Food Service

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FOOD SERVICE – On Hold Messages

Hello and welcome to another “Industry Spotlight” episode in the On Hold Message Maker (Video Guide Series/Podcast series), my name is Carl Hitchmough and today we’re going to focus our attention on the restaurateurs and café owners of the world.  We’ll have a look at some suggestions on what you could include in your message, some things not to include, why it’s great to have an on hold message in the first place and how you can get the most out of it.

So let’s delve into it then shall we?

Now if common belief is anything to go by, the restaurant business is a tough industry to be in.  Seems every man and his dog dreams of opening up a nice little bistro somewhere picturesque and while away the day bantering with thankful patrons.  Obviously the truth is far different.  It’s highly competitive and there’s the constant demand to have a point of difference, to be instantly appealing to a very fussy market.  Of course your main concern is rightly to get your location sorted, your menu enticing, your coffees perfected, to create an ambience, develop an excellent service reputation, maybe a theme and personality for your venue.

No surprise then that an on hold message is probably very low down on your priority list, but on it it should be.  This one slight extension of your marketing efforts could impact greatly on your potential customers. If they’ve taken the time to call – it’s a perfect way to boost that personality, the theme and of course the excellent customer service.  And a simple way to provide value and build trust.

No doubt you’d be busy when you answer any calls.  You probably aim to be prompt and efficiently when you do.  Even still the on hold button can come into play quite regularly.  Not your preferred option, but if you get a couple of calls at once during the lunch rush, when you’re checking if a caller’s order is ready, dealing with customer at the counter, taking deliveries from the courier, holding a call for someone who’s not quite ready to pick up immediately, all these very common daily activities often lead to you putting someone on hold.

Now what your clients hear at these times is totally up to you.  The options are pretty open, from just silence, maybe something that comes preloaded with your phone system, your favourite radio station, a cd from your collection, or the one we obviously prefer – an on hold message – literally any audio source you can plug into the input jack of your phone.  Keep in mind any of these comes with a bit of baggage.  Some may require specific licences to use them legally, a financial outlay, and if your taste in music is out of kilter with your clientele or you just play silence down your line, the research numbers show your callers aren’t going to hang around for very long.

So that’s why we recommend you put some thought into this opportunity you’ve been presented.  Spend a moment and think about how you can use your on hold time to communicate effectively to your callers, to provide them with something beneficial while they wait.  Make it worth hanging around.  And no matter whether you’re a one man coffee shop in a wall, or part of a high class Michelin rated restaurant – the positive impression you present to someone on hold will go a long way to attract new patrons and keep returning ones happy.

Now it’s a fair assumption to make that your callers will have a fairly clear picture of what you provide, but if you think it through beforehand, your on hold will allow you to splash a little more colour and substance on your establishment and flesh it out with things that they may not yet be aware of.  Your message lets you present yourself in a perfect light to an already motivated, captive audience as they await your return to their call.  Think of it as some sort of tireless ambassador for your company, someone who is happy to inform, educate and reassure your callers with endless enthusiasm.

So what sort of things can you mention?

Before we speak about specific things you could mention in your message, we probably need to keep in mind first how most on hold messages are structured.  Usually they have with a bit of information, bit of a gap and then another paragraph and so on.  It’ll probably run for a few, maybe four or five minutes and then loop back to that start.  So adding that up – you have about six thirty second or so marketing opportunities, with a ten second gap between them.  So you can cover a fair amount in that time.  Like what?

Well we don’t want to spend this time relating obvious things people naturally expect you to offer or they can find out elsewhere.  That’s not to say covering some of the basics isn’t beneficial, we just don’t want to waste this opportunity by loading it up with light-weight content.  If you think ahead you can maybe cover these basic things in a single paragraph.  Communicate things like your range of services, your exact street location, how to find you, where clients can park when they arrive, your opening times etc.  By all means include some of these – but not extensively.

It’s best to keep in the back of your mind at all times that your key focus is to ensure your customers are made to feel welcome, otherwise no amount of ambience or culinary cleverness is going to entice them back a second time.  And that high level of service can begin from the moment they call you to make the initial reservation or place a lunch order.

Think of your on hold message as a welcoming door person, your friendly waitress or your Maitre D’.  Someone who tireless makes your customer feel valued.  Someone who could whet some appetites could also make with suggestions from the menu, give tips on convenient parking, any number of interesting and informative points.

And you’re not imposing on their time either. Most callers would rather hear something interesting and potentially useful while waiting, than have canned music played down the phone or be ignored with total silence.

So what type of things could you reward your caller’s patience with.  Well as mentioned, you could highlight featured menu items and specials.  Especially if your speciality or focus is something exotic and less well known.  Maybe even speak about how the meal is prepared, where you source the ingredients from and the like.  Has your establishment or your chef or staff been awarded and recent accolades or industry recognition?  Do your premises have an intriguing history or enticing story worth relating?  What other features of your location are you proud of?

Speaking of your location, how do we find you and how easy is it to park as mentioned before?  Do you validate parking?  What hours do you operate in?  Do you have certain menu restrictions, breakfast ends at 11am, late supper til midnight and the like?

And further on your facilities, do you offer group bookings and provide function facilities?  Kids parties, product launches, business breakfasts?  Are there any special services on offer such as take away or catering?

And keep in mind, if all these details are clearly provided on your website, then by all means highlight that.  Maybe a little tease to whet their appetite and then suggest they find more detailed information on your site, or ask when you return to the call.

As the proprietor of a restaurant or café, you know your service is only as good as the staff you hire to represent you.  At On Hold Messages Australia, we give you the tools to create the ideal employee; a series of professional, friendly and informative messages that provide exceptional service 24 hours a day.

To sum up things then, if you put a little effort and forethought into it, you can have full confidence that when you press that on hold button on your phone system, your callers are going to feel respected, that you value their time enough to provide excellent tips and thought out content that they can derive immediate benefit from.  And leave them with a very fine impression of yourself.

When used well, an on hold message:

• Enhances your image.
• Ensures your clients are well aware of your key points.
• Upsells your clients to other services you provide.
• Answers commonly asked questions.
• Sets your clients’ minds at ease – reassuring them they’ve come      to the right place.