The American Mixologist Online® Newsletter Vol. 15, No. 23 All Rights Reserved
Management

It’s hard to imagine that there’s a bar owner who would suggest that his or her business wouldn’t greatly benefit from increasing revenues. The adage, "food covers overhead, but the bar is all profit," actually has its basis in fact. It would seem, therefore, that since no bowling center operates under the burden of too much profit, finding ways to increase bar revenues is a nearly universal imperative.

So while you may perceive the need, exactly how to go about increasing beverage sales might not be so clear. There are essentially only three ways to go about it. First, you can look to increase your customer count. The more people you serve will likely augment your beverage sales. It is, however, an "iffy" proposition, one that entails hiking your advertising and promotion budget. The downside to this particular strategy is that when the advertising and promotional dollars are eventually withdrawn, gross sales typically drops back to its normal level.

The second way to augment beverage sales is to increase how many drinks your clientele purchase. Again, this is not a practical strategy. Accelerating service and encouraging the over-consumption of alcohol is a practice fraught with liability.

The only viable, long-term approach is increasing customer ticket average. Enticing your clientele to spend more dollars per drink is the surest avenue to success. Any strategy to increase ticket average must include developing a plan for boosting premium liquor sales.

Bolstering call brand sales makes good sense. Premium liquors carry a bigger price tag, so your gross sales will increase. Also, your staff will likely appreciate pouring the good stuff, since the higher the tab, the larger the tip. There’s another reason to concentrate on selling call brands, namely that they’re loaded with profit.

Establishing a Plan
As with any high-ticket item, proper marketing will greatly assist your efforts to create customer brand recognition.

The necessary first step is to educate your employees. Does your staff know which call brands you carry? Do they know what the products are? Product knowledge is essential to selling premium spirits. Ensure that your bartenders and servers are well informed about the top-shelf products, about what makes them so exceptional, and why they’re worth their higher price. Customers often inquire what makes one brand better than another; a concise, informative answer is usually all that’s needed to close the sale.

Is your staff familiar with suggestive sales techniques? They should be trained to consider every sale an opportunity to up-sell. For instance, if a customer orders a rum and Coke, the server could respond, "Would you like Bacardi or Captain Morgan’s in that?" For gin and tonics they could inquire, "Would you prefer Beefeater or Tanqueray?" The key is to suggest two specific call brand choices.

The impact of suggestive sales can be dramatic. The same is true for offering servers sales incentives. Set weekly goals, and see who can sell the most signature margaritas, or specialty martinis. Tell your staff what you want to happen. Then reward their success. Setting sales incentives is a good way to accomplish your goal.

Make sure you provide support for your staff’s marketing efforts. The only marketing some operators do is to slash prices during happy hour. Strive instead to promote your business from the inside out. Promote your specialty drink of the day, shooter of the day, and any foods specials on large wipe-off boards or chalk boards. Place them strategically in your establishment. There should be no question in anyone’s mind what your specials of the day are.

Marketing Through Creative Mixology
The era of specialization has struck the bar end of the food and beverage business. After all, who said you have to do what everyone else does? The most pragmatic and ultimately successful approach to increasing bar sales is to rely on creativity, training and quality assurance. To start the process, here are seven quick ways to jump-start sales.

• Shooters — Ask your bartenders to pick a "shooter of the day" and promote it on table tents and a wipe-off board at the bar. Create a menu listing all of your house specialty shooters. While acrylic test tubes, or Tooters, are the most popular method of presenting specialty shooters, there is still room for creativity. One club features shooters for two in sugar dispensers. Others present shooters in pill bottles. The ingredients are poured in, the cap secured and it’s contents shaken and immediately presented to the customer.
  
  
• Swirl Drinks — Double the popularity of your frozen drinks by swirling complementary recipes together in the same glass. The taste and presentation is impressive and sure to grab people’s attention. One such recipe is called the Pain in the Butt, a swirled blend of a Piña Colada and a Rum Runner. Try swirling a Midori Sour and a raspberry Daiquiri or a frozen lemonade and a Frosted Coke. Great taste and captivating looks make for increased sales.
  
  
• Super-Premiums — Don’t your guests who appreciate fine tequila deserve a 100% Blue Agave Tequila like El Tesoro de Don Felipe? For your bourbon drinkers, whiskey doesn’t get any better than a single-cask like Booker Noe or Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit. There is now at least one super-premium brand name in every major category of spirits. A simple taste comparison will quickly reveal why these brands are considered the finest of their type. The prevailing attitude in many clubs is now if you’re not going to drink as much, you might as well drink the best.
  
  
• Float Programs — A Piña Colada may be a good drink, but a float on top of Kahlúa, Chambord or Midori nudges it into the great range. The same is true about a Margarita with a shot of Grand Marnier served on the side, or a Daiquiri with an optional float of Myers’s or Bacardi Select rum. The program is classic suggestive sales — your guests receive better tasting drinks and you bank higher sales.
  
  
• Champagne — A split of Champagne and two glasses is perfect for a couple out on the town celebrating a special occasion. Champagne also has applications behind the bar. A splash of bubbly in an Amaretto Sour, Tom Collins or Screwdriver adds a fabulous pizzazz. It’s an excellent ingredient in shooters as well. With a reusable bottle stopper, Champagne will retain its effervescence for days. It’s not just for New Year’s eve anymore.
  
  
• Infusion Cocktails — Steeping spirits in large containers at the bar is a great way to create a unique product your guests can only get at your establishment. The key to marketing infused spirits is to feature them in such a manner that they’re easy to drink and their unique flavors can be fully appreciated. Options include shooters, cocktails, on-the-rocks, or modified with a mixer in a highball. If you lack just the right container, try the Fuzsi by Tooter Promotions. It’s specifically designed for infusions and works exceptionally well.
  
  
• Alcohol-Free Beverages — If you’re interested in marketing high profit items that an increasingly large segment of the population is already predisposed to buying, offer your guests a wider selection of alcohol-free beverages. Start with lemonade and iced tea. They’re thirst quenching and make excellent mixers. Consider also offering more than one sparkling water. There are vast differences between these products, mostly in the amount of natural carbonation they contain. Likewise, carry at least one still water, such as Evian or Ty Nant. The surging popularity of products such as Red Bull and Arizona Iced Tea suggests alcohol-free beverages are a huge trend waiting to be tapped.
  
  A restaurant that doesn’t routinely change its menu always has plenty of open tables. Same too with the bar. Add some pizzazz to your line-up. Shake up your specialty drinks. Change spices things up and helps keep your clientele interested. It entails doing something unexpected, something out of the ordinary. The sales axiom "Don’t sell the steak, sell the sizzle!" is directly applicable. If it doesn’t sizzle, who needs it?