Having an awesome chef is the icing on the cake, no doubt. But it is not enough to bring people to your restaurant.
A fool-proof marketing plan is necessary to have a steady flow of customers. A plan that can help your restaurant survive the competition, which no doubt is increasing day by day.
A well-defined approach works best to stand out and cater to your target audience truly. Not sure where to begin? Don’t worry! Sharing actionable marketing ideas to ensure your restaurant is a success.
- Define your brand
The first thing your marketing strategy requires is defining your brand. To define your restaurant, you should have branding and a logo because that is what most people will see initially, even before tasting your food or walking into your restaurant. Defining your brand is the first step in ensuring that customers visit your place and keep coming back. For instance, Starbucks is a brand in itself. The green and white logo are synonymous with excitement, and whenever people see the logo, they head in irrespective of whether they were planning to go in or not.
In this case, you need to follow the principle of iykyk, as any brand promotion or branding idea comes straight from the mind of an owner/entrepreneur that always brainstorms result-oriented ideas to get more prospects, visitors, customers and sales.
Thus, define your brand by creating a logo and exposing it to target users through your business cards, website, live events, social media, etc. One last tip is to be consistent. If you keep changing your brand every few years, people will have difficulty adjusting to your restaurant.
- Be on restaurant apps.
One of the easiest ways to market your restaurant is to be on restaurant and dining apps. People with high intent surf these apps to find the next great restaurant for a family outing or a fun night out with friends. If you are on such apps, there is a high probability that people will find your restaurant too, and you will get more customers.
However, you have to add tons of details to such apps because users are specific about what they want and use filters. So, include:
- Menu
- Hours
- Website
- Phone number and other contact details
- Photos of food and ambiance
- Price
- Attributes like outdoor seating, rooftop, smoking area, Wi-Fi, etc.
- Create a website
A restaurant without a website is just not right. You cannot ignore or negotiate this point because having a website is crucial for the success of your business. Your customers want to check out your website to book a table, leave a review, and get to know the restaurant. So create a professional website that is SEO optimized and also add an FAQs section. That will allow consumers to get answers to any queries about your food, staff, operating hours, and so on they have.
- Targeting your audience is essential.
The locality of your restaurant can often define your target audience. For instance, if your outlet is near a university campus with good food and reasonable prices, your maximum customers will be from the university itself. Thus, use this opportunity to grow your business by improving your communication with your everyday customers.
Any customer that comes into your restaurant helps you improve your customer audience and understand their needs and dislikes. That helps define your target audience and come up with a menu that will serve them better and get them back to your restaurant often. To know your customers, you can ask them to fill a review and get their email, socials, and contact number. It allows you to check their socials for their dislikes and likes and get to know them better. Also, you can use their email to inform them about new offers or menus or happy hours, and more.
- Always respond to reviews.
You cannot avoid any reviews because they can work in your favor, even the negative ones. Therefore, always be polite and immediate with your response. Express your gratitude to people offering positive comments and politely ask negative commentators to take the matter offline.
Mouth-watering & Hygienic food, good ambiance, and a well-defined marketing approach can make your restaurant a success and even a legacy for your family. It will run for decades with correct marketing and if you don’t shy away from embracing new technologies.