up and running at the lowest possible cost and if more pagers are needed it will be based on business volume not an overzealous sales rep.
In the next installment we will look at range issues and what needs to be considered on the "technology" side.
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Posted by Russ Ford on Wed, Dec 09, 2009 @ 08:13 AM
Boost your restaurant sales this holiday season.
Yes that
number is correct $50 Billion, that’s Billion with a B dollars per year are now
spent on gift card purchases. You can buy
them almost anywhere you go. Places like
Publix grocery stores even have racks where you can choose dozens of options
from restaurants to retailers.
With the
gift card being one of the easiest ways to say “I love you” this holiday season
restaurants need to take full advantage of this opportunity before the rule
changes which are really going to impact the potential value of these sales. As
of August of 2010 there will be some new laws in place.
One of
the most impactful for you the restaurant owner is the fact that a dormancy fee
(fee charged for non use) can ONLY be charged if the card has remained inactive
for more than 12 consecutive months. So
if the card was used ANYTIME within the last 12 months you can’t deduct one red
cent from that card.
The
other big change is that if a card has an expiration date in must be at least 5
years from the issue date. Even with all
these rule changes gift cards are still a gold mine for most restaurants. Here
are some of the ways you can get in on the action.
·
Have a server contest for who sells the
most gift cards during every shift, week or for the entire holiday season. Make it worth their while as this is “found”
money for you.
·
Set up a special gift card table near
your hostess area during the holiday season to make it easy for your guests to
buy gift cards while they wait for a table.
·
Don’t discount the purchase but ad value
for every sale. I.e.… buy a $25 card and get $30 on it or buy $100 card and get
a $20 card for yourself!!
·
If you have an email database of your
guests send a special offer for them.
·
Post a gift card special on your
Facebook Fan page.
·
Tweet “all guests that mention this
tweet get 10% added to any gift card purchase”
·
Place table tents promoting gift cards at
the bar and on each table.
At
the end of the day there are many ways to take advantage of the powerful
revenue stream so make sure you add a “gift card” plan to your holiday sales
building activities this year.
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Posted by Russ Ford on Tue, Dec 08, 2009 @ 04:35 PM
Let Facebook rev up your guest counts and revenue
"Become a Fan" is the rallying cry for restaurant
operators around the world with the power of Facebook and its millions of members. With more than 65 million "active" users it
is easy to see why having a restaurant fan
page can be so powerful.
Posting your menu, monthly specials, events and even
having your application on line are some of the key ways the hospitality industry
is using this social media spot to their benefit.
It is as simple as logging on to www.facebook.com creating a personal account
and making pages for your restaurant.
After that it is a matter of uploading your favorite photos and
content. "Fans" can even post their
favorite shots and make comments when they visit your place. Personalizing your pages with the day to day
happenings will drive guests back to the site on a regular basis and in return
back to your location to spend more time and money with you.
Many companies post famous "sightings", recipes,
downloadable coupons, calendars, contact information, hours of operation as
well as things that can only be found on their Facebook page. Want to open up a new location, let everyone know
via Facebook. Trust me, if you have a couple thousand fans and they start talking
about your new location there is no better advertising. All this adds up to
more traffic and more satisfied guests.
When you also consider your fans have "Friends" who
can get connected to your page and you have a media and marketing engine with
virtually no cost that can generate huge returns. So if you have not jumped into Social Media
with both feet give Facebook a try and see how it can benefit your
operation.
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Posted by Russ Ford on Mon, Nov 16, 2009 @ 03:05 PM
Guest Paging and Server
Paging are now mainstream tools used to increase efficiency in the restaurant
business. Long used in other industries 2 way radios have now also found a home
in the hospitality industry. Hotels and
Casinos have used them for years to increase the level of communication because
the sheer size of the locations demanded it.
Now Casual dining restaurants have found the benefits of these small
powerful tools.
Hostesses are kept up
to date on table status and call buss staff when needed. Managers can get a great "feel" for
everything that is going on in the front of the house by monitoring the
traffic. This is all accomplished by
using the latest technology which allows managers to be on one channel, host
staff on another and bus staff on yet another.
Managers have the ability to hear everyone and direct the business while
the other groups interact only with each other.
Motorola has developed a line of radios called CLS which were designed
specifically for hospitality. Very small
light weight units that are extremely durable in both one channel and four
channel models. So if you are already using guest paging and server paging but want to take service to the next level consider 2 way radios.
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Posted by Russ Ford on Wed, Nov 04, 2009 @ 06:25 AM
Improving
your speed of service using onsite paging and other technology
Third
in a series
Guest
Paging led the way but was by no means the end of a steady progression to better
"hostess station efficiency". The next "big thing" was Table
Management. Two brothers sat in their car in the Dallas parking lot
of a Macaroni Grill
thinking there had to be a better way to manage a wait list than a scratch pad
and a bunch of hostesses running around like chickens with their heads cut off.
The idea of computer based table management was born that night in the
form of Prohost. By most accounts Wayne Rock and his brother Eric
came up with the first truly integrated table management concept almost 20
years ago.
This software solution is one that allows the host staff to have a
visual image of the entire restaurant right at the hostess station. Very
cost prohibitive in the early days for all but the very high volume locations
such as Cheesecake Factory and Hard Rock Café. Today any location
where you can't see the entire restaurant from the hostess station can take
advantage of this great technology.
Table management took a stand alone guest
paging system with a paper floor plan and integrated it as a part of a
"solution". Now the hostess can put someone on the wait list
and simply touch their name when "the system" tells them to call that
party. Integrated server
and manger paging allow for even more silent communication between
staff members. As totally integrated Point of Sale solutions became the
norm for almost all restaurants they too came up with table management systems
that tie into the kitchen for truly seamless wait time estimation. Add to this
tools like the TableScout which allows you to update the table status from anywhere in the
location wirelessly and you now have a complete front of the house management
solution. This gives any operation the ability to turn tables faster and
generate more revenue.
TableScout Handheld
Posted by Russ Ford on Thu, Oct 29, 2009 @ 12:43 PM
Hostess.asp
Improving your speed of service using onsite paging
and other technology
Second in an ongoing series
As
casual dining evolved into a very competitive landscape and long waits for
tables became the norm the need to take pressure off the host stand came to the
forefront. The first big impact was
with the use of Guest Paging solutions.
Guest
paging came about back in the late 1980's to early 1990's. The first time I remember seeing guest
paging was when I visited a waterfront restaurant called The Cove in Deerfield
Beach Florida. They had taken a server
paging transmitter and just started handing out the pagers to waiting
guests. They even wrote the customer names on the panel. This concept started small
but when chains like Outback, Darden and Brinker rolled out this technology
virtually everyone followed.
This technology has help cut down on the chaos in the host area and greatly improved the seating efficiency. These pagers have
evolved over the years from simple vibration type simple devices. Today's guest pagers come in many different
varieties including smart paging versions that have streaming wait time, versions that look like a drink coasters and as crazy as the
idea is, ones that look like pizza and lobsters. HME Wireless even has a solution called
GuestCallIQ that allows the user to automatically renumber any pager right in
the charger. This is a huge leap in
technology over the old style number stickers most systems have had until now
With all
this technology at the hostess station the next logical step was to integrate
the paper wait list of old into an electronic version of the same idea. In the hospitality industry just like most
industries information is power and guest paging really can't offer much
information past the "feeling" that we are turning more tables. In our next segment we will explore how Table
Management solutions have changed that feeling into solid actionable data.
Posted by Russ Ford on Mon, Oct 26, 2009 @ 10:32 AM
LinkedIn, Tweeting, Facebook, My
Space, Delicious, Digg - what do all these have to do with the success of
your restaurant? Well, if you want to drive traffic to your restaurant
and have waiting lines out the door, then these are just a few of the names you
need to know in the world of Social Media.
In this the first in a series of
posts about building restaurant traffic using social media we will look at Twitter.
In a day and age when information is
flowing like 2 for 1 cocktails at Happy Hour, these powerful and mostly free
tools can keep you in the minds of your guests 24 by 7. Who needs TV and
print when you can tweet to your hearts desire?
We will start with the fastest and
easiest way to jump start your Social Marketing. Twitter is a social
media hurricane. With more than 30 Million users, by some estimates, you
can really reach a great many folks very fast.
The idea behind Twitter is to keep
folks who "follow" you up to date on what is going on. This is perfect
for restaurant owners and managers as it allows you to let everyone know what
great stuff is going on at your restaurant. There is no better way
to let everyone know about happy hour specials, new menu items, a new opening
or upcoming events at your place.
Simply sign up and start telling the
world about how great your place is and why they need to be there. In no
time at all you will need to call HME wireless to order your guest paging system because the lines will be out
the door.
Posted by Russ Ford on Tue, Oct 13, 2009 @ 02:34 PM
Improving your speed of service using onsite paging and other technology
First in an ongoing series
"Speed of Service" is a catch phrase that has been around for some
time in the hospitality industry. After POS made its way into the mainstream
the next logical step was to speed the delivery of food out of the
kitchen. Anyone who has worked in hospitality or for that matter sat next
to the kitchen on a Friday night has heard these now famous words blaring out
"I need a runner"! The most hated phrase a server can
hear. With this in mind Dave Miller and his partners at Mr. Laffs in
Jensen Beach came up with the waitress
paging system . Never before had so many servers, cooks, managers and
owners been happy all at one time! Cooks no longer yelled at servers,
servers no longer stood in the window annoying cooks, and managers no longer
had to scream "Runners! I need Runners!".
This simple system built with a small number board for the kitchen and
little vibration pagers guaranteed hot food hot and cold food cold every time
for restaurants smart enough to install a system. From simple beginnings Server Paging
has now become common around the world. Mostly used in independent
locations to cut down on labor it has even found its way into chains like Denny's and Original Pancake
House and others.
The next time you are lucky enough to be seated next to the kitchen and you
have a nice peaceful meal you can probably thank those little buzzers on your
servers hip!
Posted by Russ Ford on Mon, Sep 21, 2009 @ 10:12 AM
Recession? What recession?
Based on the packed aisles at the recent Florida Restaurant Show in Orlando, Fl
it seems as though the food and beverage industry is alive and well. I
had a chance to walk the show and visit with several technology vendors as well
as sample my share of tasty bites along the way.
Some of the highlights are as
follows:
1. Need to pay for your shiny
new Guest Paging Systems, or Server Paging System you just got from HME
Wireless? Try Sterling Funding they provide
shorter term financing than your normal lease packages. They offer very
flexible terms allowing restaurant locations in business as short as 6 months
to be approved for the program.
2. If business is brisk look no
further than Radiant Systems for their new
Guest Manager product. This is a complete Table Management and
Reservations solution for full service restaurants. With Guest Manager,
Integrated Guest Paging , Server Paging and even the ability to update Table Status are all available in this
slick package. This high tech solution seamlessly ties right into your Aloha
Point of Sale System. With features like automated quote times estimator, table
suggestions based on table rotation and the ability to have multiple floor
plans this solution can really make life in the busy restaurant much easier.
3. Need to pump up your marketing?
Table Management and Reservations company, Open
Table might be just the ticket for you. Boasting more than 10,000
restaurants worldwide they are an internet restaurant marketing
powerhouse. This year they have added a new twist with POS integration
and recently integration to the HME Wireless TableScout solution which allows your host staff
to update table status from anywhere in the restaurant.
4. No restaurant show would be
complete without old stand by's such as those tasty cocktails from Island Oasis and yummy cookies from Jacquelines Gourmet Cookies . Hard to leave
this place hungry after grazing for several hours.
Grazing aside after a long day
walking the show you are going to have to find a nice place to sit, relax and
have an awesome meal. No trip to Orlando would be complete without a stop
at Vito's Chop House . This landmark owned by
Talk of the Town Restaurant Group is one of my favorites along with their other
amazing steakhouse Charley's . Two can't miss locations right on
International Drive.
It looks like Florida is coming back
stronger than expected if the show was any indication. Let's hope it
continues!