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WHAT'S THE BUZZ IN HOSPITALITY?

3 Keys to Leveraging Guest Data and Driving Repeat Business

Aug 03, 2018

Today’s hospitality business world is all about personalization. Whether it be empowering the guest to customize their own experience or a restaurant knowing a guest’s preferred wine and suggesting it at arrival, a personalized experience is guaranteed to leave a good impression. A truly personalized guest experience comes from elaborate, relevant data. The 2018 Restaurant Technology Study from Hospitality Technology found that restaurants are increasingly positioning data as a valuable corporate asset that sets the business up for success, necessary to the business as employees and operational equipment. Today we present three keys for restaurateurs to ensure their data becomes a high-value asset to their business.

Gather the Right Data

Knowing that you need to gather data about your guests is only the first step, and it can be challenging to decide what data is necessary to capture. Comprehensive data are only helpful if relevant and actionable. Having endless amounts of details without a direct way to act on it,will only

take up unnecessary storage space and time. When using an intelligent point-of-sale system the process can be automated with meaningful information saved to the guest profile each visit.

Utilize Strong Integrations

A great way to strengthen the restaurant’s POS solution is by integrating with a guest-centric table management system. When combining the two you get more tools specifically designed to create a memorable dining experience. Empower wait staff with knowledge of your guests’ preferences, allergies, birthdays, anniversaries and other profile data. Always know when you have first-time diners or guests who have been with you since the beginning.

Leverage the Information

With the right systems in place, personalizing the guest experience should be seamless. Wait staff will continuously have access to updated information about the guests they’re serving, and acting on it. A simple ‘Welcome back’ or wishing a guest 'happy birthday' will go a long way in making the guest feel unique and appreciated. Leveraging guest information helps create more personalized dining experiences and keeps guests coming back again and again.