Category: COVID

Is 100% Capacity Right for Your Restaurant?

Post author By admin
Post date April 23, 2021

As states begin to loosen COVID-19 restrictions, some restaurants are cautiously considering the same move. In Florida, which allowed restaurants to return to total capacity in September 2020, several chain owners reported a bump in sales. However, according to OpenTable, statewide restaurant reservations remain 20% lower than last year. So while local restrictions ease, the demand may take time to catch up. If you’re still deciding whether or not reopening to total capacity is right for your restaurant, here are a few important things to consider.

SLOW & STEADY

Researchers with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently reported that counties that allowed on-site restaurant dining had a rise in COVID-19 cases in the weeks afterward. Federal officials have also warned against removing coronavirus-related precautions too quickly as virus variants continue to circulate. If you see a similar trend in your area and local mandates currently allow 100% capacity, it may be wise to consider a few alternatives to attract diners safely.

INDOOR VS. OUTDOOR

With vaccinations on the rise throughout the U.S., diners are growing more comfortable with dining out—especially outdoors. According to an April 2021 Morning Consult survey, as much as much 68% of respondents said they feel safe sitting for a meal outside. Which is good news if you’re one of the many restaurant owners who’ve invested in an outdoor dining area. Utilizing this space as allowed by local mandates is a great place to start—especially during spring and summer. If your restaurant is limited to indoor dining, consumer comfortability continues to look promising. According to the same survey, 60% of respondents reported feeling comfortable dining out as of April 2021, and 73% of respondents said they think they’ll be comfortable dining out within six months.

ASK YOUR LOYAL GUESTS

Go straight to the source—it’s the easiest way to know for sure how many of your customers would consider dining with your restaurant again. We’ve covered the importance of loyalty programs in the past, and now is a perfect time to ask how many would consider an indoor dining experience. A simple survey and dine-in offer is a great way to gauge how many of your guests want to be in the dining room. Not only will this help you plan for seating arrangements and ideal capacity, but it can also inform how much you’ll need to order from your suppliers.

OFF-PREMISE & TO-GO REMAIN PROMISING

According to the Morning Consult survey, takeout continues to be the most popular dining option with 42% of respondents reporting ordering takeout at least once a week. If your restaurant has adjusted well to off-premise dining, consider sticking with the trend by offering menu items that travel well, along with a few others. Curbside pickup boomed during the beginning of the pandemic and demand continues to show no signs of slowing down.

MAINTAIN NEW REVENUE STREAMS

Over the last year, many restaurants found success in setting up and promoting new revenue streams. And even as restrictions ease, it’s still a good idea to maintain the ones that worked best for your restaurants, from the ever-popular family bundles around holidays and special occasions to extra helpings of heat-and-eat meals.

REMAIN FLEXIBLE

Few industries have felt the impact of the coronavirus pandemic more than the restaurant industry. And while many are anxious to return to normal, no one knows for sure what that new normal will look like. In the meantime, it’s important to listen to your guests and staff, plan ahead and make adjustments day by day to gauge when returning to 100% capacity is right for your restaurant.

COVID Restaurant Digital Media Advice

How to Plus Up Your Restaurant’s Online Presence

Post author By admin
Post date March 26, 2021

Having a robust online presence has been crucial for restaurants. Still, this past year we’ve seen people spend even more time online and make it routine to turn to the Internet to search for and order from restaurants. The following tips are always best practices to keep in mind, but they may be more important than ever during this year and looking ahead.

Strong Website Design

This first tip is just as important as it ever was. When thinking of web design, first and foremost, focus on functionality. Ensure your website is clean and easy to navigate so customers can easily find locations, your hours of operation, how to place an online order and more. Mobile design should be a priority as that’s where people are spending more and more time. It’s also, of course, important to make sure the website reflects your brand identity and that your design is helping to drive a state of crave. High-quality photos and branded videos will go a long way to entice your customers to visit or order online.

Optimize for Search

Never underestimate the power of SEO. It’s crucial that when people search keywords related to your business that your restaurant appears in their search results. Google Analytics and other tools can help you identify the keywords best for you brand. If the budget is there, utilizing paid search ads can certainly be beneficial. Also, make sure your Google My Business page is up to date and get more tips in our previous guide. You want to make sure that people are getting the most accurate and recent information when they pull up a Google search result for your restaurant.

Engage with Reviews

As many customers use third-party review sites to inform their dining out decision, it’s important to be aware of your presence on those sites and what your customers are saying. Responding to positive reviews and thoughtfully replying to the negative ones in your brand’s voice shows that you respect and value your customers. You should also gently encourage your guests to leave reviews to help grow your restaurant’s presence on those platforms since many people make decisions based on the number of positive reviews.

Amp Up Your Social Presence

And finally, we all know social media is a great way to boost your online presence but are you using it strategically? Identify the platforms that make the most sense for your business and focus your energy there. You’d rather invest in a robust Instagram page with stunning photos than focus your energy on tweeting with little engagement. Also, be sure to create a content strategy that drives genuine engagement and encourages UGC.

These are all tried and true ways to boost your online presence, but it can be good to take a moment to reevaluate your efforts in these areas and see where there could be room for improvement or reinvestment. As time spent online by consumers only continues to increase, you’ll be happy you made the time to do so now when you reap the benefits down the road.

COVID Social Marketing Communications Advice

Four Marketing Strategies for Success in 2021

Post author By admin
Post date March 16, 2021

Innovation and evolution have always been part of a restaurant’s recipe for success, and this past year has proven that more than ever. We’ve looked closely at the operational trends that emerged during the pandemic in the past. But to stay relevant, we have to consider new ways of communicating to customers that address the changes in their behaviors and expectations. Here, we’ll discuss four marketing strategies that could lay a solid groundwork for success as we move further into the new year.

Amplify Your Business Proposition

With off-premise dining becoming increasingly popular, there’s already an influx in messaging to customers around digital ordering and delivery options. To separate yourself from the pack, hone in on what makes your restaurant or experience unique and lead and communicate it to your guests. Especially if fewer people are dining in, help them understand what sets you apart—be it your menu, food quality, hospitality and customer service or your loyalty program.

Focus on Local Marketing Channels

Now that people may be expanding their dining horizons, it’s crucial to be able to connect with those searching for new restaurants or to be able to stay top of mind with loyal customers. Be sure to take advantage of free tools like a Google My Business account and then consider paid tools like search ads to increase your visibility. A robust email and social media strategy is also key. Social media will help you reach both existing and new customers quickly while email can help drive long-term engagement with loyal customers.

Boost Your Digital Advertising

Another strategy driven by the popularity of off-premise dining is the move to more digital advertising tactics. As more people order online, you’ll want to get out in from of them—whether that’s reaching them via display ads, retargeting ads, paid search ads or social ads. Plus, with digital advertising, it’s easy to track conversions from viewing the ad to ordering online, so you can quickly optimize your strategy based on guest behavior.

Consider Branded Videos

Finally, branded video content may be a great way to pique customers’ interest while telling more of your brand story. Video lets you really show off your menu and share more of exactly what it is that makes your restaurant special. It’s so compelling in fact, it’s been reported that 64% of consumers make their purchase after watching a branded video on social media. What’s more, even after the pandemic is over, customers may still have concerns over cleanliness and sanitation, and a video gives your guests behind-the-counter access they can’t get anywhere else.

As you consider your marketing strategy for the coming months, just remember to keep new consumer behavior in mind and plan accordingly, reach guests when and where they’re looking to dine out and help them to see just what makes your restaurant unique.

COVID Restaurant Marketing Communications

Four Restaurants Trends Here to Stay

Post author By admin
Post date February 26, 2021

It’s hard to believe that it’s almost been a full year since the beginning of the pandemic. Restaurants, of course, were one of the industries that had to make major adjustments to survive this uncertain time. While COVID-19 was the catalyst for those changes, many new behaviors or customer expectations appear here to stay. We’ll take a closer look at four of those trends here.

Mobile is a Must

A strong mobile presence was a priority long before last year, but the pandemic only magnified how important it is and accelerated the platform’s growth. More customers are ordering online than ever, so making sure they can do so easily and quickly on their phones is essential. Mobile usage, in general, is also up, from 3.5 hours/day on average to 4 hours. So as your customers are spending more time on their phones, you want to make sure interacting with your brand there is enjoyable and engaging.

Drive-Thru Demand Continues

Not only are more customers visiting drive-thrus, but they are also doing so more than ever. In a recent survey by Bluedot, 91% of survey respondents visited a drive-thru in the past month and reported a 26% increase in drive-thru visits over the past 10 months. As we noted back in October, drive-thrus proved to be a big advantage as many customers were looking to limit their time inside restaurants. That behavior is likely still at play, along with customers getting used to the convenience and speed drive-thrus provide as well as the integration of apps or digital transactions into the experience.

The Need for Speed

Speaking of speed, the same survey found that speed of service is becoming more important than ever. With personal safety still a big priority for customers, they reported nearly 80% of respondents would leave or consider leaving a restaurant with a long line. Even more striking, they found that 51% of respondents want their wait-time for in-store pick-up to be under six minutes, up from just 36% in August.

Curbside Continues to Grow

Curbside pickup boomed during the pandemic, popping up at many restaurants that never considered it before. And based on customer behavior, it appears this trend isn’t going anywhere. Nearly 80% of respondents to the Bluedot survey utilized curbside pickup in the past month, and the percentage of people reporting using curbside more often than before continues to rise. Now that it’s more widespread, it’s important to make the experience as smooth as possible to stay competitive.

While COVID-19 didn’t invent these trends or behaviors, it certainly pushed them forward faster. And now that customers have become accustomed to a new level of convenience that COVID-era changes ushered in, it makes sense they will stick around in some form or another. Of course, what’s right for one restaurant may not be right for the other, but investing in the trends that make sense for your customers now should set you up for more success as we move closer to the “new” new normal.

COVID Branding Advice Trends

4 Ways Great Design Can Boost Your Bottom Line

Post author By admin
Post date February 19, 2021

Despite the obvious benefits of great design, consistently realizing this goal is getting harder and harder for companies to achieve. But it’s essential for both disruptive and sustained success in physical, service, and digital channels. And as an extensive five-year McKinsey study has unveiled, companies with strong design outperformed industry-benchmark growth two to one. How? Here are four ways these top performers—and you too—can stand out from the pack.

Prioritize & Measure Design Choices

It starts with understanding your audience from the designer to top leadership. And then following the performance of your design choices. In the McKinsey study, companies that measured their design performance with the same rigor they used to track revenues and costs consistently performed best.

Design For Every Touchpoint

man describing business solution in front of a computer

The lines between products and services are blurring into integrated experiences by the day. So it’s important to consider your customer’s journey at every touchpoint of your brand. This design approach requires solid insights from firsthand experiences while understanding your customer’s underlying needs before they even interact with your brand to followups about their experience.

Design is Bigger Than One Department

Great design does not begin and end with the designer or art director. It’s a team effort. One of the strongest correlations uncovered in the McKinsey study linked top financial performers with companies that integrated designers with other departments. Working together with analytics, strategy, and designing against insights ultimately leads to better customer experiences and greater opportunities for growth.

Adapt to Feedback

Just as successful Kickstarter campaigns invite potential customers to test prototypes, great design blossoms in environments that encourage learning, testing and iterating with the end user. From testing stages of a new website before launch to focus grouping iterations of package design before sending them to press, learning from user feedback boosts the odds of creating breakthrough products and services while reducing the chance of costly misses.

Make Great Design Work For Your Brand

When it only takes 50 milliseconds for users to form an opinion about your website and only 10 seconds to form a first impression of your logo—great design is essential to your bottom line.

That’s why at Push, we’ve developed a proprietary Brand Convergence Model to plan, execute and evaluate everything we do for our clients. No matter the size of the client or project, strong design combined with the right messaging, deep consumer insights, and strategic media can push your brand to its full potential.

Whether you’re looking for an AOR relationship, want support on a project, or need a complete rebrand or brand developed, contact us to learn more about becoming a client.

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COVID Marketing Communications Lifestyle Trends

Wholesome Foods Take Center Stage

Post author By admin
Post date February 4, 2021

With a commitment to New Year’s resolutions underway and COVID-19 still top of mind, being and staying healthy is more of a priority than ever. Consumers are looking for fresh, healthy food options, especially when ordering in or dining out. In fact, local-food company Forager reports that 91% of consumers say it’s important or very important to feed their family fresh, healthy food right now. We’re breaking down these trends toward healthier foods to understand what your guests are looking for and how, as a restaurant, you can incorporate them into your menu.

A Focus on Holistic Health

Immune Boosters Spark Interest

Beyond seeking out whole, healthful foods, consumers are also taking a growing interest in specific ingredients that may have immunity-boosting properties. As quoted by Market Research, over 50% of consumers reported taking more supplements to support their immune health in 2020. And purpose-driven ingredients are predicted to be at the forefront of the food industry.

As a restaurant, consider adding ingredients like vitamin C, vitamin D, elderberry, or ginger to dishes and drinks on your menu, along with some education for guests on the benefits these nutrients and ingredients may offer them.

As we move through the year, we expect this focus on health to continue, even as things get more back to “normal.” Keep in mind though, incorporating this trend should feel authentic to your
restaurant and sustainable past the pandemic. Health may be top of mind right now, but honesty and transparency will be crucial for your business to maintain for years to come.

COVID Restaurant Marketing Communications Advice

A Winning Super Bowl Strategy

Post author By admin
Post date January 19, 2021

The Super Bowl is here again, and even in a year quite different than others, it’s still sure to be a major event, with fans at home looking forward to an exciting game, memorable ads and, of course, delicious food. Restaurants are no strangers to getting in on the fun of game day, from offering special menu items to promotional discounts. And while we can assume Super Bowl parties won’t be in full swing this year, people still want to enjoy a great game with great food. So let’s take look at why your restaurant should invest in Super Bowl promotions and consider some tips for scoring big the day of the Big Game.

Big Game = Big Money

Everything related to the Super Bowl is big. Nearly 100 millions viewers usually tune in to the game, and the National Retail Federation reported in 2020 that Americans were willing to spend an average of $88.65 to celebrate as they watch. That adds up to $17.2 billion! The survey also determined 80% of them were planning to buy food and drinks for the game. All this to say, the Super Bowl is a massive spending occasion and local restaurants can and should reap the benefits of this.

Stand Out With Offers & Discounts

With so many options available to consumers, it’s important to show customers they can find affordable prices at your restaurant, whether they’re dining in or picking up food to take home. If your restaurant offers discounts, consider two for one promotions or a deal that incentives guests to order more. If discounts aren’t your deal, then think of how you can offer special combos or even limited-time menu items for the occasion.

Score Big with Delivery

As even more people will likely be watching from home this year, it’s important to make sure your delivery and pick up operations are running smoothly. Ensure your ordering systems, via phone, your website and any third-parties, are working seamlessly, and that your team is ready to handle a higher than usual volume of orders. Promote your delivery services leading up the game, especially if they’re free to guests. Catering services could also be a way to maximize your earnings that weekend, so be sure to advertise those as well.

Even with Super Bowl festivities looking different this year, there are still lots of opportunities to be harnessed, especially at a time when enjoying food from your favorite places at home is more common than ever, giving restaurants an opportunity to turn an atypical year into a big win.

COVID Restaurant Marketing Communications Advice

Restaurant Trends to Watch for in The New Year.

Post author By admin
Post date December 22, 2020

If we’ve learned anything this year, it’s that it’s impossible to predict what the future holds. Even so, we’re all still trying to plan for the year ahead, and restaurants are no exception. While no one knows exactly how soon things will get back to “normal,” or what that “normal” will look like, you may be able to prepare even better by keeping in mind the following trends that emerged this year that are likely to continue into 2021.

Curbside Is Here to Stay

Curbside pickup took hold this year, and appears to be something that is here to stay. It fills a need for customers outside of pandemic times— convenience when there’s no time or desire to go into a restaurant—so customers will most likely continue to expect it as an option now that they’ve come to depend on it. But just become customers have become used to the idea of curbside pickup, that doesn’t mean it has to be boring. We know for some restaurants establishing a permanent curbside solution is easier said than done, but it may be worth looking into for the new year.

Growth in Delivery & Online Ordering

We also expect to see continued growth in delivery and online ordering. Similar to curbside pickup, customers have become used to ordering this way and are more comfortable with it than in the past, so it’s likely a service they’ll continue to rely on. On top of that, the impacts of COVID-19 will continue to be present into 2021, and the need for contactless service and customers’ wariness to dine out will continue until the pandemic is well under control. You may want to consider looking at ways to expand to-go menus or improve your online ordering process.

Safety First

As the pandemic continues into 2021, safety will remain an issue to plan around for the new year. Your restaurant likely developed and refined safety measures for servers and guests throughout this year, so be sure you’re prepared to continue these practices from an operations, training and financial perspective. If you’re still looking for ideas, we’ve covered safety signage tips and more ways to get customers to dine in your restaurant with confidence.

Comfort Food is King

According to chefs surveyed by Food & Wine, they see culinary trends shifting towards comfort foods. And we agree. With so much uncertainty this year, comfort foods are familiar, uncomplicated and offer a sense of normalcy. This may be beneficial to restaurants too, as resources may be limited. Plan for your tried and true favorites to continue to be what your guests turn to in the new year.

It’s been a trying year for restaurants, to say the least. But as 2020 winds down, there’s hope in what the future will bring. Because there is a fact we know in all of the confusion of this past year—people love restaurants. They love being treated to their favorite foods and sharing a table with others, whether that’s in a restaurant or in their own home. And with the hopeful news about vaccines to help put an end to the pandemic, we’re one step closer each day to getting back to the bustling kitchens and buzzing atmospheres that are the mark of an industry that’s not just surviving but thriving.

COVID Marketing Communications Advice

Delivery Apps: Friend or Foe?

Post author By admin
Post date October 27, 2020

As customer habits and restaurant operations have both made dramatic shifts this past year, delivery has been at the center of the conversation, with third-party delivery services not far behind. They’ve allowed restaurants to continue to reach large audiences, but they’ve also cut into sales with their steep commission fees. With customers still leaning heavily on delivery, is there a way to take advantage of the benefits third-party apps offer while still remaining profitable?

The Third-Party Presence

First, let’s take a look at how widely third-party apps are currently used. An Uber Eats-commissioned study revealed that 92% of restaurants surveyed said they’ve used a delivery app since the pandemic began. Driving this growth on the restaurant side is the exposure that a third-party app brings, which is crucial when foot traffic or indoor dining has significantly slowed. Out of the third-party apps used, “The Big Four” including UberEats, Postmates, Grubhub and Doordash, make up an estimated 95% of the market.

What Restaurants Are Saying

Before the pandemic, delivery apps offered a nice incremental revenue for restaurants with little negative effect. But now that delivery has assumed such an important role, the pros and cons of delivery apps have only been magnified.

The glaring downside is that most charge restaurants a commission fee of 15% to 30% per order. As a restaurant owner in Maryland, Chef Ashish Alfred told Marketplace, “It’s a huge, huge chunk of our money. Especially because people are just, for the most part, using this money to pay their staff.” For that reason, Fida and Robert Ghanem, who have operated restaurants in Durham, North Carolina for 33 years told Business Insider that they’ve decided not to use third-party apps because they “needed to keep as many employees working as possible.”

The good news is that even if restaurants do give up a percentage of sales, the UberEats study reveals that checks for delivery are higher than ever, going up 69% since March. Combined with the visibility they offer, Anca Caliman, co-owner of Lemon Poppy Kitchen locations in LA, told the Los Angeles Times, she sees them as necessary right now, if not ideal.

Making Delivery Work For You

If you use a third-party, look at how you can help bolster the sales you get back. Small orders will almost certainly lose you money, so require a minimum amount to ensure each order is still profitable. You might also consider limiting your menu on third-party services to larger profit-margin dishes to make it worth your while. Or, think about creating bundles or family meals that may entice your customers to order more at once.

Of course, the best way to ensure you don’t lose out to third-parties is to market the benefits of ordering directly from your restaurant effectively. As online ordering and delivery keep growing, customers may become more used to ordering direct, and third-party apps could lose their hold. Promote the benefits of direct ordering to your customers via email and on social media, being sure to explain why ordering direct saves them money and lets them support local businesses they love. That’s a win-win all around.

COVID Restaurant Marketing Communications Advice

Drive-Thru & the Road to Recovery

Post author By admin
Post date October 9, 2020

Seven months into the COVID-19 pandemic, social distancing and safety precautions are still top-of-mind for many restaurant guests. As a result, drive-thrus have proven to be a big advantage for those brands and restaurants that offer them. While installing a drive-thru might not be feasible for your restaurant, there are still lessons to learn from this trend.

Embrace the Concept

Drive-thrus have traditionally been one of the main points of distinction between quick service and fast casual or even casual dining. Adding a drive-thru to the latter two categories before COVID-19 could’ve been seen as a step in the wrong direction, weakening the quality of the brand. But as we’ve seen, customers are looking for this type of convenience, especially during a pandemic.

It’s likely that it may not be feasible operationally or logistically to install an actual drive-thru, but are there parts of the experience you can adopt to help support off-premise services? Consider a walk-up window, temporary pick-up lanes or a creating a makeshift queue staffed by an employee with a mobile POS system.

Consider Real Estate Solutions

In a position to be expanding or looking to relocate? Look at locations with an existing drive-thru set up or one that allows for space for curbside pickup. Even if it’s not in your short-term plans, guests looking for the flexibility of drive-thru, curbside and delivery options could be here to stay.

Think High-Tech & Low-Touch

Customer paying at drive thru with contactless credit card payment.

If you are thinking of implementing a permanent or makeshift drive-thru for the time being, technology will likely be at the heart of the solution, with a mobile device being central to how guests interact with your restaurant.

Offering an online ordering solution can help streamline the ordering and pick-up process, so you can operate a drive-thru without menu boards or taxing employees with the burden of handling payment. And if you offer multiple pick-up points, an online app can help separate those orders or instruct guests exactly where to go upon arrival.

While a true drive-thru experience may not be the answer for many casual restaurants, the benefit of fast, safe and socially-distanced pick-up is no doubt appealing to guests, and taking a look at where you can play up those elements within your own operations could certainly be beneficial at this time.