One of the top tips for eating healthy is to cook your own food and stop eating out. In early January, the catatonic state of post-Christmas party-goers, paired with a resolution to lose weight, can mean less dining out at your restaurant and bad news for your business.
So if you’re a restaurant owner, you need to get creative to continue to drive people through your doors in January. Here are some ways to cater to your customers’ New Year’s resolutions and still have a steady flow of business in January.
Share photos of healthy foods on your social media accounts.
Maybe your typical customer comes in for your amazing shepherd’s pie or that juicy burger with triple-cooked chips. Since you already have salmon or a chicken dish on the menu, it’s time to advertise it. Snap a photo of your healthiest dish on the menu against a clean white surface to help it pop and look delicious. Then post the photo to social media with a caption about how customers can eat healthy but let you do the cooking.
Run a promotion.
Offer a 10% discount or a free appetiser on traditionally slow nights with the mention of your social media post or a marketing email that you sent out. Even when people are being conscious of what they eat, it’s hard to resist a deal. You could also run a promotion exclusively for new customers to motivate new diners to try your restaurant.
Try adding delivery to your services.
It’s cold in January - even colder than normal - so some of your regulars might not want to leave their homes. Try offering delivery in January — and advertise it. This can help increase sales, especially on weeknights. Your customers will also love the convenience.
Train your servers to upsell.
If you’re struggling to get customers in the door, you need to really capitalise on the ones who are coming to your restaurant organically. Train your servers how to upsell to increase each bill. Servers can suggest menu items to try in addition to what is being ordered, or get more descriptive about items to ensure customers are salivating. You can also have waiters bring dessert menus over to customers, even if they don’t ask for it. This makes it hard for them to resist once they see the lava cake on the list!
Have cosy decor.
Us brits love to embrace the cold weather but we also love to get cosy, so if you have a fireplace, make sure it’s burning bright. You also might also want to think of some hot drinks to keep people warm such as a creamy hot choc, or have a soup of the day on offer.