When you think of revenue optimization in hospitality, your first instinct may be to focus on rooms — rate management, occupancy forecasting and room pricing strategies. But there’s a revenue goldmine that’s often left untapped: restaurants and bars.
Traditionally seen as a necessary service rather than a strategic revenue driver, this area is rapidly emerging as one of the most exciting growth opportunities in hospitality. By leveraging data insights and fostering collaboration between operations, revenue management and marketing, hotels can break down silos and create a customer-centric approach that not only boosts revenue but also elevates the guest experience.
But why has revenue optimization for restaurants and bars taken so long to catch on and what can the industry do to change that?
Data and point-of-sale solutions
The key to unlocking this opportunity lies in data — specifically, the use of point of sale (POS) and business intelligence (BI) solutions. These tools help hotels move beyond traditional, reactive decision-making, enabling real-time adjustments that optimize revenue. Gone are the days of guessing what menu items will sell or relying on assumptions about guest preferences. With the right POS data and BI tools, hotel teams can make data-driven decisions about menu offerings, capacity management and pricing.
Modern BI Solutions are transforming restaurants and bars revenue optimization. They provide restaurants and bars with the necessary insights to make informed decisions about menu design, pricing and inventory management. By aggregating data from across the property, BI solutions help managers understand guest preferences, predict demand and optimize offerings, ensuring a more tailored dining experience for each guest.
Additionally, table management systems (TMS) with built-in CRM functionality are evolving the dining experience. These systems provide a 360-degree view of guest interactions, allowing restaurants to optimize table management, increase upselling opportunities and create more personalized guest experiences.
However, the real value emerges when these systems are not isolated solutions but are integrated into a broader strategy that promotes cross-departmental collaboration.
The role of the customer data platform
As hotels continue to explore more sophisticated tools for data-driven decision-making, the use of customer data platforms (CDPs) is becoming increasingly important. Today’s CRMs have evolved beyond simple databases to become powerful tools that integrate not just with the property management system (PMS) but also with the table management system (TMS), creating a more holistic view of each guest. This allows operators to track detailed guest profiles, including dining preferences, spending patterns and booking behaviors.
With a CDP strategy in place, restaurant and bar teams can personalize their engagement with guests at every touchpoint — from pre-arrival to post-visit follow-up in an omni-channel communications environment. By tracking guest interactions across all channels, these systems create a seamless experience that enhances guest loyalty and drives revenue. Guests feel more valued when they are presented with offers and experiences that reflect their preferences, leading to increased conversion rates and higher satisfaction levels.
A more sophisticated CDP not only enables better guest engagement but also gives restaurant operators the insights they need to optimize menu offerings, adjust prices dynamically and maximize upselling opportunities. This integration across PMS, TMS and CRM provides a 360-degree view of each guest, allowing teams to tailor their offerings in a way that’s more relevant and personalized than ever before.
Breaking down the silos: Collaboration is key
For restaurant and bar revenue optimization to thrive, it’s crucial that operations, revenue management and marketing teams collaborate effectively. Too often, these departments work in silos — restaurant teams focus on food and beverage offerings, revenue managers collect data on occupancy, revenue and average check and marketing teams handle promotions. By working together and leveraging shared data, these teams can optimize dining revenue while delivering exceptional guest experiences.
Revenue managers play a key role in ensuring accurate data collection and usage across all departments and systems. They help identify not just opportunities for capacity management but also insights into best-selling menu items and optimal pricing strategies. By supporting real-time data analysis, revenue managers help empower restaurant teams to make strategic decisions about menu changes, pricing adjustments and promotions.
When data is integrated, restaurant teams can identify popular dishes, tailor special offers and create cross-selling opportunities based on real-time guest preferences. Marketing can then use CDP insights to craft personalized campaigns that align with both guest expectations and business goals. This collaborative approach ensures a consistent, revenue-focused strategy throughout the dining experience.
A customer-centric, guest-first approach
This is where the real excitement lies for chefs and restaurant and bar operators. Through experience, operators have always known that guest preferences fluctuate with the seasons, time of day and day of the week. Now, data provides concrete evidence to back up these insights, giving operators the confidence to make more targeted and effective decisions.
By moving beyond intuition and embracing data, operators can track, in real-time, how a particular dish performs over time. Data lets chefs confidently refine their menus, adjusting items based on guest demand, time of year and even the time of day and create offerings that meet guest expectations without guesswork.
By aligning these offerings with real-time guest insights, restaurants can drive both guest satisfaction and increased revenue. By understanding guest preferences, dining behaviors and spending patterns, chefs and operators can be more agile and adapt to changes in guest demand without hesitation.
Challenges and opportunities
While the potential for restaurants and bars revenue optimization is clear, there are challenges that hotels must address. Operational complexities — ranging from menu design to inventory management and staff training — can be overwhelming. Additionally, shifting to a data-driven model requires a change in mindset and investment in technology.
However, these challenges also present an opportunity to rethink operations. By investing in the right technologies — particularly CDPs — and fostering cross-departmental collaboration, hotels can streamline operations, improve profitability and create more personalized guest experiences.
What comes next
Looking ahead, the future of restaurants and bars revenue optimization is bright. As the integration of data and technology becomes more sophisticated, hotel teams will be able to make smarter, more targeted decisions that increase guest satisfaction and drive revenue. Predictive analytics will help hotels anticipate guest needs before they arise, enabling a seamless and personalized dining experience from start to finish.
The rise of CDPs, CRM systems and BI tools will further enhance collaboration between operations, revenue management and marketing teams, creating a unified strategy for optimizing dining experiences. By adopting these advanced systems and breaking down silos, hotels can deliver experiences that are aligned with guest preferences and needs — ultimately driving both top-line revenue and bottom-line profits.
In conclusion, revenue optimization from restaurants and bars is one of the most exciting growth opportunities in hospitality. By leveraging data, adopting a customer-first approach and fostering collaboration across departments, hotels can maximize revenue, enhance guest satisfaction and build long-term loyalty. Now is the time to embrace the power of data, integrate CDPs and turn restaurants and bars into a true revenue powerhouse.
Philip Schaetz is founder and managing director of CUBE. Prior to establishing CUBE in 2018, Philip enjoyed a long career in revenue management, distribution expertise and sales and marketing strategy in senior global positions for some of the world’s largest hotel & resort brands.
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