Yes! Exactly! He was absolutely right! When the company succeeds, the employees succeed. We admit it! The best way to get to know your guests and make them comfortable is to talk to them. The best thing to talk to them about is your food and beverage. After all, that’s why they’re here. And the best way to get your customers to buy what they came in for is to train your servers to sell it to them. Anyone can be an “order-taker.” It requires service to sell.

The art of the “soft” sell

Please understand that the kind of selling we’re talking about here is suggestive selling, soft selling, not “Used-Car-Salesman-Pushy-Loud-Pinkie-Ring-Checkered-Coat-Platform-Shoes-Buy-or-Die!” selling. Suggestive selling means helping guests make decisions that are good for them. It’s recommending what’s good on the menu, asking questions about what guests are in the mood for, and then helping them choose the food or beverage they’d like.

Suggestive selling is nothing more than recommending (not “pushing”) specific extras, appetizers, sides, desserts and beverages. Suggesting specific items shows guests they’re worth your time; it’s perceived as better service. Bottom line: you and your servers have everything to gain from suggestive selling (higher sales, bigger tips, better service, more business) and nothing to lose (the worst that can happen is that the the guest says “no thanks!”).

Need help establishing a restaurant training program that helps servers suggestively sell? Check out our Real World Selling package for restaurant training ideas that will help you increase sales of beer, wine, appetizers, desserts and more! See below and click here for more details.

A key element to any restaurant training program is helping your servers understand that selling extra items doesn’t require pushy sales techniques. When suggestions are made in the appropriate way and at the right time, guests perceive them as helpful and sincere, as they should be. Let’s take a look at the three different types of selling:

• Upselling is enhancing an item already ordered (such as “up-sizing” a value meal or a draft beer, or adding cheese and guacamole to a burger).
• Suggestive selling is describing an item guests have not ordered yet.
• Situational selling is assessing the situation and informing guests of items or deals that best enhance that situation (let them make the choice).

Knowing why guests are paying a visit makes it easier to sell. Lose the monotone “Would you like to try our special today?” and insincere “I have to tell you about our soups or we get counted off by our mystery shopper,” or “I’m trying to win a contest — would you like to buy a gift card?”

Suggesting enhancements to the meal is a key step in the cycle of service, but the practice needs to be subject to interpretation. While guests may not like to deal with pushy salespeople, there is no doubt they like to spend money and buy things they like or want. Make it easy for the guests to say yes.

Need to train your waitstaff on situational selling? Check out the clip below and click for more details about the Now That’s Service That Sells restaurant training program.

• Train your staff to plant the seed for wine and champagne sales when taking reservations during the holiday season. Once the host person or server confirms the reservation, he or she can simply say, “We’re looking forward to seeing you, Mr. Smith. Would you like a chilled bottle of chardonnay or champagne waiting at your table when you arrive?”
• If you have an online reservations system, modify your confirmation auto-reply message to remind guests about your holiday drink specials, particularly wine and champagne by the bottle. Even better, include a drop-down option list in your reservation form that allows customers to select their drink preferences ahead of time.
• Make bottles and glassware displays part of your holiday décor. Include champagne glasses in table settings.
  Hold a refresher training course on how to open and serve wine and champagne. Even your top-selling servers may be unsure of themselves, but practicing on “dummy” bottles (available from your vendors) will ease their anxiety. Also make sure that each of your servers has his or her own bottle opener.

There’s no wrong time to sell wine and champagne, but there’s no better time than the holiday season. Make sure your service staff is ready to respond to your customers’ increased interest in wine and champagne. For some important product knowledge information, check out the video clip below, and click here for more details about our Real-world Selling: Wine server training DVD.

Hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars can be lost because of poor systems supporting the service of guests on a wait list who end up eating at the bar. Is your service up to par? Check it out: First, take a close look at all of your support procedures and training materials. You could be headed for disaster if they don’t include bar staff to the fullest extent.

Second, check up on food knowledge. Does each member of the bar staff know the menu and how to place orders? If not, incorporate the needed instruction in daily pre-shift meetings.

Next, consider stocking the bar area with the same supplies the dining rooms require. Running back to a server work station or the kitchen for silverware, napkins or condiments not only adds another step in the process, but also acts as a deterrent during the sales process.

Bar servers will turn-and-burn on the drinks, but avoid potential food sales when the support system for serving appetizers and entrées isn’t in place.

Encourage bartenders and servers in the bar to participate in sales contests to improve sales, tips, and morale. Grab a great idea from the book Playing Games at Work!

Here are some criteria to consider including in your evaluations:

• Does the server regularly suggestively sell? Does he or she guide the customer to choices without making the customer uncomfortable? Are appetizers, desserts and drink upgrades consistently recommended? Is the server creative in recommendations?
• Is the server knowledgeable on the food and its preparation? Does he or she describe menu items creatively and effectively? Are favorites suggested?
• Is the server knowledgeable on beverage and wine information? Are items paired with menu choices?
• Does the server build rapport by asking open-ended questions and actively listening?
• Are sales goals frequently met? Are sales contests actively participated in?
• Does the server recognize regulars and greet them personally?
• Does the server actively participate in sales meetings? Does he or she communicate customer needs and requests or suggestions? Does the server willingly and creatively brainstorm effective marketing campaigns that meet the needs of the target customer?
• Does the server act as an active participant in marketing campaigns? Does he or she understand and effectively communicate specials, coupons, frequent dining programs, etc.?
• Does the server willingly and completely participate in ongoing sales and service training as provided by the operation? Does he or she look for additional opportunities to improve his or her skill?

By creating a criteria for sales success, you’ll communicate what results you’re looking for in your servers and you’ll prove the old adage, “what gets measured, gets done!”

 After using this hiring strategy, be sure to get your new servers focused on sales right away with Real World Selling techniques. Click to learn more.

Capitalizing on this desire to escape and reward ourselves is one of the most effective ways you can increase your specialty drink sales. Train servers to actively sell to this longing by using these types of techniques:

• Select the right words. Instead of saying, “Would you like to try our Piña Colada? It’s on special tonight,” use words that create a mood. “Our Piña Coladas are blended with just the right amount of fresh pineapple juice, coconut cream, golden Puerto Rican rum and a splash of orange juice. It’s served in a frosted glass with a chunk of pineapple and a tiny umbrella like the ones you find in Jamaica!”
• Be original. If your bartenders need a boost, check out the hundreds of websites that offer unique drinks. The best ones are those that make you smile when you say them, like “Roseanna Banana Kabana,” “Mint Mojito,” and “Acapulco Sunrise.”
• Train, train, train. Your servers should know what is in a drink and how it’s prepared. While exact measurements are unimportant, basic ingredients, preparation (shaken, stirred or blended), and the type of garnishes all help sell more specialty drinks.

Drink sales aren’t just for summer! We have an idea for each week of the year — check it out!

One successful restaurant chain discovered its appetizer sales were falling dramatically. Management struggled to pinpoint the cause until a tableside investigation revealed that servers, as instructed in a service policy change, were delivering baskets of bread soon after guests were seated.

By the time the server arrived to suggest an appetizer, it was too late. Most guests, stuffed on sourdough and pumpernickel, were ready for the main course. Dessert sales were also suffering.

The moral of the story: Does your restaurant serve complimentary bread? Chips and salsa? Baskets of crackers? You may want to rethink when your staff makes these goodies available to guests.

The restaurant chain in this example changed its service policy to create more sales opportunities. Servers now make beverage and appetizer recommendations before the bread comes.

And bread is just the beginning. If your staff delivers glasses of water to guests before servers suggest beverages and specialty drinks, you may be diminishing sales. Not by much, perhaps. But every little bit counts.

It’s important that your servers practice suggestive selling, but they should take care not to overdo it. Imagine the poor guests who had in mind an affordable meal at your restaurant, only to come away with a healthy dose of sticker shock after an effective server sold them everything on the menu.

Those guests may decide your restaurant is too expensive and go elsewhere next time. If value is a major component of your operation’s image, you may want to encourage your servers to suggest that guests split an appetizer or dessert. You’ll still make the sale but avoid emptying wallets and purses.

Need more ideas to improve service and increase sales? Check out a clip from the Real World Selling DVD below, and click for a special offer!

• Tell the truth. If you ask team members how much profit a restaurant makes from $1 in sales, many would say around 75 cents. (Don’t believe it? Try it at your next staff meeting.) Here in the real world, we know that a dime is closer to the truth. Your team members should also know what’s at stake to make their operation successful. No profits, no pay raises. No customers, no restaurant. Sometimes the bottom line is the best motivator.
• Encourage solutions. If you ask team members how to raise check averages, chances are you’ll get regurgitated responses from your own training materials. But if you ask for innovative solutions, you’ll get those, too. Ask servers to share success stories at pre-shift meetings and set-up a revolving contest that awards sales ideas and strategies.
• Bring in a rookie. Sure, we all want the professional to motivate us—or the consultant that can pinpoint areas of weakness—but an enthusiastic, inexperienced new employee can often recharge our own batteries. When you pair a new server with an experienced one, both of them will benefit. The new employee will be trained, of course, but the experienced server will be forced to remember the “why” behind small details… why we offer premiums (for a better experience), why we suggest certain items (for the best possible meal)… and, yes, why we got into the business to begin with (we like people, remember?).
• Reward successes. It sounds basic, but too often we forget to monitor—and report—the success our team. Waitstaff may be easier to monitor (sales receipts, etc.), but everyone on the team should be responsible for service and sales… and rewarded for it as well.

 Give your servers the training they need to sell effectively. Check out our series of Real World Selling DVDs, available in full-service and family dining versions, as well as on the specific topics of increasing sales of appetizers, desserts, wine, or beer. View an excerpt of the Real World Selling: Start to Finish for Family Dining restaurants below, and click for more details on DVDs from Service That Sells!

So let’s talk about how to boost productivity in your team by showing your servers how to work smarter, instead of just harder. The first obstacle may be convincing your team members that they are in the sales business and that soft selling is one of the ways they can deliver exceptional service.

You’ll find that servers may initially resist the title of “sales” and be hesitant to face rejection, but a little math may go a long way. Larger guest checks result in larger tips: it’s as simple as that. Prepare for your training session by comparing two typical guest checks in your restaurant. Create a basic no appetizers, no desserts, no drinks, etc. tab and compare it to a full-blown, “let’s splurge” bill. Then, tally the totals and a standard 15 percent tip. Your servers will find that their tip size can almost double. Then, show how those larger bills can mean more money per shift, per month… even per year. Your servers will be motivated to become true salespeople when they see that they can almost double their salaries with just a little soft selling.

After you’ve motivated your team to try suggestive selling, you’ll need to continually boost their confidence. They need to feel secure with their products (your menu!) and their ability to succeed or fail gracefully (no one wants a customer to become upset or annoyed). The only way to ensure that your team stays motivated and confident is to train them… again and again. Only by daily, ongoing training will you instill a sales mindset and create a professional sales and service team.

Do your servers need help keeping your customers happy and maximizing sales? Work Smarter Not Harder, The Service That Sells! Workbook is available in both  foodservice and alcohol beverage service versions. Click the links to see excerpts and learn more.

1. During the initial greeting of the table. “Can I start you off with a cocktail or a bottle of wine?” Then, mention specials, specialty wines or personal favorites.
2. When the entrée order is taken. Make sure servers are well-schooled in how to pair wines with specific entrée items.
3. In the period between soup and salad and serving the main course. This is a good time for a refill or to see if customers would like a glass with their meal.
4. When the entrées are delivered.
5. After-dinner. Many chocolate desserts go great with red wines and some white wines are desserts in themselves.

Wine to go? Many states have laws that allow patrons to take home their open bottles of wine. That’s good for everyone: the guest (who won’t now feel pressured to finish the wine so it won’t go to “waste”) and operations (there’s really no reason not to get a bottle if you’re enjoying the wine). If your state allows to-go wine, make sure your servers are trained to mention this benefit during their wine sales dialogue.

Looking for an easy way to train servers to increase wine sales? Check out the Real-World Selling: Wine DVD. See below for a special clip!