{"id":9055,"date":"2017-04-27T04:28:24","date_gmt":"2017-04-27T04:28:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/?p=9055"},"modified":"2017-04-28T04:31:15","modified_gmt":"2017-04-28T04:31:15","slug":"for-restaurants-looking-to-boost-profits-its-often-about-everything-but-the-food","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lifeandnews.com\/articles\/for-restaurants-looking-to-boost-profits-its-often-about-everything-but-the-food\/","title":{"rendered":"For restaurants looking to boost profits, it’s often about everything but the food"},"content":{"rendered":"

Frank T. McAndrew<\/a>, Knox College<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Staying one step ahead of the competition in the hypercompetitive restaurant industry requires more than simply tinkering with the menu. Serving tasty food doesn\u2019t do much good if customers don\u2019t stay long enough \u2013 or never even walk through the door in the first place. \"The<\/p>\n

People in the restaurant business have long understood that design and ambiance matter a great deal, and studies by environmental psychologists<\/a> and other social scientists<\/a> confirm that the shrewd manipulation of a restaurant\u2019s physical environment can boost profits.<\/p>\n

Consequently, a perpetual arms race of restaurant redesign has become a defining feature of many American restaurant chains.<\/p>\n

The scramble has been especially frantic in recent years, with fast food giants KFC, Arby\u2019s, Panera and Subway all revamping their interiors<\/a>, along with casual dining chains such as Olive Garden<\/a> and T.G.I.Friday\u2019s<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This attention to detail matters, with studies showing that everything from the color of the lighting to the appearance of the waitstaff can influence the dining behavior of patrons.<\/p>\n

Sometimes it is all about the presentation<\/h2>\n

In 2010, Cassandra Smith, a 20-year-old Hooters waitress who was 5’8″ and weighed 132 pounds, was told by her boss that she needed to lose weight if she wanted to keep her job. Smith ended up suing Hooters for weight discrimination<\/a> and settled out of court.<\/p>\n

But a 2013 study<\/a> suggests that when restaurants discriminate against overweight employees, it may not be just a public relations problem \u2013 it could actually undermine the bottom line.<\/p>\n

A team of researchers observed approximately 500 people as they ate in 60 different restaurants. They assessed the body mass index (BMI) and body type of every diner and his or her server, keeping track of the number of appetizers, soups, salads, main courses, desserts and beverages each ordered.<\/p>\n

When it came to the unhealthiest part of the meal \u2013 alcoholic beverages and desserts \u2013 customers tended to order significantly more when they had an overweight server.<\/p>\n

The authors hypothesized that interacting with an overweight person in a restaurant created what psychologists call a \u201csituational social norm.\u201d In other words, the overweight waiter changed social expectations, more or less giving diners a license to indulge themselves. (The authors admitted<\/a>, however, that this was purely speculation on their part.)<\/p>\n

The weight of the waitstaff is just one of many situational triggers that influence what we order at restaurants. <\/p>\n

Props can play a role; for example, nautical decor<\/a> makes us more likely to order seafood. We\u2019re also inclined to choose drinks that are related to the theme of the bar<\/a>, whether it\u2019s ordering whiskey in an Irish pub or having a glass of red wine at an Italian restaurant. Another study<\/a> indicated that bars that play drinking songs get their customers to order more drinks.<\/p>\n

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