Pizza Today - September 2024 - 14

Mike's Monthly Tip
Passion > Knowledge
Mike Bausch
Owner, Andolini's Pizzeria
I
n a restaurant,
upselling is essential
to get incremental
revenue, but it also
enhances the customer
experience. Add-ons and upgrades
makes the customer
experience better and puts
extra money in your pocket.
Th e challenge lies in making
these upgrades appealing
and worth it to your customers.
Passion for selling the
menu will always supersede
knowledge of the menu.
Knowing the ingredients
inside and out, while important,
does not connect on an
emotional level. Commonly,
sales training is purely about
what you sell and what is in
it. I'd argue you can get
further with a passionate
server with nearly no
knowledge, over the most
knowledgeable server who's
" over it. "
Imagine talking about
your favorite band. No one
tries to explain how incredible
Th e Rolling Stones or
Metallica are by just listing
lyrics to Satisfaction or Master
of Puppets. Th ere's no
context, no draw. To convey
what you dig about them,
you have to convey the
energy, not the data. Th e
same rules apply to selling
menu items. When a bartender
lists off the ingredients,
tasting notes, lager or
ale, they completely miss the
mark of creating an experience.
Th at's because there is
a power in
passion. It's deeply
contagious. When your staff
genuinely loves what they
serve, it will resonate.
With a passion for the
menu, your servers can better
infl uence the customer.
Th ey don't want to miss
out on enjoying that item
because your staff enjoys
it so much. Th is inevitably
leads to incrementally better
revenue and the customer is
more stoked to eat something
other people enjoy
rather than just another
basic menu item. Instead of
simply saying, " Th is item
comes with mozzarella, basil,
and tomatoes, " it should
be, " Th is has imported San
Marzano tomatoes that I
absolutely love, and we get
our basil fresh each day. Th is
is the thing I eat every time
I fi nish a shift and I love
it. " It's completely diff erent.
By selling with a story and
connection, customers have
less purchase anxiety and
more purchase pride, which
is what they came for.
Th e term " upselling " has
a negative connotation. It's
assumed you're tricking
the customer into buying
something they don't want
or need. Rather, upselling is
a way of helping inform a
customer of the ways your
restaurant goes above and
beyond, ensuring they get
the best experience
possible. Yes, they'll pay for
the privilege, but it's a win
all around. Th at's what
14 / PIZZATODAY.COM / SEPTEMBER 2024
happens when upselling is an extension
of the conversation, and the
only way to get to that extension is
through passion.
Even at the bar, instead of giving
a monotonous list of the wine and
where it comes from, going in-depth
about the family that owns the vineyard,
what you love to pair this wine
with, and why it's special is going to
create a connection. To foster this
kind of passion in your staff requires
role-playing and it helps to curate
base stories you, as the owner, would
use to connect with a customer. Th is
way your staff can mimic what you're
passionate about and get a baseline
for their own opinions on the menu.
Do this and you will create a staff
that is more excited to work with
their customers, more appreciative
of the menu, and darn near zero
investment for massive ROI to the
bottom line.
Lightfi eldStudios/adobestock.com
http://www.PIZZATODAY.COM
Pizza Today - September 2024

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