Transform your restaurant’s performance with actionable tips to attract more guests, boost sales, and maximise profitability.
In today's competitive hospitality market, managing tight profit margins, rising costs, and fierce competition is a daily challenge. A proactive approach to revenue growth is no longer optional—it's essential for survival and success. This guide provides 15 proven strategies, from small tweaks to major initiatives, that can have a significant impact on your bottom line.
1. Analyse Your Restaurant’s Current Revenue Sources
Identify Your Main Income Channels
Before you can grow your revenue, you need to understand exactly where it’s coming from. Break down your income streams to see the full picture. This typically includes dine-in, takeaway, delivery (both in-house and via aggregators), private events, catering, and even merchandise or gift card sales. Identifying which channels are your strongest and which are underperforming is the first step toward a smarter strategy.
Track KPIs Regularly
Data is your most valuable asset. Regularly tracking Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) provides a clear health check for your business. Key metrics to monitor include:
- Average check size: The average amount spent per customer.
- Table turnover rate: How many times different parties use a table during a service.
- Revenue Per Available Seat Hour (RevPASH): A powerful metric that measures how effectively you are generating revenue from your available seats.
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2. Optimise Your Menu Design and Pricing
Menu Engineering Principles
Your menu is one of your most powerful marketing tools. Menu engineering is the practice of strategically designing your menu to guide customers toward your most profitable items.
Use visual cues, such as boxes or icons, to draw attention to high-margin dishes. Pricing psychology is also key; removing the "£" sign and using prices like "15" instead of "£15.00" can subtly encourage higher spending.
Seasonal and Limited-Time Offers
Seasonal menus and limited-time offers (LTOs) create a sense of urgency and scarcity, encouraging both new and repeat visits. They allow you to take advantage of seasonal produce (reducing costs) and keep your offerings fresh and exciting. Promoting a "Summer Seafood Week" or a festive Christmas menu can drive significant short-term revenue.
3. Train Your Staff in Upselling and Cross-Selling
Table-Side Recommendations
Your front-of-house team is your sales team. Train them not just to take orders, but to make confident and appealing recommendations.
Simple suggestions like "Would you like to start with our signature cocktail?" or "The chef recommends the sea bass with a glass of Sauvignon Blanc" can significantly increase the average check size. Upselling should always feel like a helpful enhancement to the guest's experience, not a pushy sales tactic.
Incentive Programmes
Motivate your servers to actively upsell by creating friendly competitions or small incentive programs. A weekly bonus for the team member who sells the most dessert specials or featured wines can create a fun, goal-oriented environment that directly boosts sales.
Tools like TheFork Manager’s CRM can support this by tracking guest preferences, allowing staff to make even more personalised and effective suggestions.
4. Reduce No-Shows and Optimise Table Turnover
Implement Deposits or Credit Card Guarantees
No-shows are a major source of lost revenue. According to CGA and Zonal, no-shows cost the UK hospitality industry billions annually. The most effective way to combat this is to secure a commitment from the diner. Implementing a policy for credit card guarantees or taking small deposits for larger groups significantly reduces the likelihood of a no-show.
Automate Booking Confirmations and Reminders
Automated communication is a simple but powerful tool. Sending an automatic confirmation email upon booking, followed by an SMS reminder 24-48 hours before the reservation, drastically reduces both no-shows and accidental late cancellations. This process can be easily managed with a modern reservation system like TheFork Manager, which includes features for both table management and automated deposits.
5. Improve Your Restaurant’s Online Visibility
Local SEO Basics
When diners are hungry, they turn to Google. Local SEO is the practice of optimising your online presence to appear in local search results, like "best Italian restaurant near me."
The cornerstone of this is your Google Business Profile. Ensure it is fully completed and kept up-to-date with your correct opening hours, address, phone number, and menu.
Encourage Online Reviews and Respond Promptly
Online reviews are critical for both visibility and credibility. A steady stream of recent, positive reviews is one of the strongest signals to Google that your restaurant is a trusted local business. Actively encourage happy customers to leave feedback.
It's equally important to respond to all reviews—both positive and negative—promptly and professionally. Listing your restaurant on platforms like TheFork can also enhance your visibility, as these profiles often rank highly on Google and TripAdvisor.
6. Leverage Social Media & Paid Advertising
Show Off Daily Specials and Behind-the-Scenes Content
Use platforms like Instagram and Facebook to give potential customers a reason to visit tonight. Post high-quality photos of your daily specials, share behind-the-scenes videos of your chefs in action, and run engaging polls or contests.
This creates a sense of community and keeps your restaurant top-of-mind.
Promote Exclusive Offers via Meta/Instagram Ads
Paid advertising allows you to reach a highly targeted local audience. Use Facebook and Instagram Ads to promote a special offer to users within a few miles of your restaurant, or retarget people who have previously visited your website. This is a cost-effective way to drive bookings during quieter periods.
7. Implement a Loyalty or Rewards Programme
Digital Loyalty Programmes
It costs far less to retain an existing customer than to acquire a new one. A digital loyalty programme—where customers can collect points or digital stamps via an app—is an easy way to track visits and incentivise repeat business. Offering a compelling reward, like a free main course after a certain number of visits, encourages loyalty.
Email or SMS Remarketing
Use the customer data you collect to re-engage past diners. Send a personalised "we miss you" offer to guests who haven't visited in a while, or a special treat on their birthday. The customer database and feedback tools in a system like TheFork Manager can provide the insights needed for this targeted marketing.
8. Offer Takeaway and Delivery Options
Partner with Aggregators or Manage Your Own Delivery System
The demand for at-home dining remains strong. Offering takeaway and delivery can open up a significant new revenue stream. You can partner with third-party aggregators like Deliveroo or Uber Eats to access their large user base, or manage your own in-house system to retain more control and higher profit margins.
Create a “Delivery Menu” Optimised for Packaging and Speed
Not all of your dine-in dishes will be suitable for delivery. Create a separate, smaller menu featuring items that travel well and can be prepared efficiently. This ensures a high-quality at-home experience for the customer and a smooth workflow for your kitchen.
9. Optimise Opening Hours and Seating Layout
Use Data to Spot Peak/Off-Peak Trends
Analyse your booking and sales data to understand your busiest and quietest periods. Are Tuesday evenings consistently slow? Could you capitalise on a post-work rush by opening slightly earlier on Fridays? Data-driven decisions about your opening hours can help you reduce costs and maximise revenue.
Adjust Layout for Efficiency and Group Bookings
Your restaurant floor plan should be flexible. Can you easily combine smaller tables to accommodate larger groups? Is the path for servers from the kitchen to the furthest tables efficient? Small adjustments to your seating layout can improve service speed and allow you to accept more profitable group bookings. Reports in TheFork Manager can help you identify booking patterns and peak hours to inform these decisions.
10. Organise Special Events and Experiences
Wine Tastings, Live Music, and Themed Dinners
Events allow you to showcase your creativity and offer something beyond your standard menu. They are highly shareable on social media and generate powerful word-of-mouth marketing that money can't buy. Consider these popular options:
- Ticketed Tasting Menus: Partner with a local winery, brewery, or distillery to host an exclusive tasting evening with a specially paired menu.
- Live Music Nights: Host a local acoustic artist or jazz trio to create a sophisticated and lively atmosphere on a Friday or Saturday night.
- Themed Dinners: Create immersive experiences around cultural events (like a Burns Night supper or a Spanish tapas night) or popular trends.
- Skill-Based Workshops: Offer a ticketed pasta-making class or a cocktail masterclass during a quiet afternoon to generate extra income.
To ensure success, promote your events well in advance across your social media channels and email newsletter. Listing them on discovery platforms like TheFork events feature can also help you reach a wider audience actively looking for unique dining experiences.
11. Optimise Food Costs and Supplier Management
While increasing sales is essential, true profitability comes from effectively managing your costs. Your food cost is one of your biggest expenses, and even small improvements in this area can have a massive impact on your bottom line. A strategic approach to sourcing, portioning, and tracking inventory is a non-negotiable part of a healthy revenue plan.
Audit Supplier Pricing, Portion Control, and Waste Reduction
This is a three-pronged approach to protecting your profit margins:
- Supplier Pricing: Don't let your supplier relationships become complacent. Regularly audit your invoices and get competitive quotes from other local suppliers to ensure you are always getting the best possible price for your key ingredients without sacrificing quality.
- Portion Control: This is about consistency for both your customers and your costs. Use standardised recipes, portioning tools, and scales in your kitchen to ensure every dish that goes out is the same size. This prevents profit erosion from over-portioning.
- Waste Reduction: Conduct a regular waste audit to see exactly what is being thrown away. Track everything from kitchen prep waste to uneaten food returned from the dining room. This data will help you identify unpopular dishes, adjust portion sizes, or find creative ways to use off-cuts.
Use Inventory Tracking Tools
Guesswork is the enemy of profitability. Using technology to monitor your stock levels provides a real-time, accurate view of your inventory, helping you make smarter purchasing decisions. Most modern POS systems offer integrated inventory tracking tools that can:
- Prevent Over-Ordering: By knowing exactly what you have in stock, you avoid tying up cash in excess inventory that could spoil.
- Minimise Waste: Real-time data helps you track item shelf-life and use ingredients before they expire.
- Identify Bestsellers: The system can show you which menu items are selling fastest, helping you forecast future demand and ensure you never run out of a popular dish during a busy service.
12. Use Data to Drive Decisions
Track Booking Data, Average Spend, and Repeat Visits
Your data tells a story about your business. Track where your bookings are coming from, what your average spend is at different times of the week, and how often your customers return. This information is a goldmine for making smarter marketing and operational decisions.
Use Dashboards to Identify Underperforming Slots or Dishes
Use your analytics dashboards to spot trends. Is a particular menu item not selling well? Are your early weekday slots consistently empty? Data helps you move from guesswork to a strategic approach. The performance metrics available in TheFork Manager can provide a clear overview of your business at a glance.
13. Collaborate with Local Businesses and Influencers
Cross-Promotions with Hotels, Gyms, or Events
Partner with other local, non-competing businesses that share your target audience. Offer a special discount to guests of a nearby hotel, or create a co-branded promotion with a local theatre or gym. This is a low-cost way to tap into an existing customer base.
Invite Local Influencers for Reviews or Tastings
Partner with local food bloggers or Instagram creators for authentic reviews. Micro-influencers with smaller but highly engaged local followings can often provide the best value. An invitation for a complimentary meal can result in a powerful, trusted promotion.
14. Embrace Sustainable Practices
Reduce Waste, Use Local Produce, Highlight Green Credentials
Modern diners, especially corporate clients, are increasingly conscious of sustainability. Highlighting your commitment to reducing waste, sourcing local produce, and using eco-friendly packaging can be a powerful marketing tool. According to the Sustainable Restaurant Association, diners are willing to pay more to eat at a restaurant with strong sustainability credentials.
Appeal to Eco-Conscious Diners and Corporate Partners
Promote your green practices on your website and menu. This can differentiate you from competitors and make you a more attractive choice for both individual diners and corporate partners looking to align with sustainable businesses.
15. Use Technology to Simplify Operations
Reservation Management Software
Technology is the enabler that makes many of these strategies possible. A modern reservation management system automates bookings, reduces manual work for your staff, and minimises costly errors.
POS and CRM Integrations
When your systems are integrated, data flows seamlessly. Your POS can inform your CRM about guest spending habits, which in turn allows for more personalised marketing. This streamlined approach improves both efficiency and the overall guest experience. A comprehensive solution like TheFork Manager brings together online bookings, table management, CRM, and performance analytics into a single platform, simplifying your operations and empowering you to effectively implement your revenue-generating strategies.
Empty tables and ever-increasing costs?
FAQs
How Can I Increase My Restaurant’s Revenue Quickly?
For quick results, focus on high-impact, short-term tactics like launching a limited-time offer, running a targeted social media ad campaign for a quiet night, or implementing a simple staff upselling incentive program.
What Strategies Help Restaurants Boost Profit Margins?
To boost profit margins, focus on both revenue and costs. Use menu engineering to promote high-margin items, implement strict portion and waste control in the kitchen, and renegotiate prices with your suppliers.
What Role Does Menu Design Play in Restaurant Revenue?
Menu design plays a huge role. Through strategic layout, descriptions, and pricing (a practice known as menu engineering), you can subconsciously guide customers towards your most profitable dishes, directly increasing your average check size and overall revenue.
How Can I Reduce No-Shows and Empty Tables?
The most effective strategies are to take deposits or credit card guarantees for bookings and to use an automated system to send SMS or email reminders to guests before their reservation.
How Can Online Reservations Help Increase Sales?
An online reservation system allows you to take bookings 24/7, capturing customers even when you are closed. It reduces the time your staff spend on the phone and provides valuable data that can be used to optimise your seating and run targeted marketing promotions.
What Is the Best Way to Train Staff for Upselling?
The best way is through role-playing and providing deep product knowledge. Ensure your staff have tasted the dishes and can speak passionately about them. Set clear, achievable goals and use small incentives or competitions to make it fun and engaging.
How Can Restaurant Software Like TheFork Manager Help Improve Revenue?
Software like TheFork Manager helps in multiple ways: it increases your visibility to a vast network of diners, provides tools to reduce costly no-shows, helps you optimise your table turnover, and offers analytics to make data-driven decisions about your pricing and promotions, all contributing to higher revenue.
