Restaurant Promotion Ideas To Cultivate Loyal Customers

Getting loyal customers is every restaurateur’s dream. These guests will continue visiting your restaurant and spreading the word about your eatery via word-of-mouth marketing. However, you need them to visit your eatery to cultivate loyal customers, so you need promotion ideas for restaurants.

According to Statista, fast casual, fast food, and casual dining are the most popular restaurants in the US. In other words, people want to go out and have a nice dining experience. This guide shows various restaurant promotion ideas that work to ensure guests keep visiting your establishment. Keep reading to learn the best ways to market your restaurant.

How To Promote a Restaurant? Important Basics

Before running creative restaurant promotions for your cafe or restaurant, you need to look into a few basics. They influence the results of your advertising campaigns. It’s like ensuring you have all the necessary ingredients to cook delicious dishes your guests will love.

You must follow these steps to ensure you have a solid foundation for your great restaurant promotions to take off.

Understanding Your Customer Base

The first step is learning about your customer base. Who is currently visiting your restaurant? Is it mainly families because you have a kid’s menu? Or, do you get a young working crowd because you have several budget-friendly dishes?

You need to look at your diners’ demographics to understand your customer base. What age groups come to your restaurant regularly? Do they have any dietary preferences? How much do your guests spend on average with every meal? In other words, you need to segment your customers based on demographics, behavior, and preferences.

When you answer these questions, you’ll build a profile of your customer base, which you can use for promotions.

Identifying Business Challenges

Your restaurant will have challenges. So, be honest with yourself and list them down. Here are some ideas to help identify problems with your business. For example, are your Monday afternoons slow despite being close to several offices? Are there new restaurants serving similar cuisines opening in your area?

Identifying your challenges is helpful as it shows what the right restaurant promotion ideas are for your establishment. These solutions can address ongoing issues and ensure your restaurant grows.

Setting Clear Goals for Promotions

Once you know the problems, the next step is to set clear marketing goals. We know you want more customers, but this is a broader goal. You need to break it down into multiple steps. Do you want to increase brand awareness for your restaurant?

For instance, your footfall on Monday afternoons is slow. In this example, you can use the following goal: Increase your footfall on Monday afternoons by 10%.

Now, how will you measure your progress? A simple solution is to create a discount code that is only usable on Mondays. You can track how many people use the discount code.

The goal should have time constraints. For example, your footfall on Monday afternoons should increase by 10% by the end of the month.

You also have to ensure it is achievable. If you aim too high, it can seem impossible.

Budgeting for Promotions

The last thing you need to consider is your budget for promotions. This determines which marketing strategy for a restaurant business seems feasible.

For example, if you’re providing a discount, it will temporarily reduce your profit margins in exchange for a higher footfall. However, if you can get enough people to your restaurant, it can make up for the loss in revenue.

You must also account for how much you want to spend on your marketing campaigns. Additionally, your staff may have to work longer due to the increase in the number of customers.

Consider the budget for promotions as your investment, which can bring in more loyal customers and increase sales over time.

Unique Restaurant Promotion Ideas

Let’s jump to what you want to know — unique restaurant promo ideas you can use for your eatery. The following section covers various promotions for restaurants to ensure your campaign is successful.

A. Time-Based Promotions

In time-based promotions, you create a sense of urgency among your customers. Here are some of the best restaurant promotions you should use.

• Happy Hours There will be off-peak hours in your restaurant, i.e., when people barely visit your establishment. Here are some restaurant promotion tips: During this period, you offer happy hours. These are special discounts that are only available during your off-peak hours. Bars and pubs have happy hours in the afternoon to encourage people to visit and drink.

• Early Bird Specials In this restaurant promotional strategy, you reward customers for returning to your eatery early. For example, people who visit your restaurant before the lunch rush. You provide a 10% discount from 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. as an early bird special offer.

• Flash Sales and Weekend Brunch Specials Everyone loves a surprise offer, which is what flash sales are all about. You provide a limited discount that you announce on your social media page. You should also send emails and messages to people about the offer.

Weekend brunch specials can also bring a large audience. For example, every weekend from 11 a.m. - 4 p.m., you serve bottomless drinks and appetizers at a fixed price.

B. Customer Loyalty Programs

Are you looking for restaurant promotions that work? Use customer loyalty programs because they are excellent, and they encourage guests to return to your establishment. Here is how you can use these programs to attract loyal customers.

• Structuring Effective Loyalty Programs You need to have a structure for your loyalty program. Here are some restaurant offer ideas. Create a three-tiered reward system, like Diamond, Gold, and Silver. Each tier offers different rewards, and customers must complete specific tasks to join them. For example, in Silver, your customers get a dessert free with every meal. However, they need to visit your restaurant at least 10 times in three months to reach Silver.

• Birthday and Anniversary Discounts If you collect customer data, you can use it in your loyalty programs. You provide a small discount or a complimentary dish for a customer’s birthday. Similarly, you can give them an exclusive offer if they joined your loyalty program a year ago.

• Referral Incentives Your existing customer base is the best marketing asset there is — period. If they’re happy with your dishes, they’ll recommend your restaurant to people they know.

You can give these customers another reason to refer your restaurant through discounts or other offers. For example, if a customer refers a friend, both parties get 10% off their bill.

C. Seasonal and Limited-Time Offers

Seasonal and limited-time offers can bring customers to your restaurants. Here are some restaurant promotion examples that show how these promotions work.

• Holiday Specials and Seasonal Menus Create holiday specials and seasonal menus based on certain festivals and holidays. For example, during Christmas, you have a special menu. Promote this menu on social media to attract customers who want to eat Christmas-themed dishes.

• Unique Seasonal Dishes Offer limited seasonable dishes based on ingredients only available during specific times of the month. It creates a sense of urgency, encouraging diners to try your new dishes.

• Chef’s Specials for Limited Time Let your chef’s culinary expertise do the talking — offer chef specials only available for a limited time. It can be a unique creation, a curated experience, or anything else.

Collaborative Promotions

Collaborate with others in your community using the following promotions for restaurants to increase your reach.

• Community Partnerships and Charity Events Engaging with your community is an excellent way to build goodwill and increase awareness for your restaurant. Host a charity event like a marathon, where you donate the revenue you generate from this event. You can even provide beverages so people get a sample of your restaurant’s offerings.

• Guest Chef or Food Truck Collaborations Guest chef or food truck collaborations are excellent because they introduce your eatery to a new audience. If the chef or food truck is popular, it can boost your restaurant’s visibility.

https://beambox.com/trialYou can even use this promotion to complement what you serve. For example, you collaborate with a dessert-based food truck to provide a complementary dessert for diners.

• Cross-promotions with Local Businesses Find local businesses nearby and collaborate with them to promote your restaurant. For example, if you run a bar, you can give a discount to people who watch the football game. They just need to show their match tickets to get a discount from your bar.

Engagement and Experience-Based Promotions

Go beyond food — create a memory by providing an unforgettable experience. According to Forbes, culinary trends are moving toward immersive experiences. Use these ideas for restaurant promotions to drum up business.

• Interactive Experiences (Cooking Classes, Build-Your-Own) Create an interactive experience, like a cooking class with your chef. Or, host a build-your-own-meal class, where people can create one of your dishes from scratch. These marketing ideas for small business restaurants can be game-changers.

• Trivia and Game Nights Have a trivia or game night and build a loyal community over time. Provide the food and beverages, and give your guests a prize if they win these games.

• Live Music Events or Themed Nights There’s nothing like calling local artists to perform because they are excellent promotional events for restaurants. They bring their fans, and your guests can enjoy good music.

You can even have a theme night, like Halloween, where you ask guests to dress up. You can even give the best-dressed diner a prize.

Online and Delivery Promotions

If you offer home delivery or join a food delivery app, turn this into an effective restaurant promotional strategy. You can also use the following strategies as your restaurant coupon ideas.

• First-Time Order Discounts Any customer ordering for the first time from your restaurant gets an exclusive discount. It encourages new people to try what you have to offer.

• Exclusive Menu Items for Delivery Another solution is to create an exclusive delivery menu separate from the dine-in menu. This will attract people’s attention because they’ll become curious about the special dishes.

• Partnerships with Delivery Platforms (e.g., Uber) Delivery platforms have become synonymous with modern restaurants, as people want to order from their favorite eateries. You should partner with delivery platforms and provide exclusive offers to give people a reason to try your dishes.

Social Media and Digital Promotions

Social media offers one of the best ways to market your restaurant because you can use the following strategies.

• Photo Contests and User-Generated Content Host a photo contest where customers share photos of your dishes. The best one gets a prize. Ask users to create posts about your restaurant and use specific hashtags. The one that receives the most likes receives exclusive discounts from your restaurant.

• Influencer Partnerships Partner with influencers as they have massive reach in the digital space. They can promote your social media account or visit your restaurant and post about it on their page. Influencer partnerships expand your reach by introducing your restaurant to new audiences.

• Social Media Giveaways You can host social media contests to increase awareness. For example, ask customers to comment on your post, and the one with the most likes will get a free meal. Or, you can ask a question in your story and pick the user with the funniest response.

Innovative Ideas for Visibility

How to market a restaurant to increase awareness and attract a large crowd? Simple — use the following innovative ideas to increase your visibility.

Utilizing Viral Marketing Techniques

Sometimes, you need to tap into viral marketing to get people’s attention. What should you do? Here are the best marketing ideas for restaurants.

• Creating Unique and Shareable Food Items Think of creating unique, shareable food items on various social media platforms. For example, do you have any over-the-top pizza recipes that come to mind? Like a pizza where every bite oozes cheese or uses unusual but delicious toppings? Or an extremely large milkshake with unique colors and ingredients?

• Hosting Unique Experiences for Press Coverage Another option is to host a unique experience and get the press to cover the event. For example, your chef goes fishing and uses what they catch as an ingredient for several meals in your restaurant. You find a local record and attempt to break it in front of a live audience.

Engaging Content Creation

Content creation is another powerful marketing strategy for restaurants.

• Behind-the-Scenes Tours or Video Blogs Provide a behind-the-scenes tour, where you show people what happens inside your restaurant’s kitchen. You have a video blog where people can see the life of a chef in your restaurant.

You show your chef visiting the local market to source seasonal ingredients for various dishes. Or, your chef can explain how to cook a specific dish.

• Introductions to Team Members on Social Media Don’t let your staff stay behind closed doors in the kitchen. Introduce them on social media and explain how each member is crucial to running your restaurant. You can even share their stories. Ultimately, it creates a strong connection between your customers and your staff.

Targeting Community Events and Traffic

Focusing on community events is an excellent practice, as you meet your customers personally.

• Setting Up Pop-Up Restaurants Is there a flea market that pops up every three months? Why not participate in this market and set up a pop-up restaurant? It will increase awareness among people who have never heard of your restaurant.

• Sponsoring Local Events or Teams Does your neighborhood have a kids’ team? To connect with your community, consider sponsoring this team or event. You can sponsor their shirts, equipment, beverages, and food. Not only does this increase your standing with the local community, but it also improves your visibility.

Promotional Mechanics

You know about various restaurant promotional tactics. But you can’t just implement them and expect excellent results. Here are the various mechanics you should use to ensure your promotional strategies are effective.

Personalization of Offers

Personalization is essentially using what you know about your customers and using this information in your marketing campaign.

• Tailoring Discounts Based on Customer Order History Go through your customer’s order history to identify what they order regularly. You can give them a discount on specific dishes with this strategy. For example, you notice a customer orders dessert after every meal. You provide a complimentary dessert for their next meal.

• Sending Personalized Communication The order history is also helpful for personalizing the communication with your customers. Note their name and last meal and tailor the marketing message around this information. It will feel personal rather than sending a generic message, which the customer may consider spam.

• Using if-then Strategies If-then restaurant promotion strategies are handy for getting your customers to take specific actions.

• Designing Promotions Based on Customer Behavior You can customize the promotion depending on user behavior. For example, one of your customers didn’t visit your restaurant for over a month. Create an exclusive discount or offer that customers can claim when they visit your restaurant.

• Creating Pathways for Repeat Visits Another marketing strategy is creating pathways to encourage customers to visit your restaurant. For example, you know a customer ordered pasta the last time they visited your restaurant.

You can ask them to try one of your wines, as it goes well with the pasta. You should also provide a discount to make it a deal they don’t want to miss.

Balancing Discounts With Profit Margins

The key to offering discounts is to find a middle ground that doesn’t significantly affect your profit margins.

• Promoting High-Margin Items High-margin items, i.e., dishes and beverages with a good profit margin, are excellent options for discounts. Even if the profit margin reduces, it won’t greatly impact your revenue.

• Packaging Low-Margin Offers with High-Margin Items for Bundling Fast food chains often use this strategy because it is an effective way to increase the order amount. McDonald’s gives you a discount when you order a meal, i.e., a burger, fries, and soda. Buying the fries and soda individually is more expensive than bundling them with your burger.

You can also use a similar strategy in your restaurant.

Measuring Promotion Success

How do you know if you’re using the best restaurant promotional strategy? Measure the performance of your restaurant’s promotional campaigns using the following methods.

• Metrics for Success Evaluation Use the following metrics, as they tell you if your campaign is a success:

• Track your sales
• Look at customer footfall
• See your social media engagement metrics
• Measure your growth on various social media platforms
• Monitor your email engagement metrics, like open rates and click rates

If these metrics are increasing, it indicates you’re on the right path.

• Analyzing Customer Feedback You should also ask your customers for reviews and ratings. Do your customers like the promotional offers? Ask your customers for feedback and analyze their experiences to see how you can improve.

Preparing for Future Promotions

The last bit is to make sure you’re ready for future promotions.

• Annual Marketing Calendar Creation Create an annual marketing calendar so you know what you must do at any given time. Seasons and holidays occur at the same time, so that you can plan for them accordingly. You should also monitor local events. A marketing calendar makes staffing and budgeting much easier.

• Staying Adaptable You must always remain adaptable because things can change unexpectedly. For example, a competitor opened a restaurant nearby. What can you do to ensure you get more customers in spite of the competition? One option is to provide a small discount.

Wrapping up

Implementing all these restaurant promotion ideas can do wonders for your business. However, you shouldn’t try to use all our strategies in one go. Instead, understand your customers, set your goals, and use appropriate marketing strategies to achieve your targets.

When your patrons visit your restaurant after seeing your promotional messages, they’ll ask for your WiFi login credentials. You can use this utility as a WiFi marketing tool with the help of Beambox.

We can personalize your WiFi login page with your branding to increase awareness. You can even display exclusive discounts and offers to customers who use your WiFi. We can help collect their contact information to help target your marketing messages.

If you want to collect feedback, Beambox can help. Join Beambox today and get a 30-day free trial of our WiFi marketing tool!

---