Bar tabs, a classic hospitality practice, can be a powerful tool to increase customer spending. Bar tabs can significantly impact your bar or restaurant’s revenue by offering convenience and fostering a sense of community.

If your venue offers a bar tab service, it can reduce friction in the ordering process. Customers can receive faster service, allowing servers to input drinks and food quickly, reducing wait times and improving customer satisfaction.

Customers who don’t have to reach for their wallets or cards regularly are more likely to make impulse purchases. Establishments that allow for tabs will increase customer spending. Phil Dixon, a previous advisor to the BII, was adamant that “If you want to increase spend, you must retain cards.” Paul Eagles, previous Head of Risk Policy and Strategy at VISA confirmed this statement: “When using cards, people spend at least 35% more.”

Bar tabs let staff know their regular customers’ preferences, leading to more personalised service and stronger customer relationships. They can also provide valuable customer preferences, spending habits, and peak hours data. How do operators best protect themselves with increasing dine and dash incidents plaguing operators and hospitality venues? Keeping customers’ bank cards while running a tab removes the temptation to ‘dash’. Securely holding bank cards allows you to check the card’s validity and offers very little chance of customers being tempted to walk out without paying if their card is securely stored behind the bar.

By understanding the psychology behind customer behaviour and leveraging the power of bar tabs, you can create a more engaging and profitable bar or restaurant experience.

CardsSafe is the most secure way to keep food and drink tabs and reassure customers that you take their card safety seriously. CardsSafe is a cost-effective technology designed to retain customer bank cards while they run a tab securely. With CardsSafe, venues can upsell, reassuring customers that their cards are held responsibly, improving customer service and protecting assets. As a result, hospitality managers can maximise profit, increase spending, and reduce losses.

For more information, visit www.cardssafe.com