TECH: Implementing a New POS System: 5 Strategies for Your Staff
One of the greatest barriers restaurants face when adopting new technology is the implementation process. Successfully implementing new software or hardware can be a major challenge for any business. This is only compounded for restaurants since most run on tightly-managed budgets and often experience the high staff turnover that the industry is famous for. But restaurants can take giant leaps in their technology without wasting time and resources on implementation.
DID YOU KNOWS…
Candy Corn Beer
At the beginning of the month we brought you the abomination that is candy corn pizza. Well now, if you’re crazy enough to eat a slice you can wash it down with candy corn beer. The beer debuted last week by the Westallion Brewing Company and describes the beer as a typical cream ale with “house-made candy corn flavoring” mixed in.
fuboTV Doubles Subscriptions
fuboTV has more than doubled its subscriber numbers in the past year, and is now billing itself as a “sports-first cable replacement product.” The streaming service jumped from 100K subscribers to 250K subscribers since September 2017. And while the company has entertainment channels as part of its service, they’re focusing on sports first. And now they have their eyes set on bringing ESPN into the fold. Learn more about OTT sports in our free download.
It’s Duck Season
Arby’s is releasing a limited-edition seared duck sandwich topped with smoked cherry sauce and crispy friend onion rings. It’ll only be available at 16 restaurants across the US, starting on October 20th, and in extremely limited quality. If it’s anything like their venison sandwich, they’ll sell out fast.
HAVE WE GOT A TIP FOR YOU
Why it matters to you: The D.C. City Council rolls back a server minimum wage increase.
In a recent referendum, Washington D.C. voters passed Initiative 77 that eliminated the tip credit for servers, effectively raising their base wages from $3.89 to the current level of $13.25 for all hourly employees. Turns out that the D.C. City Council didn’t agree with the electorate and has repealed the part of Initiative 77 that required full minimum wage for all tipped employees. There is no doubt an increase of over 250% would have had devastating consequences to restaurants in the D.C. market. The real dollar impact would have wiped out profits for many operators and potentially closed a lot of restaurants.
Looking forward, there will likely be more of these initiatives in your local markets. As it is, several states don’t allow tip credit (Alaska, California, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, Oregon and Washington). This means in those areas, restaurants are already contending with these rules. Minnesota, for example, was on the forefront of states where no-tipping experiments have been attempted. Depending on your perspective, the failure to catch on for no-tipping has either been no surprise or a source of frustration. Either way, minimum wage issues aren’t going away. If your state is considering a change to their tip credit rules, you at least know that in seven states it’s working whether they like it or not.
[Source: TheHill]
I’VE ALWAYS WANTED A NEIGHBOR JUST LIKE YOU [Song]
Why it matters to you: How do your neighbors feel about you?
If your restaurant is located in residential neighborhood then you already know the challenges having folks living close by your place. Well one such restaurant in England is struggling with a neighbor that has posted a sign in his window complaining about the restaurant. Specifically, the neighbor is frustrated by the smell of garlic. The neighbor also claims that when he shared his complaint the restaurant owner, the owner told him, “Don’t live near a restaurant if you don’t like the smell of garlic.”
While that might have been a satisfying response to a neighbor that is being difficult, it’s not particularly diplomatic. Yes, diplomacy needs to be added the list of many things that makes restaurant owners and operators successful. In most of our circumstances, neighbors are a fact of life. How you manage those relationships can be affirming or cause aggravation.
We don’t know if the owner or the resident are being reasonable in their approaches, but we do know if you aren’t being reasonable, there can be consequences. No one wants their neighbor to protest if they are trying to build an outside deck, expand their parking area or add live music to their venue. But they will, if you haven’t created a rapport.
[Source: Munchies]
