Defining your Goal
This is critical! What are your objectives? Do you want to increase sales on a night of the week that business is not what you would like it to be? Do you want in general, to increase traffic for daytime, happy hour or night times? This is the first step that is needed for a successful promotion to begin evolving.
The bar / restaurant business has always been challenging and competitive. In my 20 years as an owner/operator of bars, restaurants and nightclubs and my 20 years as promotional consultant for Vacation Adventures, and now my new endeavor Restaurant Revival I have always looked for ways to increase traffic at a minimal cost for both my clients and myself.
Promotional events create more revenue not only for the business itself, but make all of your employees feel they can earn more. They will be more productive knowing that there’s something in it for them.
Getting Organized
Having a plan; I always tell my clients to sit down with management to get started planning an event, whether a theme night, introducing a new format, sporting event or a fun and crazy way to get your customers involved--after all they do go out to have a good time! Your mind set should be, “What is going to create a fun filled day or night for my customers, so that they’ll tell their friends to come out and party down?” You need to get customers involved. Create exciting, easy and profitable menus items that your customers know you care about them.
Put your plan down on paper, think it out and keep a record of what went on so that next time you have a blueprint of the event. The benefits of a promotion are many. It will give your employees something to talk about to your customers and a successful promotion will keep your venue’s name on everyone’s lips, both customer and your competition alike. Word of mouth is the key to a successful promotion and top of mind awareness is the key to successful branding!
Execution
Let us just look at what day or days of the week we need to promote. I say you need a promotion for every day of the week including theme nights, ladies nights, industry nights and karaoke just to mention a few. Besides the beverage specials and/or food specials, give customers a reason to come in as often as they can. Target a day or days of the week that you to “need to kick it”. Let’s say that Wednesday, Friday & Saturday are busy, well I would start with Thursday, that way you create “critical momentum”-- four strong money days in a row. It diminishes your competition’s chance to move in on your action. Then you would go for Monday and then Tuesday, these are just examples. Your days may be different, but do you get my drift?
Make sure that all areas are covered. Nothing makes me more furious than going to a business because of a great promotional concept only to find out that they are totally unprepared--not enough help, run out of product, music not in sync with the event, the business is not clean inside and out, restrooms are a disaster and so on. All this preparation and no follow through? Ugh! Just like a sports team going to playoffs, the coach is responsible to have the team ready, like a well oiled machine.
Getting the Results
My company can get you there. I have turned around business to gain respectability, increase sales and revamping their entire operations. I know this business, I have put all of my expertise to use in this business and know this business from a common sense approach. I will increase sales, make you visible in every aspect and bring you to a place that will lead you to success.
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