Thankfully, with the pandemic has also come a surge of innovation – with restaurant, cafe and pub owners finding new ways to grow their business during this uncertain time.
As such, we’re sharing 5 forward-thinking strategies to boost your business during lockdown:
Food Delivery
Food delivery has quickly become the preferred alternative to dining out, thanks to the pandemic. However, when thinking of the concept, third-party delivery apps may instantly come to mind. Instead, you could maintain the more human aspect of your restaurant business by having your waitstaff become delivery drivers. Not only will your staff benefit from more hours, but they will also better represent your business and likely be a familiar face for loyal customers. Just don’t forget to introduce them on social media and promote any free delivery offers when they arise!
Shareable Meals & DIY Kits
Undeniably, food is the one thing that brings everyone together – which is why we all miss dining out at their favourite restaurants. However, you can help your customers recreate the same magic with shareable family meals and thematic food kits. For example, you could sell a DIY pizza with instructions and ingredients for customers to make their own pizzas at home. You can even make it interactive with videos of the week posted on your social media, which detail exactly how to whip up that masterpiece. This way, you’ll be providing both entertainment and education while boosting sales!
Grocery Boxes
Grocery shopping in a pandemic can be a challenge in the event of a lockdown. Should another one occur, this presents the apt opportunity for your business to offer surplus ingredients you might have for sale. Sought-after items like eggs, pasta, rice and fresh produce may be lacking on supermarket shelves – so if you have any to spare, assemble them into grocery boxes which your customers can handily purchase and pick up. They’ll be grateful for missing a supermarket trip and long queues.
Package An Experience
Sometimes, great marketing is about selling an experience, as opposed to just a product. In a pandemic, your customers may be unable to fully celebrate special occasions like birthdays and anniversaries. By packaging and delivering food concepts – like a 3-course dinner including a bottle of wine of their choice and dessert – you can let them enjoy an exquisite dining experience in the comfort of their own homes. Plus, it makes for incredible user-generated content!
Communicate With Customers
Staying in touch with your customers might be the very factor that determines whether your business sinks or swims. Taking all of the above strategies into account, you’ll want to make sure you’re promoting such exciting and relevant concepts to your audience to let them know you’re adapting to their needs. After all, a business that evolves and caters to its customers is one that will thrive in the long-term!
