GUESTS: List Suggested Tip Amounts on the Bottom of Checks [Hack #109]
It comes up time and time again: paying the bill is one of the biggest pain points for guests, not to mention a huge bottleneck for your service. One way you can alleviate the pressure of both is to list suggested tipping amounts at the bottom of your guests’ checks.
DID YOU KNOWS…
How Much do the GoT Dragons Need to Eat?
The dragons on Game of Thrones have grown a lot since the first season. From tiny adorable little baby dragons to enormous fire-breathing monsters. But how much would they need to eat if they were real? Eater interviewed a zoologist to get the answer. Her conclusion: the strict carnivorous dragons could probably go a long time between meals as reptiles are known to going up to months without eating anything. The dragons snacking on friendly ally soldiers is a distinct possibility, though.
Student Debt is a National Problem
On Monday, Senator Elizabeth Warren's presidential primary campaign announced her higher education policy, with the promise of cancelling student debt for nearly 43 million Americans. Roughly 45 million Americans have student loan debt, with New Hampshire holding the highest average student loan debt, according to the most recent data from the Institute for College Access and Success. When the average New Hampshire student graduated in 2017, he or she owed over $36,000 in student loans.
Repairing Notre Dame
While it has been difficult to put a precise figure on the cost of the work needed to restore the cathedral to its former glory, new estimates from French construction economists suggest that the amount donated will easily surpass the repair bill. Untec - L'Union nationale des Économistes de la construction have estimated repair costs will reach a maximum level of €465 million. That’s about $518 million in US.
DELIVERY INSIGHT #4: DELIVERY FOR THE WIN
Why it matters to you: Simple strategies that will give your delivery program an edge.
We are at the end of our little Delivery Insight experiment and we wanted to finish with some tips to winning the delivery game. Simplicity can be its own reward and it turns out that is also the case when offering a menu for delivery. Since most delivery experiences these days start with a mobile device interaction, this post on How to Win in the Booming Delivery Economy cautions to keep your online menu simple. Most full-service restaurants have complicated menus with lots of choices, many of which require modification and specification. By limiting your menu, you improve the guest experience. That’s the whole game here -- winning the guest experience. Just look at what Domino’s has done to make their mobile ordering great and you’ll have all the proof you need.
The post also suggests that you keep your higher margin items. Soups, apps soft beverages or desserts need to be highlighted for why they are a great addition to the guest order. For example, some operators are recommending non-fizzy drinks like lemonade or iced teas to overcome the notion that carbonated beverages suffer due to the delivery cycle. An additional focus of the post is on managing kitchen turnout pressure. If your delivery is really rocking, then maybe you should consider the ghost kitchen concept and dedicate a line to delivery. You can either build your own or access a shared kitchen concept to just serve your delivery needs. These complications are just problems to be solved, especially if they are the result of increased volume.
[Source: Restaurant Business Online]
NOT TO BURST YOUR BUBBLE
Why it matters to you: Many market observers believe the next bubble is about to burst.
The economy is a mystery to most of us, which is why we turn to the experts to answer the question, “Are we in for another recession?” For that answer, we turned to Fortune to see their opinion on the health of the economy. Unfortunately, the answers didn’t inspire confidence. They cite several real and valid factors that are contributing to our rush to the next downturn. Some of the data is technical, like referencing something called the Yield Curve. This is a metric that compares three month Treasury bills with 10 year notes. While it’s really technical, suffice to say, we appear to be nearing a negative Yield Curve and yes, that’s bad. However, the post doesn’t stop at the technical and makes salient observations about auto debt and the robustness of the Chinese Consumer (yup, we are all linked worldwide and there’s nothing any of us can do about it). In our analysis, the most damning observations made by this post are regarding corporate debt and corporate profit.
From a profit perspective, it appears they have peaked for major corporations, a harbinger of a bear market, according to Warren Buffet. Perhaps even more destabilizing is the dramatic increase in corporate debt. Sure, companies need cash to grow and often times borrowing is the only way to acquire it. Unfortunately, it’s the fact that this type of borrowing has ballooned from $29 trillion during the 2008 financial crisis to more than $66 trillion now that’s worrisome.
Among the most leverage industries is food and beverage. We have long been alarmed by the overbuilding of outlets in our industry and much of this borrowing has fueled that issue. If the bubble does burst, we are likely to be at the nexus of the troubles. Let’s face it, we employ almost 14 million people and deliver nearly $1 trillion in revenue annually. What can you do now? Trying to eliminate your debt and hoard some cash. Otherwise, watch the fundamentals of your business and start saving for that next rainy day.
[Source: Fortune]
