Marketing Promotion

Owning any service business is challenging, but operating a restaurant is especially so. You probably have already learned that in the twenty-first century, you need to have be on the Internet. However, given all that you have to worry about, have you truly considered all the ways in which you might maximize the benefit you get from your Internet property?

Cross-promotion: Use your other advertising channels to drive traffic to your restaurant website. Once your website is operational, you will find that it is an inexpensive and effective means of providing useful information to your prospective diners as well as your regulars. In your newspaper advertisements, make your website’s location prominent. You will find it considerably less expensive to provide details when you are not charged by the column inch. If you run television commercials, keep your web address on the screen at all times. In a radio commercial, hook the listeners first to get them interested, then give them an easy to remember URL twice.

Menu display: Some restaurants choose to display a sampling of their menu selections. Of course, there is no real problem with that. However web space is practically free, so why not include your entire menu. You do not want to omit someone’s favorite entree that could have brought them to your tables. Be certain that the menu pages are designed in a way that allows you to update them any time you actually change your menu. Whether you choose to include the prices will be somewhat determined by the types of diners you are hoping to attract as well as the stability of your prices. If a lot of your selections are impacted by “market prices,” then it might be better to leave all prices off.

Use pleasant pictures: Pictures of the food are fine for recipe books and frozen dinner boxes, but you want your food to speak for itself as your guests eat it. To attract the eyes of your website visitors, you need to show real human beings enjoying the food and the dining experience. Be certain that the images show all of the kinds of people you want as customers, reflecting the racial, ethnic and social diversity of your community.

Build an email address database: Request the email information of people visiting your web pages and allow the diners in your restaurant to add their primary email contact information to their checks. Have a member of your staff enter these new email addresses on a frequent basis. Use regular email marketing to announce new menu items, offer special coupons or other enticements. Think of ways to keep them interested in reading your emails on a regular basis. You might want to offer an occasional recipe, or provide some sort of fun food related contest.

Definitely include testimonials: While a great restaurant review from the local newspaper or local magazine is unbeatable publicity, most folks like to see what non-journalists have to say. You may choose to put these on a separate page, but also sprinkle some of the more interesting remarks throughout your site.

All service providers need repeat customers. To encourage them to return, you want them to feel a connection with you. Understanding how to use your service business Internet presence can take you a long way in building that relationship with your diners.

Tags: service business Internet, restaurant Internet, restaurant website

Tags: restaurant Internet, restaurant online, restaurant website, service business Internet, service business online, service business website