Everyone is looking for a deal, something that allows consumers to experience the illusion of savings when still spending money. From my many years of experience, if you are looking to attract more business, it is paramount that every restaurant have specialty food and beverage offerings. This can be done on a weekly or monthly basis with rotating items, but at the very least should be done for all major holidays. These offers resonate well with customers and help attract more guests, both new and old.

These offers should live on Facebook, email and on little starbursts in the corners of your website. In-store merchandising might include a lobby poster, table tent, menu insert and/or guest check presenter. A picture is worth a thousand words, so make sure the pictures are really on point. The materials should also include a short description with all pertinent details. Make sure the specialty food and beverage offerings are extremely attractive looking. Furthermore, while not mandatory, a price incentive really adds to the appeal of a campaign.

Go Big but Stay Local

To jump start the idea process watch for any local food and drink trends in your area and other popular trends throughout the nation. Use this information and apply it to current menu items using local ingredients to hit a home run every time. Here are some good ideas I’ve seen work many times over at a lot of the restaurants we work with.

1. Another beerilliant idea is to host a beer night or beerfest – offer beer sampling, beer specials and foods to compliment. Include local items like flatbreads, sausages, seafood, meats and cheeses. A campaign like this works really well with mostly smaller bites and appetizers with only a handful of bigger plates.
 
2. Just like craft beer, locally sourced ingredients are always a hit. In the summer there is a plethora of fruits and vegetables and a restaurant can almost be in the farmer's market business with what is available. Winter is less advantageous with products coming out of the ground in this area but one can show off root vegetables, specialty meats & cheeses, and handcrafted breads.  
 
3. Craft Beer is very popular today, especially from local breweries. To enhance your beverage business we suggest an ongoing weekly event to taste these new local brews. Give your guests the chance to meet the brewer, taste some delicious beer and have a good time.
 
4. The Pacific Northwest has a bounty of fresh and amazing seafood just waiting to be added to your restaurants arsenal. Host a seafood festival with a number of smaller bites, some tapas and some bigger plates of various types of seafood. This can be paired with a number of wines that are locally produced as well, adding that much more to the experience.
 
5. Basically if you show your customers a good time, they will be back for more. These promotions can last a night, span a week or last a month. As long as you can keep things fresh and interesting the guests will continue to show up. Talk to your vendors about these types of promotions and special events, generally they are more than happy to assist in both menu development and in supplying complimentary products.

Analyze, Change and Repeat

After running promotions like this, analyze the results. What worked best? What didn’t work? Was something so incredibly popular that it should be a regular item? How can you use this information to make the next event even better? All powerful questions that can really help your business grow.

These events cannot be lackluster. They need to be well planned with even better execution. Involve your team in the idea and planning phases to make sure all angles are considered. A master checklist of what needs to be done, who is responsible, the date due, etc. needs to be circulated to the group and kept up to date to help keep everyone accountable.

It’s a lot of added work, but achieving success is rarely easy. To grow your sales, your brand and your profits you need to implement some of these events. Use my experience and these events to keep your business relevant and successful.

Did you find this useful? Check out some of our other Business Tip blogs!