5 Tips for Opening a Successful Restaurant

1. Train your staff properly

One of the most important influences on a customer’s experience at your restaurant will be the staff. In order to remain in business, you must ensure that your staff is educated at the industry standard or above. Have your staff complete essential training, like the TBAC Certification Program and develop modules to train your staff on basic customer service, food safety, and how to succeed as a team.

2. Have a cohesive brand image

Create an easily-recognizable brand and make it simple for your guests to understand your restaurant’s personality and identity. Develop a brand board by yourself or hire a designer to create one for you. Then, begin developing your menu, decorating your restaurant, and purchasing items like flatware and employee uniforms with this brand image in mind. Have a logo developed for your restaurant that communicates the overall vibe of your company and sets an accurate expectation for guests before they ever set foot in your restaurant.

3. Invest in quality equipment

Your restaurant will run much more efficiently with dependable equipment that functions smoothly. Do your research on what equipment to stock your kitchen with. Search popular forums that are frequented by restaurant owners and managers to see what they are saying. Read multiple, varied reviews on any major purchases you make. Seek advice from others who have been successful in the restaurant industry. What cookware do they use? What appliances to they recommend? Is there anything specific they recommend you stay away from? These are all important questions to ask – stocking your kitchen with the correct equipment will help you save time and money in the long run.

4. Use a restaurant POS system

Save time, prevent errors, and expedite service by making use of a restaurant POS system. By using a system that’s specifically designed for your industry rather than relying on a general solution, you will reap multiple benefits. Restaurant POS systems can be used to generate and view business reports so that you can easily access your sales, inventory, or popular items. You can minimize theft by making sure that all orders are accounted for within the system. Additionally, expect to reduce the number of errors occurring between front and back-of-house, as all orders will have to be punched into the system rather than handwritten.

5. Get online and provide a convenient mobile website for your customers

Make sure you’re easily found online with a mobile-friendly website. More than half of customers are using their phone while searching for nearby restaurants. If your website isn’t updated to be user-friendly on a phone, you’re probably losing out on a lot of customers. Once they arrive on your website, potential customers who cannot quickly find the information they are looking for are dozens of times more likely to leave your site and search for another restaurant. Create a mobile-friendly website or hire a developer to do this for you. It’s imperative to the growth of your business to make it simple for customers to find information about you online.