January 17, 2020
Did you know that 90 percent of people research a restaurant online before making the decision to dine there? That’s more than any other business type. For new restaurants it’s crucial to start gathering online reviews fast to build up a client base. How do you stand out in the online crowd? Check out these five creative marketing ideas for your new restaurant.
Unique Promotion Ideas for New Restaurants
Want to build buzz fast and secure those much-needed online reviews for your new restaurant? Then it’s time to think outside of the box and get creative with your promotion strategies. These innovative tips will have your restaurant on everyone’s hip list in no time.
1. Show Your Kitchen in Action
Who doesn’t love seeing a chef in action, or getting a glimpse of the back of the house? With the popularity of celebrity chef culture and entire channels devoted to the art of cooking, why not turn the spotlight on your own kitchen crew? Keep a smartphone in your kitchen and encourage staff to post pics and stories in real-time to all your social media platforms. This might even inspire your guests to check in on social media from the dining room to see if your current Instagram story features their menu picks!
2. Start a Cooking Class
Don’t just serve your guests a perfectly executed meal. Offer culinary classes and teach them the tips and techniques to make your signature dishes at home. While it might seem counterintuitive to give away trade secrets, working hands on with your customers will create lasting memories. Each time they make your recipe, they will be reminded of how fantastic your meals are, even when they aren’t there. Chances are they’ll talk up your restaurant to friends and loved ones, too. Want to create even more buzz around your culinary classes? Offer them anytime you unveil new menu items. Don’t forget to post video highlights of the classes on social media to reach even more new customers.
3. Create a Recipe Book
Don’t have the ability to host cooking classes? Or just want to reach even more home cooks? Compile some of your most loved recipes and share them with your customers. You can create a cookbook of your best in-house recipes and have it available for purchase in your dining room. If writing an entire book seems daunting, start an online “book,” through your website or blog, and post recipes weekly. Encourage customers to post videos or photos showing their culinary accomplishments and your dishes.
4. Meet the Chef
What’s even better for restaurant customers than behind-the-scenes sneak peeks? Meeting the chef, of course! Host a monthly event when diners can come and rub elbows with your culinary team. You can offer selfies with the chef to increase social media posts, or have a book signing for your newly debuted restaurant cookbook. Think even further outside the box and partner with a local band, winery, or brew pub to help cross-promote.
5. Up Your Online Game
While unique restaurant promotion ideas are crucial for new restaurants, don’t forget two of the main marketing tools for restaurants: Google My Business and Yelp. Having a dynamic presence on top review platforms looks great to potential customers, allows them to easily post reviews, and helps guests discover your restaurant on Google and Apple maps.
Consumers trust online reviews and positive feedback fosters trust within the dining community. Reviews from peers are preferred by consumers. In fact, they prefer them 77 percent more than reviews from critics.
Receive a negative review on Google? Don’t panic. This is simply part of being in the restaurant biz. Don’t shy away from responding to less-than-stellar opinions. Writing a professional and friendly response signals to your customers that you care.
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