Every operator knows upsells drive margin - often the difference between a good week and a tough one - but most venues only capture a tiny slice of what’s actually possible. Not because customers don’t want more of your food.
They do. They always do.
The real issue?
Your team is slammed, and no one has time to ask.
While you’re dealing with a delivery that didn’t arrive… the fryer that’s playing up… a no-show staff member… and three tables who all want the EFTPOS machine at the same time - upsells can fall off the radar.
Phone rings in the middle of all this?
You answer, take the order, get off the call as fast as you can.
No judgement - that’s just service life.
Humans forget.
Humans get busy.
Humans prioritise whatever is burning the hottest in front of them.
And with the staffing challenges we’re all dealing with, it’s hard enough to hire and keep good people, let alone train them to consistently deliver upsells on a channel (phone orders) that’s already a massive distraction.
There’s a weird blind spot in most venues:
phone orders still make up 20–40% of revenue… but they’re stuck in 2012.
No optimisation, no structure, no prompts - just whoever grabs the phone first.
And think about when the phone always rings:
smack bang in the dinner rush
while running food
while packing delivery bags
while you’re already one staff member down
while you’re trying to clear the pass
In those moments, no one is thinking:
“This is a great time to upsell a drink!”
So the opportunity passes.
And it passes again.
And again.
At the end of the month, that’s thousands of dollars in pure margin that just… evaporated.
Every operator has sat down with their team and said some version of:
“Guys, just ask: do you want chips with that? Easy.”
But here’s what actually happens:
Staff get flustered
Staff take calls while mid-task
New staff feel awkward suggesting extras
People forget the upsell scripts you trained last week
The rush hits and survival mode activates
This is not a people problem.
It’s an attention problem.
When you’re slammed, the brain goes into firefighting mode.
Upsells are the first thing to disappear.
Upselling doesn’t mean being pushy.
It’s simple, clean, customer-friendly moments like:
“Do you want to make that a meal?”
“Most people add garlic bread with that.”
“Want a drink so you don’t need to pop back out later?”
The trick isn’t the line.
The trick is saying it every single time.
Consistency is where the money is - and consistency is exactly what hospitality struggles with when the phone rings.
Talk to enough venue owners and you hear the same thing:
“Phone orders are good money, but they’re a pain in the ass.”
“They slow the team down.”
“No one remembers to upsell when we’re busy.”
“Half the time customers get put on hold because we’ve got three other things happening.”
And that creates a perfect storm:
customers waiting
staff stressed
missed upsells
lower AOV
more pressure on the floor
Something has to give — and for most venues, it’s been the upsell.
Until now.
AI isn’t here to replace your team.
It’s here to take over the stuff your team shouldn’t be doing in the first place (like answering the phone during a Saturday night peak).
And unlike a human, AI:
never forgets the upsell
never gets flustered
never gets tired
never feels awkward
never prioritises one guest over another
never has five things in its hands when the phone rings
It handles the phone so your team can handle the venue.
And because it’s not stressed or rushed, it actually has the headspace to suggest the right upsell at the right moment.
We built Otto because operators kept telling us:
“I need someone to take phone orders without slowing us down.”
“I need upsells, but my staff don’t have capacity.”
“I need consistency — not more work.”
Otto takes the call.
Otto takes the order.
Otto suggests the upsell naturally.
Otto doesn’t get overwhelmed or distracted.
The result?
You see more upgrades, more sides, more drinks, simply because for the first time ever, the upsell is happening every single time.
And your team gets to stay focused on what actually matters:
running the floor, serving guests, and keeping service moving.
You can listen to an example call by creating your own demo agent.
It’s worth hearing how natural it sounds.
Not because you need more tech in your venue...
...but because you deserve the results.