Hospitality Shutdown Opportunities
This shutdown can be a huge blessing and make a massive positive impact on your business.
It is a great way to get rid of the bad and enhance the good, go in a new direction, rework your style or menus, to create a better business you, your customers, the environment and your bank balance.
Here are 5 tips to make the most of this shutdown.
1. Take stock.
Both figuratively and practically.
Count your stock and do a full inventory. Use what you can and donate what you can’t.
Now sit down a take a long look at your business make a list of what is good and what is bad, what you are happy with and what you are unhappy with. Now is the perfect time to make these changes. Whether this is with staffing, menus, design, flow, drinks, suppliers etc. you now have the time to put all the wrongs right so don’t be afraid to make the tough decisions you will be far happier in the future.
Clean and redesign your business, now is an excellent time for a deep clean, touch up and reworking of the look and flow of your business.
2. Research.
Spend time looking at your competition online, what makes their website, social media stand out how can you enhance yours?
Read all your reviews and reply ask questions, people are stuck at home so engage with them even the positive reviews as this keeps your business in their minds.
Look at your competitor’s menu how do you stand out from the crowd?
Contact existing suppliers and negotiate better prices or discounts. Look into new suppliers, contact them and negotiate prices. Play the suppliers against each other to achieve the best result for you.
Reach out to your staff and ask for their opinions on what does and doesn’t work and how things can be improved.
3. Reach out.
Keep up a social media presence, you can even improve this, get your chefs to post them cooking and trying new dishes and get your customers to vote on their favourites, get your bar staff and baristas practising coffee art, bar flair and making exciting cocktails, create a challenge for your waiting staff, like how many plates can your clear and carry or balancing spoons etc challenge your customers to beat your staff and offer a prize for the winner!
Connect with other owners and industry figures, share, ask questions, learn, teach etc now is a great time to network and increase your profile.
4. Learn.
Online courses are plentiful but if money is tight there are thousands of free online videos, courses and information to learn from.
Improve yourself, practise your flair, cooking skills, learn about book keeping, business management etc your knowledge is one of the key factors in your success.
5. Plan.
Rewrite your operating procedures. Send them to your staff to read. Then send out a simple and fun test for the staff. Write training sheets and get your staff to complete them, it will not only improve your staff but give them something to do in the lockdown and keep them engaged with you and the business.
Make a reopening plan.
Ordering, preparation, printing of menus, restocking, advertising and promotion, staff retraining. All these take time and planning.
Like a phoenix your business can rise from the ashes a great a powerful force to be reckoned with. So make the most of the closure to maximise your business.
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