Use your body to make more money.
You can do it without taking off your clothes.
Your body language has a huge impact on your customers
and their body language can tell you about them.
There have been so many studies done on body language
and how it effects both your personal and professional life.
This fits right in with the Psychology of Bartending.
How guests see you, when they come in, can set the tone
of their visit and determine how much they will spend.
What do I mean by body language?
Non-Verbal Communication.
Body language experts give a break down of how we communicate.
| 7% | The words spoken. |
| 38% | How we say words. Tone, Pitch, Sarcasm etc… |
| 55% | Physical actions while talking ie. Hand gestures, Facial Expressions. |
As you can see, most of our communication isn’t about the actual words, but how
we say the words.
You need to learn the skill of reading body language, especially as a bartender.
When you can read people, by the way they carry themselves, you can
identify good customers and potential problems. You know, the
angry, I’m looking for a fight, customer.
Not only will you be able to gauge your customers and co-workers,
you will be able to control your own non-verbal communication
and influence those around you.
WARNING:
Only use this for tips good, not evil.
Bartend with Body Language
Whether you know it or not, you already use body language
when you bartend. Let’s look at some things you can change
now, and what effect it has during your next shift.
Of course these techniques can be applied outside of bartending.
1. Stance
Widen your stance.
When you stand with your feet close together,
you can seem hesitant or unsure of what you are saying.
But when you widen your stance, relax your knees and center
your weight in your lower body, you look more solid and confident.
2. Maintain positive eye contact
Whenever you greet a guest, look into his or her eyes long
enough to notice what color they are.
I understand this might not work when your 4 deep at the bar,
and everyone needs something NOW.
3. Use open gestures
Individuals with open gestures are perceived more positively
and are more persuasive than those with closed gestures.
Don’t keep your arms crossed or your hands hidden from view.
Keep your movements relaxed.
This shows that you have nothing to hide and that you’re
credible.
4. Don’t Fidget
Stop bouncing your feet, twirling your hair, rubbing your hands
together and any other nervous looking activity. You lose
credibility when you do these things and that’s bad for business.
5. Smile
This is the worst. I wasn’t going to mention it.
The reason I say that is that there’s always some jagoff
customer that walks in and tells you to smile.
Instead of going on a rant about this. Well, I actually just deleted
the rant.
I have never known a bartender that walks around during an
entire shift, smiling.
However, you need to be aware that smiling not only stimulates
your own sense of well being it also tells those around you
that you are approachable and trustworthy.
Science has a way of coming along and kicking you in the stones
when you don’t want it to.
Having a smile does make a difference, I’ve done it to prove
science wrong and it didn’t go my way.
You do you. Smile or don’t smile.
Just be aware that smiling is a viable tool.
When you use these non-verbal communication tools
along with a good personality, you’re going to see a great
improvement in your bottom line.
Where Do I Learn Body Language?
Of course you will find lots of videos on YouTube.
It doesn’t matter where you start, just start learning body language.
This isn’t just for bartenders. Everyone benefits from this.
So share this article. People will thank you.