Monday, June 3, 2013

Could Your Pub Cope With More Demanding Customers?

One of the dangers of running any business is that it is easy to get comfortable and to forget to reach out to new customers. Of course, we all know that it is important to keep on expanding and pulling in new customers but it is common to get stuck in a comfort zone which doesn’t let you progress as you should.

This often happens to pub owners and some of them never snap out of it until they notice that their lack of progress is reflected in ever poorer takings. You might wonder at first why you are left facing the same old faces night after night but eventually you will realise that it is time for some change. So what needs to go and what needs to come in when your business is in this situation?

A Better Food Selection Needed

The regulars who turn up most nights in a lot of pubs often could kindly be described as having undemanding palettes. A bag of crisps or some nuts might enough to keep them happy and maybe you never see any reason to get in anything else. However, if you decide to check out some rival pubs you might just be amazed at how big a selection of interesting snacks some of they have. If you start off your overhaul by getting in touch with a biltong supplier and then slowly bring in more new stuff over time you will see how this can help offer an interesting and varied selection. Once you offer this sort of pub snack you will never go back to just crisps and nuts again.

Did They Stop Making Music in 1980?

You could be forgiven for thinking that they stopped making music in 1980 or so if you had ever wandered into some of the pubs around where I stay. Some have aged jukeboxes which to some people might be filled with classics but which could cause possible new customers to think that it is time to get with current and admit that the last few decades have actually existed. Again, it is only after making the switch to something different that you might realise that this is what people now want and that there is no way of going back. You might still miss classics like Slade and David Bowie at times but I am not sure that anyone else in your pub will.        

More Events and Fun

The potential regulars in some pubs kind of half heartedly ask for quiz nights or sports events but not every pub owner listens to these requests. It is only when you go on a fact finding mission round other pubs that you will see how packed the ones with special events on can be at times. All you need to do to get started is to get a whole lot of quiz questions off the internet. The first night you do it might be a modest success but once it becomes a weekly feature it could start pulling in big crowds of more demanding customers. Those who take part should stay in the place for at least a couple of hours and you will also notice that others who open the door and take a peek in are usually persuaded to come in for a while when they see a crowd of people having fun in this way.

Better Use of the Television

The final change to consider making is to bring in a second television set and vary the shows you put on. If you show wall to wall football and horse racing you can understand how this could put off some customers.  If you have one TV with sport on and the other with things like reality shows and the news then this is a much better mixture which should keep most people happy.  

Jasmin Blunt believes that businesses should always look for change in their products and events to try and entice new customers. Those in the catering industry for example could look at improving their range of snacks by visiting a biltong supplier to see the variety that these companies can offer.





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