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Order office snacks and coffee online

3 Reasons You Need an Office Snack Delivery Service

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Offering free snacks in the workplace has become a standard practice. The benefits are plentiful, and it behooves any company who hasn’t begun offering free food for employees to start…now.

One of the biggest challenges, however, is purchasing the product. A lot of offices have a designated employee that will do the grocery shopping, but his approach is not exactly the most efficient. Over time, it can put a strain on productivity. Here are three reasons why your office needs a snack delivery service.

1. You’re spending too much time on grocery shopping.

It’s great that your office provides free snacks for employees, but the reality is that grocery shopping can take up a good deal of your time. That means a loss in productivity and potentially getting behind on some of your core responsibilities. By using a snack delivery service, you can save a tremendous amount of time.

2. You’re spending too much money on grocery shopping.

Grocery stores are specifically designed to encourage impulse purchases. It’s what merchandising is all about. Think about the last time you went to the store. How many items did you buy that weren’t requested by anyone in the office? Maybe it’s more than you’d care to admit. A snack delivery service can help prevent these types of purchases and save the company money.

3. Keeping track of receipts has become cumbersome.

How many times has accounting asked for the receipt from the grocery store and then you couldn’t find it? That’s definitely an issue when it comes to monitoring monthly expenses. With a snack delivery service like Supply Wizards, it’s easy to go back and see what your previous order was.

Being able to order product online, have it delivered right to your door, and keep track of purchases is the efficient way to providing free coffee and snacks for employees. Forget the lengthy trips to the grocery store. Contact us today to get started.

 

technology for hotel managers

The Digital Tools Every Office Manager Needs

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As an office manager, you’re responsible for how well the office runs. You keep everything in line. And when something breaks, you fix it. It’s not exactly a flashy job, but it’s integral to the success of any company, and requires a whole host of skills. You’re at once an expert communicator, problem solver, psychologist, and (sometimes) referee.

Just like any other job, you need the right tools to keep it all running like a fine-tuned engine in order to achieve the company’s overall goals and objectives. So what tools would those be? This list provides some of the best and most popular digital tools that you should be using.

Expenses

Managing expenses is a top priority for office managers. There are plenty of platforms to help simplify the process. Below are three of the most popular choices to keep your spending under control.

Expensify. Expense reports can suck. Unless you use Expensify, which helps simplify the expense management process.

Abacus. A real-time expense reporting system designed to reimburse employees quickly.

Concur. “When you can see all your spending, you can control all your costs.”

Productivity Tools

Keeping track of employee progress is essential to a productive office. Thankfully, there are lots of tools to use to keep up and collaborate with employees. Here are some good choices:

Google Calendar. Perhaps the most comprehensive calendar available, Google Calendar helps you manage a busy schedule and coordinate with employees.

Trello. When it comes to collaborating with employees, Trello is one of the best. Create as many boards and cards you need, and easily communicate with team members on progress.

OneNote. This tool by Microsoft syncs with outlook, making it easy to keep track of things. It allows you to create as many ‘pages’ as you need to divide up notes or checklists for a variety of tasks.

Professional Development

Udemy. This online learning platform offers more than 65,000 courses in a wide variety of categories, including business. Classes such as organization, customer services skills, and time management are helpful for even the most seasoned office managers.

General Assembly. Geared more towards web development, product management, and data science, General Assembly is great for those seeking practical technological skills.

Human Resources

Vacation. Sick leave. PTO. Managing human resources can be stressful. But if you’re using the right tool(s), it’s much more simple.

Zenefits. Manage your entire HR process with one, easy-to-use platform.

Gusto. Much like Zenefits, Gusto is a one-stop shop for everything HR, but it’s geared more towards small businesses as its user limit is 100 people.

Deputy. If you work for a larger company, a service like Deputy will be a better choice. Enterprise businesses like McDonald’s and UPS use this service.

Break Room Technology

You might not think the break room is an important part of your job. But plenty of studies show that productivity and happiness are linked to companies that offer a great culture, which includes providing free snacks.

Enplug. Digital signage that can keep your employees informed and entertained and your break room sleek and inviting.

Supply Wizards. Snack delivery software to keep your employees satisfied with their favorite snacks and beverages. Ordering is simple and delivery is quick. No more grocery shopping!

5 Management Mistakes That Kill Employee Motivation

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As most managers who’ve been around a while know, managing employees means you have to deal with all kinds of different people. Some are highly self-motivated, while many aren’t. Dealing with employees who lack motivation can be frustrating, especially when you know that they are capable of doing a better job.

Sometimes this lack of motivation is external or caused by personal issues that the employee is going through, and other times it can be work-related. Perhaps even directly related to the things you are doing as a manager, either knowingly or not. Here are five mistakes managers make that can stifle motivation.

1. Not Empowering Employees

It’s imperative managers empower their employees and give them the opportunity to make suggestions about how to be more efficient or solve a specific problem. But don’t stop there: You need to implement their suggestions. You might not be able to do this every time, or you might have to make adjustments to their ideas, but take what they say and turn it into something actionable. It will give employees confidence and make them feel more valued, which can increase motivation.

2. Not Being Transparent

Transparency is the key to developing trust between leadership and employees and helps lead to:

  • Better relationships
  • Better solutions
  • Better engagement

Managers who aren’t transparent enough ultimately erode the trust between themselves and their employees. Be open with your employees (as much as possible) on company matters.

2. Poor Communication

Bad communication skills on part of a manager can lead to misunderstandings. You need to be clear and concise in your communications with your team for it to be effective and to ensure what is being communicated is not taken the wrong way.

Listening is equally as important. Many studies show that the average person remembers only 25% to 50% of what they hear. Become an active listener to show your employees that what they say–their concerns and ideas–has value.

3. Not Providing Room for Growth

Employees perform best when the work environment is conducive to growth. This doesn’t necessarily mean advancement within the company, although that is a motivating factor for many people. There can be personal, or professional growth. As a manager, it’s important to help groom employees to become exceptional at their jobs, so when new opportunities arise, they will have the skills and confidence to pursue them.

4. Not offering recognition

7 out of 10 employees who received recognition for their good work are happy with their jobs. Employees who are happy are more engaged and motivated, so managers would be remiss not to show appreciation to their employees (especially top performers) for their work. There are many ways you can do this. Gift cards, free lunches, or a free day off are some good places to start.

5. Not Leading by Example

Personalities are infectious. You can’t possibly expect your employees to get excited about a new strategy or task the company takes if you’re not excited about it yourself. Show them your enthusiasm and they will likely follow suit.

Perks of free snacks in the workplace

Why Offering Free Snacks is a Great Perk for the Office

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A recent article in the New York Times discussed how micro-progress can help improve productivity and keep you going. The idea is this: for one task that needs to be completed, you set multiple ‘mini goals’ that you can achieve along the way to help complete the entire task. It’s an interesting approach and partly based on Newton’s 1st Law, which, in essence, means that an object in motion stays in motion.

What does this have to do with free snacks and office perks?

Well, in an effort to improve office morale, a lot of ideas are thrown around. Some of them are big (perhaps too big) and are nearly impossible carry out or too expensive. But there are smaller steps that office managers can take to help reach the ultimate goal of boosting morale. In other words, sometimes it’s the little wins that count. One such win would be offering free snacks. It’s a relatively easy perk to implement and offers a variety of benefits.

Benefits of Offering Free Snacks in the Workplace

Could improve productivity. Food gives us energy, and if employees don’t have the fuel they need to complete their tasks each day, then their productivity can be affected. That mid-morning or afternoon snack can be a real life-saver sometimes and give you enough of a boost to finish up an important task. Also, providing free snacks keeps them on-site and prevents them from wasting time having to leave the building just to find a snack.

Makes people happier. People love free stuff. What’s more is that people love free food. A recent survey found that workplaces that happiness increases among employees when free snacks are offered. Free snacks as a perk are often more important to millennials than other age groups, and with millennials now the largest group in the workforce, it’s a perk that should not be overlooked. It shows a sense of personal investment on behalf of the company in their employees, an element to workplace culture that’s so desirable by millennials that it’s essential for companies to consider.

Healthier snacks can help improve moods. Want to help prevent that afternoon slump? Offer a variety of healthier options, like yogurt, fresh fruit, or nuts. Candy and chips are nice to indulge in sometimes, but the sudden increase in sugar can leave you feeling tired. Healthy foods will keep your employees from fizzling out right when they need to power up.

Some office managers might be skeptical about this approach to their company break room. After all, offering free snacks and food to employees means someone has to purchase them. But there are plenty of snack delivery services out there to choose from that make it simple.

Hospitality Trends 2018

8 Hotel Trends to Watch in 2018

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We’re so fickle. Just when we settle into a routine of any sort, something new comes along and we all jump on it. Most times it’s just a fad, but every now and then a trend comes along that sticks.

The hotel industry is no different.

Consumer nature changes so frequently that it almost seems impossible to keep up. So what’s trending in hospitality now that will be more than a temporary fad, and be seen as progress for the industry? Here are eight trends to consider this year to help increase reservations and revenue.

8 Trends for the Hotel Industry in 2018

1. Mobile Payments

Look, it’s 2018. The iPhone has been around for an entire decade now. There’s really no need to go into detail about why mobile payments are a big deal. But what is important to note in respect to the use of mobile for your hotel goes beyond just making a payment.

Millennials, who now make up a huge demographic of travelers, expect brands to offer a full-range of benefits via mobile, beginning with their initial research. Maintaining a continuous relationship even after they make their purchase is essential to help convince them to choose your brand again. In other words, your hotel should offer mobile support with booking, on-property services, and continue to delight guests after their stay.

2. Food & Beverage

A strong food and beverage strategy for your hotel can bring in $16k in profit per day, so it’s a category hotel managers would be remiss to ignore.

In 2018, there will be a focus on simplicity and healthier food options from locally sourced suppliers, a trend likely to bring back some revenue to hotel restaurants. Additionally, retail will be a focus for many hotel brands. Pantry supplies are easier to source as a result of new pantry management services that help keep track of sales, inventory, and revenue.

3. Data & Analytics

Tired of hearing the term ‘big data’ yet? Well, it’s going to be here a while, and for good reason. Collecting information from your guests provides you with the opportunity to understand them better, which then affords you the ability to provide products and services specific to their desires.

4. Personalized Experiences

All that data you collected? That’ll help you offer a better overall experience for guests. You’re not just selling a service, in 2018 you’re selling a relationship. You need to use the data you’ve collected from guests to help you offer services that speak to them individually. Did John watch an action movie during his stay? Did Jane order a salad from room service? You can use this information to market to them even after they’ve left, and to  offer them similar experiences when they return.

5. Local Experiences

Many travelers will seek to experience where they are as ‘a local.’ That means hotels need to be knowledgeable about the best local entertainment, restaurants, or other cultural centers that are unique to that area. Tourist sites will still be popular, but guests are longing for those unique experiences that they can only get in your town or city. Provide them with all the local spots to hang out.

6. Cloud-Based Technology

Upgrading to a cloud-based property management system (PMS) makes it easier to manage everything. As Hotelogix explains: “Using a cloud-based property management system allows you to run your hotel operations, manage reservations, allot room bookings and do much more from a single dashboard. It’s easy to check data, assign duties, manage folios, run your additional Point of Sale (POS) counters and reduce time spent on manual updates.”

7. Smart Rooms

In an effort to make the guest experience as convenient as possible, many hotel brands are in various stages of making rooms more technologically advanced. Dimming the lights, turning on the TV, adjusting the temperature, and perhaps other abilities are options that will soon available to guests through their phones. Hilton uses an app for these kinds of adjustments, and Marriott is developing voice-activated technology.

8. Online Reputation Management

Consumers search for reviews online before purchasing virtually any product or service. Hotel managers need to focus on managing how their hotel is being reviewed and talked about online. Many hoteliers are using tools specifically designed to help streamline this management process. Hubspot, Salesforce, and Infusionsoft are just some of the tools out there that can help manage your relationships with your guests.

work distractions

5 Distractions That Kill Productivity at Work

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Productivity is a high priority for most businesses. Many leaders (82% of them) consider productivity to be a top indicator of financial success or failure. Why, then, is workplace productivity only mediocre in most companies? There are many factors that are attributed to a loss in productivity, among them are distractions.

As an office manager, there is perhaps nothing more frustrating for you than employees who are unable to complete their work. Especially because of unnecessary distractions. To mitigate these interruptions, you first need to identify them, then decide how (and if) you can prevent them from causing problems among staff. The list below offers a good place to start.

5 Workplace Distractions to Eliminate to Improve Productivity

1. Cell Phone Notifications

Social media, game notifications, and text messages are endless. As most people keep their cell phones on their desks, within arms reach, it’s inevitable that interruptions will occur more than once throughout the day–if only for even a second. While you don’t want to run the risk of micro managing too much, it’s well within reason to encourage employees to keep their cell phones out of reach and out of sight. Not only will it stop employees from jumping at every notification that comes through, it also prevents them from checking their phones for no reason out of habit.

2. Politics

We’re not talking office politics here. NPR previously reported on increased political tensions in workplaces for the 2016 election compared to past cycles, resulting an increase in workplace arguments and stress due to politics. As The Atlantic reported:

  • 87% read political social-media posts during the day
  • nearly 50% reported witnessing a political discussion turn into an argument
  • 29% say they’re less productive post election*

Let those stats sink in a bit.

The amount of stress and distractions accrued just from receiving a steady dose of news throughout the day can (and likely will) derail your entire workflow. Managers need to help their employees focus on work to keep productivity levels where they need to be. Encourage employees to keep political opinions to themselves to avoid any arguments.

3. Toxicity

Just about any workplace can become toxic, either in an instant (as noted above with politics) or over time. Constant drama, gossip, dysfunctional competition, and disrespect are just some of the signs of a toxic workplace. Such environments are often attributed to poor leadership. As Annie McKee, a company leadership advisor, writes in her book “How To Be Happy At Work,” such toxic conditions “result in fear, cynicism, lack of trust, anger and withholding of time, energy and talent, not to mention deep and pervasive unhappiness.” This doesn’t really set the groundwork for a productive office, does it? It’s essential that office managers recognize any and all elements that can cause a once-healthy workplace into a toxic one, then quickly provide solutions to the problems at hand.

4. Hunger

Consider this from Harvard Business Review: “Imagine a world where filling up at Mobil meant avoiding all traffic and using BP meant driving no faster than 20 miles an hour. Would you then be so cavalier about where you purchased your gas?” In context, the article suggests that fueling your body with food and getting gas for your car are not the same–what you eat impacts your productivity at work. As a manager, you should encourage employees to eat well so they can stay energized to complete their tasks. There are days, of course, when time just gets away from you. In these instances, it’s great to offer employees snack options. You can have wholesale snacks delivered right to your office, or go the more traditional route and get vending machines.

5. Not Planning

At the heart of being productive is having a plan. Coming into work on Monday morning without any vision for what needs to be accomplished that week will lead to a ‘reactive’ approach to work, where employees just respond to what’s being thrown at them. Not only should employees organize and plan their work week in advance, but they should have a plan ready for when they are inevitably interrupted throughout the day. New research shows that creating a plan for when you’re interrupted can help you easily get back on track and increase your productivity.

Questions about hotel pantry

10 Questions to Ask Before Signing Up for a Hotel Pantry Supplier

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As more and more hotels make the transition to using pantries instead of vending machines as a way to provide guests with snacks and other items, it’s becoming more clear that a strategic approach to managing the pantry is essential for its success. Without a good plan in place, hotel managers run the risk of wasting time and money. That’s why a reliable wholesale snack supplier is important.

Before signing up for a supply delivery service, you need to do proper research. The last thing you want is to jump into something only to realize it was a bad decision. Here are ten questions to ask your prospective pantry supply service before signing up for their program.

10 Questions to Ask Before Signing Up for a Hotel Pantry Delivery Service

1. How long does delivery take?

It’s be great to have a set schedule for deliveries of snacks and other supplies, but that’s just not feasible for hotels. There’s really no set standard for how many guests will stay each week. If a high school sports team stops by for the night and ransacks your pantry, will you have to wait a full week (or more) for your next delivery? A supplier that can deliver in 24-48 hours is ideal.

2. Do they use software to manage inventory?

Keeping track of sales and easily placing new orders on paper is time-consuming and the antithesis to proper pantry management. When choosing a supplier of wholesale goods for your pantry, make sure they offer an easy-to-use platform to place orders and track sales.

3. Does the software require integration with a property management system (PMS)?

The software doesn’t necessarily have to integrate into your PMS, but it should be flexible enough that it can if needed.

4. What is the extent of reporting?

A good pantry management service should be able to track all aspects of your pantry. At the property level, managers should be able to see total revenue, total cost, shrinkage, profitability, and item-level sales that show top-/least-selling products. For a national plan, corporate should have access to national, regional, and local drill-down analytics.

5. Can they provide a demo?

As with any software application, a demo provides optimal insight into the service and will show you how robust the service is.

6. How are orders billed?

Will it be monthly? Per order? Be sure to find out how the supplier will send you invoices for purchasing product.

7. What margins can they produce?

Your pantry is a source of extra revenue for your hotel, so you want to be sure you’re not just breaking even on the items you’re selling…or worse, losing money. A good pantry management service will be able to produce margins of up to 50%, depending on the item.

8. How do they reduce shrinkage?

Good pantry management software should allow managers to track inventory and shrinkage. This will give both the manager and the supplier the information they need to determine what steps should be taken to prevent shrinkage. Such steps could include security cameras or having staff more present in the area of where the pantry is located.

9. Does the supplier provide any market research?

A successful pantry is one that is managed using the latest information on trends and best practices. Ask the supplier what they can do to help make your pantry more successful. Find out if they provide expert merchandising and use planograms.

10. Ask for References

As always, find out what others think of the supplier’s services. Ask at least two or three customers so you can be confident in your decision to sign up with the supplier or not.

How to Make the Workplace More Fun & Engaging

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Employees having fun in the office

Let’s get one thing straight: work shouldn’t be a drag. Sure, employees are there to do a specific job and help the company succeed, but it shouldn’t be an accomplishment just to make into the office. After all, they spend most of their waking hours during the week at work, so why not make it a place that’s exciting? Or where employees look forward to going each day? It might sound counterproductive, but a fun workplace can actually increase productivity.

So if you’re looking for ways to add a little fun to your workplace, here are some ideas to get you started.

7 Ways to Make Your Office Fun

1. Make People Laugh

When’s the last time you laughed–really laughed–at work? Chances are it was a long time ago. Even the most serious of jobs need a little humor every now and then. Laughing has some great benefits. Try instituting a humor bulletin board where employees can pin cartoons or jokes for others to see.

2. Team Building Activities

A good manager can recognize when their team is just not, well, a team. One of the best ways to build a cohesive unit is through team building exercises. These activities foster positive relationships among your employees that lead to better employee relationships and an increase in productivity. Try a group lunch outside of the office, or an after-work activities like bowling or trivia.

3. Celebrate Birthdays

Who doesn’t like birthday parties? Depending on how large or small your office is, you can either celebrate individual birthdays, or have a party once a month to celebrate multiple birthdays at one time. You can even include a fun little game for everyone to play.

4. Decorate

Nobody likes to feel like they’re just another face in the crowd. Promoting individualism is great for morale. One way to do this is by allowing employees to decorate their workspace. Encourage them to get creative and to create a space that’s unique to their personality.

5. Create an Engaging Break Room

We’ve written about the benefits of an engaging break room before, and it’s always high on the list of what makes a workplace fun. Free snacks, comfy chairs, and a unique design encourage employees to mix and mingle, which further develops their work relationships with other employees.

6. Company Lunches

Depending on the size of your company, you can do weekly or monthly lunches for the whole office. This is a great way to get employees from various departments to sit down together and engage in conversations outside of work topics. It’s great for morale.

7. Host Contests

Some healthy competition is good for the soul. Whether it’s a raffle of sorts or a chili cook-off, a little contest from time to time spices things up for employees. Just be sure to take a quick survey to see which type of contests most people are interested in. Not everyone will like the same ones.

A Quick Guide to Buying Snacks for Your Office

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Employee Perks Snacks

One of the biggest challenges that companies big and small face is keeping employees happy. The change in dynamics of the workplace in recent years has potentially made it even more difficult, that change being what’s commonly referred to as perks. Companies are no longer fighting for customers, but for employees as well. In order to attract the best candidates, companies are raising the stakes by offering a multitude of perks such as:

  • Remote working schedules
  • Transportation reimbursement
  • On-site fitness centers

But one of the biggest perks is providing access to free beverages and snacks. As noted in this Time article, 10% of employees are more likely to be happy with their employers when free snacks are offered. And, perhaps to no surprise, access to free food in the office is most important to millennials. As they are now the largest group in the workforce, passing Generation-Xers, office managers should take heed in these statistics to help attract (and keep) the best employees for your business.

Providing snacks to help employees get through the workday is quickly becoming standard practice, so where do you begin?

Different Ways to Purchase Snacks

There are different ways to get snacks for your office. How your business operates, and the time and money available, will largely determine what approach you take to providing free snacks for employees. Here are three options:

Vending Machines

Vending machines are the old school way of providing snacks and beverages for employees. Even though most vending machines require payment for items, you can avoid this by purchasing the equipment and maintaining it yourself, or subsidizing the items and have a vending company service the machines.

Grocery Shopping

Some offices have a designated employee that will go grocery shopping for everyone. This person will go to a local grocery store as often as necessary to get the items requested. Wholesalers like Costco and Sam’s Club are good for this strategy because you can buy product in bulk and save money.

These two options might work well for certain offices, but they aren’t without one major shortcoming: they’re time-consuming. It takes at least a couple of hours to go grocery shopping, and vending machines can be a hassle to manager on your own.

That’s where the third option comes in.

Snack Delivery Service

Many companies are finding office coffee and refreshment services as the answer to providing snacks. With this option, you have access to a full range of snacks, beverages, and coffee products that can be delivered right to your office.

Which Approach to Offering Free Snacks is Right For Your Office?

There are some important questions to ask before making a final decision about how your company will go about providing beverages and snacks for your employees.

  • What is your budget?
  • How much time can you allot to ordering snacks?
  • What kind of items do your employees want?

The cost of getting product delivered to your location varies and will largely depend on how many employees are in your office, and the time it takes to get all the items and put them on the shelves or in the cabinets needs to be considered. You’ll want to take a survey from your employees and see what kind of drinks and snacks they like. The answers to these questions will guide you towards a final decision.

Just Be Sure To Avoid These Mistakes

Mistake # 1: Choosing a service that delivers in bulk.

Some services can provide all the items you want, but can only deliver in large quantities. Unless you have the space to store all the extra product, this approach can be cumbersome. It could also lead to expired products if employees aren’t going through them fast enough.

Mistake # 2: Not keeping track of your orders.

When signing up for an office coffee or snack delivery service, you want an easy way to keep records of everything you purchased. This makes it easy for accounting to process invoices, and for insights into what type of products your employees prefer. A platform like Supply Wizards provides an easy way to order and track your purchases.

Where to From Here?

You should have a pretty good idea of what direction your office wants to take when it comes to providing snacks and beverages for employees. Each one is a good choice if it works for your office. Whichever path you choose, just be sure that it benefits employees and the business altogether.

5 Simple Tips to Make Your Company Break Room More Engaging

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Google’s doing it. Facebook’s doing it. Your competitors are doing it. Everyone’s doing it: creating a company break room that resembles more of a lounge or coffee shop than a, well, break room. While you might scoff at the idea at first and think, “employees are here to work, not relax or play,” you’d be remiss not to consider the benefits of a well-designed break room:

  • Increased productivity
  • Impressing clients
  • Boosting morale
  • Promoting socialization among employees

Wait…what? How does a break room that encourages socializing lead to a more productive workplace?

Glad you asked. See, it’s all about engagement. The more engaged your employees are, the more productive they tend to be. And, according to Gallup’s State of the American Workplace, a whopping 70% of workers are disengaged. Not good.

What is good, however, is that there are ways to improve engagement among your employees…your break room being one of them. So here are some quick tips to help your create a break room that your employees will love.

5 Ways to Create a More Engaging Company Break Room

1. Free Snacks & Coffee

While this might seem like a costly endeavor, it’s really an investment. Employees will feel more valued and develop a stronger connection with your organization. This connection leads to better engagement, and better engagement leads to higher productivity. Companies are increasingly embracing the pantry system, wherein they can order wholesale snacks and supplies and have them delivered to their office then keep them stocked in their own break rooms.

2. Games & Entertainment

Sometimes you just need to let out a little stress. What better way than a quick game of ping-pong with a colleague, or getting lost for a few minutes in a video game. New research shows that such activities can actually improve productivity while helping relieve stress. Plus, it can build a sense of camaraderie among employees, fostering stronger work relationships.

3. Stimulating Decor

Those big tech companies probably spent a lot of money on their break room design. We’re not saying that’s what needs to be done, but how the room is designed does play an important role in how effective it is in keeping employees engaged. Here are a few simple ways to achieve this:

  • Natural elements (plants, trees, etc.)
  • Different color wall paint
  • Stimulating artwork

The break room needs to have a different feel to it than the rest of the office so employees get the sense they’re getting away from work for a few minutes and actually taking a break.

4. Comfortable Seating

While all these elements work together in harmony, comfortable seating is perhaps the key ingredient. Invest in some comfy, plush seating. None of that hard plastic or wooden stuff. A chair that envelops you in it’s plushy goodness like a venus fly trap made of pillows is what you’re after.

5. Books & Magazines

Good ones. Not the stuff you see at your dentist’s office that people flip through only to find the sample strip of the latest Gucci fragrance. (Except for maybe Highlights.) Take a survey and see what people like…what their interests are. Encourage everyone to bring in the latest book they finished to share. While there won’t be time to start and finish a novel in one sitting, even just reading for a few minutes can help lower stress, which is what your employees need from time to time.

 

 

 

How to Gain Customer Loyalty for Your Hotel

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The success of a hotel is largely dependent on customer loyalty. With an overwhelming abundance of choices, travelers can easily go elsewhere if their experience at a hotel was ‘meh’…or worse, just plain bad. New technology, trends, and services like AirBnB have set the bar pretty high for convenience and guest experience. So what’s a hotel manager to do? Here are some tips to help gain customer loyalty for your hotel.

Focus on Guest Experience

This doesn’t just mean more smiles and better customer service. You need to think about the guest’s journey in its entirety–from booking to returning home. Make sure it’s easy for guests to book their stay. Once they do, stay in touch with them. Send follow up emails about their upcoming trip and provide relevant information, such as food and entertainment suggestions. Offering a simple survey during the booking process can help. For example, find out what the reason for their visit will be, business or pleasure. This can help you provide information that’s specific to their needs.

Incentives

For guests to be loyal to your brand, they need a reason to be loyal. After all, consumers always want to know what’s in it for them. A few ideas to keep them coming back (or booking direct) include:

  • Complimentary room upgrade
  • Complimentary tickets to nearby attractions
  • Flexible check-in times

Give them a reason to come back, and they will.

Add a Personal Touch

If you haven’t been relying on data from your guests, then it’s certainly time. Information is an important factor in providing guests with the sort of personalized experience many consumers now want. Keep information on hand from guests, so when they do return, you will know what they’re looking for when they stay at your hotel. This provides guests with the feeling that your entire operation is there just for them.

Ask for Feedback

A survey is the best way to get feedback. But we’re not talking about writing down random questions and mailing them out, then waiting for people to respond. Remember: this is the age of big data. You need to reach the right people at the right time with the right questions. How do you do that? Research. According to this research, 35% of guests prefer to fill out a survey within a few days after their stay. And of those people, 59% are female and 41% are male. See where this is going? Get the right information from guests and take action to make the necessary improvements.

 

 

 

 

Healthy Items to Keep in Your Hotel Pantry

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Hotel Pantry Installation

People are eating healthier these days, and not just because it’s the new year. According to this study, people from all over the world have become more conscious about their eating habits, trying to make better and healthier choices with their food. Here are some key facts from the research:

  • 49% of people who participated in the study believe they’re overweight, and 50% are trying to lose weight
  • people are more likely than ever to seek fresh, natural, or minimally processed foods
  • millennials are more likely to pay higher prices for healthier foods
  • healthy categories are growing faster than indulgent ones

This is not to say people have stopped eating sweet and salty snacks like chips and candy bars all together. But it’s a trend that the food and beverage industry has noticed and will have to take into account to keep up with consumer demands.

So what does it have to do with your hotel? It’s important to take note of these trends when purchasing wholesale snacks for your hotel pantry. As a manager, your focus is always on accommodating guests. So if they want healthier choices from the pantry, give them some.

10 Items to Stock in Your Hotel Pantry for Health-Conscious Guests

1. Hormel Chili Cups

The meat in chili is a good source of protein, and the beans provide iron. Combined with low carbs, this is a great alternative meal for guests.

2. Tuna Kit

Tuna fish, in addition to being high in protein, contains several essential vitamins and minerals to keep guests going.

3. Lean Cuisines

Lean Cuisine is great for those trying to keep calories to a minimum.

4. Oatmeal

Oatmeal is another great food that provides plenty of essential vitamins and minerals, including fiber.

5. Granola Bars

A great alternative to a candy bar, granola bars like those from Nature Valley provide a good source of fiber and protein.

6. Nuts

One of the best heart-healthy snacks, nuts are high in protein and provide unsaturated fats.

7. Fig Newtons

Fig Newtons contain real fruit and are high in fiber.

8. Pretzels

For guests in the mood for some chips but don’t want the fat content they come with, offer them some pretzels. They’re low in fat and tasty!

9. Baked Lay’s Chips

But if you do provide chips, include the line of Baked Lay’s from Frito Lay. They have up to 80% less fat than regular potato chips.

10. Dole Fruit Cups

Dole fruit cups are low in calories and contain less sugar than traditional fruit cups.

Guests recognize that they won’t have access to all the fresh foods available to them in their own homes, but these items make it easier for them to keep up with their health and fitness goals while traveling.

3 Hotel Pantry Merchandising Tips for More Sales

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items in hotel pantry

Ask any retail professional and they’ll tell you that visual merchandising is one of the most important elements to selling products. The same holds true for your hotel pantry. Even though it’s not a full-sized grocery store, you’d be remiss not to approach its design and management strategically. After all, your pantry isn’t there simply to take up space. It’s a convenience for guests and an opportunity to generate more revenue for your hotel. That said, here are three best practices to help you organize your pantry so guests find it inviting and useful.

3 Merchandising Tips for Your Hotel Pantry

1. First Impressions

Every hotel has its own brand and character, and this should be reflected in the pantry as well. Some hotels might have to follow corporate guidelines with how their pantry is designed, but either way it should be visually appealing and compliment the design of the hotel to help draw in guests. Essentially, you want to make a stunning first impression for guests once they step into the lobby, so be sure the pantry has the same appeal.

2. Shelf Placement

When it comes to stocking the shelves, it’s important not to make guests have to search for items. Organize them logically–group products by type. For example, don’t scatter candy among potato chips, or sundry items among fresh fruit. Guests, particularly business travelers, are often in a hurry. Make it easy for them to find what they want.

High-impulse products should sit at eye level to maximize customer reach. Many hotel guests aren’t there for the pantry, but having items they would purchase off a whim can generate more sales. Generic products that would most likely be sought out and purchased regardless of placement should be stocked on bottom shelves.

3. Fresh Food

Because of the short shelf-life of fruits and vegetables, the proper merchandising of fresh food in your pantry is important. They need to be as visible as possible so guests will purchase them. Take advantage of the various colors of these items and place them together in a visually appealing way. For example, alternate green-colored items with reds, yellows, or oranges.

10 Delicious Frozen Meals to Offer in Your Hotel Pantry

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After a long day of traveling, hotel guests are often tired and hungry. Sometimes just the thought of going out somewhere to find a simple meal can be a drag. That’s where the advantage of a hotel pantry comes into play. No longer do they have to search for a place to grab a quick dinner if they’re exhausted–it’s waiting for them in the lobby! Guests can now get tasty and nutritional meals without leaving the premises.

If your hotel recently had a pantry installed and you find yourself overwhelmed with the plethora of wholesale snacks to choose from, we’ve put together a list of some of the more popular meals you can offer your bleary-eyed guests to help you out. Consider choosing any (or all) of these to put in your pantry.

10 Frozen Meals to Stock in Your Hotel Pantry

1. Lean Cuisine Swedish Meatballs

One of Lean Cuisine’s most popular dishes, the Swedish Meatballs should be a staple of your pantry. Nutrition facts: 290 calories, 6g fat, 610mg sodium, 44g carbs, 16g protein.

2. Lean Cuisine Alfredo Pasta with Chicken and Broccoli

Creamy Alfredo sauce, tender chicken and broccoli…guests can bring the Italian restaurant to their room. Nutrition facts: 280 calories, 4g fat, 600mg sodium, 45g carbs, 17g protein.

3. Lean Cuisine Roasted Turkey & Vegetables

Turkey and vegetables in gravy is comfort food at its best. You can’t go wrong with having this classic in your pantry. Nutrition facts: 190 calories, 6g fat, 580mg sodium, 18g carbs, 15g protein.

4. Digiorno Personal Four Cheese Pizza

Guests could order pizza, but why would they if Digiorno available right downstairs? Nutrition facts: 300 calories, 17g fat, 440g sodium, 26g carbs, 11g protein.

5. Red Baron Pepperoni Pizza

Another tasty pizza option is Red Baron. Guests love their pepperoni pizza. Nutrition facts: 560 calories, 20g fat, 44g carbs, 19g protein.

6. Stouffer’s Chicken in BBQ Sauce

Stouffer’s is among the best for frozen meals, and their chicken in barbecue sauce does not disappoint. Nutrition facts: 430 calories, 19g fat, 1120mg sodium, 42g carbs, 23g protein.

7. Stouffer’s Macaroni and Cheese

What would your hotel pantry be without this classic? It’s always a guest favorite. Nutrition facts: 340 calories, 16g fat, 820mg sodium, 33g carbs, 15g protein.

8. Stouffer’s Chicken a la King

This delicious blend of tender chicken, rice, and vegetables is sure to satisfy your guests’ hunger. Nutrition facts: 360 calories, 12g fat, 800mg sodium, 44g carbs, 18g protein.

9. Hot Pockets Chicken Melt with Bacon

The Chicken, bacon, and cheddar cheese melt from Hot Pockets is a great seller for any hotel pantry. Nutrition facts: 300 calories, 11g fat, 610mg sodium, 36g carbs, 12g protein.

10. Hot Pockets Pepperoni Pizza

When guests are on the fly, the Pepperoni Pizza option from Hot Pockets is always a good choice. Nutrition facts: 360 calories, 17g fat, 630mg sodium, 44g carbs, 10g protein.

 

What Millennials Seek in Their Hotel Experience

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The sheer mention of millennials conjures up images of young adults walking around with their faces glued to their phones, seemingly oblivious to the world around them. While it might give some reason to laugh, hotel managers would be remiss not to include them in their strategies for improving the guest experience. Why? Because facts:

So what exactly does a millennial look for in a hotel experience? Two things: convenience and personalized experience. What that means varies depending on where they are in the lifecycle of their trip.

Booking

Millennials have a different approach to shopping, and it almost always begins with their phone. That means your hotel’s website needs to be able to catch their attention. Quickly. Your website has to be optimized for this type of search and easy to navigate. Information about pricing, local attractions, and even maps or guides should be readily available. It’s inconvenient to have to search three different websites for all of this information. Provide it all in one place. It will keep them engaged and–as millennials are more likely to book a trip on impulse–more likely to book a room.

Arrival

Every guest should feel like the hotel has been anxiously awaiting their arrival. This goes beyond just millennials, but their desire for personalized experiences accentuate this element. Personalization in this context is about establishing a relationship, a real connection with your hotel. While this ultimately begins during the booking stage, it’s essential to flawlessly transition from a digital touchpoint to a human one.

Everyone on your staff, from valet to bellman to front desk personnel, should work together as a team to provide this connection. And it starts with communication. The valet attendant should get the name of the guest and give it to the bellman, who then provides the name to the front desk. By the time the guest checks in, everyone knows their name and they’ve only told one person.

Stay

Millennials rely on various modes of technology to get through their day, be it for work or pleasure. That carries over into what they want from their hotel experience. With mobile technology so prevalent among this group, it would behoove your hotel to invest in offering guests a way to access hotel amenities. Make as much as possible accessible through mobile technology. Room service should be a click away, not a phone call where they’re put on hold.

Food options should also be convenient, which is why many hotels have embraced pantries in their lobbies to offer guests a quick snack or items like toothbrushes or iPhone chargers that guests could’ve easily left at home. Remember, convenience is key.

Departure

Once a guest leaves the hotel doesn’t mean the relationship is over. In fact, it’s just beginning. If you want them to come back, or book a room with another hotel in your brand, it’s imperative to stay in touch. Emails and social media are great ways to engage the millennial audience. You might think it’s too intrusive, but millennials expect it. If you fail to continue the relationship, you could loose them as a future guest.

5 Questions to Ask When Installing a Hotel Pantry

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Questions about hotel pantry

As consumer trends shift towards providing as much convenience for customers as possible, many hotel brands are embracing the pantry as a way to provide guests with food, beverages, and other items they may need during their stay. If you’re considering having a pantry installed, here are five key questions to ask before you do.

1. Who will install the cabinetry and shelves?

One of the benefits of installing a hotel pantry is providing a display that’s appealing to guests. Dark mahogany shelving and sleek countertops help create a mood for your lobby area. When considering a pantry, you’ll need to decide who will install these displays. There are companies who focus on this type of cabinetry, such as Enterprise Displays. Sometimes local vending companies have their own system for installing markets, so if you’re already using vending services you can ask that supplier. Just be sure to choose a display that fits with your overall interior design goals.

2. How will you get supplies?

There are different ways to get wholesale products for a pantry. Some managers will buy the items themselves from local stores like Costco or Sam’s Club. While most products can be purchased from those stores, it’s not the most efficient way to get the items you need. There are providers of wholesale goods that will deliver to your location, but the downside is that they’re not local, so it can take several days or more before the product is delivered. A service like Supply Wizards uses a network of preferred full-line operators who can deliver items in 1-2 days, in addition to providing a software platform for ordering and managing inventory.

3. What kind of supplies should you offer guests?

Another main benefit of a pantry is that it allows your hotel to offer more products. With vending machines, you’re limited to certain items because of the design of the equipment. But with a pantry, you fit items large and small on a shelf. Now that you have more room, what do you sell? We suggest choosing products in these core categories:

  • Beverages
  • Snacks
  • Meals
  • Frozen snacks
  • Sundries

Take a quick survey of what items were most popular in your vending machines and expand from there, adding products like ice cream, mac-n-cheese, and soups. For sundry products, think about what someone might need while staying at your hotel: a toothbrush, OTC medicines, razor blades, and phone chargers. These are all items they could’ve left at home by mistake.

4. Who will manage the pantry?

As a hotel manager, you’ll most likely be ultimately responsible for the overall pantry operation. But unless you’re there 24/7, you’ll need to designate other staff members to help manage the pantry. That includes purchasing products, checking inventory, and checking out guests. Like many other aspects of managing a hotel, the pantry will be a team effort. How well each member does their part will affect the success of the pantry.

5. What will your budget be?

Establishing a budget is a big concern for many managers. How much should you spend on shelving and cabinets? On snacks? Beverages? Sundries? It can be overwhelming to prepare for installing a pantry. For products, you can let the sales dictate how much you spend. See how they go for the first month. Once you have an idea of what sells (or doesn’t), adjust your purchasing accordingly. Keep in mind that empty shelves are unsightly to guests, so be sure to always keep them full with product.

With the hardware, it’s important to keep quality in mind. The last thing you want are shelves or cabinets that fall apart after a short time. While it might seem expensive at first, a properly managed hotel pantry can yield excellent returns, with earnings of $2k per month or more for some hotels! Eventually, the sales from your pantry will help pay for itself…and some.

 

 

Why Your Hotel Pantry Should Be A Priority

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make managing hotel pantry a priority

Of the many challenges hotel managers face, one of the most difficult tasks is keeping up with the ever-changing expectations of guests. Instant gratification is (and has been) in high demand across all industries. Consumers want what they want when they want it, and services like Uber, Amazon Prime, and others have set the bar pretty high.

Hotel guests are no different.

In fact, a recent study shows that 61% of business travelers want free WiFi access. In other words, they don’t just want access to information…they want it now!

How does this translate to hotel pantry management?

In two ways: convenience and profits.

Convenience

While vending machines are still a viable option for many locations, your hotel pantry provides these bleary eyed travelers with more variety and ultimate convenience. Think about it, how many times have you had money stolen from you by a vending machine? A pantry eliminates that hassle. After traveling all day and (sometimes) being away from family, guests can simply walk into the market, pick an item or two, and pay for it just as they would in a convenience store. This added convenience leads to more sales.

Profits

A hotel pantry can be an excellent source of revenue, but it has to be managed well. It has to be a priority. That means pricing items effectively, merchandising, and keeping the pantry well-stocked and clean. An attractive pantry filled with guests’ favorite snacks and treats will influence impulse purchases, which will lead to higher profits.

4 Tips to Help Reduce Theft from Your Hotel Pantry

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Preventing theft from hotel pantry

One aspect of managing a hotel pantry that initially gets overlooked is theft. Shrinkage from your pantry is unavoidable, whether it’s due to stealing or reduced prices for employees. So it’s important to take the proper measures to prevent guests and employees from stealing or abusing the pantry. Here are four tips to help reduce theft from your pantry.

1. Surveillance Cameras

Some suppliers will have security cameras installed to monitor the pantry. If you don’t work with a supplier that can install cameras, we suggest investing in them. While it might seem like another expense, the money you make (and save) from the pantry will quickly cover the costs.

2. Maintain Physical Presence

Managing a hotel can be like juggling  glass bottles while running full speed across a balance beam. It gets hectic. But being able to maintain a physical presence near and around your pantry as much as possible will help deter would-be thieves.

3. Inventory Monitoring System

Knowing is half the battle. Without having a firm understanding of what your pantry inventory looks like at any given time, it’s much more difficult to keep up with shrinkage. Having a solid pantry management system to keep track of inventory that you have can help reduce theft and shrinkage. If you know certain items are likely to disappear, you can limit the amount of product you put on the shelves.

4. Monitor Employee Use

It’s well-known in loss prevention circles that employees steal more than customers. Knowing this, it’s incumbent on managers to make sure employees understand that the pantry is–first and foremost–a convenience for guests. It’s not a break room. Some managers choose to not let employees use the pantry at all, while others decide to let them purchase items at a reduced price. Whatever your approach, stick to it and monitor employee use of the pantry.

How to Set Pricing for Items in Your Hotel Pantry

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Hotel pantry pricingOne of the most difficult aspects of managing a hotel pantry is determining the prices for the items. It’s an exciting yet challenging element to successful market management. Price the products too low and you run the risk of losing money. Price them too high and you might scare off guests from purchasing anything, which also leads to losing money.

If you’re in this predicament, don’t worry: you’re not alone. Many hotel managers struggle with pricing products in their pantry, because–after all–they’re hotel managers, not retail professionals. So what do you do?

Ultimately, it comes down to perspective. It’s essential that you view the pantry as a both a convenience for guests and a way for your hotel to make an extra profit. Why put in all the time and effort in managing the pantry if you don’t stand to benefit from it?

Determine Your Profit Margin

Before you price an item, you need to understand two important factors: your guests and the labor involved.

If you’re charging $300/per night, your guests won’t be as price-conscious as guests of a low-budget hotel where rooms go for $59/night. Likewise, if you’re managing an economy hotel, guests will be less likely to buy items that are marked up 50% or more.

Once you understand your guests’ pricing expectations, think about the labor you put into managing your market. Even when using a hotel pantry management program like Supply Wizards, there’s still work involved like stocking the shelves and keeping it clean and organized. You should earn revenue from that work.

Use a Pricing Formula

Now that you know what your profit margin will be, you can use this simple formula to determine the price:

Price = [(Cost of item) ÷ (100 – Markup Percentage)] x 100

So for example, let’s say you wanted to price a candy bar that costs you $1.00 at a 40% markup. Here’s how you would calculate it:

Retail Price = [(1.00) ÷ (100 – 40)] x 100

Retail Price = [(1.00 ÷ 60)] x 100 = $1.67

It might seem like a lot to manage a hotel pantry. To a certain extent, it is. But with the right understanding and perspective, the market can be a great amenity for your hotel. Guests like the convenience of them, resulting in more sales and extra profit for you.

3 Reasons Why Your Hotel Pantry Benefits From Brand Name Items

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Use brand names for your hotel pantry

Successful hotel pantry management depends on a lot of elements. Among the most important is providing brand name items for guests. Even though it’s tempting to buy generic products to save some money up front, you stand to make more money by using branded items. Below are three reasons why.

3 Reasons to use Brand Name Products in Your Hotel Pantry

1. Brand Recognition

When someone gets a desire for a certain product, whether it be an ice-cold, fizzy soda or a particular type of snack, they’re not thinking of just any old soft drink or bag of chips. They want their favorite. And when they see the logo or uniquely shaped package on the shelf, there’s a good chance they’ll make a purchase. This is called brand recognition.

So, what does this have to do with your hotel pantry?

Let’s say a guest named John just arrived at your hotel. He’s been traveling all day. He’s probably tired and just wants to relax while watching some television for a little bit, then he realizes he wants a soda and a snack.

He remembers passing by the pantry near the lobby and saw the bottles of Coke in the cooler and the Doritos on the shelf–his favorite. There’s a good chance he’ll go purchase those items not just because they’re his favorite, but also because he knows what he’ll get.

Do you think the same would happen with generic, store-brand items?

Probably not. That’s the power and effectiveness of brand recognition. Fill your pantry with recognizable brands and guests will flock to it, increasing the revenue from your pantry.

2. Consumer Trust

The big brand names you see in any market have a huge following. Think about it: Apple, Nike, Delta…whatever the market, those big brands have a huge customer base and loyal following. This doesn’t happen on accident.

Those companies spend an enormous amount of time and money on ensuring they provide the best product or service they can offer. Apple’s products deliver on user experience. Nike’s apparel is always comfortable. Delta’s service is top-notch. As a result, customers keep coming back. Why? Because they’ve come to trust these products and services.

The same holds true for choosing the items to sell in your hotel pantry.

While it’s important to save money in whatever way possible, your pantry will be more successful if you offer products that guests know and trust. If your pantry is full of store brand items, guests might not necessarily know what they’re getting for their money. This inevitably results in expired products as they sit on the shelves for too long. Give them what they know and like.

3. Customer Loyalty

Loyal customers will continuously purchase products from their favorite brands regardless of convenience or price. This is great news for your hotel pantry, because branded items allow you to set higher pricing, which can then increase your profit margin from the items sold.

So instead of buying a generic item for $1.00 each and selling them for $1.25, you can pay $1.50 per item and sell it for $2.00.

This doesn’t mean you should set pricing too high (there’s always a limit). But the goal then becomes setting the prices for items sold in your hotel pantry at the highest possible price that customers will pay for them. It works out for both the consumer, who gets what they want, and your hotel, which makes a nice profit.