Are you worried about marketing your restaurant? Text message marketing is one of the best ways to boost your restaurant business. At ExpertTexting, we have restaurants that use the service and find a difference. Here are the top ideas for restaurant marketing that seems to work best for our clients.
Loyalty programs
Loyalty programs are one of the best ways to retain customers. One of the best ways to run these programs is with text messaging. Simply, give them something free or even create a point system against a visit or purchase. Track these points via text messaging. Moreover, for those on your list that haven’t visited in a while, you can offer exclusive discounts.
Special Discounts
One of the best ways to market your restaurants is through text marketing. however, this is permission-based and you need to build your list. Moreover, the best kind of audience is the engaging one. When you invite people to sign up to your list, give them an incentive. This is one way to go about with text marketing. However, subscribers may opt-out once they get their incentive.
Hence, offer exclusive discounts to people on your list from time to time. This allows them to have a reason to stay on your list. Moreover, when you do not offer them something, you can always use it to promote your restaurant. However, make sure that you have a clear set of terms and conditions to avoid any unethical marketing practice.
Promote openings
If you are opening a new restaurant or a new branch, then you must promote your opening. The best way to do it is to promote it via text messaging. Build a series of messages and schedule them with ExpertTexting. Scheduled messages allow you to build a campaign so that the real deal becomes more exciting.
Adding discounts on opening days is the most basic thing. However, advertising on social media that anybody who subscribes can get an additional discount. These will help increase foot traffic. Once you have them in, you can work to enhance customer service and retain them.
Reservations and confirmations
Most people consider it the easiest way to make reservations. A text messaging service like ExpertTexting helps in making it easier. There are a couple of ways to ditch phone calls and use texting for reservations.
The first and most basic way is to enable a two-way messaging service. This allows customers to simply send you a message and request a reservation. You can book their table and even send them a reminder later on. This way the system becomes easy to manage for both the customer and the restaurant. Moreover, you can request a reply if there is a cancellation. Hence, saving you a random no-show. Once you know the slot open, simply send a mass text to the interested people. You may just fill up the table.
Another way is to use ExpertTexting’s API service. If you are using your website or application for booking, then using API helps. API allows instant messages when a customer makes a booking. These help in ensuring that you can manage your reservations while customers stay in the loop of their transactions/reservations.
Holiday Specials
In this busy world, almost everyone is looking for a reason to celebrate. Fortunately, there are several holidays – big and small – throughout the year that give you a chance. Use special days and holidays to bring more foot traffic.
If you use a tool like ExpertTexting, you can schedule these campaigns beforehand so that you market at the right time. Moreover, you can make groups for different campaigns. Groups help you target the most specific audience. Since ExpertTexting is pay-as-you-go, you do not waste your credits too.
Specials
Every restaurant has its specials. Usually, they change every day. One of the best ways to entice people to come into your restaurant is with specials. Use text marketing to send the specials of the day to your audience. Interested people can reply with a time of their choice. Or they can simply walk-in during meal hours.
This approach especially works on seasonal foods.
Host an event
Hosting an event to make your restaurant more exciting is the best way to bring in people. Even if it as little as special entertainment for the night. Make sure to advertise it through text messages. Moreover, you can also offer an extra incentive to those who come in for special nights. However, these are best when they are especially for the subscribers only.
Giveaways
Who does not enjoy free stuff? Setting giveaways for your subscribers allows them to walk-in. The easiest example is offering free appetizers on meals. Or free drinks with meals. These create a sense of fear of missing out. Hence, people come in to avail their free foods.
Referrals
If there is one thing that works in increasing sales most efficiently, then it is referrals. Referrals are when your existing customers recommend another customer. This is word-of-mouth marketing. However, you need a way to prompt it. Since a lot of people may not per se tell their friends and family about a place where they ate.
Simply send a mass text to your existing customers. Mention if someone comes from their reference, they can get a discount along with you. Referrals help increase foot traffic and even helps retain customers.
Another reason why referrals work is that they are like reviews. It is pretty basic that when you visit a new restaurant, you watch out for reviews. These reviews are most believable when someone close to you gives them. Hence, people are more likely to visit.
Encourage walk-ins
While most restaurants market for customer retention, it is a good idea to encourage walk-ins. Once you get them inside the door, your food and service can do the job of retention.
Hence, use special occasions, or another Tuesday to just encourage walk-ins. Mass texting allows you to invite people in for flash deals on your menu as well.
Begin Restaurant Marketing with ExpertTexting
ExpertTexting is your one-stop solution to mass texting. Simply sign up to begin sending out mass texts, personalizing them, and even scheduling messages.