Restaurant delivery sales this year experienced a boom in growth, and there are no signs of the trend slowing anytime soon. Customers expect their favorite restaurant to provide delivery service, and one in five people order delivery at least once a week. The market opportunity is huge, and millennials are only getting hungrier for simple conveniences. It’s no wonder that this increasing demand for delivery services is dramatically changing the restaurant industry — and the way that restaurateurs are thinking about delivery.
Restaurants from quick-serve locations like McDonald’s to high-end, single location eateries are turning to delivery to meet the demand; the shift is as much as tripling their business. Whether delivery is executed in-house or through a third-party delivery service, it’s important to know that setting up your system – from delivery-friendly menu items to packaging to staging – is only half the battle.
Over half of all publicly traded restaurant chains are at least testing a delivery service, and competing restaurants have to actively market their RDS in order to maintain relevance and market share. Get active with your marketing in a way that sticks out from the crowd. To help ensure that hungry customers can satisfy their cravings from the couch, here are the top three ways to promote your restaurant delivery service.
Social Posting and Sharing
Advertising your RDS through your website and social “about” sections is a good place to start, but it doesn’t stop there. Consistent engagement promoting your delivery service is critical to provide constant exposure to your social followers. If you have a Facebook or Twitter account for your business, consider ‘pinning’ a post or Tweet about your delivery menu that viewers will be able to spot it right away at the top of your profile pages.
Another successful (and inexpensive!)l tactic that has the potential to go viral is to get your customers involved in social sharing. Create social campaigns that encourage delivery customers to post a picture of their meal with a branded hashtag. Instagram and Snapchat are perfect for sharing photo-worthy moments with friends and family. A contest offering free delivery service is more than enough to get hungry ‘grammers sharing.
When you encourage guests to post about your delivery service, others will be sure to notice. Just remember that whatever type of social campaign you go with, make sure to keep it fun and personal so that guests actually feel connected to your brand.
Email Marketing and Direct Campaigns
No, email is still not dead. In fact, it’s still one of the most common online activities, and you can’t go wrong with including your delivery service as part of your email marketing strategy. Remember that whatever type of email campaign you create, don’t come off too salesy and always offer something valuable to your email list. If you run an email campaign based specifically around your RDS, include a coupon or discount on the service to stand out.
Regarding direct campaigns, you don’t have to overcomplicate things. Depending on your restaurant’s location, you can look at the possibility of advertising your RDS through other local businesses and properties. Located near a college campus? With 56% of all food deliveries being ordered by young adults, go old-fashioned and print some flyers to post around campus. Advertising to hungry college students can pay big dividends for your delivery service. If you’re located near a tourist district, talk to local hotels and lodging businesses to see about leaving some flyers at their locations. Better yet, if you can get your flyer officially placed in that prestigious pamphlet bin that every hotel has, then you’ve made it big time!
If your location is near suburban areas, don’t knock the idea of dropping off flyers door to door. One of the biggest luxuries of RDS is having a hot meal delivered in the comfort of your home. Why not get that message in front of the right to the audience? There are real benefits to performing door-to-door advertising. You just have to make sure you’re doing it right.
In-House Marketing
If you’re afraid that promoting delivery will turn away dine-in guests, consider this: Every in-house customer will eventually prefer to order in a meal at some point. Americans are ordering more delivery than they’re choosing to eat at a restaurant’s physical location.
Turning your dine-in customers into delivery customers means you get both sides of their business.
So, why not do everything possible to ensure that they choose you for their next night in?
On-premise promotion of your RDS is necessary to bridge the gap between dine-in and delivery customers. Your dine-in regulars already love your product. Don’t miss the opportunity to remind them that they can enjoy it without even leaving the house! Promote your delivery menu and options on table signage, at the register, and on the automated receipt from your POS. Train your staff to mention delivery at the end of a positive guest experience.
WiFi Marketing
A simple WiFi marketing platform can provide a personalized on-site experience to your guests as they sign in to your WiFi network. As guests sign in, you can display copy and graphics promoting your restaurant delivery menu. 84% of customers report that free WiFi plays an important role in choosing a restaurant, and this is the perfect opportunity to notify customers about your delivery service. Your WiFi marketing tools can even send an automated email to in-store guests a few days after their visit reminding them to order online.
You don’t offer guest WiFi in your restaurant? Let us show you why you should.
Download the Turn Up Revenue & Engagement with Guest WiFi eBook
Are you ready to promote your restaurant delivery service and keep up with your customers’ cravings? GoZone WiFi’s Marketing4WiFi platform allows you to start advertising your delivery service right to your customers’ smartphones as they experience a simple and engaging WiFi login process. GoZone’s simple and engaging features allow you to start advertising your RDS with fun and personalized marketing content that will be sure to catch the eye of your in-store guests.
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