The Up-Sell in a Hospitality setting - Top Tips & Major Pitfalls with wine-by-the-glass

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