Does Your Staff Have Hidden Talents to Help Your Bottom Line?

Does someone on your staff have a hidden talent that could benefit your business?  It might be time to find out.  At the Holiday Inn in Rockland, MA, one of the line cooks can carve fruit and vegetables into amazing pieces of art.  Though initially, the Holiday Inn was offering these carvings as an added bonus to surprise its clients, they are considering offering particular carvings as an upgrade for packages when they rewrite their catering menus.

Maybe one of your line cooks is an aspiring artist or you have a server who can create beautifully folded napkin art - having someone like this on your staff is invaluable if you can find a way to turn it into profit for your business.  The Holiday Inn's strategy of offering them for free at first, but eventually charging a premium for extra special carvings works well, as it generated buzz with the original carvings and now people know that if they pay for the upgrade, they are certain to get something extra special.

Even as the economy is starting to recover, competition is still stiff and setting yourself apart from other catering or banquet facilities in your area is the best way to gain business and build a good customer base.  Getting repeat business from existing customers is much easier and more cost-effective than generating new business constantly.  

How do you set yourself apart from the competition?