Only 69 days to go but Orchid’s Managers are already celebrating Christmas, with bookings up 10% on last year. How have they achieved this, and what can others learn from Orchid?
The increase is driven by a combination of factors, starting with business-wide advanced planning that sees Christmas begin in May with menu ‘cook offs’, training and tasting for staff, and a massive operational focus with all managers attending a roadshow to share festive best practice – complete with fancy dress!
In a further boost to Christmas success, pubs up and down the country have come up with exciting ideas to spread the word about Christmas meals and parties, and their creative efforts are paying off.
Top Tips include:
Fancy dress : At the Legh Arms in Macclesfield, General Manager Celia Heaton gives her staff a rather different work challenge to get the bookings in. She explains:
“We’ve been sending two of the girls out into the town dressed up in Santa outfits to start spreading the word. They get people thinking about what they are doing for Christmas and talk to all the local businesses about their office parties. It’s fun for them and really makes a difference – one of our party nights is booked up already, and the confirmations are coming in thick and fast for remaining nights and Christmas Day.”
The Church Tavern in Birmingham is another advocate of fancy dress as a way to get people committing to their Christmas parties. Last year, General Manager Rachel Onysko dressed up as an elf, and this year it is the turn of one of the male members of staff:
“It works really well as it shows people that we’re happy to go the extra mile to make their Christmas with us really special. By sending people out for just a few hours of an afternoon we can get loads of bookings in – it’s well worth it.”
Being festively flexible: Timing is the name of the game for the Bramingham in Luton, where Christmas Co-ordinator Ciara Murphy has brought the party season forward a week.
“We’re finding that many businesses, particularly those in the trade, are having to put back their own parties to January. So, we brought our festive season forward to mid November to give them the chance to get in on the action nearer the time.”
The Bramingham is also focusing on using Christmas bookings to keep trade going into the start of next year, when things can become very quiet:
“We’re using vouchers with Christmas bookings to get people back into the pub in January – offering them a free bottle of wine with their first meal of 2013 with us. It keeps the trade coming in a slow month, and is an added incentive to get their bookings in early.”
Social media: Orchid pubs are also making the most of the internet and social networking to boost Christmas bookings.
Steven Carthy, General Manager at the Buccaneer in Eastbourne, backs up traditional mail-shots by going online:
“We have more than 450 friends on our Facebook page so it’s a great way to let people know about our Christmas activities. It only takes a few minutes and messages go out to all those people directly, and potentially hundreds more. We really embrace social networking and it’s having a positive impact on Christmas bookings.”
Getting out into the community: Orchid pubs are always at the heart of their local community. At the Henry Boddington in Salford, Deputy Manager Luke Dunsmoor takes Christmas to potential customers, with staff heading out to local businesses and retirement homes, helping them get in the festive spirit early with Christmas party bags to show them just what the seasonal experience at an Orchid pub entails.
The power of teams
Simon Dodd, Commercial Director at Orchid concludes:
“All these ideas stem directly from our pub teams, and they never fail to amaze us with new ways to promote Christmas each year.”
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