Take Advantage of the Holidays

10 Marketing Ideas to Bring in More Business

Now that we are into the fall, and rapidly approaching the holiday season, it is time to look at what you can do with your marketing to bring more customers in this year. According to Eleanor Frisch’s article: Top 10 Restaurant Marketing Tips for Holidays and Special Occasions, these tips are not only good for the holidays that are coming up; they can be applied to birthdays, anniversaries, and many other special occasions.

1. Send holiday greetings – send your customers a warm greeting for an upcoming holiday to make them feel appreciated. You can include a small promotion at the bottom to entice them in, ie: free glass of champagne for couples on New Year’s Eve, etc…
2. Offer a birthday gift – the National Restaurant Association says that more than half of Americans eat out on their birthday. Encourage them to choose you over another location, by sending them a free gift of sorts, such as a free dessert in advance.
3. Sell gift certificates – take advantage of different holidays all year long by displaying them in a visible location near the point of sale or at the entrance. A lot of certificates are never actually used, which turns into direct profit.
4. Put on a special holiday promotion – don’t lower your prices but add something extra to add value, such as a free taxi ride on New Year’s Eve, or a special meal/menu on Valentine’s Day for two
5. Throw a holiday party – focus your food and drink menu around the theme, ie: Mardi Gras, New Year’s, Halloween, etc.., provide special entertainment and advertise through flyers and direct marketing
6. Use seasonal decorating – this one is simple: roses and candles for Valentine’s Day, for New Year’s Eve use sparkly things, Christmas lights during December, etc… keep up with the seasons but don’t conflict with your overall design
7. Host a holiday fundraiser – put together a food drive, or pick a day to give a certain percentage of sales to a local charity, and then advertise wherever you can, to bring in the customers
8. Be politically correct – you do not want to lose customers due to ignorance. Make sure to train your staff and appropriately decorate and word menus and signage to say “Happy Holidays” versus “Merry Christmas”, unless you are certain that your main customer demographics are from a specific religion
9. Put on a unique holiday stunt – ideas would be to turn your establishment into a haunted house for Halloween, or dress all your wait-staff as elves for Christmas, or hide eggs during Easter. Dress someone as a giant turkey on the street to bring in clients around Thanksgiving. Your options are endless.
10. Advertise for the holidays – think about events occurring around each specific holiday, there are a lot of local Christmas programs at schools, ballets, etc… put an ad in their bulletins. Thanksgiving would be a good time to advertise in the “food” section of your local newspapers and magazines.

Featured Recipe

This easy recipe from allrecipes.com will spice up any holiday party.

Yield: 8 Servings

Ingredients:

• 1 (64 oz.) bottle apple cider
• 3 Cinnamon Sticks
• 1 Teaspoon whole allspice
• 1 Teaspoon whole cloves
• 1/3 Cup brown sugar

Directions:

1. In a slow cooker combine apple cider and cinnamon sticks
2. Wrap allspice and cloves in cheesecloth and add to pot
3. Stir in brown sugar
4. Bring to boil, then reduce heat and serve warm