Wednesday, November 30, 2016
Today's Specials:
SECURITY: 5 Tips to Avoid a Data Breach at Your Restaurant
Every month it seems there is a new POS data breach reported. Here are five tips for making sure a data breach doesn't happen at your restaurant.
DOWNLOAD: 50+ Content Marketing Ideas for Restaurants
More and more restaurants are realizing the value of adding a blog to their site to build their brand. We give you 50+ ideas, from restaurants successfully building their brand and a raving fan base through content marketing.
FOOTBALL PREVIEW: BOTH CFB and NFL Playoff Pictures in the Balance
This is the final week of relevant regular season games in the NCAA and the last few week of the NFL season as well. It is also the final week of the Football Preview. Going forward you will need to check your Weekly Preview on Friday for the upcoming week’s schedule. The good news is that nothing is really clear in either the College Football Playoff picture or the NFL standings. Click here to download this week’s schedule.
DID YOU KNOWS…
INFOGRAPHIC: The State of US Pay-TV Landscape
AT&T made a big leap into TV streaming on Monday, when it announced DirecTV Now, a new service which will allow subscribers to stream up to 120+ TV channels to a wide range of devices. But is it the biggest Pay-TV provider in the US?
In a Blink of an Eye
OK Go’s latest music video is about four minutes long, but it was shot in just 4.2 seconds. Per usual of their videos, it’s visually mesmerizing.
Don’t Mix Coke & Liquid Nitrogen
Crazy ass stuff like this happens when you do.
‘TIS THE SEASON
Why it matters to you: Gift Card sales rebounding is a good news for your business
The National Retail Federation (NRF) is projecting that gift card sales will rebound from last year’s abysmal holiday performance. The NRF forecasts a 5.7% increase in sales of gift cards to total almost $27.5 billion. If you haven’t already, you should have restocked your card supply and have assigned a process to managing their sales. Many restaurants stay open at their bars on Christmas Eve because they sell so many last minute cards and guests grab a drink as a bonus. Now is the time to remind and retrain staff on how to sell and accept cards in your restaurant. ‘Tis the season and your bottom line loves it.
COMING TO A RESTAURANT NEAR YOU
Why it matters to you: The Fight for $15 lives on, are you ready?
It’s clear that the Fight for $15 isn’t going away anytime soon. In fact, yesterday was the National Day of Action to Fight for $15. It saw demonstrations and threats of strikes from Los Angeles to Boston. Although the biggest proponents of the increased minimum wage in our industry are fast food workers, it will still impact the full-service restaurant industry. In fact, there is likely no other segment that will be more negatively impacted by this movement than full-service restaurants…especially in states where there is no tip credit allowed for servers and bartenders.
If your operation is in a state like Minnesota or California you have to pay your tipped employees the local mandated minimum wage with no credit for gratuities earned towards their salary. A $15 minimum wage will likely end tipping in those states for good. It just won’t be practical to pay a server or bartender that elevated a minimum wage and have them continue to take a service charge. However, for those of you in the states that allow some credit for server earned gratuities, the $15 minimum wage will have a lesser impact. Either way, it’s not going away and you may need to manage this just like the new Overtime Rules.
A TALE OF TWO CITIES
Why it matters to you: Success means knowing who your customers are.
Who are your customers really? Knowing means smarter business decisions like this Tijuana restaurant. Lonchería Dulce is a restaurant on the Mexican border that switched from Mexican food to Haitian food about a month ago, and since then business is booming! That’s because of a huge influx of Haitian refugees awaiting hearings to cross the border into the US.
Near the Canadian border, a restaurant is closing thanks to their unsustainable business model. The Garden Diner is selling despite their vegan menu, no tipping, and a living wage. At the end of the summer, the restaurant riled up its customer base with a food donation to the local police station. Given the political climate, it wasn’t a great idea and the restaurant never recovered. This success story and cautionary tale just goes to show it pays to know your customer.
NIX THE FACE TATTOO
Why it matters to you: When does refusing access to your restaurant go too far?
Texas restaurant chain Little Woodrow’s is catching some criticism for their policy that denies people with face or neck tattoos to dine at their establishments. The problem occurred when a man claimed he wasn’t allowed inside because of his face tattoo. Little Woodrow’s responded by saying that they grant access to guests with tattoos however not on their neck and face deeming them as “inappropriate”.
Since then, the restaurant has received many poor reviews on Facebook for its policy. Restaurant dress codes are created with good intentions but can quickly turn into a PR nightmare. Choosing to refuse access to customers based on their tattoo placement does become a sticky situation that may decrease positive publicity and profits in the long term.