The
Up-sell in a Hospitality setting –Top Tips & Major Pitfalls with
wine-by-the-glass.
The
secret to “up-selling” is to not make
the guest feel like they are being sold, the offer and the acceptance needs to
feel natural and in context with the meal, the up-sell should be perceived by
the guest as an attractive added value offer of a special experience they
aspire to. The objective should be to conspicuously DELIVER VALUE and optimize
the guest experience provided for the optimal $ revenue, not the necessarily
the maximum $ revenue. When you strive
for maximum revenue you heighten the chances of guest disappointment, and
unfortunately you will rarely get the immediate guest feedback when you
disappoint or fall short on delivering the anticipated guest experience .
With
wine-by-the-glass it is very tempting to offer and push trade-up selections
without the service being in place, just because you know the guest is yearning
for a better wine experience, and hey it seems easy to open that bottle and
sell it to them but without delivering value in the service first you have
detracted from the experience, not added. It is imperative to not cut corners
on the service, this is a key part of the quality and added value your guest
will appreciate.
Major
pitfall with ‘up-selling’ wine & Champagne by-the-glass occur when the
elevated service is not in place before the up-sell is offered, such as:
-
The service to deliver the added value offer is not put in place before
the wine offer is launched
-
Offer is over-sold and pushed on the guest, resulting in disappointment,
instead of being conspicuously merchandised, enticing the guest to choose.
-
The added value of the offer is not emphasized or delivered. The
‘Craft’ of serving this special experience is not apparent
-
The promise of the ‘trade-up’ experience is not delivered because the
up-sell was disappointing ( too expensive or value was diminished due to poor
execution or service – i.e. an premium glass of wine served tired, flat,
oxidized, too warm, too cold, in an inappropriate stem or in a casual manner)
So
often when these pitfalls happen you hear an operator state about their w-b-g
selection, “ Our guests won’t buy a glass that’s more than $ 11, that’s our
ceiling”……….perhaps the question should be “ Is my service limiting my sales
potential ? “ or “ By not deliverying value first, are we limiting our guest
appeal and forcing our wine enthusiast guests elsewhere?”
When
it comes to the ‘trade-up’ or the ‘Up-sell’ , a wine &
Champagne-by-the-glass service is possibly one of the best opportunities to
easily add value and guarantee a great
guest experience. With the thirst for knowledge about wine continuing at record
levels, the offer to taste and experience a glass of wine in a trusted
environment is very enticing, and presents a lucrative profit opportunity for
savvy hospitality operators. Implementing this elevated service is easier than
you would think and is almost guaranteed to provide an ongoing growth in
profits, guest satisfaction and return and retention rates. Wine makes people
happy, help your staff create those moments of magic for your guests and the
success will come.
Bermar
Wine Service Team
To learn more about the Bermar products and services please visit www.BermarAmerica.com or call us at 610-889-4900
