The Restaurant Sales Funnel

In this podcast, I interview Social Medi expert, Court Allam Social Media Made Easy For Restaurants What To Post When You Don't Know What to Post Do you run out of ideas to post on social media? If your posts are not getting engagement from Shares, Likes and Comments then you may be feeling your wasting your time. In this interview with Court Allam, he will share his strategy what to post to grow your social media audience and convert them into paying customers and increase your sales. The 3P Posting Plan to Post 1. Product : show case your food 2. People : These are your restaurant staff and customers 3. Process: Show how your food being created You don’t need any fancy equipment. Use your smart phone to get close up photos of your food and use videos of the preparation of the food. I will add one very important point; when you take images of your food, be sure it will look exactly as how your customers will be served. If your food image doesn’t look like what you serve to your customers, then you will generate buyer remorse. Buyer's Remorse is a type of Cognitive Dissonance. It's a negative feeling that a customer has when a purchase is below expectations, leading to second thoughts or doubts after the purchase.   So be sure that you post images of your food that you can consistently deliver, even during the busy times. https://vimaco.com.au/social-media-made-easy-for-restaurants/

A few years ago, a restaurant owner of an Italian pasta / pizza restaurant contacted me and asked me to photograph and video his new menu. He suggested Saturday morning because it was always quiet at that time. I said sure, and he prepared every dish for new the menu. I video the preparation of the food and took images of the final product. And they all looked great. But there was something missing. No diners. And there for no sales. We had built a database previously, so I sent emails and text messages to his customers with an offer - $10 for a taste test of the new menu. Within minutes, we had a couple that were walking past the restaurant, received the text message and entered the restaurant. And soon enough, more customers came in for the test tasting and some said they would come back for dinner. That Saturday lunch, was the busiest it had ever been. So here is the morale of the story; your restaurant doesn’t make money from your food, your service, or your location. We proved that because we had all of those assets and we made no money. But once we added the marketing, then we got sales. So the point is, that the restaurant was open on a Saturday morning when it was always very quiet, because no-one knew of the tasting of the new menu. So no matter how awesome of the food or service is, the money comes from your marketing of those assets.

Buyers Remorse; Why Your Restaurant Customers Never Come Back, And The 7 Ways To Fix It Fast! Even if you offer your customers great food and awesome service, some of them will never come back ever again. And it’s not your fault. Your customers may be experiencing Buyers Remorse, which is a form of ‘cognitive dissonance.’ This is when a customer feels mental discomfort caused by conflicting beliefs and attitudes. For example, your customer may have been watching their diet, but they couldn’t resist to order that delicious rich, cheesecake for dessert. The customer enjoys the treat, but at the same time, they feel guilty for their lack of self-control. Even though you have done nothing wrong, your customer may associate your restaurant with that negative experience they felt, and avoid dining at that restaurant ever again. Similarly, Buyer’s Remorse can affect a customer who is served the meal they ordered, but then they see another waiter delivering a more ‘enticing’ meal to another customer. Your customer thinks, ‘I wish I ordered what they are having’. The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. Again, it’s not your restaurant’s fault, but your customer may experience ‘Buyer’s Remorse”. This could result in your customer giving your restaurant a bad review. Another common reason why customers may feel regret or anxiety, is after ordering a relatively significant spend.  For example, a couple may be celebrating their anniversary in your restaurant and decide to indulge themselves with the most expensive French Champagne on the wine menu. The morning after, the couple wake up, regretting their splurge that blew their budget. If it were shoes or handbags that they had bought, they could always return them the next day, but you can’t return food or drinks that was consumed. This again leaves them with negative feelings associated with your restaurant. Another trigger that can cause negative emotions, is when you have a large variety of meal choices on your menu. When your customer has too many choices, this can cause ‘choice overwhelm’ with your customers. This is also known as the ‘paradox of choice’. You need to find the right amount of variety options for your menu. Just like ‘Goldie Locks’, not too many menu items, not too little choice – but just right. Ask your customers, and they will give you valuable feedback.

There is an old saying in marketing; ‘When you’re trying to sell to everyone, you will sell to no-one’. The biggest mistake you can make when marketing your restaurant, is trying to attract everyone. This is what I call “Vanilla Marketing”. No-one hates ‘vanilla’ ice cream, but then again, no-one is passionate about ‘vanilla’ ice cream either. But if you were to target a niche market, for example, prospects that are  passionate about premium ice cream, such as, Royal Copenhagen, you would be able to attract more loyal customers, who are willing to spend more money for their passion. This will significantly increase your bottom line! To clearly differentiate your restaurant from your competitors, you need to create your own Unique Selling Proposition, USP. This is what makes what makes your restaurant stand out from the crowd? For example, Dominoes’ Pizza became the bestselling brand, based on its USP: “Fresh, hot pizza delivered in 30 minutes or less, guaranteed.” It did not promise prospects everything- not high quality or low price - just fast delivery. So stop trying to shout out to everyone, and target the right customers, with the right message at the right time. Your marketing strategy should make your prospects either love you or hate you. There’s no money in the middle.

There is an old saying in marketing; ‘When you’re trying to sell to everyone, you will sell to no-one’. The biggest mistake you can make when marketing your restaurant, is trying to attract everyone. This is what I call “Vanilla Marketing”. No-one hates ‘vanilla’ ice cream, but then again, no-one is passionate about ‘vanilla’ ice cream either. But if you were to target a niche market, for example, prospects that are  passionate about premium ice cream, such as, Royal Copenhagen, you would be able to attract more loyal customers, who are willing to spend more money for their passion. This will significantly increase your bottom line! To clearly differentiate your restaurant from your competitors, you need to create your own Unique Selling Proposition, USP. This is what makes what makes your restaurant stand out from the crowd? For example, Dominoes’ Pizza became the bestselling brand, based on its USP: “Fresh, hot pizza delivered in 30 minutes or less, guaranteed.” It did not promise prospects everything- not high quality or low price - just fast delivery. So stop trying to shout out to everyone, and target the right customers, with the right message at the right time. Your marketing strategy should make your prospects either love you or hate you. There’s no money in the middle.

In this pocast, you will learn the 6 Principles that are the foundations of marketing. If you apply each of these six principles to your restaurant business, you will consistently attract your ideal customers and increase your sales. The Six Principles are; 1. Place. This is the location of your restaurant. If your restaurant is located on a deserted island, then no matter how awesome your food and service, you will always struggle to attract customers. So cut your losses and find a better location. 2. People. The restaurant business is a ‘people’ industry. This includes your kitchen and front of house staff, your suppliers, and marketers and customers. 3. Product Your food is your primary product. The quality and consistency of your food determines the success or otherwise to your business. 4. Presentation We eat with our eyes. The presentation of your food and the ambience of the room helps to deliver an experience for your diners that will bring them back again and again. 5. If you nailed the first 4 principles for your restaurant, then you will have the ability to set your Price to maximise your sales. 6. The final “P” is Promotion. This is your marketing and creating irresistible offers that drives new and existing customers to your restaurant. When you use each of the Six principles, you will earn the most important “P” PROFIT.

Google My Restaurant Business In this video I interview, Stefanie Blackburn from “Restaurant Outreach”. You will learn how to tap into Google My Business for your restaurant. Google My Business is a free tool that allows you to manage how your business appears on Google Search and Google Maps and is a key piece of your local SEO. 82 percent of consumers looking for a place to eat, use the ‘near me” or a local search with their mobile phone before deciding on which restaurant to go to. 56% of local businesses have not claimed their Google My Business Listing, and many of those are local restaurants. You will learn how to use the 5 pillars of Online visibility to maximise your awareness: 1. Recency 2. Distance 3. Prominence 4. Availability 5. Relevance

Google My Restaurant Business In this video I interview, Stefanie Blackburn from “Restaurant Outreach”. You will learn how to tap into Google My Business for your restaurant. Google My Business is a free tool that allows you to manage how your business appears on Google Search and Google Maps and is a key piece of your local SEO. 82 percent of consumers looking for a place to eat, use the ‘near me” or a local search with their mobile phone before deciding on which restaurant to go to. 56% of local businesses have not claimed their Google My Business Listing, and many of those are local restaurants. You will learn how to use the 5 pillars of Online visibility to maximise your awareness: 1. Recency 2. Distance 3. Prominence 4. Availability 5. Relevance

How simply making an impact  on 600 people, can add six figures to your bottom line. The most powerful strategy to consistently grow your restaurant business, is to build your database. The cost of ‘buying’ new customers with special offers will reward your business in the long term. As you collect your new customers’ details, you grow your database so that you can bring them back again and again. Obviously, your customer’s initial experience must be a positive one to get them to consider returning again. But you can’t rely on all your customers to remember you. There is a lot of competition out there and they want their share of your customers’ spend. So you need to keep your restaurant  ‘Top Of Mind’ by keeping your communications line open between you and your customers using social media and email. Getting an existing customer to return is far more profitable than trying to attract new customers. The ratio to get a new customer is typically 5/1. That means it costs you 5 dollars for every $1 you receive from a new customer. However the ratio of getting an existing customer to return to your restaurant is typically 3/1. That means it costs you 3 dollars you spend to get a return customer. The greater their experience in your restaurant, the less you need to spend in getting them to return. In the podcast below, I interview Matt Plapp, the CEO of the Best Restaurants in America and author of an excellent  book, ‘Restaurant Marketing That Works with Matt Plapp.’ Listen to the interview with Matt Plapp, from Matt Plapp,as he  joins us to discuss his latest book, Restaurant Marketing That Works: Before, During, and After The Pandemic.

Learn the 9 steps of the Restaurant Customer Journey and how you can automate a marketing system that consistently gets new customers, builds your database and increases your customer lifetime value.