Many restaurant owners were obliged to close their dining rooms or perhaps shut down their operations totally in the early days and weeks of the COVID-19 epidemic to avoid the spread of the coronavirus. For many restaurateurs, this meant drastically reducing their marketing efforts. For the post-pandemic era, managers and restaurant owners must construct specific development strategies. Culinary adjustments, contactless delivery innovations, and online hygiene ratings, among other things, are all part of the new reality that necessitates a whole new post-covid restaurant strategy. Restaurants are progressively reopening their doors to the public, months after the outbreak began. Some restaurants have reopened their dining rooms and patios, while others have only reopened for takeaway and delivery. Whatever route restaurants choose, one of the most difficult challenges is getting restaurant promotion ideas to market restaurant diners who have been isolated at home for months.
5 Restaurant Promotion Ideas For The ‘New Normal’
Restaurants can no longer rely on word-of-mouth and outdoor ads to keep their companies top of mind because customers are still hesitant to venture out. Instead, restaurateurs must market their companies where their customers are now: online. Going digital and utilizing cutting-edge technology is no longer a distinct difference for restaurateurs.
Here are 5 restaurant promotion ideas for the post COVID world.
1. Meal Kits
Buying lunch is a reward in and of itself, but it’s difficult to duplicate the experience. Some restaurants have started selling meal and cocktail kits, which allow customers to prepare restaurant-quality meals and drinks at home. This isn’t a perfect substitute for dining in a restaurant, but it’s an enticing option. For example, Sugar & Spice, a neighbourhood eatery just across the corner from the Boston headquarters. They’ve put together a menu of “survival kits,” or meal kits, that allow you to prepare some of their most popular menu items in your kitchen.
Restaurants can provide a fun date-night concept, a family special, or a creative alternative to binge-watching another TV show by providing an activity in addition to a meal. Restaurants may focus on cleaning their venues and let customers rustle up their own meals behind the counter for a change!. Sure, not everyone will want to pay to prepare their own supper, but it is always worth considering in these times. People go to restaurants for comfort, and if they can provide that comfort to their friends and family (while taking credit for it), both sides will benefit.
The recipes are one of the most prized elements of a restaurant’s puzzle. Some things change all the time, while others haven’t changed in generations. Even well-known brands have cult followings! Foodie desires have not been stifled by social distance, so huge and small firms have opened their recipes to the public for the first time. If you own a restaurant with a cult-like following in your community, you’re likely to have customers who want to know the secret formula as well. Meal kits are a terrific way to send products over while keeping the recipe components hidden, but if you’re prepared to open yourself up to the public, this might be a great method to keep your consumers involved.
2. Content And Social Media
With 1.5 billion registered users on Facebook, social media has emerged as the easiest way to grab eyeballs. Hence it only makes sense to include social media in your restaurant promotion ideas.
You can run contests and campaigns on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, such as tagging of pictures, or a check-in campaign. This will make your restaurant visible to the friends of your customers a huge proportion of which will be your target audience, thus getting you in touch with your potential customers.
3. Reorganize The Menu
The pandemic has affected people in a variety of ways. Many clients’ tastes and preferences have evolved. Others have shifted their eating habits to include more balanced and nutritious diets. Despite this, many consumers are eager to return to some semblance of normalcy, despite their continued concerns about their safety and health. Due to these shifts in consumer preferences and behaviour, restaurant management will need to make a strategic menu and pricing adjustments. Reintroducing pre-crisis staples like fresh vegetables, breakfast, and alcohol, for example, is a great way to start, followed by prioritizing comfort meals and core products. Benchmark against the market to determine new menu prices as soon as these restaurant post-covid strategies are in place. Then, reprioritize your products and services to guarantee that they remain competitive in the post-COVID market. Restaurant management can also attempt to increase traffic by focusing on value-first items and then upselling.
4. Invest In Influencers
Approximately 92 percent of respondents believe influencer marketing is an effective kind of marketing, according to the 2019 Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report. Selecting an influencer for your company is similar to selecting a marketing partner. As a result, you must guarantee that you have common interests and ambitions.
Restaurants benefit greatly from micro and local influencers because they operate in a specific area. Look for food bloggers with a significant following on social media platforms like Instagram, where people can see and interact with beautiful photographs of your cuisine. These food bloggers might have a loyal following of 5,000 to 25,000 people who believe what they say. Incorporating deep customization into your brand’s digital experience is an excellent method to improve it. Engaging your clients with personalized offers across all of your digital platforms can drive repeat visits and average order value. Utilize the power of customer data to make informed pricing decisions, merchandising, and promotions, among other things.
5. Show Them The BTS
Food delivery has resumed in Delhi NCR following the lifting of the lockdown restrictions, but customers are still concerned about hygiene and safety. Restaurants have also done an admirable job of comforting customers by introducing stronger safety regulations such as contactless delivery and social separation in kitchens. If you’re still not satisfied, Instapizza in Gurgaon is introducing a new option that will allow consumers to watch their order being produced live on a screen. It will help businesses to create trust with their customers by demonstrating the hygienic standards and method of food preparation and packaging followed by the personnel. It will be accessible via a single-click link.
Customers’ first worry after the lockdown will be sanitation and hygiene. When customers visit your establishment, they will want to know that they are entering and gathering in a safe, COVID-free environment. As a result, restaurant owners and managers must take appropriate precautions to ensure that their patrons are safe. One efficient approach to accomplish this is to conduct a comprehensive check-up on every employee and client before they enter the restaurant, as well as to implement personal protective measures such as nose masks, hand sanitisers, and disinfectants. When considering the new restaurant post-covid methods that will determine whether or not consumers return to in-house dining en masse, it’s a good idea to plan for the time when you’ll be able to have a full house once more.
