Restaurant promotions are good for a number of reasons. Not only are they a great way to keep things interesting for your regulars, they’re an effective way to attract new customers.
But not all promotions are created equal. To get an idea of what your restaurant should try, here’s three great promotions alongside three not-so-great promotions.
Great: Family Night
Family night is an easy win. With an affordable kid-targeted menu and family-friendly entertainment, having a family night benefits your restaurant beyond the event itself. It familiarizes a family demographic with your restaurant, which can be quite profitable in the long-term.
Not-so-great: Off-Demographic Promotions
Any event or promotion that runs counter to your restaurant concept may not be the best idea. Sure, events like family night are a good bet for most restaurants (unless you’re running a say, a bar or a fine dining establishment). However, it’s better to evaluate what’s a good fit for your brand and more importantly, your customers.
Great: Weekly Specials
Weekly specials keep your audience engaged and active. They’re an easy way to earn repeat business from customers who are looking to try something new from a restaurant they trust. Weekly specials are easy to promote across social media, newsletters, and in-store.
Not-so-great: Any deal that cuts too deeply into profit margins
If you’ve worked in the restaurant industry for any amount of time, you probably already know that profit margins tend to be somewhat slim. As a result, it’s essential that any time you introduce a new deal, you need to examine how much it could potentially cost you. A deal might sound great on paper, but the last thing you want is for it to backfire.
Great: Social Media Savings
Want more followers on social media? Want more people talking about you on social media? With this promotion, you’ll kill two birds with one stone. Implement this one by offering exclusive deals to your social media followers. Here’s two ways to do it.
- Try having them show their server that they follow you on Facebook or Instagram in exchange for a discount.
- Post a deal to your social media page. Have them show your server the post to get the deal. Also, be sure to encourage them to “share this post so that your friends won’t miss out.”
Not-so-great: Hole-Punch Card Loyalty
Often lost and forgotten about, hole-punch loyalty cards are outdated and unexciting. In 2018, there are so many better options for your restaurant to get on board with – especially when it comes to loyalty. Like what, you ask? Digital loyalty.
Promote With CoGoBuzz
Hitting a home run on all of your restaurant’s promotions just got a whole lot easier. With CoGoBuzz, our state-of-the-art marketing service, we’ll get the word out on all of your promotions – digitally and instantly. Powered via advanced WiFi, SMS, and Email solutions, CoGoBuzz engages with your customers on the devices they use most.
For example, as I was just mentioning, hole-punch cards are out, and digital loyalty is in. With CoGoBuzz, we revolutionize your loyalty program by making it all digital, and entirely text-based. That way, you can instantly reward your most loyal customers with a simple text message. It’s easy and intuitive.
To learn more about CoGoBuzz, check out the rest of our website!
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What are your restaurant’s best promotions? Sound off in the comments!