A trip to the restaurant is a pleasant event, but quite expensive. You plan to spend a certain amount for lunch or dinner, and leave the catering establishment with a noticeably thinner wallet. But this is not because you are very wasteful. This is because restaurateurs are well versed in psychology. They use some tricks to make you spend more money.
Speculation on family values
Think about what dish will attract your attention - "chicken broth" or "rich mother’s broth"? What are you more likely to eat - a "pie with potatoes" or "a ruddy pie from your grandmother"? Restaurateurs are well aware of how much people are attached to the family, what kind of fond memories may come up in the minds of relatives. They actively use this trick on the menu to make you buy a particular dish.
They do not use currency symbols
When a person sees the designation of banknotes, he immediately understands that he is spending money and turns on the saving mode. And when he sees just faceless tsiferki without the treasured prefix "rub.", He has lost this feeling. Thus, in almost no restaurant you will not find a menu in which next to the prices would be a symbol of banknotes. This is a very simple psychological trick, but it just works flawlessly.
They limit the choice
Recently, in restaurants, the practice of a short menu is becoming more common. This means that in each category the client is offered up to six positions. Thus, a person does not choose or think for too long. He orders faster and more.
They use ethnic names.
According to statistical studies conducted by scientists at the University of Oxford, the ethnic and geographical names of dishes in the restaurant menu make them more attractive to the buyer. For example, instead of pasta you will be offered spaghetti, instead of jellied pie - kish-loren, instead of borsch - Ukrainian borsch, instead of pizza - Italian pizza, instead of stew - ratatouille and so on.
They compose tempting descriptions
Researchers at Cornell University conducted a series of experiments, the results of which concluded that the description of the product affects consumer behavior. Researchers at the University of Illinois estimate that descriptions can increase sales by 27%. In particular, attractively and appetizingly described dishes will be more popular among restaurant customers. So, for example, you can walk past chicken wings. But before the delicate and juicy wings, soaked in a spicy-sweet sauce, you definitely can not resist.
They use expensive products as bait.
To make a customer buy something, restaurateurs can add some expensive elite products to their dishes. For example, parmesan cheese, mussels, red caviar, porcini mushrooms and so on. There will be very few (purely symbolic) of these ingredients in the dishes. But it helps to draw your attention to this menu item and inflate the price.
They highlight some positions.
Some menu items can be underlined, highlighted in bold or in bright colors. They can attach colorful photographs. As a rule, these are the most expensive dishes. All kinds of accents on them make the client think that this is something very tasty and high-quality. Most often, these accented positions are ordered in restaurants.
They know how you read.
The vast majority of customers study the menu in the same way as if they were reading a book - starting from the upper left corner and ending with the lower right.Thus, it is from the top left that restaurateurs place the most expensive dishes. Something cheaper is placed on the bottom right. In addition, they can indicate these positions in a smaller font.
They create an expensive environment.
As a rule, the atmosphere of luxury reigns in restaurants - a classic interior, expensive decor items, a lot of gilding. And often classical music is played in restaurants. All this entourage is created so that the client feels rich. A rich person, as you know, saving is not necessary.
They sell large portions.
As a rule, restaurant customers do not pay attention to the column in the menu where the product yield is indicated. So they don’t think about serving sizes. Knowing this, restaurateurs sell one and a half to two times more than a person needs to normally eat. Thus, at one time the restaurant sells not one dish, but actually two at once.
They play with numbers.
This trick is as old as the world, but it still works. For example, instead of 200 rubles, 199 will be indicated in the menu. It would seem that this is practically the same thing. But a person pays attention to the first digit and, as a rule, does not round the amount in the mind. Thus, having made a discount of only 1 ruble, you can force a person to buy a rather expensive dish.
They flaunt the most expensive
According to statistics, most restaurant customers order dishes that are in the top three in the list for each category. Thus, at the top of the list, as a rule, you can see the most expensive dishes, the sale of which restaurateurs are most interested in.
They use the names of famous brands.
People are very greedy for all sorts of elite and expensive names. Therefore, restaurateurs often sign dishes on the menu with the names of expensive brands. So, for example, you can not pay attention to fish with tomato sauce. But you are likely to buy fish with Gucci or Chanel sauce.
They create a bright menu.
Bright colorful menu with mouth-watering photographs and elaborate font is a kind of distracting maneuver. Examining pictures and other details, at some point you forget that you also need to look at prices. Only after receiving the bill, you understand that you ordered too expensive dishes.
They overcharge
The psychology of restaurant customers is such that they are not shy (in front of satellites and waiters) to order something very cheap. But too expensive dishes can not afford them. Thus, restaurateurs go to the trick. They deliberately inflate the prices of the cheapest positions in order to increase their "prestige" and "solidity".
