It’s a tough time in Australia and the world for just about all of us – and those managing bars and other hospitality businesses are certainly no exception. The new and unique challenges of the pandemic are simply piled on top of everything else the bar and pub manager already have on their plate. Some challenges are easier than others, ensuring all bar staff are trained in the responsible service of alcohol is easy with an online RSA course by CFT. However, other challenges include the ever-changing laws, serving delicious foods, overseeing the kitchen, handling ordering and deliveries, answering phones, dreaming up imaginable Happy Hour strategies and – of course – pouring the perfect brew with the perfect head. Viner från Spanien
So what could be more timely than a bite-sized and hand-selected sampling of the best profit-boosting tips to kick 2022 off on exactly the right foot?
Table of Contents
1. Leverage your customer base
We know you have strategies to attract newbies – but never forget about your bread-and-butter. That would be your existing bunch of loyal customers, so never forget that their word-of-mouth testimonials are worth their weight to you in amber-gold. So: celebrate their loyalty! Remember their birthdays, give them one on the house, and incentive them to post happy-snaps of their time under your roof on social media.
2. Shake up Happy Hour
We mentioned Happy Hour in the introduction because if you’re not doing it, start today! Don’t forget, your core customer base is fairly young these days, so Happy Hour is music to their ears and taste buds. Make it a truly Happy Hour by expanding it beyond a mere hour, offer two-for-one drinks deals, and implement an exciting theme.
3. Update your equipment
A fresh food and drinks offering, replete with new wine labels and blends, is par for the course – but don’t neglect your basic equipment either. The easiest way to get a dreary online review is by offering your customers dreary and worn glasses presented on dog-eared bar mats, napkins that have been washed and washed until their off-white, and pulled out of a bar cooler than belongs in the deep of the 80s.
And it’s not just the equipment, either – don’t neglect how you maintain it. How long has it been, for instance, since you updated your set of bottle brushes? Can you reach the very bottom of your long-necked carafes? Would silicon bristles be gentler for your fine glassware? Are your coffee and juice machine nozzles and valves as clear and gleaming as they could be with exactly the right brush in your updated set?
4. Shake up your theatrics and amplify your strengths
What is your bar or club particularly good at? Which menu items are causing a stir? What’s the best thing about your premises’ ambiance? Once identified (and don’t be afraid to ask your happiest patrons), you can expand upon your strengths like the new branches of a healthy tree, and chop off the dead wood in the process. If the ambiance in general is a little drab, don’t be afraid to turn up the volume of your bar theatrics: empower your bartenders to shake and stir with true pizzazz, get them to take a mixology workshop, introduce fun and innovative offerings.
The real key to a fun and thriving bar whose profits simply keep soaring? It’s to ask. Ask your customers, ask around in the community, ask an expert. After all, while bar management in these challenging times is definitely not easy, it doesn’t mean you’re doing it alone – so why not brainstorm 4 more top tips for 2022 with the supportive company you find yourself in, industry-wide? We’re all in this together, so let’s make it an amazing year!