Tag: las vegas

Sobriety Checkpoints in Nevada – Are They Legal and Do They Help Prevent Drunk Driving?

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DUI Checkpoint signEvery day, almost 30 people in the United States die in motor vehicle crashes that involve an alcohol-impaired driver, about one death every 51 minutes (CDC). Thankfully, there are measures that can help prevent injuries and deaths from alcohol-impaired driving.

Drunk driving is a serious concern in Nevada, and police agencies are always hard at work to remind retailers and beverage servers to do their part to make sure patrons are not over served, and at risk for getting behind the wheel. Another one of the front line defenses used to combat drunk drivers on Nevada roads is the use of sobriety (DUI) checkpoints. These are locations where law enforcement officers are stationed roadside to check drivers for signs of impairment. Many jurisdictions utilize sobriety checkpoints as part of their larger drunk driving deterrence programs.

Instructors at TAM® of Nevada often receive questions from students in our classes about the legality of sobriety checkpoints. The fact is sobriety checkpoints are legal and useful in Nevada, and they are not going away anytime soon.

According to the Governors Highway Safety Association, 38 states, the District of Columbia, the Northern Mariana Islands and the Virgin Islands all conduct sobriety checkpoints (GHSA.org). Further, the Las Vegas Review Journal recently published an article explaining the legality of sobriety checkpoints in Nevada. They point out that checkpoints are completely legal as long as they follow specific requirements established by Nevada Revised Statute (NRS) 484.B570. To read the full explanation, refer to the article, “Ask a Lawyer: DUI checkpoints – Are they legal and what are your rights?”

As a beverage service professional, you have a moral responsibility to support law enforcement efforts to prevent drunk driving – sobriety checkpoints and other tactics. What can you do help prevent customers from driving while impaired? The first defense for sales professionals is a thorough knowledge of local and state laws, and mandatory alcohol awareness training from TAM® of Nevada. For more tips on how to help prevent impaired drivers from getting behind the wheel, check out our blog post “Are You Doing All You Can to Prevent Drunk Driving?”

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Why Most Employers Want You to Go To TAM®: Three Reasons to Choose a TAM Card

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TAM CARDOften imitated, never duplicated, TAM® of Nevada has been the sole provider of official TAM® Cards to the Nevada community for over 25 years. Although there may be some other providers of credible alcohol awareness training classes in Nevada, not all courses are created equal. Rest assured, more employers recommend TAM® of Nevada for their employees’ alcohol education than any other provider, and for good reason. TAM® of Nevada students handle over 17 million sales transactions each year, and they’ve been trained to do it safely and effectively.

We know that hospitality professionals are busy, so we go above and beyond to provide you will the most effective and streamlined experience possible when it comes to obtaining a TAM® Card every four years. So what sets us apart from the competition? Here are a few reasons you can be happy you chose TAM® for your alcohol education card:

  1. Our training is engaging and valuable. Don’t settle for subpar training with pages of text and clip art or dull videos played by bored instructors. Our online and classroom course options both include fresh content with industry-specific scenarios for all types of employees. You can be sure your training is as up-to-date as possible, as reviews and updates are made to course material as necessary to keep pace with local and state laws and statutes. We also diligently review student feedback for anything we can do to further improve your class experience. Additionally, if you choose to complete your course in the classroom, you’ll get valuable instruction from fun and entertaining instructors with decades of industry experience.
  2. We don’t take shortcuts; be proud that your alcohol training and TAM® Card meet or exceed all state requirements. We work with state officials to make sure you receive the best education possible, touching on all required content. Additionally, we leverage our relationships with local employers and police agencies to make sure you learn about topics that are important to you, important to those who make hiring decisions and important in helping to keep consumers safe.
  3. Be proud that your card can’t be duplicated or obtained by cheating. Your TAM® Card will include your photo on the front of the card, just like a driver’s license. Not all alcohol awareness providers include a photo on their cards. We take this extra step to protect you, to verify your legitimate course completion, and to show your employer that you’ve completed the official TAM-branded course. Visit our website to see an example of a TAM Card, and steps on what to look for to make sure your TAM® Card is official!
    1. Additionally, the State of Nevada requires that all students must physically go to a course provider’s approved school location to take an exam that is proctored, and pass the proctored exam with a score of at least 75% to obtain a card. This means that you’ll either take your test at the conclusion of your classroom course, or you’ll have to visit our office after completing the online course to take your exam. This step ensures that cheaters aren’t able to obtain a card or let someone else take their exam for them.  Be wary of any provider that promises to mail you an alcohol awareness card after completing an online exam, this is in violation of state law!

All in all, our students should all be proud once they’ve completed a TAM course. Carrying your card shows employees and coworkers that you’re committed to an important part of your job duties and responsibilities.

Promotions and Marketing: Host a Bar Trivia Night

Published on by TAM of Nevada2 Comments

bar trivia nightFall is right around the corner, and with it comes the opportunity for festive celebrations and a string of holiday events likely to increase sales, and entertain your guests. Aside from once-a-year events like holiday celebrations, a great way to increase sales and build a following among regulars, who will come back again and again, is to host a trivia or game night event – any time of the year!

Hosting a trivia night, also called a pub trivia night or quiz night at many establishments, is a great way to draw a crowd into your establishment. These events work especially well on slower nights as a way to get people coming back week after week. Patrons are able to enjoy a team-based event, a chance to hang out with friends, show off their knowledge of random facts, and enjoy food and beverage with others in a festive atmosphere. Thinking about hosting a trivia night at your bar? Here are some first steps you can complete to run a successful event:

Determine the best date to host your event. Choose one that you can make a standing date. For example, if your patrons know that every Wednesday is trivia night, there’s no question about the best time to stop in for dinner and drinks! A great strategy is to choose a slower night where increased sales would be a bonus. A busy Friday or Saturday night may not be the best time to add a trivia game to the regular mix, but a slower weekday night might be perfect.

Determine who will be the M.C. Do you have a particularly outgoing or charismatic team member on your staff? They might be perfect for the job to act as “master of ceremonies” for the event.

Determine where you will find your contestants. You’ll need to spread the word among regulars and new guests alike for the best chance at getting an active group to participate. For the biggest buzz, try a multi-pronged approach to advertising your event. As with any other promotional event, make sure to share all of the pertinent details about your event on your establishment’s social media channels. Also make sure you advertise on-site before the event with menu inserts, table tents or other promotional tools. Use word-of-mouth marketing with your regular patrons and staff. You can even ask your staff to help build momentum for your first event by spreading the word among their friends.

Determine what format and theme you should use. Having a theme, where all the questions are based on a specific topic, will help to keep things simple. You can change up the theme once in a while, or if it’s successful, have a recurring theme night each month. Need some inspiration? Sports-themed, movie-themed, and 80’s-themed trivia are always popular with a crowd. Want to cross promote themed-beverages at your bar? Try a cocktail-based trivia night! Refer to our blog post, “Cheers! Tracing the History of Classic Cocktails,” or the article, “Of Rum and Rumor,” from Nightclub & Bar for inspiration and fun facts.

Create a bank of trivia questions. If you’re looking for great questions to use, you can purchase a general trivia question book from a retailer like Amazon.com, or just do the research and create questions on your own. Make sure questions are intriguing enough to keep the mood fun and competitive, but not so difficult as to make it impossible to for anyone other than a complete whiz to answer correctly.

Set the ground rules. Keep it light and fun, but make sure to set the rules before the start of the event, and make sure participants are clear on what will and won’t be accepted. For example, make it clear if there will be time limits, who will act as judge or tiebreaker, and make sure that participants know they shouldn’t be looking up answers on their phones!

Award a prize. Everyone loves to win something! Distributing a prize will keep patrons coming back again and again. It can be something as simple as free appetizers or gift certificates that can be used toward futures purchases in your establishment, or you can create a trophy or other commemorative item that winners can display for “bragging rights” at your next trivia event.

Most importantly, be creative and have fun! As always, make sure that you are not over serving your guests if you are featuring special drinks or holding a special event, and that the atmosphere can remain light and fun for all of your patrons. TAM® of Nevada will train you and your co-workers to provide a great celebration that will keep your patrons safe and willing to come back and participate at your next event.

Have you hosted a trivia or game night at your establishment?

Congratulations to Our TAM Customer Survey Winner

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Recent TAM Students: Once you finished your course, did you remember to fill out the online Survey WInnercustomer survey? As a token of thanks for our students’ participation, we enter survey respondents into a quarterly drawing for a $50 Amazon.com gift card prize. Congratulations to our most recent winner, Joseph R., for our quarterly gift card giveaway for filling out the TAM® of Nevada Customer Survey! Additionally, thanks to all of our customers for choosing TAM® and for letting us know about your experience.

If you’ve recently completed your TAM® course and haven’t yet completed the customer satisfaction survey, we invite you to visit us on Facebook to access the survey and submit your response. While you are there, write on our Wall! Let us know your favorite part of the training, what you learned, or ask us any questions you might have.

Our customer satisfaction survey is available to both online and classroom students. Thank you again to all of our customers for your helpful responses. We review feedback regularly, and your responses help us to see what you love, and where we can improve. Remember to visit us on Facebook and keep the conversation going.

© 2014 National Hospitality Institute®, TAM® of Nevada