Ways I've found to increase business

[Mr Hero]

Is business slow? You need it to pick up? Here are a few things I've noticed to increase activity.

Drink lots of water. Get to the point where you really have to go. As soon as you excuse yourself to relieve yourself, you'll get customers show up by the dozen.

Food delivery This will increase activity a lot! You'll get your first rush of customers when you're placing the order, then you'll get a few more just as the delivery gets there. Then finally, just as you're about to enjoy your hot tasty meal, you'll get a few more.

Visiting these forums Find an interesting topic that has a lot of discussion. You're sure to be interrupted just as things are getting interesting.

[KellyHabersham]

In the church office, I've found that getting a misfeed in the copier or my computer having power/Internet connection issues are great ways to get people to start calling or coming into the office. Oh, and doing anything involving printing out the monthly newsletter....that's always a surefire way to attract people who need to use the copier and want to interrupt what I'm doing.

[SG15Z]

Send a couple of people on break at the same time. Almost always causes a huge rush!

[DrFaroohk]

If we're talking a C-store, I've found that these two things work:

1) Lock up your beer coolers for last call. That will send a huge rush of people in to buy booze. They won't get any, but they'll also buy smokes and stuff!

2) Mop the floor. Whereever you mop, that's where people will NEED TO GO!!!!!

[infinitemonkies]

Last month,I had a period where every single time I went to the bathroom, the phone would ring. Not just at work, but at home too.

For 4 days straight.

Every time I'd get as far as unzipping, the ringing starts.

[RootedPhoenix]

Sounds like the way I get the bus to show up. I get food (energy bar or somesuch) and start to eat it. Or I begin to do some other thing that can't be stopped easily.

More often than not, the bus shows up sometime in the middle.

[Krivak]

Personally, i have found that if i sit around doing nothing at work, 15 minutes go by without a soul peering in. But, if i go to the back to get some actual secondary work done, well....here comes the rush. I work in a fast food place, and when i get hungry, i start thinking, "hmm, gotta take this peice while the boss is in the back and i have no customers". As soon as the boss is in the back, i say "Yesss, time to strike!" Then, apparently, customer reinforcements hear this and mistake it for the attack order and hit us mercilessly.

[Dasota]

Go out for a smoke break.

Get a blizzard, everyone, not just the plow guys will feel the need for an Iced Drink.

Sit around for an hour when you're massively ahead on everything and then start working on other tasks that can be completed

[Bright_Star]

When the bathrooms don't need to be cleaned then there's nary a soul in sight. BUT as soon as you put your buggy to block the rest room entrance for a cleaning then you get people out the wazzoo neeeding to use the bathrooms in the worst way.

[DerangedHermit]

Bowling! *gunshot* Bowling here! Get your bowling! *gunshot* Who's ready? *gunshot* Bowling!

[Peppergirl]

I work from home...so the way for me to get a non-ringing phone to ring is to get up and go into the kitchen or the bathroom.

Works.every.time.

Yeah, usually I'm not WANTING it to ring, I just want a snack or to use the bathroom - and I end up getting annoyed that I've sat there for an hour doing nothing, and they wait till I sneak off to call.

[BrenDAnn]

2) Mop the floor. Whereever you mop, that's where people will NEED TO GO!!!!!

This generally does the trick at the c-store I work at too! I think, though, that I could stand around for the entirety of my 8 hr shift and do nothing, and no one would come in, but the minute I try to do my closing chores, I get swamped! Go figure!

[Bunny the Veggie Slayer]

I just have to say I'm going for a coffee.

I've actually tried that a few times when we're waiting for a delivery that's late.

As soon as the word leaves my mouth you'll here the beep beep beep of a truck reversing.

[Supermarket Slave Girl]

I've found whenever the FES goes out the back to get the smokes from the vault to bring them up front, which can take a good 10 mins to do, we get slammed, it doesn't matter what time of the night he goes to get them.

[Antisocial_Worker]

While trapped in motel hell, I found that the surest way to drum up business was to attempt to eat my dinner. I could go for hours on end without a guest showing up at the desk or the phone ringing, but the moment I reached for my supper, motel rooms suddenly became the hottest commodity in town.

It got so bad that I decided to do a little experiment. For a week, I ate between 6pm and 7pm, and kept a log of how many interruptions I got while trying to eat, plus a tally of how many guests and phone calls I got during the next hour. The next week I ate between 7pm and 8pm and kept the log, and kept track of how many people came in or called between 6 and 7. To my utter lack of surprise, it was busier during my dinner hour, whichever hour that was.