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Your Road to Business Growth: 10 Marketing Tips for New Cafes and Restaurants

Your Road to Business Growth 10 Marketing Tips for New Cafes and Restaurants

Are you a proud owner of a new cafe or a restaurant, eagerly waiting to open your doors to the public?

Opening a cafe or a restaurant is no piece of cake. It takes a lot of hard work, dedication and a deep love for food. Once you have got your menu sorted and your kitchen running like clockwork, it is time to start thinking about spreading the word and bringing in customers.

When preparing to battle with competitors, it is important to have a strong marketing strategy that will set you apart from others. Create a buzz and get people talking about your cafe or restaurant right from the beginning. To do this, however, you need robust marketing strategies in place.

In this article, we’ll explore all that and more. Let’s get cooking with these marketing tips! 

1. Create Behind-The-Scenes Content

Behind-the-scenes videos can be some of the most interesting type of content for your customers because they can see what goes on backstage. People love getting a peek of how their food or drinks are prepared and finding out  the amount of care and attention going into their food. Many customers  also love getting to know the people who have contributed to the art.

People are always interested in tips from insiders. Show your guests some of your go-to tricks to making their food better. This is a great way to keep people interested and show who you are as a business.

2. Banner Marketing

Banner marketing is a powerful tool to promote your business and raise brand awareness. Banners offer a versatile and cost-effective advertising option that can reach a wide audience. Displaying your custom banners in high-traffic events can increase your visibility and attract potential customers to your business.

Custom fabric banners can be a great addition to your banner marketing strategy. Consider using bold and eye-catching colours to make your logo. Fabric banners can be used indoors and outdoors and are great for events, trade shows or storefront displays.

3. Instagrammable Dishes

Instagrammable food is a relatively new concept in the world of restaurant marketing. The idea is that the plating and presentation of the dish encourage people to take photos and share them online. Creating Instagrammable dishes is a powerful marketing tactic as it leverages user-generated content to spread the word about your restaurant.

Even if you prepare the same item several times it can reach a whole new audience every time through social media for free.

4. Personalisation

Another effective marketing strategy is creating unique customer experiences, promoting brand loyalty and encouraging word-of-mouth marketing via personalisation. One way to include personalised products is by offering customised menus with the customer’s name or a special message.

An additional option is offering personalised beer coasters to promote your specials on foods and drinks. You can also include a customised message or special offer to encourage customers to try something new. These coasters can create a unique and memorable customer experience, all while promoting your restaurant’s brand.

5. Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing can be another marketing strategy to reach new customers and build brand awareness. You can tap into a different set of audience and reach potential customers by partnering with food bloggers or social media influencers. Influencers can share photos of your food and drink on their channel, write reviews of your restaurant or cafe or even host events or tastings at your eatery.

When choosing influencers to work with, selecting the ones who align with your brand and target audience is important. You should also establish clear expectations and goals for partnership, such as the number of posts or reach you expect. Influencer marketing can be a great way to create buzz and attract new customers. It is important to approach it strategically and measure the results to ensure it is a worthwhile investment.

6. Discount Days

Even the most popular businesses have slow days. If you want to boost sales when business is slow, make a special offer only for one day.

For example, if your diner serves chicken wings, you could have “Wings Wednesdays” or “Buy One, Get One Free Mondays.” If you make it a regular deal, people will start to order from you even when business is slow.

If you think your business will be busy on specific days during a sports event, you can make deals for the days without games. Analyse your customer data to get the most out of these marketing efforts. Data analysis can give you insights on when your cafe or restaurant will be busiest and when sales could use a push.

7. Mobile Applications

In recent times things have changed and people have started ordering food online. A recent study showed that one in four people have at least one restaurant app on their phone. A mobile app can be a helpful tool for your customers and a powerful marketing tool for your business.

While creating the application, you can consider adding an online menu and enabling customers to place orders online. Let customers use their mobile app to order to-go things for delivery or pick-up. You can even add a feature for table reservations to your application to make it easier for your customers to make a reservation without having to call you.

Mobile applications are quickly taking the place of paper punch cards. For instance, a paper card that says you will get a free burger after every eighth purchase is now replaced with online coupons. By leveraging these marketing methods, you will see a significant boost in business over time.

8. Email Marketing

Sending email newsletters is another way of marketing. However,  sending a general email once a month will likely have no impact.

Email is a great marketing channel – if you know how to use it. To stand out from the crowd, you should send an email targeted to the recipient based on their history with your restaurant. Use subject lines that capture your customer’s attention and make them want to open the email, including a CTA that encourages the customers to take action, like placing orders, making a reservation or visiting your website.

9. Geo-Targeted Ads

Geo-targeted ads are only shown to people in a certain area based on criteria you set (like age, gender, hobbies, and location).

For restaurants, it makes sense to keep internet ads local. You should spend your advertising money on local people who might come to your restaurant.

Many paid ads and promotions on Facebook, Google Ads, Instagram, and Twitter come with free geo-targeting choices. Ensure your online ads use this useful function.

10. Creating Photo Booths

Creating a photo booth is an innovative and fun marketing strategy. A photo booth provides a unique experience for your customers and can be a great way to promote your brand and encourage word-of-mouth.

To create a photo booth, you can set up a designated area in your restaurant with props and a backdrop that reflects your restaurant’s theme or brand. You can include props related to the menu or the theme of your restaurant or cafe to make the photo booth experience more encouraging. It can also be used to collect email addresses or promote upcoming events. All in all, a photo can create a unique experience for your customers and increase your visibility and customer engagement. 

To Sum Up

Starting a new business can be challenging, but a solid marketing strategy can increase your chances of success. It is all about creating a unique and memorable experience for your customers.

Marketing is an ongoing process, so you should keep experimenting and trying new things. With a little creativity and a lot of hard work, your cafe or restaurant can become the talk of the town. These tips should give you the inspiration to kick-start marketing for your cafe.

Put these tips into action and watch your business thrive and grow!

Article Submitted By Community Writer

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