CenterEdge Software Blog

Hit guest experience out of the park with these tips.

Last Sunday, many of our CenterEdge team members and their families came together for the first company-wide outing in over two years.

One of our most cherished regular events prior to COVID was attending a Durham Bulls minor league baseball game for some food, fun, and togetherness.

Our event was packed and, as it was Father's Day, our goal was to make our CenterEdge dads - and all of our team members and families, feel special. 

The staff and teams at the Durham Bulls game hit a home run for us. Today, we're sharing five guest experience moments that we think are a real catch. (We'll stop with the puns soon, promise.)

It's time to make it clear that everyone is in sales - and operations - on a thriving team.

How many times have you heard about "those crazy salespeople" or "those grumpy operations folks?" If you're a business owner, you've probably heard these cross-departmental complaints more often than you care to. 

Operations teams can sometimes feel like sales "overpromises," making it extremely difficult for banquet or events staff to deliver what was sold.

In turn, sales teams often complain that their operations teammates don't "go the extra mile" or misstep on what was expected. 

These friction points are common to nearly every business in every industry, so today, we're expanding on the tips we discussed in the most popular CenterEdge article to date. 

User-generated content can create brand awareness, build trust, and help you engage with your audience - with less of the heavy lifting.  

Family entertainment businesses have no shortage of opportunities for social media gold. But many marketers often feel at a loss for what to post and when.

Some of the beauty of this type of marketing is that it's more accessible than ever before. While some content should be polished and professional, other posts can and should be organic and edgy.

Photo and video content often increases your reach and generates more engagement than other types. But before you groan that you'll have to coerce one of your team members to be the "talking head" in your next video series, don't forget about the untapped potential of user-generated content (UGC). Today, we're sharing seven tips to help you encourage your guests to create and share pictures and videos. 

You could be doing more damage than you realize: from what you let slide to the promises you break. 

Managing others is no easy feat, and it can sometimes feel like a thankless job. You're under a lot of pressure to keep everything running smoothly - but you're not alone.

When you're feeling stressed, overworked, and frustrated, it can be easy to slip into a few bad leadership habits that can damage your team's morale and, ultimately, their performance. And the sad fact is, many of us have slipped into those habits more often than we'd care to admit.

But the costs of negative leadership traits and damaging behaviors can be too high to ignore. Read on for five ways you (or your managers) could be hurting your business - and what to do about them.

"Sweat the details. Pay attention to them. If you don't, your competitors will."  - Chef 

Last week I attended the spring graduation ceremony at the Culinary Institute of America in St. Helena, California. One of the Chef Professors, Chef Thomas Wong, doled out advice to the class to help them succeed in the competitive restaurant and hospitality industry. 
 
He reminded the graduating class that talent doesn't guarantee success, and that great preparation trumps raw talent any day of the week. In his words, "Success is in the details. Sweat the details. Pay attention to them, because if you don't...your competitor will." So true. 
 
The need to focus on the details is not limited to food preparation, and it's something FEC operators often share that they struggle with. That said, it is possible to train for attention to detail. Read on for six tips to help you teach this often-overlooked skill to your team. 

Stories provide context, model desired behaviors, connect staff to your values, and so much more.   

I had the extreme pleasure of chatting with Eddie Hamann, Managing Partner of Andretti Karting and Games in Orlando during the most recent Experience Academy event earlier this year.

During one lunch, Eddie shared with our group some of the work that the Andretti's team has been doing locally and abroad. They believe in giving back at least 10% of what they earn and do this in various ways. They build churches, give donations, help team members in need, and,  through their #CheckIt4Andretti Foundation, they work to provide awareness of the importance of early screening for colorectal cancers. The foundation also helps fund screening for low-income individuals who are uninsured or underinsured, and who might not otherwise get this critical screening. At the time of the conversation, Eddie shared that they had already saved nine people's lives by detecting cancer early. 

Give your birthday party program the boost it needs to work harder than ever.   

We're busy ramping up for the first of only two Birthday University education sessions this year.

Your birthday party program is likely one of the most important programs in your business, and you want to get the most of it. 

In preparation for the next session in Chicago on March 30-31, we compiled this quick list of birthday party resources that can help you improve in any area you choose. 

Take a look, and join us for free in Chicago for a deeper dive into every aspect of the birthday party experience. (Just enter CenterEdge in Scholarship Sponsor Name). 

Avoid the high costs of allowing problematic behavior with these tips.   

Quick story: Last week, my husband and I went to one of our favorite little cafes for a quick lunch. There was someone new behind the counter and my husband asked if she was the owner, and she was. 

When I asked after the team member who typically worked the counter, I learned they were no longer with the company. I asked, "is it because they were kind of salty? I mean they were nice if you didn't interrupt or want to change the kind of bread your sandwich was on. But if you did, their face told you exactly how they felt about it."

Of course, the owner was professional and wouldn't share details, but I did learn that I hadn't been the first person to ask a similar question since the owner had taken over the management of her operation. Besides that, while we were enjoying lunch, my husband noticed that the cafe appeared even cleaner, and the staff seemed a little sunnier than they had in the past.  

Bottom line: having a team member that isn't in line with your values could be impacting your business in ways you may not even realize. Read on for tips to help you recognize when you have an issue with a team member and what to do about it.  

See your projects through to success with these tips.

Projects, goals, resolutions, new initiatives, and group meetings. Do one or more of those fill you with a sense of dread? If so, it's probably because, in the past, you've been overwhelmed or frustrated when they haven't gone the way you planned.

While it's easy to take these failures personally, it's important to remember that they've happened to nearly everyone in every industry. 

The good news is that failure isn't final. By taking the proper steps and building the right habits throughout every project, your project will have a fighting chance at success. Read on for five tried and true strategies for managing projects more effectively. 

Save time, labor dollars, and give guests more control with the new self-service kiosk features. 

Rising labor wages and shortages mean it might be time for your facility to offer guests a self-service experience to make purchases at your facility. 

The CenterEdge development team has been hard at work building and testing new features for our self-service kiosk offering. We’re excited to announce new functionality that will allow you to offer guests even more autonomy when buying from you.