Marketing Ideas for Restaurants

When you’re marketing any bar, restaurant or café you need three things: a great location, great food and great marketing. Oh … and customers.

That’s four things then. You need customers. That would help.

As we’re sure you’re aware, for good marketing to work you need consistency throughout. Make your collars and cuffs match. So how can you get your customers to call you, so that they can hear that startling, dazzling, amazing on-hold marketing message before they book a table?

Let’s pop outside for a minute and take a look. Mind the cyclist.

Everything you need

Look at your sign. If you’re very smart, you’ve got the best sign in the street. You keep it clean and it stands out for miles. You’ve got your sign or logo on all your flyers that go out. You even have your prettiest staff member outside handing out samples of food to passers by – along with flyers. And of course when you’ve got a special on fish courses, you have your “not prettiest” staff member dressed as a shark walking the streets, handing out even more flyers. And what’s on your flyers? Your ‘phone number.

Listen

That’s that sorted then. What else? Website. Of course every business should have a website these days. Keep it up to date, keep it fresh, have lots of nice pictures on it. And most importantly … have your ‘phone number. Link it to your Twitter and Facebook accounts to keep people up to date with what you’re doing and … always include your ‘phone number with any Tweets or status updates.

Keeping your customers loyal

Then once you’ve got customers coming in, make sure you keep them interested with loyalty programmes, promotions and contests. Offer something free with every fifth visit. On your slowest night have themed dinners or cheese & wine tastings – don’t make it all about sit-down meals. Collect business cards in a box, this will help you find out who your customers are and you can email them with news and offers, which of course they will have to ‘phone you to take advantage of!

Finally, you need feedback. Offer comment cards to your customers. They can write their email address down along with their date of birth. Then you can send them a discount voucher a couple of weeks before their birthday.

Who ya gonna call...?

So what is all this leading to? Throughout all of these ideas the most important thing is that you are directing the customer to call you to book a table. That’s where your on-hold messaging kicks in. Whether it’s a customer wanting to be put through to book a table or a supplier wanting to be put through to the manager, they will hear all about your latest event or offer before they speak to you.

Consistency.

That’s what it’s all about.

It’s like making a good soup. A good consistency. Yum. All this talk of food is making me hungry now. Anyone know a good restaurant…?

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