How To Pack Your Restaurant This Summer… And Beyond

If you don’t know, my home base is Michigan, and it seems like winter has been here forever. It’s almost the start of May, and there’s still talk of snow in the northern regions. Ugh.

I’m ready for the big yellow ball in the sky to appear and warm the thermometer.

I know summer can be a slower time of year for some restaurant owners, depending on where they are located. During the summer months, your customers are out doing many different activities, enjoying the outdoors, and are busier than usual.

It can be challenging for your restaurant to stay top-of-mind. Now, if you are in a tourist area or an area that thrives during this time of year, that’s not an issue, but you might have other times throughout the year that tend to be a bit slower, too. And you know when these times occur if you have a track record of your sales.

How To Fight Sales Slumps Anytime During The Year

That’s why I love marketing; I look at it like a faucet that you can turn on when you need to make sales and off when you are naturally busy.

There are things you should do consistently each month to build your brand and stay top of mind with your customers.

You need to have a monthly marketing calendar and schedule. This sounds like a lot of work, but it should be simple and not complicated.

And I will let you in on a little secret: we might (lol) be launching a FREE Members-Only site with promotional marketing calendars and templates for you to use every month. Shhhh, I’m not supposed to say anything.
If you open my emails, you will hear about this in the next few weeks. If you’re not on our list… what are you waiting for? Click the link on the bottom section of this page and sign up!

Do This Every Month To Keep Butts In Seats

Things you should be doing every month to keep your relationship strong with your existing customers and to attract new customers are:

• Print Marketing, (Newsletter, Postcard, Flyers, Table Tents, Signage)
• Weekly Email (minimum)
• Social Media Posting
• Answering Your Reviews
• Website Updates

When you know you are going to have a slower month, DON’T wait until the last minute to pull the trigger on shotgun marketing that you hope will work and bring in sales. Dig the well before you thirst.

Plan two months out at least—three is better. Review your sales for the next three months, and if you know there is going to be a rough month coming up, plan now.

$$$ Making Ideas

Some great direct-response marketing ideas you can do to help combat the slower times to pump up sales are:

• No Peeking Promotion (my personal favorite)
• Postcard Featuring a Slipstream Promotional Idea
• Scratch Off Promotion
• Have an Event
• Birthday Party for You or Your Business (Nobody knows the date have it during your slow month)
• Contest with a Big Prize for Your Customers

 

These are just a few ideas to help you combat those slower months in your business. If you are looking for something more customized or to have the whole thing done for you, click the button below, and we can jump on a quick call to see what can be done to turn your next slow month into your restaurant’s busiest month.