Do you know the drink order of all regular customers? Or when the family comes over every Friday? To communicate effectively with your customers, you need to know them well, right down to their payments, orders and spending habits.
Of course, it is difficult to retain accurate information about each customer. The good news: there is a better and more efficient way. You can create a marketing strategy based on the behavior and preferences of your Restaurant customers. The first step is to create customer personas.
Create an emotional experience with personalized marketing;
Customers today are not just looking for a place to eat. They are looking for an emotional connection based on highly personalized experiences. The more consumers associate your brand with meaningful events and personalized treatments, the more likely they will be loyal and return more often.
Consider the typical customer archetypes of your business. You can think of moms who just walked into a coffee shop, business people gathering for the next day’s meeting, and telecommuters looking for free Wi-Fi with a caffeine fix. Each of these people have different needs and when it comes to the coffee experience, they are all looking for the same thing. Different targeted marketing strategies are therefore necessary for each group.
How to create customer personas;
You have a wealth of valuable information at your fingertips. Are you using it wisely? Start with the POS data you collected earlier. You can use this information to find out which menu items are popular when, compare what different people order, or see which items are most often ordered together.
If you want more information, consider taking customer surveys. In exchange for a discount or a free dessert, you can collect a gold mine of how your customers engage and interact with your online shopping business. Ask about their favorite dishes, what draws them to your restaurant, and what you can do to improve the experience.
Nowadays, customers are also introducing the use of loyalty programs to earn rewards, which gives you a clear understanding of customer behavior. If you’re not already using a loyalty program as part of your data strategy, consider a pilot program to further develop your customer personas while rewarding your best customers.
Of course, you can walk around your restaurant at different times of the day to see yourself building your clientele. Start by asking questions about the most common types of customers. Do you see families getting together for dinner or going out alone for drinks? Which of your customers at your fast casual restaurant add extras to their meals for an additional fee, and which are looking for the cheapest option?
With this information, you can see which customers come to your restaurant during the week and how they interact with your business.
Restaurant marketing strategy to reach individuals;
Once you’ve identified your best customers for your brand, you can base your entire marketing strategy on their specific preferences and average size control. For example, a hamburger joint in the middle of campus might divide customers into three groups: sports fans, students, and locals.
For outdoor sports fans who come to watch their favorite team play, consider offering quick and easy options and multiple TVs to boot. Educate students on budget-friendly food and beer options for a complete ramen extravaganza. Locals who don’t want to be associated with student haunts may be interested in the more traditional items on the menu. So tell them about local ingredients and specialty craft beers. If each of these groups is looking for a very unique experience, they may find a place in your restaurant if you show them how you cater to their needs. For brands with multiple locations, this may also vary in your region. Therefore, it is also important to understand the different types of audiences in the region.
Communicate with your customers;
Once you figure out what aspects of your business sell to everyone, you really need to address them. If you have email addresses (another benefit of a loyalty program), you can segment promotional communications so that none of your customers receive ads they are not interested in. This helps add a personalized touch when giving your loyal customers the offers they want and will take advantage of.
Your digital marketing strategy should include social media. Today, many consumers choose where to eat using a search engine or social media to read reviews. Social media is the modern digital buzzword. Being active on social media for your brand notifies customers of the latest deals, menu items and more, and also gives customers the ability to tag and interact when they dine at your brand.
Although each Sushi Restaurant’s strategy is different, all benefit from using customer personas. Your customers will feel valued by your personalized service while customer retention and sales will increase.
