For those who are passionate about food, it seems the business dream is to open up a restaurant. More people are jumping onto the hospitality bandwagon because it’s such an appealing business venture. Cooking your favourite dishes day in day out, and then having customers enjoy what you’ve hand-crafted means that you can transform your love for food into an honest living. Sounds like an amazing idea, right?
That being said, the reality is not quite so plain sailing, especially when a business is in its early stages. When you’re just starting out it takes a great deal of hard effort, money, and business acumen to get a restaurant off the ground. The first year is always the trickiest for any food and drink establishment, but once you’ve survived those first twelve months and the critics have spoken, you then need to figure out how your restaurant business is going to remain successful moving forward. Statistically speaking, did you know that the majority of restaurants tend to fail in their first year?
There are so many key elements involved when it comes to creating a successful business, but one of the most important things to remember is that change should be embraced. When your restaurant is competing against an endless supply of similar companies, you must remember to adapt and change things up from time to time if you’re going to continue attracting new customers. Change doesn’t necessarily mean altering everything about your restaurant, but sometimes in order to keep things interesting it’s essential to find ways to breathe new life into the establishment you’ve built so far.
If you’re searching for some inspiration, here is a handful of minor changes you could look into when it comes to giving your restaurant a makeover:
1. Create Signature Menu Items
If your restaurant resides in a large city, naturally you’ll want your customers to visit your eaterie over other restaurants. If that’s the case then your menu needs to entice people into ordering and more importantly, it should pack enough of a punch so that they’ll keep coming back time and time again. Try to aim for one or two dishes that are made to an exceptional standard and then make these your signature items.
It could be a starter, main or a dessert, but if you plan on advertising or marketing your restaurant to a wider audience, make sure that these ‘signature’ dishes are mentioned in any press coverage.
This word of mouth will help to spread the word about what you have to offer and why customers should visit your establishment.
Take London’s Herman ze German and use them as an example of a brand that puts their signature dish at the very centre of their menu. Their Bockwurst sausage is now infamous as it contains high quality ingredients imported from a German butcher.
Take a look at most reviews of Herman ze German and you’ll find that nine times out of ten, people will mention the Bockwurst, proving that this popular dish is a hit among customers!
2. Update Your Menu
Now that you’ve perfected that signature dish, you should now make sure that your restaurant has a menu that gets regularly updated. As a general rule, you’ll find that most restaurants choose to freshen up their menus every six months – they do this simply by adding in a few seasonal dishes which serve as a welcomed extra to their existing menu. Both existing and new customers will be immediately enticed by your revised menu, and as a result they will be sure to return to your restaurant in the future.
3. Establish an Online Presence
Social media is such a fun and effective way to reach out to your customers as you can quickly establish relationships. Viral social media sites, such as Twitter and Facebook, allow you as the restaurant owner to have a hands-on approach with personally building relationships with your customers. By regularly taking a proactive approach to updating your social media channels you can update your followers on any special offers or events happening in your restaurant, and this goes a long way. These days people love to chat online almost as much as they do face to face, so use this to your advantage by engaging in conversation with any customers who have visited your restaurant. Also, if you do receive any complaints for whatever reason, you can assist customers efficiently by using your social media platform to respond appropriately. Positive word will soon spread if you can maintain good relationships with these customers.
Fellini, a popular restaurant based in Brighton, use their Facebook page to connect with their customers by announcing new promotions. The brand also publishes clear and tantalising food photography as a way of keeping customers interested. Fellini also run a successful mid-week campaign called ‘Secret Wednesday’, where they offer customers a 2 for 1 deal on main dishes, but only if they arrive with a special password that can only be obtained from their Facebook page.
See the example below:
By implementing ‘online only’ campaigns like the one above, Fellini are covering all of their bases. They are ensuring that their customers are inclined to return to the brand’s main social media outlet to access a new code in time for their next visit.
4. Redecorate
Why not freshen up your restaurant’s look with a new theme or by renovating its décor? In the restaurant business, you won’t do well if your interior or exterior lacks personality, so take this on board by adding some new features into the mix. Brighten up your restaurant’s décor with visually appealing table tops, or invest in some quirky paintings that will spark up conversation among your customers. Keep in mind that your restaurant’s interior design should be a focal point, as this is what your customers will be looking at while they wait for their food to arrive. If budget constraints are an issue then why not give your restaurant a fresh lick of paint instead? We all have to start somewhere! Colour will always make a bold statement while being affordable at the same time.
5. Create Clear Branding
It’s paramount that your restaurant should possess a clear and fuss-free sense of branding so that your customers can instantly identify your business. When starting out from scratch, you may not be thinking along the lines of a brand, but if your plans are to expand across different locations in the future, you’ll soon realise how important it is to have an established brand from the get-go. Begin by making sure that all of your menus, products and any merchandise you may have, all clearly display your restaurant’s logo or branding.
A stellar example of effective branding can be found in the restaurant Zizzi. Their menus, logos and wall murals each have the same unified branding which can be clearly recognised below:
Rebranding can be a costly upfront investment as it means all marketing collateral, both online and offline, need to be amended for uniformity. Getting financial help to fund such a project might be the best option to get it off the ground, especially if you’ve been putting it off for months.
Your first point of call might be a bank loan; however banks often place restrictions over what you can spend your business loan on. Alternative finance like a merchant cash advance loan doesn’t dictate how you spend your money. So if you’re keen to update your business’ branding but cash flow has been an issue, it’s worth looking into your financial options.
6. Head Outside
A sure-fire way to generate new business potential for your restaurant is as simple as heading outside and enticing new customers to do the same. For a non-harassment marketing tactic try offering samples to passers-by, and casually let them know about your restaurant while you’re at it. This clever tactic will help to entice new customers into your venue and will also make them aware of what your restaurant has to offer.
7. Reward Your Customers
The success of any long standing business relies on taking care of existing customers, in addition to attracting new faces. With this in mind, make sure that you always reward your regulars for their continued and loyal custom. Returning customers are essentially the foundation of your business, so think of ways to collect email addresses wherever possible and offer customers fun incentives in the form of special offers and upcoming calendar events.
8. Collaborate with Local Businesses
When your goal is to attract customers into enjoying a meal at your restaurant, sometimes it’s a great idea to contact local businesses that could help to increase your visibility. For example, the dinner and a movie concept is always a winning combination, so why not reach out to any independent cinemas in your area. Or if you’re in a prestigious city centre location, you could try teaming up with a hotel and advertising a discount for your restaurant with every weekend stay at that particular hotel. Business collaboration opportunities are endless and all it takes is a phone call to get the ball rolling.