Training your staff
It’s common that within your team you will have varying experience levels and therefore different levels of ability when it comes to upselling. Those with more knowledge on the subject can help you and your team in sharing their previous experiences. Make sure your staff are well versed on any specials or promotions such as a cocktail of the month or deal of the day so they can effectively make your customers aware of them. To help target different areas of the pub why not try a different upsell focus for staff each month? During the summer months it could be a limited edition cocktail jug for example.
Try holding engaging and hands-on training sessions to assist your staff in developing the art of upselling. How about role play? It can be a fun way to practice scenarios together, encourage your staff to take turns to test each other out on what’s on offer for that month. Alongside practical training why not try using online learning tools? There's lots out there, from industry expertise to cocktail inspiration to help you and your team make the venue the best it can possibly be.
Try encouraging recommendations from your staff to customers of dishes and drinks, it’s one of the best ways of encouraging upsell. We know this isn’t always possible, particularly during your busy or low staffed periods. Posters, menus and boards around your venue are a great secondary way of doing this; experiment with placing these outside as well as in, to attract customers into your outlet.