Although it’s only the second week of November, the holiday spirit is definitely in the air. Needless to remind you, the holiday season is fast approaching. As a restaurant owner, that means it’s time to spruce up the decor of your eatery and all the marketing materials that promote it. Investing in some holiday-themed advertising is a wise way to cash in on the busiest shopping season of the year. Not to mention, it’s fun!
Here are three holly jolly ways to promote your restaurant this holiday season:
1. Advertise your restaurant’s gift cards.
There are few holiday wish lists that don’t include gift cards. These rectangular pieces of plastic are highly sought-after in nearly every industry. Gift cards are as good a recommendation your restaurant can get. Recipients are encouraged to visit your eatery and even spend more than what is on their cards. Not to mention, as Dennis Paper & Food Service makes clear, gift cards offer easy ways for your customers to gift your delicious food to their loved ones.
“An easy method to improve gift card sales during this time is to offer customers an extra incentive with the purchase of a gift card,” suggests their website, “For example, you can sell cards at a discounted rate ($50 gift card for $45) or offer a free $10 gift card with each $50 gift card purchase. It’s hard to resist free food, so guests may end up buying these for their friends, family, and even themselves!”
2. Revamp your menu to celebrate the holidays.
One easy way to inject some holiday cheer into the visitors of your restaurant is to have a festive menu that celebrates the season. You don’t necessarily have to change your offerings. Just try giving your most popular (and maybe not-so-popular) meals holiday-themed names – “Holly Jolly Hamburgers” anyone? Of course, you’ll also want to spruce up the font and graphic design of your menu to reflect the holiday season.
“Make use of multiple Christmas themed fonts to add some variety to your menu card, but avoid overcrowding or straying too far away from your own brand image,” recommends PosterMyWall.com, “You can start off by mentioning the words ‘Christmas Specials’ in a larger, bolder, winter snowflake themed font. Make use of a smaller type for your menu options and details.”
3. Support a charitable cause.
There is no such thing as a bad time of year to give to those less fortunate. However, every holiday season, we are reminded about how important it is to help out those who are in need. Dennis Paper & Food Service informs us that customers might be more likely to patronize your business if they know their meals help to contribute to a worthy cause.
“Try choosing a specific menu item, like a special holiday dish, and let customers know that a percentage of the profits from each of those dishes ordered will go to a specific charity,” advises their site, “Another option would be to devote a whole evening to giving, and promise to set aside a portion of the proceeds from the entire dinner to your favourite cause.”
Can your customers order food from your restaurant online?
Contact Unity Payments to quickly set up your own online ordering system for your restaurant. It includes the creation of a website (if you don’t already have one) and an app! To get started, please don’t hesitate to call us at 1-800-661-3761 or email us at info@unitypayments.ca.
