4 Ways to Use F&B Data to Improve the Guest Experience

Put Information collected by your restaurant’s software platforms to good use with these tips.

Is your restaurant making the most of the guest data you collect? If not, your business is missing out on opportunities to enhance the restaurant guest experience and gain customer loyalty.

The food and beverage (F&B) data collected from your restaurant’s POS or advanced reservation platform is a key factor that can improve customer service and the overall guest experience, according to hospitality and travel knowledge platform Revfine.

According to Revfine, many businesses experience an 80 percent boost in revenue when their focus is on guest satisfaction. And there are other benefits from a guest-centric focus, too.

“By collecting and analyzing guest data, your restaurant can recognize loyal customers, find a target audience, and understand and retain guests – resulting in a guest experience that rivals the competition and turns diners into regulars,” according to restaurant software provider Superb.

Here are four ways your restaurant can use F&/B data to improve the guest experience.

1. Improve your menu

Knowing which dishes on your menu outperform others can be challenging. But valuable F&B data and analytics enable your restaurant to learn which menu items are top sellers and create repeat customers, according to Revfine.

“By accumulating data like most-ordered dishes on the menu and viewing guest feedback and customer reviews, you will be able to decide what items on your menu need to stay and what needs to go. You will also be able to establish when to offer special discounts and how to focus more on specific menu items that help the kitchen save more time creating.”

2. Personalize the guest experience

With collected guest data, your restaurant can find ways to personalize the guest experience, using data such as demographics, booking habits and guest preferences, says Revfine. For example, a server might offer a guest a complimentary birthday dessert or the host may seat a guest near the window if they know the guest’s seating preference.

3. Notice trends

“By reviewing daily or monthly reports, you can review trends amongst your guests, and help base your guest experience on their behavior,” says Revfine.

“For example, if you notice that guests tend to order the same dishes repeatedly, you can try offering something different. Or, if you notice that guests seem to prefer a particular type of food, you can add more of it to your menu.”

4. Improve marketing efforts

Using your guest data platform, your restaurant can build a “digital guest book” containing comprehensive guest profiles and data that you can use to send targeted messages to customers, says Revfine:

“This is especially great if you’re looking for effective ways to get your restaurant guests back. For example, offering discounts via email to guests who book reservations online can help increase your average check per table.”

Other ideas recommended by Revfine include:

• Send the guest “happy birthday” emails containing special offers
• Strategically promote VIP events at your restaurant
• Send rewards offers to regular guests to ensure they keep coming back