With your comment about the nice Italian place 20 yds away what I would say is they don't get that you are sending them business. They think the customers walked by, saw the place and came in.
Have you tried this: you make the call to make the reservation. (If they don't take reservations, say you are calling from Camberley to find out if there is a waiting time.) Or, hand your guests a biz card to give to the person who does the seating. If every time someone came from you to them they handed over a biz card, after a few weeks you pop in and ask how's business and have your guests been stopping in, do they know?
If they say, 'Yes, and what are we to do with the bloody biz cards???' then you know they don't want your referrals! If they thank you, then ask if there is a way you could send even more guests their way? Maybe something 'exclusive' just for your guests? A free app? You could even suggest the cheapest app they have on the menu. How about the bruscetta? Could they give that to YOUR guests who show up with your biz card or a special 'Exclusive for Camberley guests bruscetta plate' card?
I have had zero luck working with local businesses on my own. Even when I have met the mgr and have been told, 'Yes, we'll get some exclusive coupons to you for your guests,' I've never seen the mgr again.
I know my guests are telling servers they are staying with me because some of the guests have come back and told me they got a discount at certain places just by saying they were staying with me. It's not a total loss in that regard, but it would be nice if there was a way to track these things a little better.
There are a couple of places that let me buy tickets at a discount which I can pass thru to the guest or charge the guest less than full price but still make a few bucks..
what makes me loony is we fricking know the OWNER!!!! my parents live on their street and I babysat their kids from before they were born (ie babysat the eldest while youngest was born)!!! what makes my crazy is their head chef was whinging in the paper only last week that this happened -
the chair woman of accommodation harrogate is a friend of mine and she was quoted the week before as saying it was nice a particular restaurant was opening. ie can we have a quote about the new restaurant "yes its lovely a new and internesting restaurant" and it is good as the property had a huge fire and looked awful.
He was going blah blah half the restaurants are half empty and we don't need more and she should get real etc.
Nope you should actually do some marketing duh!!! We have put our hand out repeatedly and simply get it slapped back every time can't be bothered with people like that. Ive been sent good business from Joe Rigatonis further away but also excellent and they co-operate with me so I'll send them there its that simple.
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