Hi, my name is Warren Freeman. I have been in the hospitality and photography industry for over 30 years, with extensive experience in the United Kingdom and in Canada. 

 

One thing I know for sure is, that the bottom line, as in any business, is sales and profit. How you achieve this can be done in several ways.

 

One of the techniques I have learned to use to increase sales is to use suggestive selling. Describing a dish in a way that makes the customer want it. A lot of restaurant owners spend money on advertising to attract 'new' customers to increase sales, which is fine. But I say, as well as doing that, use these techniques to sell more to the customers you already have. It's a win-win situation for everyone.

 

I learned this technique in Canada, and Canada is a culture of people that tip 99% of the time tip wait staff. And the general rule is, you get tipped on average 15% on the total cost of the bill. So if a bill is $100, the server can expect a tip of $15. So, with that in mind. It was a BIG incentive to make the customer's bill as high as possible. And as a result,..we learned how to sell!

 

Sell,..sell sell !!

 

Now, in some countries, it is not so much like that. As people don't tip. And I find that servers and waiters, don't really care so much about selling, as I am sure they think,..'Why should I bother? It makes no difference to me'.

 

And because of this, I find most wait staff to be 'order takers' rather than salespeople. I have changed that philosophy in our restaurant,... and I am certain I can change it in yours too.

 

In Wellington, New Zealand, I implemented my sales techniques to the staff at the restaurant that I managed. In my 1st two months, we have doubled our dessert sales from 45% of all customers to 90%. And the same has happened to our 'High profit' specials.

 

 

One of the most effective techniques is using high-quality photos coupled with an exciting verbal description of the dish.

When I 1st started in the industry, we didn't have the technology that we have today. To sell our desserts, we had a dessert tray with a slice of every dessert on it, and we would describe in detail each dessert in mouth-watering detail. And we sold loads of them! 

 

Today, we can use tablets or iPads etc. And using high quality, sharp, colourful images, we can show our customers how delicious our food is before they order.

 

This technique is great for selling specials, we use it for selling low cost to us 'Specials', that we sell for a high cost to the customer. 

 

It is especially useful for when it comes to selling desserts and Entrées. Because, when people come to a restaurant, they will almost always order a main dish, that's why they came to the restaurant in the first place. Dessert and Entrées to most people is an option. And if 'asked' if they want dessert, a lot of people say 'no I am too full',... I say,... don't ask them,.. just show them the amazing desserts you have on a tablet, and describe them with a mouth-watering description. This technique is great and flips many 'maybe's' into people who will buy a dessert.

 

I can help you to increase your sales, by discussing which items you want to sell more of, and photograph them in such a way, using lighting techniques, and post editing software, that will make your food look AMAZING!

 

I also offer a training session to motivate your staff on how to use this technique and inform duty managers how to make sure ALL of the FOH staff use this every time to every guest.

 

I also offer a free consultation, explaining face to face with you, on how this system works.