Let Guests Date Before Asking Them To Marry

Presently, consumers want to find restaurants that are trending spots they can trust will be worth the time and money.

Because the internet has made consumers feel like they have so many options.

Because consumers search restaurants near them and see dozens or hundreds.

In business, it has always been a principal that you must allow potential new consumers to date you before asking them to marry you. This is an analogy that represents you allowing potential new consumers to know about your business, see what you offer, hear about your business from friends or see your business, etc., before asking them to spend their money with you.

Many restaurant owners haven’t yet realized it, but this principal is still alive and well, but the difference is that now it is happening online.

Every day, people in your area are on social media, web browsers, review sites, etc. They are being inundated with information about restaurants who are active social media and have effective websites.

These restaurants executing this are sneakily letting consumers date before marrying - experience their restaurant before spending time and money there.

Sure, the entire industry isn’t predicated on this, but ask yourself: if other restaurants in my area are consistently investing resources into executing on social media and their online presence, then are they just foolish, or am I just being shortsighted about what is important…?

Consumers WANT to date before marrying.

You know your food. Your ambience. Your great service. But they do NOT. Furthermore, the ones who have been there before must be reminded, because their attention is being grasped at by other competing restaurants on a daily basis.

What I recommend for keeping your restaurant effective, since as the owner or operator, you probably have little time, is to find a key A player in your circle or staff that can help with this.

Ideally, it would be someone already on your payroll. That way they can do this in their down time and with little to no extra labor hours needed.

One principle I will forever live by in business is that no one knows who you are. Advertise more. Put your restaurant out there more. Post daily on social media. Be on every third-party ordering app.

Your restaurant is in a competition for attention of consumers.

When they wake up, they get a notification from the Subway app, email from Chipotle, see all your competitors on Instagram, see all your competitors when they Google search, etc. Even if they have been there before, it may have been awhile, and they need to feel and be reminded of just how sweet you are, so put your best image out there everyday and tell everyone about your business through every channel on a daily basis.