Drumming up business for restaurants has been practiced since the first stew pot was sold by bowls in ancient trading camps. Fortunately, it is easier to get the word out about your great food and the welcoming ambiance of your restaurant. You can increase your restaurant’s reach with digital marketing, instant outreach, and business partnerships. Your restaurant may attract thousands of one-time or repeat customers who live in or visit your city. The trick is to reach their eyes and meet their unique mealtime needs through the right channels. e|tab knows that attracting local customers requires casting a wide net. Let’s explore seven effective strategies to gain new customers for your restaurant.
1) Offer Delivery and Curbside from Your Restaurant
If your restaurant does not already offer delivery and curbside, it’s time. Many potential customers would rather eat at home or are too busy for a dine-in dinner. You can access a larger pool of restaurant customers, including loyal return customers, by offering responsive delivery and smooth curbside pickups.
2) Partner with Local Hotels & Motels to Promote Your Restaurant
Returning travelers are valuable one-time and repeat customers. If you have traveled, you probably know that pizza and Chinese food restaurants often provide takeout menus to local hotels, motels, and vacation rentals. Close-by restaurants with in-room menus are the ones travelers that are too tired or stressed to research online will call. This is a great way to jump the SEO line by providing food at the right moment. Your restaurant can be a life-saver meal at the end of a long day, the healthy option after days of fast food, or the kid’s menu that rescues tired parents on a trip.
3) Get Playful on Social Media
Social media is a very effective venue for restaurant visibility and building rapport with your local customer base. Recently, KFC garnered attention through its Twitter channel. They respond when hashtagged, respond to others’ tweets about chicken, and only follow 11 people: the 5 Spice Girls and 6 guys named Herb. Show off your restaurant’s personality and build a real relationship with your community through your social media accounts. Also, consider following topics so that you can respond when someone says, “I really want some curry” or “Feeling sick? Need chicken soup?” You might be surprised at the business you earn from responses that are timely, funny, and personable.
4) Keep Restaurant Google & Yelp Hours Accurate
Many people today start their restaurant search on Google Maps or Yelp. They’re looking for something tasty, the right cuisine, and Open Now. To get those eyes, clicks, and orders, make sure your hours are always accurately listed. This includes updating the last hour you accept delivery orders and keeping your online menu current. You have the opportunity to wow hungry locals and visitors when hunger inspires an order.
5) Have Your Restaurant Menu Included in the New Resident Packet
When someone moves into your city, this is the perfect moment to earn a new regular. New residents often receive a packet that includes how to forward mail from their previous address, neighborhood information (like trash day), and a stack of coupons. Make sure your restaurant or takeout menu winds up in the new resident pack. You could be getting orders before new locals finish unpacking their kitchens.
6) Send Your Restaurant’s Take-Out Menu with Every Order
There’s the tried-and-true method of turning any one-time order into a long-time regular: including your take-out/delivery menu with every order you pack up. Then locals can quickly magnet that menu to the fridge or drop it in their takeout drawer. This will inspire customers to order the next time they crave your cuisine. It is also a great way to seed the city with your takeout menus, which may be seen and appreciated by friends, acquaintances, and babysitters of those who have ordered from you before.
7) Incorporate Smooth Online Ordering on Your Restaurant Website
Lastly, make sure your online ordering process is smooth. Glitches are the best way to lose an interested customer. Having a reliable online ordering partner that allows orders from outside of third-party delivery apps is essential to building local business for your restaurant.
Access the tools your restaurant needs to grow and thrive with a vibrant online ordering and delivery strategy through the e|tab. Contact us today to learn more about claiming your fair market share of hungry local customers with online ordering, delivery, curbside, and more.
