Organizing a cafe is relatively easy, but the very fact of opening an institution is not yet a guarantee of success. Profit will come only if people constantly come to the institution. Therefore, all novice restaurateurs are tormented by the same question: “How to attract customers to a cafe?”
If there is a person who can answer this question in one sentence, then do not believe him. The promotion process is quite complex and lengthy, it requires a scrupulous approach to choosing almost everything - from the clothes of the waiters to the location and menu.
How to attract your visitor
Most often, establishments oriented to a wide range of visitors, that is, universal ones, suffer from a lack of guests. Modern people are very spoiled and, even if someone looks into such a cafe, it is most likely because everything was busy in his favorite place. A person will not remember the name of the place and will react very mediocrely to the range of dishes and service. To avoid this, it is necessary to draw up an accurate portrait of the client and orient the establishment in accordance with his requests.
You can define the target audience with severalways:
- Based on the existing features of the room (location format, location, etc.).
- By choosing from a category of available options. Choose what is closer to your spirit, because the better you understand the audience, the easier it will be to create the necessary conditions for it.
- Revision of cafe pricing policy.
- Monitor the guests who come and determine the category that most often enters: for example, employees of neighboring offices or students.
Outdoor advertising and entrance design
Don't know how to attract customers to a cafe? For places of this kind, the external design plays a huge role, as it helps passers-by to identify your establishment. To attract the attention of potential guests, you can use the following tools:
- Main signboard. It should have a beautiful design and be sure to contain the name of the cafe. The signboard should be located in such a way as to fall into the field of view of those passing by, at night it must be highlighted.
- Additional sign. It is placed on the front door or next to it, it is recommended to hang it at eye level.
- Pointers. If the cafe is located in courtyards, then visible and understandable signs should lead to it from the main road. The passage to the establishment needs to be cleared and good lighting installed.
- Showcase and window decoration. Most often, window openings in cafes are left without decor so as not to block the view of guests. But this zone can be used much more efficiently, for example, by placing inher dummies of dishes from the menu. This will influence the people passing by, awakening sudden urges to go inside.
- Light installations. A very simple and effective way to decorate the interior of a cafe, and you can use this technique both inside and outside.
- Unusual sculptures. This is a great option in cases where the cafe is located on the ground floor, and there is no way to decorate a showcase or facade.
- Summer terrace. For this purpose, you can build a terrace with a separate bar and sofas, or simply set up tables with umbrellas.
Comfort and service
For quite a long time, the restaurant business in Russia practically did not consider such categories as young families with children and the disabled as guests, thinking that they do not visit cafes. Today, the situation has changed radically: many of them lead a fairly active lifestyle, doing their own business or freelancing, so restaurateurs must provide them with a decent level of service, which will allow them to beat the competition.
For visitors with children, it is worth developing a special children's menu with popular dishes, purchasing several high chairs, making a small but safe play area and offering a free food warm-up service. This will surely attract new customers. For people with disabilities, it is necessary to install a ramp at the entrance, and equip a special bathroom in the room and have several copies of the Braille menu.
Standard advertisingcampaigns
So, how to attract customers to a cafe? In order for new visitors to appear in the institution, it is necessary to inform others about what items are on the menu and what your pricing policy is. To do this, you can use the classic promotion options:
- Flyers, according to which in a cafe each visitor is brought one free dish or drink.
- Bulletin boards.
- Banners, posters and lightboxes.
- Cafe advertising on radio and TV.
- Announcements in elevators.
- Caller - a person inviting to visit an institution.
Attracting visitors through the Internet
The role of the Internet in people's lives is growing rapidly every year, so this effective promotion channel cannot be ignored. If you correctly approach the issue of attracting customers through the global network, you can reach a large audience of potential customers who live in remote areas.
First of all, you need to make a website, because in the modern world you simply cannot do without it, this is a kind of online business card of a cafe. In order for the resource to attract guests, it must become a kind of showcase with an ideal layout, beautiful design and a convenient feedback form. In addition, the site can be used as an online store or product catalog, conduct contests, polls, and more. Such simple ways to attract new customers are increasingly more effective than classic marketing moves.
In addition, it is worth using othermodern methods of online promotion:
- Cooperation with bloggers and youtubers.
- Order positive reviews on specialized rating portals.
- Entering a cafe business card with an address on all major maps - Google, Yandex and Wikimapia.
- Launch viral videos on the network (a fascinating and funny video about supposedly unplanned events in the institution).
Don't know how to promote a cafe? The most effective promotion method that will increase the popularity of a cafe is social media promotion by the guests themselves. In order to involve them in this process, you must do the following:
- Open access to the Wi-Fi network, that is, make the Internet network free.
- Organization of an interesting photo zone for guests in the interior of the cafe. Set aside a small area in the hall for people who like to be photographed, and decorate it beautifully. Update should be done regularly, about twice a month.
- Create pages on popular social networks to hold various contests for visitors, post news, cafe promotions, publish funny videos, inform about events and update the menu.
- Creative food design. This will encourage guests to take a picture of the dish and publish the picture in their own feed, from which all the visitor's subscribers will learn about the establishment. Thus, the restaurateur receives a free advertising channel.
Creative ways to attract customers to cafes
Entrepreneurs who decide tothe opening of a cafe, most often attracts freedom of choice, it is not for nothing that the work of a restaurateur is often compared with the work of an artist, and the institution itself is presented as a blank canvas. Do what you want - there are practically no rules and restrictions. Below will be described several effective ways to attract that do not require financial investments.
Each guest is “his own”
When the employees of the establishment know by sight and by the names of regular visitors and are ready to immediately offer their favorite position from the menu - this is a huge plus for the restaurant. Guests come to the cafe for delicious food, high-class service and comfort. If the employees are always friendly, know how to listen, and most importantly, hear the wishes and preferences of the guests, then the latter will definitely appreciate it. Everyone loves to be treated with respect. This is also a plus for waiters, as a satisfied customer always leaves more tips. The emotional component is very important: if the visitor feels that he is appreciated, he will return again and again even if he considers the pricing policy to be somewhat overpriced. And if friends ask him for advice on where to go on the weekend, he will paint exactly your cafe in bright colors.
Talky bartender
For many patrons, talking at the bar is a way to solve a problem, talk it out, or just pass the time. Over a glass of cognac, cocktail or beer, a certain category of visitors is counting on a dialogue with the counter employee.
To a California restaurateurcame up with a brilliant idea to invite every day to the counter of workers from various fields of activity. Economists, builders, lawyers, accountants and other professionals worked for him. As a result, the bar became a unique place, since each visitor, having paid for only one portion of snacks and alcohol, received qualified assistance. The “bartenders” were also satisfied, as they received new clients in their main speci alty.
Using modern technology
Use the power of the internet to make the most of it. Modern people spend a huge amount of time online; for office workers and young people, this is almost the basis of their entire life and work. After dinner, invite guests to fill out a short questionnaire (4 to 6 questions), which at the end will require you to provide an email address and other online contacts. Explain that this will allow them to take full advantage of the privileges - discounts in cafes, bonuses, etc.
In parallel, launch a special project for two or three months, after which it will become clear what is more interesting for guests - informing about new positions on the menu or announcing promotions and special offers.
Excellent results are brought by the service for placing orders through instant messengers or a mobile application, so that the table is already fully served by the time the customer arrives.
Involving guests in the game
A very successful marketing move that came from foreign restaurateurs - visitors are involved in the game and receive rewards at different stepsand various incentives. As a result, visiting a cafe will be perceived by them not only as a way to eat, but also as part of a kind of “quest”. It works as follows - for example, a person who has tried a dozen varieties of beer in a month receives a Beer Master diploma, a T-shirt, cap or mug as a gift. Receiving gratitude for the actions taken encourages a person to return again.
Another variation of the game is rivalry and the desire to become the best representative of your country, however, this option is more suitable for international bars or cafes located in resort towns. The idea is as follows - you can arrange a battle - who can drink more. The results are recorded on a pre-prepared board or a table drawn on the wall, and at the end a rating of the most cheerful and cohesive states is compiled. Keep in mind that the longer the action continues, the more people will want to participate and lead their people.
The most common customer acquisition mistakes
Many cafes spend huge amounts of money to attract new visitors, but do not get the desired result or very low return. After studying the statistics, the most typical mistakes of restaurateurs become apparent:
- There is no clear portrait of a potential visitor. A good manager always collects information about potential visitors and conducts a thorough analysis, the results of which give a clearer understanding of how to attract customers to a cafe, what a successful advertising campaign should be and what channelsextensions will be better perceived by a particular niche.
- Personnel does not develop, does not get acquainted with new ways of optimization and does not take part in special trainings. In any business, it is important to constantly improve; in the restaurant business, this is extremely important. There are many interesting training programs on the network, and the involvement of experienced psychologists will help to organize it correctly.
- Using few channels to advertise cafes. The manager of the establishment must skillfully apply all existing methods of attracting potential customers in his work. You can combine several methods at the same time - place active advertising on the network, distribute leaflets on the street, hold contests, post viral videos, and more.
- The lack of chips in the cafe to attract customers. An institution must be different from a million others, it is important to have a unique offer that will reflect the advantages and features.
Conclusion
A successful restaurant business is a whole complex in which the work of everyone is important, from the owner and cook in a cafe to a cleaning lady and a security guard. Each of them must know his job and do it conscientiously. Remember, promotion is only a small part of success. Delicious food reflects the skill of the chef and quality equipment, while the marketer and owner are responsible for attracting visitors, popularity and profit. Here, in most cases, nothing needs to be invented, it is enough just to use ideas that others have tried in practice and have given results. Most of them do not require large investments, and some are completely free. Don't be afraid and try!
