Restaurant Management:
Creating More Wealth in Your Restaurant

Wealth creation, or revenue enhancement, is simply getting more income from a limited resource . All businesses have at least two limited resources - time and money. You cannot create more time, but you can make more money. This book is about doing just that - creating more money - by doing the things you are already doing.

The airlines call this process "yield management". They have airplanes. The planes have seats that need to be filled. And in order for the airlines to create more revenue, they must make more money every time a seat is sold.

Did you ever see a discounted flight advertised on television or in the newspaper? Were you EVER able to book it? Probably not. By the time you contacted the airline, those seats were already sold. Sure, you could have booked a seat at the NEXT price. There were plenty of those seats.

Why? Because the airlines have made a lifelong study of how to get the very most revenue from limited resources . And, they are very successful at it!

What about your business? Are you maximizing your revenues? Are you serving only the best customers, and making every dime you can on each transaction? Have you even CONSIDERED that more money might be out there, right under your very nose? It is there, you know. But you need a plan, a system, just like the airlines. You have to WANT that money in order to get it.

It doesn't matter what kind of business you own. There is probably more money in it for you. Whether you are an owner or an employee, there are ways to maximize the yield in your business. Ten of those methods are discussed in the following pages.

But this book is much more than just a list of places to find money. After all, how much help would it be just to give you a few clues? By reading this book, and implementing some of the suggestions, you can embark on a whole PROGRAM of increasing wealth. You will learn how to sustain the impact of your new enthusiasm to CONTINUE making more money - permanently!

There is an old saying: "Give a man a fish and he will have a meal. Teach a man HOW to fish and he can feed himself forever." This book is designed to teach you how to fish - for hidden revenue!

Yield Management

There is a classic story that illustrates just how easy it is to make more money through yield management. J.W.(Bill) Marriott was the owner of the famous chain of hotels that bears his name. In the early days, however, the family only had one hotel. This hotel had a drive-up window where guests would pull in to pay for a room. The Marriotts charged a flat fee for the room, and $1 extra per guest if there was more than one person staying overnight. On nights when the motel was almost full, Mr. Marriott would lean out the window of the registration area and look down the line of cars waiting to get a room.

If the next car in line only had one passenger, Mr. Marriott would not sell the potential customer a room. He would save the rooms for groups of two or three. By selling them the rooms, he made a little extra each time.

You may be thinking, "He only made a dollar or two more per room. That isn’t much. I was hoping this book would show me how to make LOTS more money."

Let me say two things. First, in those days, a dollar was a lot of money. Second, are you making a fortune each time you serve a customer right now? If you have one customer, do you charge them so much that you can retire after they pay their bill? Of course not. Revenue and yield management are the same way.

A Story of Success

Two men were sitting in a sports bar, watching the Tour de France on television. (The Tour is a grueling, three-week bicycle race that covers over two thousand miles of mountains, valleys, and city streets in France each year. It is a brutal event, where the riders battle each other, often in inclement weather.)

"I don’t understand why anyone would put themselves through that ordeal," said the first man.

"Why?" asked his friend.

"Why?!? Those riders have to struggle up incredible mountains, racing back down at break-neck speeds. They race in the hot sun, driving rain, fog, and sometimes even snow, for three weeks. It is a terrible thing!"

"The winner gets millions of dollars in endorsements and other prizes," said the friend.

Oh, I understand why the WINNER does it," said the man. "But why would all those OTHER guys do it?"

He has a good point. Why would all those other guys do it? Why would YOU do what YOU do? You know why - for the rewards!

Are You a Winner, Or Just a RACER?

Every industry, every occupation or profession, is a race. Some races are fun, others are not. But, in all cases, they have rewards that may, or may not, make the race worth it. What kind of race are you in?

Your answer is probably "The RAT Race".

It sure seems that way. These days, everyone is rushing around, trying to balance work and personal time, looking for the rewards which our professions can bring. Too many people are satisfied just to be in the race. But it isn’t the race that provides the rewards. It is the man or woman who not only puts forth the effort, but also has the right strategy, who will reap the great rewards. The others, the people who simply participate, can pick up some honors here and there. They might even make a LIVING at it. But, it is the WINNER who will look back on the race and know that it was all worth it. The others will only have memories of the struggle.

Winning: A Team Concept

For too many people, the thought of winning something is very scary. They assume that in order to win, they need to beat everyone else. That may be true for sports events like the Tour de France, but happily it is not the case in business. In business, there can be many, many winners. You don’t have to beat everyone else. Winners create rewards that GROW as more and more people win.

Stephan Covey, the world famous author of Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, has discovered there are two kinds of attitudes: an attitude of ABUNDANCE, and an attitude of SCARCITY. There is a great deal of difference between these two ways of thinking. People who believe in scarcity assume that there is only so much of something. In other words, they believe that if one person wins, everyone else loses. However, people who believe in abundance realize there is plenty to go around. And, abundance-believers know that the more we create and innovate, the more opportunities there will be for EVERYONE.

Be an "abundance" personality. There is plenty for everyone. ANYONE can achieve greater potential.

There are so many rewards in your business, that you can create a TEAM of winners, and still have plenty for everyone. So, when you think of winning, don’t imagine yourself beating out everyone else - including your own team. Imagine INCREASING THE REWARDS, so everyone can win.

Why Don’t People Make More Money?

There are six main reasons why people do not realize all the profits from their businesses. This applies to both the employees and the owners of these businesses. The good news is, each of these challenges can be overcome. It is simply a matter of having a new perspective, a solid goal, and a vision of the way your business could run. Consider the following factors that hold you back from the money hidden in your business:

1. People are not taught to create wealth. We are not taught to dig out profits, and to seize all the opportunities that are presented to us. Our educational system is simply not set up for it. We should be learning to identify customer needs, and to take every opportunity to make money from solving their problems. That is the secret to wealth.

Think about it. What did you learn in school? Did your professors teach you to MAKE MONEY? Probably not. Instead, most of us learned theories and "management practices". And how about the "on-the-job-training" you received? Was that designed to teach you to seek out opportunities, create and bundle new products and services, to add value for your customers - in exchange for money? Probably not. In truth, most of us have become "corporatized" - hidden safely in layer upon layer of overlapping corporate structure.

In order to make money and create wealth, you must do the things that most people are simply not trained to do. It is a whole different way of viewing the business you are in.





2. Many people do not understand the needs of their customers or clients. And this costs them money -lots of money! It is one of the big reasons that money is hiding in your business right now. The customer or client is the key to achieving greater wealth. After all, they are the only ones who will give you money.

Dog food companies are a great example of an industry that does understand the needs of their customers. They advertise products that are "meaty" or "make their own gravy". One company has developed a series of dog foods that are specifically designed for different stages in a dog’s life. Another company specializes in single serving wrappers. Why is this so noteworthy? Because it is not the dogs who are buying this stuff. It is the owners. Have you ever seen a dog standing in line, trying to decide which brand is best for her growing family of puppies? NO! Dogs drink out of the toilet bowls! Why should they care if they have the same food two nights in a row? All they care about is surviving so they can chase the newspaper boy one more day.

People buy dog food. They will buy expensive dog food if they are given the opportunity. They want to spend money on their pets. It makes them feel good. If they buy dog food, they will also buy treats and snacks for their dogs too. Yes, dog food suppliers have gotten the spirit.

You see, this is the big secret. People WANT to spend money. They don’t want to save it. They want to use it for their benefit. When someone goes on vacation, do they come home and say "Wow, I had a great time. I left the house with $500 and I came home with $450. I only spent fifty bucks on my vacation. What a great time we had!" No, people WANT to spend money. Just give them the chance.

3. Making more money requires more effort. I would like to tell you otherwise, but I can not. It requires more effort to make more money. That is the simple truth.

In today’s economy, it is relatively easy to make SOME money. This is a consumer society. Demand is high for almost everything. Take a restaurant for example. If you have a restaurant, and it is not busy on Friday and Saturday night, then you should close it and make it a parking lot. EVERYONE IS DINING OUT THESE DAYS. Resorts, retail stores, and professional offices are all experiencing strong demand. It is very difficult not to make SOME money.

Unfortunately, many people assume that there is no way to substantially increase the amount of money they are making. There is, but it requires effort . You have to work at it, consistently.

But here's the good news. In this book, you will learn how to work smarter , with little more effort , to achieve big rewards. It is pretty simple. All it takes is a little imagination, and a strong desire to achieve greater wealth.

4. People think they are not "smart" enough to make more money. Creating wealth is not brain surgery. (Well, that is, of course, unless you make a living as a brain surgeon.) It is usually just a simple matter of LOOKING for it. Have you ever really LOOKED FOR THE MONEY IN YOUR BUSINESS? I ask that question, because many people do not. They are perfectly willing to ACCEPT money, but they do not actually SEEK IT OUT.

You don’t have to be a mental giant to make money. Thank goodness for that! It is simply a matter of dedicating yourself to the search for it.





We had two dogs named Abercrombie and Fitch. Fitch was an escape artist. She wouldn’t run away. She would just escape from the back yard and go sit in the front yard. She did it nearly every day. I would come home from work and there she would be, waiting for me in the front yard just so pleased with herself. I would go out back and try to figure out how she escaped. Sometimes I found the route she took, other times I did not.

How did that little dog outsmart me? Simple. She had nothing else to think about - nothing else to do all day besides looking for a way to get out of the yard. I was only willing to spend a few minutes trying to prevent her from escaping. For her, it was a lifetime commitment!

Fitch did not do a lot of deep thinking. She just got creative. She was determined to get out. All you need is the same determination.

5. People are too busy "putting out fires". It is difficult to do long range planning, or even SHORT range planning, when things are going crazy at work. In fact, it is sometimes hard to do any kind of planning whatsoever. For most of us, the stress and pressures of all the things that are going wrong demand all our attention. Doesn't it always seem like the person you need the most is either sick, on vacation, or having a baby? - And that's the male employees!

But, if you can find the time to increase your profits, you may be able to use that money to actually prevent the fires. In particular, using some of the extra money to create incentives will reduce turnover and absenteeism. It's like a giant snowball effect - except this one is a cascade of cash!

6. People overlook the fact that they can start earning more money right now! Think about it. You already have a business. There are already customers, suppliers, production and service capabilities. You have a license, the training is finished. So, all the up-front costs and delays have already been taken care of. You are ready to enhance your revenue RIGHT NOW.

This means that the next customer who walks through the door, or even the one who is in your place of business right now, can provide you with more money than the last one did. All you have to do is determine how you will go about it. Sure, some programs will take months to develop. However, in each type of business, there are things you can do IMMEDIATELY to start increasing revenue.

So, get with it. Start right now. And, start with the easy things first. As my friend Dennis Quinn would say "Pick the low hanging fruit ". Look for the quickest, easiest ways to find the money that is hidden all around you. Don’t worry about the really hard stuff. You will have time for that later. Right now, put together a team and a plan. Create some small successes. Then, after your team has confidence, you can begin to attack the more complicated problems.

Too many people want to wait until everything is exactly right before they even start creating wealth. You will wait forever if this is your attitude. Most of the time, the only thing that is preventing you from at least making a START is some kind of fear. It may be a fear that you will annoy your customers. Or, you may wonder why your competition didn’t think of it. "If they aren’t doing it, how good could it be?" is a common statement. Just recognize this fact:

Summary

You can make more money - right now! Read this book to discover at least ten ways to increase your revenue. You will never have wealth unless you create it. You have to earn it - one customer at a time.

Money Making Strategy #1
How Much More Money Do You Want to Make?

I know this is a little scary, but you must commit yourself to a goal. How much more money would you like to make in the next 90 days? I know it's early in the book, and you haven't yet discovered just how many ways there are to make more money in your business. So pick a number - make it reasonable yet meaningful.

As you read the rest of this book, keep this number in mind. Whenever you come across a good wealth-creating idea, put it into perspective. Will it meet your goals?

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