Think your restaurant can pull in some extra revenue? Why not look at some other ways to make money? Expanding your restaurant business is always an idea worth exploring.

Many restaurants pump out all sorts of different products to try and sell to their guests. And the benefits of selling merchandise aren’t just monetary. There are real, tangible marketing benefits! By sending your branded merchandise out into the world, you’re putting more eyes on your brand. If you can get your fans rocking your merchandise out in public, you’re gaining exposure. And exposure is incredibly valuable.

Here are some things to sell in your restaurant that aren’t on the menu.

Apparel. When it comes to merchandise, it doesn’t get much easier than apparel. Think T-shirts and hats. The sort of clothing with easily visible branding. That way, you can maximize exposure.

Glassware. Being a restaurant, glassware will be closely associated with just about any establishment that serves food. Mugs, plates, wine glasses, shot glasses, the list goes on. Sky’s the limit here.

Sauces, Seasonings, and Ingredients. Plenty of restaurants sell specially-branded sauces and seasonings. Have one you’d like to sell? People just might want to buy it.

Grab-and-Go Bites. If you’re not running a quickserve, this is a great way to cash in on the popular trend. Bottled water. Fruit. Premade sandwiches. Chips. There are plenty of choices.

Other knick-knacks. I’m talking everything from pins, to pens, to bumper stickers, flags, wristbands, and more. If you can slap your logo on it, you can go for it.

Now that we’ve gone through some of the different things you can sell, here’s a few additional things to note before you hop to it.

Gauge demand. Before you go and order a truckload of branded T-shirts and glassware, you may want to test the waters to ensure you’ve got a demand for your merchandise. Start small. Reach out to your best customers (through your loyalty program, social media, etc.) and try to gauge interest.

Consider your clientele. Certain products will appeal more strongly to certain markets. For example, let’s say your restaurant gets a lot of tourists. You may want to think about seeing if you can get a local landmark on your one of your T-shirts.

Consider running a contest where the prize is one of your new products. This can be a good way to increase interest or check for demand. Once the contest is over, you can drop a social media post saying something along the lines of: “Didn’t win? That’s okay! Come on in to see us and purchase one of our select T-shirts for only $14.99.”

Distribute inexpensive merchandise for free. This is where the “other knick-knacks” come in. Remember what I said about exposure? A free pen or koozie can be easy exposure if its complementary.

Promote it all with CoGoBuzz

With CoGoBuzz, our state-of-the-art digital marketing service, we’ll start digitally promoting your restaurant at the digital level.

Leveraging state-of-the-art WiFi, SMS, and Email solutions, our service promotes your restaurant both in-store and out, straight to customer mobile devices. Through a one-time login to your in-store HotSpot, CoGoBuzz displays an interactive landing page on customer mobile devices. On top of that, CoGoBuzz comes packed with a fully digital text-based loyalty program. Want to let your best customers know you’ve got merchandise on sale? Let them know with a quick and easy text!

Want to learn more about CoGoBuzz? Check out the rest of our website!

What merchandise does your restaurant sell? Sound off in the comments!