Menu Engineering: The Secret to Maximum Profitability

Not all menu items are created equal, nor do they contribute the same profit to the bottom line. Some dishes are more popular and increase revenue, while others carry a smaller margin or might not be ordered as often. It is important to understand not only the profitability of each item per serving but also its overall contribution according to the total servings sold. Fortunately, you can use data to predict what customers will order, and with a properly engineered menu, you can migrate customers to more profitable items - increasing margins by 8-12 percent, according to Craftable research

Customer Behavior and Menu EngineeringCustomers' purchasing behavior is most often influenced by their visual attention to a menu item. Craftable studies show that approximately 80 percent of what they order is only about 20 percent of the category it is in, mostly driven by the design and layout. To take advantage of everything a menu has to offer, operators can use menu engineering, a…