Restaurant success in profits can be difficult to accomplish, but it is possible with a combination of strategic planning, customer satisfaction, and by being open and receptive to feedback. Here are 6 actionable tactics to help you succeed and boost your earnings. 

Event Hosting

There are a number of special events that your restaurant can host without hurting its revenue or overworking its workers. Whether it's opening your restaurant up to local artists or entrepreneurs or community groups it is always a great idea to bring people together. Hosting events at your restaurant will allow you to not only get the exposure you’ve been looking for but also will allow you to attract more customers and even network with local businesses and professionals in your area. Hosting different types of successful events will allow you to reach more and different people and draw in more customers while also enhancing your connections in the community of local businesses, artists, and professionals. Creating a vibrant network will increase your brand awareness and the positive word-of-mouth about your restaurant.

Irresistible Offers

Another way to boost your restaurant’s profitability is by implementing loyalty programs and special offers! With loyalty programs you’ll be able to reward your frequent customers and encourage repeat visits from them and their surroundings. With the implementation of special enticing offers in the form of coupons, discounts, specials or happy hour promotions targeting slow periods, you can attract more customers to your business. You can even collaborate with nearby businesses for cross-promotions or joint events to expand your customer base. To spread the word for your special offers you can easily reach your customers without adding any extra costs to yourself by using your restaurant's social media, email marketing or even hanging flyers in your store. Download our free marketing schedule template to plan ahead and handle your marketing campaigns in the most effective way.

Engaging Experiences

As a restaurant you can always draw in more customers by providing engaging experiences for them! These experiences can include and are not limited to having trivia nights, live music performances, board game nights or comedy nights. When you’re working on a plan to come up with an engaging experience for your customers, make sure that these events actually resonate with your restaurant’s brand identity and appeal to your target demographic as it's crucial for your business’s success. By hosting engaging experiences you can create an appealing atmosphere and attract people that are interested in specific events, but also allow people to create memorable experiences which will in turn encourage repeat customers! The more you have loyal customers that love to come to your place repeatedly the more positive word-of-mouth referrals and exposure you’ll get from their surroundings. 

Strategic Partnerships

Another way to expand your profit margin is by creating strategic partnerships! These partnerships can be solely focused on just promoting each other or can be so much more like hosting an event in collaboration. You’ll be able to cross-promote each other, encourage new customers to visit both establishments and create a mutually beneficial relationship. Hosting an event together with another local business can allow both brands to showcase their unique offerings and introduce their own clientele to each other’s businesses. Moreover, as both brands will be promoting the event through social media, email marketing and in-store advertising this will result in successfully attracting both enthusiasts of both businesses from the local community, will drive higher foot traffic to both businesses, increase sales and visibility for both brands, while solidifying both their reputations as key players in their local food and beverage scene.

Digital Presence Enhancement

One of the most important ways you can increase your restaurant profits is scaling up your digital presence by enhancing your website, managing your customer reviews, and utilizing your social media to drive more traffic to your business! Enhancing your website is crucial as having a user friendly and visually appealing interface allows your customers to learn more about your restaurant, menu and reservation system. Managing customer reviews has to be done regularly by monitoring and addressing any online feedback you’re getting in order to maintain a positive reputation. This is especially important in the restaurant industry, thus positively addressing any negative reviews on the internet is crucial to maintain a positive reputation and demonstrate your commitment to your customers’ satisfaction and your community! Lastly, by harnessing the power of social media you can easily increase your visibility, branding and reputation drastically by engaging with your audience through sharing your enticing food menu and promoting special events or offers. Using our content budgeting template, which you can download here, you can make the most out of social media while monitoring your expenses.

Cultivate Relationships

The last tactic that we’re going to talk about is building strong connections with professionals who can bring in more repeat customers, foot traffic and revenue for your restaurant. You can do this by focusing on people like bankers, mortgage brokers, other corporate clients, or charitable organizations, and giving them incentives to create positive experiences for their clients and co-workers. Personalized booking services, priority seating, and exclusive menu selections are a few examples of these possible incentives. These perks are intended to persuade local professionals in your area to pick your restaurant as their go-to location for gatherings like business lunches, team outings, and client meetings. This will result in a rise in your restaurant’s sales, revenue, and  foot traffic. Most importantly it will establish and reinforce the reputation of your restaurant as the preferred eating establishment for occasions like business meetings and other such events.

Keep in mind that improving profitability is a continual process that calls for constant evaluation, adaptation, and innovation. But don’t let this scare you! You can increase your restaurant's profitability over time by implementing these 6 creative tactics without adding yourself any extra cost. If you’d like more details, examples and listen to how other restaurants have pulled these ideas off you can watch our short video on this topic!

DYNE helps restaurants optimize and streamline their operational efficiency through data and analytics. Book a demo or reach out to our team today with info@dyneapp.ca. to see how you can boost your restaurant's profits with DYNE!