Happy hour is big business. According to Nielsen, 60.5% of average weekly restaurant and bar sales are generated during happy hour. With such a significant portion of revenue coming from this crucial daypart, you’re definitely going to want to make sure you’re getting the most out of it.
Of course, the success of your restaurant’s happy hour ultimately rests upon the strength of your menu. Here’s five tips to help make your happy hour menu the best it can be.
Offer a selection of handcrafted cocktails. Half-off well drinks or BOGO craft beers are great, but decent drink deals are a dime a dozen when you start comparing happy hour menus. If you really want to compete, try and wow your customers with deals on handcrafted, signature cocktails that really stand out. Courtesy of Elle Decor, here’s a list of 11 signature drinks to help get you inspired.
Don’t skimp on food. While the first thing that comes to mind when most people think of happy hour tends to be the drinks, the food is the glue that holds it all together. In a survey conducted by the National Restaurant Association, 41% said that value-priced food was an attraction, whereas 46% were drawn to drinks. Only a 5% difference! I’ve been to restaurants that had great deals on great drinks at happy hour, but they had nothing much to offer when it came to eating. You don’t want to make the same mistake. Make sure you have a good variety of quality deals on offer
Show off your full menu. What are some of your restaurant’s favorite dishes? Take those, and make a happy hour version. When people go out for happy hour, they’re generally in the mood for cheap, shareable food. But if they’re at your restaurant, they still want a taste of what you’re known for. Don’t disappoint! If you’re known for burgers, you better make sure you’ve got sliders on the happy hour menu.
Switch it up! Variety is the spice of life. Switch up your happy hour menu from time to time in order to keep customers interested. Keep the core favorites, but rotate in new deals to please regulars who may want to try something new. You can experiment with daily specials too. Think Margarita Monday, Tini Tuesday, etc.
Pay attention to hump day. Happy hour deals have a long history of attracting customers after work has let out. But which day during the work week is most valuable? As it turns out, Nielsen data shows us that happy hour traffic on Wednesday is actually 23.9% higher on than other weekdays (excluding Friday). Maybe give Wednesday’s happy hour menu some extra love?
Promote Happy Hour With CoGoBuzz
Now that you’ve got your menu together, it’s time to start promoting happy hour. With the power of CoGoBuzz, we’ve got you covered. Our fully-featured marketing service digitally promotes your happy hour deals to customers’ mobile devices with powerful WiFi, SMS, and Email solutions.
Via WiFi, CoGoBuzz displays an interactive landing page on your customers’ mobile devices. There, you can promote your happy hour specials, upcoming deals, and more! Via SMS, you can send automated text messages letting your customers know what tonight’s happy hour specials are. On top of that, our services features digital text-based loyalty program, automatic social media followers, and much more!
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What’s your happy hour menu look like? Let us know in the comments!