Creating a marketing strategy for your restaurant takes time, planning, and resources. Especially if you’re opening your first venue.
Marketing is experimental, however, there are a few things you can do to create buzz around your brand and restaurant.
For example, some F&B concepts like to invest in influencer marketing early, while others prefer to take it slower and use social platforms like Instagram.
Of course, you can invest in multiple platforms at the same time. However, it’s important you track your spending against the expected results of your marketing campaigns.
Restaurant marketers and marketing managers often get marketing-block when it comes to ideas for marketing their venue.
That’s why we’ve compiled a list of traditional and out-of-the-box restaurant marketing ideas to help you drive sales, engagement, and retention.
Before we dive into the tips, the following restaurant marketing statistics are worth a quick look. They can help drive your strategy and long-term plans.
Roughly 77% of US consumers, in an MGH survey, said they’re likely to visit a restaurant’s website before deciding to dine in or order takeout. Of that figure, 68% reported being “discouraged” after visiting the restaurant’s website.
Research also shows that 79% of consumers decide to go to a restaurant based on online reviews.
In terms of budget, a restaurant’s average marketing budget ranges from 3% to 6% of their total sales. The size of your restaurant, country or city you’re in, type of cuisine, among other factors, can impact your advertising budget.
A high-end, fine dining restaurant will likely have a bigger advertising budget than a small, single-venue eatery.
It’s important to remember that you can go lower than 3% if sales are strained or above 6% if you’re opening a new venue or have a special campaign running.
You should also consider how you’ll divide your marketing budget among your marketing channels. Some channels are less expensive than others.
For example, if you’re using Servme, you can email and SMS marketing features for your restaurant that you can use at any time.
Setting up accounts on social media is free, but creating posts and shooting videos can cost you time and money.
Digital marketing for restaurants
The top social media marketing channels for restaurants continue to be Facebook and Instagram. TikTok comes in third, according to Persuasion-Nation.
Research also shows restaurant guests prefer personalized marketing, including discount vouchers, and promotions.
If you’re using a restaurant reservation system like Servme, you can use the auto-tagging feature to personalize guest communications and marketing.
You can create and offer personalized promotions based on previous buying behavior, or you can use it as a re-engagement tool for guests who haven’t visited your venue in 6 or 12 months.
Remember: Promotions in general, including personalized promos, shouldn’t be used frequently. Otherwise, some guests will only come to your restaurant when there is a promotion.
Video content for restaurants
Video content remains a popular form of marketing for various types of businesses, including F&B.
This can be in the form of reels, stories, or short video content via social media.
Short videos tend to perform better and have a higher engagement rate than longer videos.
According to Wistia, 1-minute videos have a 50% engagement. This percentage drops to 47% for 1-to-3-minute videos and continues to drop as video length increases.
Restaurant technology
Using technology in your restaurant or chain helps you streamline operations and can boost retention and sales.
Research by the National Restaurant Association has found that 80% of restaurants use technology, including table-side tablets, to efficiently run their business.
Technology can take various forms. From restaurant marketing tools like social media management and scheduling software and design software to point-of-sale (POS) systems, to reservation and table management software, among others.
Whether you’re new to the restaurant industry or to marketing or both, there are a few things you should know. Here are a few tips to help you start and maintain sustainable restaurant marketing practices.
1) Consider where your customers are
To begin marketing for your restaurant, you need to first be where your guests, your target audience, are.
Many restaurants stick to Instagram because it’s easier to share images and guests are constantly scrolling. Other platforms can include Facebook, although organic reach is almost zero, TikTok, and Twitter.
2) Review the competition
Take a moment to review your closest competitors—which aren't everyone! See what they have in the restaurant marketing strategy, what platforms they’re using,…etc.
Review
the types of posts they share, such as still images, videos,…etc.
their posting frequency (do they post every day? Once a week? Three times per week?)
the content of the posts, such as dishes served, venue images, testimonials,...etc.
Consider how long they’ve been open and how many branches they have as this will affect their followers and numbers.
3) Don’t be everywhere at once
It’s ok to start small. You can start marketing on one or two platforms or channels and then expand as you grow.
The ancient tip of launching your business everywhere has long been labeled as bad advice that wastes your marketing budget.
Social media is a channel with multiple platforms under it. Other restaurant marketing channels include email marketing, SMS marketing, influencer marketing, among others.
If you’re investing in reservation and table management software like Servme, you get access to email and SMS marketing. You can use these channels as you grow or when you’re ready.
You also get access to booking integrations like Tripadvisor and Zomato, which can increase restaurant sales and footfall.
4) Don’t go for everything all-at-once
Marketing can be overwhelming. So, besides starting small, don’t try to ‘do it all, all at once,’ or you will be overwhelmed.
In fact, this will exhaust your energy, resources, and budget ‘all at once’ too.
5) Start marketing early
No one wants to pay tons of money on preparation, seating, décor, systems, and, of course, food, only to have no one show up on day one!
Create your restaurant’s marketing strategy early. Start marketing even before you open your first venue. This will give guests the opportunity to learn more about and be excited ahead of your launch.
It will also give your campaigns time to work and you won’t have to rush through marketing.
One important thing to remember before you begin your marketing efforts is that restaurant marketing isn’t limited to social sharing.
It’s the content and the ideas of the posts that matter. For example, you’ll notice that several of the following ideas can be shared on social media. You can share images like reviews for social proof and images showing your dishes. Both are marketing ideas for your restaurant.
We’ve also mentioned how it’s important to start small. You can incorporate one or more of the following ideas in your broader, longer-term marketing strategy. Or you can combine ideas.
For example, you may choose to start with Instagram and influencer marketing. Or you may choose to begin social in general, combined with SMS marketing for your restaurant.
1) Create a website
A restaurant’s website is often the first point-of-contact before a guest comes to dine at your venue.
Nearly 69% of those surveyed in the MGH survey also said a restaurant’s website “specifically helps them decide if they want to dine in at the restaurant. Meanwhile, 43% reported visiting a website “to help decide if they want to order takeout or delivery from a restaurant.”
Our first tip is to create a website for your restaurant. It could be a simple one-page website, or multi-page site.
Doing so will help you in the long-term. Your website should provide guests with information about your restaurant or venues.
Information to share on your website can include:
Social media links (to boost following)
Phone number (and email) for contacting you
Venues with addresses and links on Google maps
Dress code
Availability of takeout
Partnerships
A website will also help you collect emails for future email newsletters and SMS marketing campaigns. It will also let you collect online bookings easily.
2) Create buzz before opening your venue
Launching your first venue? Or any venue? You’ve got to start marketing early and create buzz about it!
You can create several social media posts ahead of this launch. For great results, combine organic with paid advertising to secure some online reservations ahead of the big day.
From getting followers to guess where the venue is, to creating teaser campaigns, to inviting influencers, there are many ideas to experiment with to market your restaurant.
3) Share mouth-watering images
How often do you see people taking a picture of their dish when it first arrives?
How you present your dishes makes a major difference in how guests perceive your brand and their experience.
Share mouth-watering, but real images of your restaurant’s dishes, including main courses, appetizers, and desserts.
Make sure the lighting serves you well to highlight the colors and entice guests to come over and try the dishes themselves.
Here’s an example from one of our clients, Andaz Delhi. Check out their restaurant via Instagram.
4) Offer seasonal dishes, beverages
Keep guests on their toes by creating seasonal or limited-time dishes, beverages, and menus.
Digital menus make it super easy to design and add new items quickly.
Seasonal dishes and beverages can include seasonal fruits like mango-desserts during summer or Halloween-themed cocktails in October, just to name a few.
5) Enable online reservations
While not all restaurants like to offer reservations, bookings can be a great way to control restaurant capacity and reduce waitlists.
You can direct guests to make online reservations using Facebook and Instagram, using Reserve with Google, or using a reservation widget on your website.
Further reading: 11 Reasons Your Restaurant Needs Servme’s Reservation Widget
6) Special birthday offers
Guests love personalization! One way to do so is to make a special offer for or ahead of their birthday.
If you’re using a table management system or app like Servme, you can collect and add guest information to your guestbook. From there, you can manage and automate email and SMS marketing campaigns based on guests’ information like their birthday or a special anniversary.
For example, you can email guests a week or few days before their birthday and offer a free dessert for this special occasion. Create FOMO (fear of missing out) by noting when the offer expires.
7) Create a monthly newsletter
Consider creating a newsletter for your restaurant.
Newsletters are an opportunity to market several things at once.
Unlike targeted restaurant email campaigns, where you should have one call-to-action, a newsletter allows you to make several announcements.
For example, you can inform readers about your upcoming venue, unveil special menus or new dishes, reveal a special offer, and more.
Consider the frequency of your newsletter. You can begin with quarterly and then expand it to a monthly newsletter.
8) Corporate events
Becoming a location popular for corporate events not only increases your restaurant’s revenues, but also entices guests to come to your restaurants independently.
Corporate events such as business lunches and dinners involve large groups dining at your restaurant. These could be regular occurrences or seasonal like Ramadan iftar or sohoor events.
You may need to do some legwork to get your name and venues before companies. This can include contacting public relations (PR) or marketing personnel at companies or collaborating with agencies that manage marketing or events for these companies.
To manage large groups, including corporate events, consider using Servme’s event management software.
9) Consider special events
Consider creating special events like ‘Quiz Nights’ or ‘Valentine’s Day menus’ or ‘Music Nights’ to entice guests to come. You can make these reservation-only events or get guests to pay a reservation fee that’s later deducted from their final bill.
This restaurant marketing idea requires some marketing and venue preparation before the big day. Guests need to know about your special event, while you need to manage table and seating arrangements.
If you’re using Servme, our built-in floor planning software allows you to manage and combine tables easily. You can also use the automatic combine tables feature, where you enter the number of guests, and our software informs which tables are best suited for this group.
You can also collaborate with companies to host their events at your restaurant. This allows you to benefit from their network, add more guests to your guestbook, and increase your sales and revenues.
10) Partnerships with third-parties
There are many ways to market your restaurant and boost sales. One of those is building third-party partnerships.
You can integrate your table management system with platforms like Tripadvisor and Zomato, which allow guests to make online bookings. These apps will often charge per cover. The fees vary depending on the platform.
If you’re using a restaurant reservation system like Servme, you can also track how many bookings you get from each of these third-parties.
This will help you determine if the integration is worth having or not.
Third-party partnerships can also come in the form of discount cards like Xclusives Card, Premium Card, among others.
Some companies offer their employees a perks card that includes discounts at restaurants, cafes, online stores, and others. Banks often have similar offerings for credit cards.
11) Create a referral program
Nearly 92% of global consumers trust recommendations from friends and family “above all other forms of advertising,” according to research by Nielsen. Separate research shows word-of-mouth marketing driving 13% of consumer sales.
This suggests that a referral program can be a great opportunity for businesses, including restaurants.
While many may consider building their own referral program, it’s much easier and cheaper to sign up to referral software. Examples include Gameball, LoyaltyLion, Smile.io, among others.
Referral marketing programs also help you see your top referrers, allowing you to reward them later.
12) Create a loyalty program
Another opportunity is to create a restaurant loyalty program. This is software similar to a referral program. Often loyalty and referral programs are a 2-in-1 package.
In a loyalty and rewards program, customers perform actions to gain loyalty points, which they can later use for perks. In traditional loyalty programs, customers usually spend money to earn points.
However, modern rewards programs can include more actions such as signing up to a newsletter, sharing a post on social media, referring friends and family,…etc.
13) Optimize your Google My Business profile
Often customers will open Google Maps to see nearby restaurants and reviews about them. To appear to potential, curious guests, make sure your restaurant appears by optimizing your Google My Business account.
This allows guests to browse and learn more about you via Google Maps. You can also add information like your exact address, phone number, menus, and more.
Complement this with positive reviews by sending automated guest surveys after guests finish their meal.
14) Get reservations from social media
One of the top ways restaurants can increase reservations and sales is to get bookings from social media platforms.
Restaurant reservation software, like Servme, makes this easy to manage and allows you to track the sources of your bookings.
For example, if you have a combination of third-party partnerships along with Facebook and Instagram booking integrations, you can see the top platforms your guests are coming from and focus on those.
Further reading: Increase Direct Reservations using Facebook & Instagram with Servme
15) Share positive reviews
The second most-trusted method of advertising, including brand information and messaging, after direct referrals is testimonials and reviews.
Roughly 70% of global consumers surveyed in the Nielsen study said they trusted others’ reviews.
If you’re using Servme, you can automate guest surveys via the platform. Guests can receive a simple questionnaire after their dining experience or a day later.
You can use survey results to share positive reviews. You can also ask guests to leave reviews after their dining experience on social media or leave a rating on Google Maps.
16) Use influencer marketing
For years, restaurants and F&B groups have been turning to food bloggers and influencers to advertise their venues and food.
Food makes up a notable portion of the travel and hospitality industry.
Wherever people travel, they’re eager to try local cuisine. This offers an opportunity for restaurants to collaborate with local and international influencers.
The Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report 2024 shows 60% of respondents saying they plan to ‘increase their influencer marketing budget’ in 2024.
So, whether you’re opening your first venue or your tenth, food influencers can
Increase brand awareness
Boost your social media following
Boost foot traffic and sales
Help you expand to new markets or countries
Check out our list of the top food bloggers and influencers in Dubai and the Middle East.
17) UGC
User-generated content (UGC) remains one of the leading and most-trusted methods of online advertising.
Restaurants can use UGC in many ways. Many do so by resharing posts to social media in the form of posts, stories, or reels.
In addition, there are platforms like the Stllr Network, which give brands access to UGC creators.
18) Consider creating a giveaway
This restaurant marketing idea is helpful, especially if you’re just starting out in the food business or want to create buzz.
Create a contest with a giveaway, where one or several winners get a reward.
For best results, pair your giveaway with user-generated content.
For example, ask guests to take a picture of their dish, share it to their Instagram stories, and tag your restaurant. Let them know how many winners you’ll pick and what they’ll win. It could be a free main course or dessert or a discounted dinner for 2.
Here’s an example of a giveaway run by one of our clients, Andaz Delhi.
In this example, Andaz Delhi chose a different route. They asked people to follow them on Instagram, and tag friends in the post. Then, they chose * random names for the giveaway.
This strategy allowed them to boost their follower numbers and get eyes on their venue.
19) Add images of your venue
It’s important to keep your restaurant marketing ideas and efforts fresh. Sharing images from your venue can give newcomers an opportunity to learn more about you before they visit you.
If you manage multiple venues and branches, share images from each of them so guests see the views that await them wherever they go.
Here’s an example from one of our clients, Liza Beirut. Check out their restaurant via Instagram.
20) Shoot short videos
You don’t have to break the bank to shoot video content. In fact, you can do it from your smartphone if you’re just getting started.
You can take one or more of the above ideas and turn them into a video.
For example, instead of sharing still shots of your dishes, you can shoot a short video showing a waiter placing food on the table for guests.
Similarly, you can recreate the shots for your restaurant interior into video format, showing your restaurant at different times of the day.
Taking quick videos inside the kitchen, of your chef(s), and other staff preparing the food is also another marketing idea for video content for a restaurant.
21) Limited-time offers
Creating offers is a great way to market your restaurant and boost footfall–especially on weekdays when traffic may be limited. However, don’t overdo it with the offers, otherwise you’ll only attract bargain seekers.
This restaurant marketing idea and tactic is great for the times your restaurant tends to be empty. For example, you can offer a free beverage or 10% off all bills on Mondays and Wednesdays.
You can also choose the timing of the offer too. Some restaurants take this a step further and offer special menus from 1 to 5 pm or 2 to 4 pm during weekdays.
Learn more about using Servme’s restaurant reservation and table management software to manage restaurant operations, shifts, and more.
Servme helps you take online bookings from various channels, track source of bookings, create and manage email and SMS marketing campaigns, and much more.
Nada Sobhi
Marketing
