Tips For The Hospitality Industry To Improve The In-Home Dining Experience.

I have had 7 weeks of continuous time at home with our family during this quarantine. It has given me the chance to brainstorm about many hospitality topics (at least when my two young kids are sleeping). One question in particular that keeps popping up into my mind is: How do we keep hotel and restaurant guests engaged even if we are not open? If past and potentially future guests are home, what can we do to make them feel like they are still a bit connected to their favorite places? 

Social media channels for the majority of the hospitality brands I follow have gone silent, so that’s out for now. I can’t visit any of my favorite places as they are closed for in-person dining. However, I can order delivery or pick up from some of our favorite local restaurants. As a family, we are blessed and lucky enough to be able to have made this a weekly Friday night treat! It has given us a small sense of normalcy during these scary times. What I realized was that the in-home dining experience was lacking a bit, and I wanted more from my favorite restaurants. 

As hotels and restaurants re-open, food delivery will be a bigger revenue source than ever before. I see this as a fantastic way to keep past guests engaged and create new fans for our brands. The experience of receiving the food should feel a bit enhanced. It should feel that there was some extra thought and care put into our meal that we will have at home. That my at-home dining needs were anticipated and there was excitement in getting our meal. How can this be done? Let's take a look at a couple of my humble suggestions.

Make sure you are thinking about the way your brand is perceived when someone is dining at home. The first thing in-home guests will see is the delivery bag that contains the delicious meal. Does the delivery bag represent your brand? If you are a high-end restaurant does the bag look and feel a bit luxurious? Like a bag from a high-end clothing store? If you are a hip and trendy cafe, are you using a plain brown bag or are there some cool stickers or local art that could be added? Is it a re-usable bag that can be used in the future again and again? The delivery bag can be a brand focal point. Choose one that represents your standards and values the best.

Now that the guests have the bag in their home, they open it and take their first look inside. What will they see? How does the food look in the to-go containers upon that first mouth-watering glance? Let's hope it is clean, organized, and easy to decipher what each food item is. You don’t want guests cleaning up a mess or having to guess what is in each container before they eat. Is your restaurant eco-friendly? Make sure your packaging reflects this. Do you want your guests eating directly from the containers provided or on their own plates? With some thought and creativity, your to-go containers can enhance the dining experience and provide a feeling of being at your restaurant. (#HospitalityTip: Take the time to research and play with some to-go containers. There are several types to use. See which ones perform better under delivery stress. Bang them around in a bag with food in them and see how they hold up.)

The food is now on the table. What type of cutlery was selected for the guests? Is it flimsy and cheap-feeling or is it sturdy and have a little weight to it? If a chicken or steak entree was ordered, can the guest cut through it with ease? If sushi and dumplings are ordered, what class of chop sticks are provided? Are they low-cost disposable or slightly more expensive re-usable? (Slightly embarrassing fact: I've actually kept a nice set of re-usable chopsticks from a restaurant we ordered from.) Same goes for the napkin. Is it single layer or double layer? Is it branded or does the color match your brand? All small details, but your guests and potential future guests will notice.

I haven’t seen this tactic yet from the places we have ordered from, but I believe it will be a big win for those that try it. Create something that can be kept at home that represents your brand. Maybe it's a recipe card for one of your iconic menu offerings that can be made at home, a fun/artistic postcard of your place that will remind me of visiting in the near future, an invitation with a special offer to come dine in-person when this all passes. There are hundreds of ideas to surprise and delight the at-home diner. It can be as simple as you want it to be, but it will make a big impact. 

Like many of you, I miss going to hotels and restaurants. Hospitality is not only my career but my hobby. I love to travel and experience new things. Right now, the majority of us cannot do that. For the foreseeable future, hospitality will be a bit different. The in-home experience of hospitality will be bigger than ever before. In the end, there is no single right answer. In my eyes, hospitality means trying your best to anticipate your guests needs and surprising them with small details they weren’t expecting that made them think, “Wow they really care about me!” I believe we can all do this with the in-home dining experience. A little extra care and thought will leave the home diner feeling grateful for having ordered from your establishment in this scary time.