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At PayPal, we talk with thousands of café owners like you every year. Your creativity and ability to sell smart never ceases to amaze us. Here are some cool sales tips we’ve picked up over the years.
Always lead from the front. Put your most popular baked treats front and centre, ideally piping hot and fresh from the oven.
To sweeten the pot, use attractive bakery display ideas like food display risers, tiered stands and soft, inviting bakery lighting to draw the eye towards your tasty treats. Keep your display cases spotless too, as cleanliness provides a reassuring sense of quality and consistency.
You can also increase sales organically by pairing complementary items that might often be bought together. For example, place blueberry muffins near tea bags and gluten-free slices next to oat lattes. This may encourage thoughtful add-ons in a way that doesn’t feel contrived.
The icing on the cake, however, is the aroma. Using the smell of freshly baked cakes to draw in customers is a classic sensory marketing tactic that may increase appetites and boost sales.
For most cafés and restaurants, cold beverages are high-margin items on the menu.
So, when someone orders water with their meal: consider asking if they prefer still or sparkling to influence their purchase.
During Christmas rush hours, set up a temporary stall outside your café and sell mulled wine, coffee, and other warm treats on the go. This strategy can not only help you increase your sales but also make a good impression and tempt people to come inside. Put on some Christmas tunes and you’re good to go!
Customers like to feel special and be rewarded for their loyalty. Hand out loyalty cards and give every seventh coffee for free. A small price to pay for gaining a repeat customer.
Loyal customers are your great asset. Loyalty cards and rewards boost customer retention may set you apart from the local café competition and increase sales naturally through repeat visits.
Building loyalty goes far beyond offering the occasional free drink. Offer cashback, unique discounts, member-only deals, exclusive access to new menu items and birthday freebies to make customers feel like beloved individuals. Personalised, meaningful rewards will keep customers coming back again and again.
How can you expect your customers to pay £4 for a brownie when they don’t know how heavenly it tastes? Offer them a little nibble and there’s a good chance they’ll be hooked.
Assemble pre-made packs for customers on the go. Breakfast and lunch packages can include a drink, dish, something sweet, and some bread.
Serve daily specials. Larger quantities can mean lower costs and higher margins. At the same time, you’ll have an ever-changing menu that attracts locals again and again.
Instead of blind upselling, engage customers with a conversation. For example, ask them if they’re ‘looking for something sweet or savoury today?’. Asking questions lets you make personalised recommendations, which may boost average order value, customer satisfaction and fosters long-term customer loyalty.
This conversational selling technique can feel authentic, build connections and uncover customer preferences, unlocking pressure-free upselling opportunities in the process.
Keep your menu simple. It’s easy to overwhelm customers if you offer them too many choices, and it can lead to fewer sales. You don’t have to offer your guests 10 different green teas. Identify the items you sell the most and focus on them, then get rid of the ones that are less popular.
And obviously—if you don’t already—make sure you accept card payments.
The PayPal POS system is a comprehensive solution that lets you manage payments, inventory and reports from a single platform. Accept debit, credit, contactless, tap to pay2 (requires an eligible Apple iOS or Android device), and more using a PayPal card reader or terminal. The convenient, fast and flexible nature of the system with security features can help to reduce cart abandonment and streamline workflows.