3 Reasons to love customers' complaints

 Customer complaints are like medicine. Nobody likes them, but they make us better. Identifying customer concerns and proactively responding to them with the aim of customer retention, can only improve your business's bottom line. Learning to love your customers' complaints is crucial, and here is why:

Time management tips for restaurant entrepreneurs

 For restaurant owners who have more than one business, time management is of the utmost importance. Find out how this tips can help you as a restaurant owner oversee your restaurant businesses and still find time for your personal life.
1. Keep a day to day to do list of your daily tasks close at hand by syncing your list with all your

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How restaurants can create personal connections with customers

 Nowadays it is not always enough to create and promote your restaurant product and service. The most successful restaurant ventures are the ones that connect with their customers on a personal level, as it is known people like to buy from people they like. In this six tips guide, we reveal how to create personal customers' connections at your own restaurant.
1. Get to know your customers- using your customers names, asking about details they shared in previous conversations, or just remembering how your customers take their tea, or what temperature they like their stakes can make a world of difference.
2. Ask questions- before you launch into a hard sell, take the time to ask questions. It's easier to show your customers you can fulfil their needs if you know what they like or what they are looking for.
3. Wow your customers- to stand out from the competition and win your customers business you have to hook them somehow. You can consider for example sending a "Thank you" note for choosing your restaurant for their special occasion, and also take the opportunity and invite them back to celebrate with you.
4. Reveal something about yourself as a restaurant owner or your establishment that customers can relate to.
5. Listen to your customers- listen to what your customers have to say about your restaurant or your product.
6. Have patience- making lasting personal connection with customers can take time. Arm yourself with patience, properly train your stuff on your products and services, and never stop improving.

11 Traits to a successful restaurant leader

  Most restaurant owners work hard on their concepts, services, or finances, but they don't think much when it comes to leading their own employees. It is true successfully guiding a team through the ups and downs of running a restaurant can be one of the greatest challenges a small-business owner can face. Leadership is one of the areas that many restaurant entrepreneurs tend to overlook, but as it turns out anyone with determination can develop such qualities. Learn how this 11 tips can guide you to develop successful restaurant leader traits.
1. Make yourself available to your employees, this will enhance employee's self-expression
2. Treat your employees as you want to be treated which can easily build company's loyalty, lead to low cost training, and good will for your company
3. Listen- be at all times open to listen to your customers and employees, so you can learn more about how to serve them
4. Embrace changes
5. Be your own brand ambassador- when you believe and you are excited about your products and/or company, your employees will be excited too
6. Challenge and engage your team
7. Communicate effectively
8.Know your obstacles and when to take risk
9. Learn how to delegate responsibilities
10. Credit your employees for the work they do
11. Believe in your team and help them win 

How to fire your restaurant employees the right way

 When you have your own restaurant, you'll find out sooner or later that one of the unpleasant realities of running a business is that occasionally not all of the hired employees will fit into your restaurant culture. Firing employees is never easy. This is the reason why preparation and knowledge is crucial. Learn how this five guidelines on how to fire your restaurant employees the right way can help you when faced with such a dilemma.
1. Prepare any needed paperwork or written warnings such as performance or menu knowledge reviews if any.
2. Have a witness such as an active manager observe the proceedings.
3. Be specific, state the reason of termination, and make your message clear and concise as possible.
4. Allow time for digestion after you give your employees the termination notice.
5. Do not apologize, answer any questions truthfully, but avoid debating on any issues.
6. Have system in place to ease the firing process which can be helpful with final pays or any other questions the employees may have.

Preventing employees' theft in your restaurant

 Employees' theft is real and something that most restaurants have to deal with at one time or another. Theft can take on many forms, including giving away free food or drinks to stealing customers' credit card information, or food and alcohol. Find out how this tips can help you minimize or altogether prevent employees' theft in your restaurant:
1. Track food or/and liquor inventory weekly- having proven product control systems in place can not only help you better track your inventory but will also show commitment to your establishment.
2. Make sure that your restaurant has lockable and secure back doors.
3. Give your bartenders or main servers tabs where they can ring up free drinks or desserts. At the end of the shift have your employees pay half of the bill up to a certain amount, and let them be responsible for 100% of the bill over the specified amount.
4. Treat free drinks or appetizers just like any other customer comp. Have your employee ring up all products given away on the register, so you can track how much is been given away.
5. Have anti-theft policies in place and the employees you catch stealing charge for the missing products.
 Keep in mind: it pays off to take the time to hire good and responsible people. Once you've done that give them latitude to use their professional judgement and you might be surprised by what you find out.

What can every restaurant do in a case of a large party "No Show"

 We've all been there once or twice in our restaurant's careers: taking a large party reservation, preparing for the party, stoking up on food items, over stuffing to assure that kitchen and service run smooth, and then when the time comes for the party to arrive only to be slapped with the regretful "No Show". Find out how you can prepare yourself for the unwelcome "No Show" which every restaurant owner dreads:
1. Confirm reservations- train your hostess to confirm reservations up to the morning of the reservation date for evening bookings and the night before for morning reservations.
2. 30 minute rule- do not hold tables more than 30 minutes. This way you can free the tables you've put together for your lunch or dinner crowd and still make some profit.
3. Use your dining area- if you have a dining area that you use for banquets or overflow seating you can seat your large parties there. This will free your regular tables for service. You can also schedule servers specifically for this parties, and if there is a cancellation you can always send the extra servers home.
4. Deposit- you can take a deposit for the reservations which easily can be applied towards your guests' bill, and in case of "No Show" you can always keep the deposit for your troubles.
May we all never have to experience again another reservation "No Show".

How to create safe environment at your restaurant

 Most restaurant owners know that more often than not it comes down not only to the quality of employees you hire but also to the way you manage them. Find out how this 10 tips on how to create safe environment at your restaurant can help you not only better understand your stuff but your business as well.
1. Build relationship of mutual trust
2. Change the way you think about your employees
3. Do not assume ask specific questions
4. Reward good performance
5. Provide constructive feedback
6. Make debates and decisions transparent
7. Share restaurant's objectives and goals
8. Communicate change properly
9. Trust your employees with responsibilities
10. Hold your employees accountable

How to handle customers' complaints

 Every restaurant at least once had to deal with customers' complaints. The most important thing to remember however is not how many complaints a restaurant has received but how it responds to them. Instead of taking it as a personal attack, consider complaints an opportunity to improve. To help you with this we have listed some tips on how to handle customers' complaints.
1. Show them you care -thank the customer for making you aware of the problem.
2. Apologize- offer sincere apology and don't become defensive.
3. Tell your customers how you are going to fix the problem- customers really don't care why a certain problem has happened but rather what you are going to do about it now that you are aware of it.
4. Invite them back- remember you goal should be to turn the disappointed customer into a loyal one. You should invite them back and can always offer a gift certificates, coupons, or discounts for their next visit. This is a fantastic opportunity to redeem your restaurant, so use it to your advantage.

10 Tips on how to WOW your restaurant's customers

 Today many restaurants struggle how to not only attract new customers but also how to retain existing ones. The secret has always been in impressing your customers in such a way that your restaurant name stays on top of their mind at all times. Keeping this in mind, we listed 10 tips to help restaurants WOW their own customers.
1. Train your stuff not only on proper service and menu, but also on food service habits such as insuring that cold food is served cold, hot food is served hot, and always making sure that glasses and plates are clean of any food residue or water stains.
2. Go the extra mile and always anticipate your customer wishes. For example, if your customer is drinking coffee and is due for a refill, instead of asking if he needs more anticipate his wish and refill his cup.
3. Instill teamwork- just because every server is responsible for their own section it doesn't mean that his coworkers cannot help with the clearing of dishes or the refill of beverages. All customers should be given equal attention and care.
4. When your guests make a reservation, train your stuff to take down the guest name and the occasion for the reservation (if any). This way when your customers arrive, they will be addressed by name, escorted to their table which should be decorated for the specific occasion, and the guests given the appropriate attention and service.
5. Set up birthday club for your customers and send out birthday cards, notes, or dinner coupons.
6. Establish loyalty programs and reward your guests for being loyal customers by giving out coupons, discounts on special events, or awards.
7. Acknowledge all of your customers, especially the returning ones- get to know your guests better than your employees do, show them you care, and create "at home" feeling.
8. Provide clean bathrooms. Having a immaculately clean restrooms that are also stylishly decorated with mouthwash, lotions, fresh flowers, or over sized mirrors, is a very affective way to show your guests how much you care about them and how serious you are about cleanliness in all area of your restaurant.
9. It's all in the details. Sometimes small things matter the most such as dining on a clean tablecloths, drinking from spotless glasses, having enough napkins and silverware, attentive stuff, timely  service, consistent and great tasting food, etc. Keep in mind that these things matter more than incredible designed restaurant.
10. Make "Welcome" and "Goodbye" memorable. Since customers remember the first and the last minutes of service more than all of the rest, make sure to leave a sincere lasting impressions.

Creative ways for restaurants to increase their sales

 Are you a restaurant owner who is looking for ways to increase your restaurant's sales? Have you tried  the old traditional ways and discovered you need something more? Look no further, this 10 tips will help you in a creative way to increase your restaurants sales.
1. Set up cooking shows and teach your customers cooking techniques and/or recipes.
2. Publish and sell your restaurant's cook book.
3. Take advantage of your website and sell merchandise.
4. Hold weekly or monthly races that start and end at your restaurant.
5. Encourage your customers to tweet about your restaurant specials, menus, or contests by giving out gift cards, merchandise from your restaurant, or a whole year of free meals for the best tweets.
6. Use Facebook to hold customer contests when looking to introduce new menus, new restaurant slogan, or even when looking to make changes to your existing decor.
7. Sponsor local LLBB,peewee football teams, or any other teams of your choice.
8. Turn your restaurant wall into art gallery for student art clubs or art departments.
9. Hold yearly events such as food competitions or races.
10. Get involved within your community and hold food drives especially around holidays.
 At the end, this tips are merely suggestions, and you have to find the right fit for your restaurant business. As long as you keep it fun and remember your goals at all times, there is nothing that will stop you.

Are your restaurant's meetings successful?

 Even the most successful restaurants sometimes need help when it comes to conducting constructive monthly meetings. If you been there then you know, how important it is to resolve any outstanding problems without putting your team down. Below are seven ideas on how to make your restaurant meeting successful.
1. Open the meeting in a friendly nonjudgmental manner and restate the purpose of the meeting.
2. Get an agreement. If a problem exists recognize the nature of the issue and agree the problem exists.
3. Explore ideas and brainstorm ways the issues can be improved or corrected.
4. Make debates and discussions transparent.
5. Commit to action.
6. Handle excuses.
7. Provide productive feedback.
 Overall as long as you keep learning and improving from previous conducted meetings at your restaurant, you'll be on your way to success.

Is constructive feedback the secret to a successful restaurant ownership?

 Positive feedback is crucial to any successful restaurant team. When your employees feel recognized and appreciated, they will go an extra mile which is what most restaurant owners desire. Here is a five step guide to show you how to give constructive feedback.
1. Be timely- feedback should occur right after the interaction.
2. Be specific- give examples don't be vague
3. Focus on "what" not "why"- focus on the behavior not the person. You can start with something like "I have observed" or "I have noticed".
4. Be sincere- avoid angry tone that exhibits frustration, disappointment, or sarcasm.
5. Be positive- give as much positive feedback as you do negative since positive feedback leaves the recipient open to take new direction.
 Keep in mind, as a restaurant owner you should manage feedback in a positive way, so you can grow and improve your restaurant.

Do you know how to hold your restaurant employees accountable?

 Every restaurant should strive to provide proper training for its employees, and then hold them accountable to what is expected from them, never the other way around. But how can restaurants accomplish this without actually micromanaging their team? Find out how this five steps can help you achieve accountability for your employees.
1. Always hire the right people, and don't rush to fill open positions. If a prospective job candidates does not fit your restaurant culture or the position, wait it out until the right candidate emerges.
2. Encourage peer to peer accountability since there is nothing better that drives behavior. You can ask your employees to anonymously score different parts of your team, from the back to the front of the house.
3. Frequently express expectations, track, and reevaluate goals and progress.
4. Empower employees to make decisions.
5. Empower ownership stake by making your employees part of the dream.
 Remember accountability can motivate your restaurant employees and reveal great leaders.

How to boost your morale as a restaurant owner

 Low restaurant owner's morale can lead to poor cooperation, low productivity, and increased employee turnover which can easily destroy a company. Here we have listed fourteen tips on how to avoid this pitfall.
1. Create safe environment.
2. Thank your employees.
3. Reward good performance.
4. Encourage the persuade of passion.
5. Change the way you communicate change.
6. Change the way you perceive your employees.
7. Empower employees to make decision under your guidance.
8. Show your employees they make a difference in your customers lives.
9. Celebrate accomplishments.
10. Encourage healthy competition.
11. Mix the usual way of how things are done like changing your usual meeting place.
12. Collaborate ideas with your employees.
13. Encourage peer to peer recognition.
14. Provide constructive feedback.

 Remember, always try to foster rewarding workplace where your employees can prosper and there is no way you won't succeed.

How to build business credit for your restaurant

 As many restaurant owners have learned having a good business credit can be crucial to the expansion or even survival of some restaurants. Here are five ideas that can not only help you build your restaurant business credit but also help you avoid future rejections.
1. Maintain your personal credit rating- many banks based their initial decision on the owner personal credit score so don't forget to pay bills on time, keep a low ratio of debt to available credit and keep your balances under 30% of your limit in your personal credit card.
2. Apply for credit before you need it- soon after you start up your restaurant apply for business credit card or a small bank loan, even opening a store-based credit card line or card from retailers such as Office Max or Home Depot can be extremely helpful.
3. Grow and use your credit- once you establish payment history, request your limit to be increased even if you don't need it right away.
4. Develop relationships with different lenders- as the saying goes don't keep all your eggs in the same basket instead diversify. You can apply for a credit card through a major bank and for a credit loan through a local credit union.
5. Consider all options- there's other options you may want to consider for your credit such as investors, asset-based lenders, or peer to peer landing like Prosper or Kickstarter.
 Overall, getting a business credit is much more easier when you don't need it, that's why always do the hard work beforehand, so you can enjoy the rewards later.

Fifteen tips on how to boost employee morale in your restaurant

 In this uncertain times some restaurant owners are trying to do more with less which undoubtedly can kill workers morale. Find out what can make your restaurant employees happy again that cost a lot less than any free gifts or food.
1. Create a safe environment- you want your employees to feel safe they can share with you any concerns or feedback.
2. Don't forget to say thank you- a hand written note from you explaining exactly what they do that you like can go a long way.
3. Reward good performance- don't wait until monthly meetings or performance evaluations to tell your employees they are doing something well.
4. Communicate change properly- in a ask/assertive way instead of tell/assertive way make your workers part of the change by asking input of the best way for example of how to get from point A to point B.
5. Change the way you think about your employees- instead of wasting time searching how long your employees spend on Facebook or if they are stealing from you, concentrate your efforts on what they are doing right and tell them every once in a while.
6. Empower employees to be able to solve problems using your guidelines.
7. Structure and focus on action- put yourself in your workers shoes and group similar various task together to maximize and allow enough focus to complete each task.
8. Show your employees they make a difference at their job- encourage customers to share inspiring stories about your employees.
9. Celebrate accomplishments- take the time to show your employees how much they have done through the year which will make them appreciate the work they do.
10. Instigate healthy competition- departing from customary routines can make a world's difference. Designate a day for all your employees where they can hold a tournaments, play and compete against each other where they can come up with their team names, t-shirts, or team songs.
11. Train employees to develop positive attitudes- you can watch and discuss inspiring videos and how they relate to your particular restaurant culture.
12. Mix the usual way of doing things- you don't have to always have your employee meetings at the same place instead you can hold them at a cafe or take your whole team to the park.
13. Offer time away to do some good- community service can make a difference. You can offer your workers a few paid hours each quarter to volunteer to a charitable organization of their choice.
14. Encourage peer to peer recognition- you can post the pictures of the nominated workers for the month around the restaurant or you can give them points they can collect in order to receive a trophy for the best employee of the year.
15. Collaborate ideas- have your employees write down the goals they have for the restaurant for the year. Then give your employees the opportunity to vote for the top ten goals for your restaurant.
 Remember, make it known who is in charge but also strive to create a place where your restaurant employees are not afraid to ask you questions.

Interview mistakes restaurant owners should avoid

 As suprising as it seems, even restaurant owners have to prepare for interviews. Find out how to avoid this four interview mistakes.
1. Getting too personal- avoid any questions that can be perceived as descriminatory. You never want to ask future candidate their age, race, religion, or nationality.
2. Asking too general questions- stick to behavior questions which can help you get more useful answers like "Greatest personal achievement and how they acomplish it"? You should focus on their experiences.
3. Skimming on job requirements- be honest how much you expect from your employees.
4. Openning too much to rejected candidates- instead of offering constructive criticism which can lead to some people reading between the lines or potential legal problems, you can tell the rejected candidate you found someone else.
 Overall, the interview process should be an opportunity for you to get to know your prospective employees and determne if they are a good fit for your company.Remember be honest about your expectations and the culture at your restaurant.

How to foster ownership spirit among your restaurant's employees

  A restaurant with employees who have a owner-minded mindset will go above and beyond expectations for the sake of the restaurant objective. This is truly a restaurants owner dream come true. Find out what you can do to foster ownership spirit among your restaurant's employees.
1. Create safe environment where your employees can share their concerns.
2. Share your restaurant's objectives and help your employees understand your restaurant better which will allow them to act beyond their role.
3. Share your restaurant's vision for the future and make them part of the dream.
4. Collaborate ideas with your employees who will be more inclined to support ideas they had  helped create.
5. Make decisions and debates transparent.
6. Reward employees who go beyond the expected.

  Remember to employ owner-minded employees is a treasure. They can adapt easier and faster to change and develop innovative ideas that can lead to new products or market opportunities, so take a closer look at your restaurant and if you have to make the necessary changes.