Marketing might seem complicated to the uninitiated, but these simple tips can help you promote your restaurant and stand out against the competition.
1. Stay up-to-date with industry trends
It’s easy to get stuck in a rut and to keep doing what you’ve always done, but keeping abreast of industry news, developments and trends could make a huge difference to your business. For example, veganism has become a huge movement in the UK in the past couple of years. Failing to adapt your offering to appeal to this growing market means you are missing out on thousands of potential customers. The number of food delivery services has also skyrocketed recently. Is this something you could offer? If so, let customers know!
2. Study past data
Which marketing campaigns worked well for you? Did you run a social media competition that saw you attract hundreds of new customers? Perhaps you placed a local newspaper ad that really had an impact? Don’t be afraid to re-hash old marketing campaigns if they really delivered.
3. Conduct a SWOT analysis
SWOT – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats – analysis can help you really focus on your strengths and weaknesses and make it easier to put together a focused plan. You can cover all aspects of your business in this analysis to help you compose a comprehensive picture. For example, if you feel adding a commercial combination oven, such as those from https://www.247cateringsupplies.co.uk/lincat-ocmpc101g-gas-opus-combi-oven, would give you the opportunity to add new dishes to the menu, add it to the analysis.
4. Diversify
Many businesses rely too heavily on Facebook, using their business page or targeted ads on the platform to advertise their restaurant. While this can work well, Facebook’s reputation and user numbers have taken a big hit recently. Branch out into other platforms and reach new audiences.
5. Plan your meetings
Planning properly focused marketing meetings will ensure everyone has a clear idea of what their role is. Do not try to wing it. The Harvard Business Review has some handy tips for planning meetings.
6. Experiment
If you try something new and it doesn’t work, the worst thing that could happen is you’ve wasted a portion of your marketing budget and wasted a bit of time.
