The 4 Restaurant Holiday Marketing Campaigns To Set Up Right Now
The holidays will be here before you know it. Don’t let them creep up on you. Put restaurant holiday marketing plans in place now so when the season arrives, you are already prepared and driving sales, not scrambling to quickly put together a holiday marketing plan.
Do it by putting these restaurant holiday marketing campaigns into place today.
#1) Build your text marketing list right now.
Now is the time to start building a list so you have an audience to promote your holiday specials to. While many brands focus on building an email list (which is useful in its own right), too many brands ignore another powerful communication tool: text messaging.
The average text message is opened within three minutes of getting sent. People almost always have their phones by their side, and they almost always see messages come through right away. Plus, the ROI of text marketing is around 500%. It’s a mistake to ignore this communication tool.
Leverage this connection for your business by building a text marketing list right now.
- Set up text marketing software that allows you to add contacts and send mass text messages (the legal way).
- Run a contest or offer a coupon to encourage people to opt-in.
- Use paid ads to target your ideal customers through search or social.
Related: You're Using Email Marketing -- But Why Not Text Marketing?
#2) Create holiday catering and to-go menu options.
While catering and to-go options are usually popular around the holidays as people plan parties for both small and large groups, they will likely be even more popular this year.
With COVID-19 concerns, more people will likely order restaurant food that they can enjoy at home. These orders may include individual meal choices as well as catered or family-style meals that are good for groups.
If your restaurant isn’t currently offering to-go or catering options, now is the time to get your menu set up.
- Create family-style meals (that serve 4-6 people).
- Create a catering menu (that serves 6 or more people).
- Create a to-go drink menu (that includes specialty cocktails and wine).
Related: How Restaurants Can Successfully Pivot to Offer Delivery & Takeout
#3) Set up online ordering.
Once you get your kitchen ready for takeout, get your systems in place to maximize these holiday food orders. Make it as easy as possible for customers to place their holiday food orders by setting up a streamlined online ordering system.
Allow customers to order directly from your website (and update your website to direct customers to the online ordering option). Also, add your business to order and delivery apps like Uber Eats and DoorDash. Customers want convenience around the holidays, and your restaurant being on a third-party platform might be the difference between customers choosing you over another business.
Plus, using online ordering allows you to build lasting restaurant marketing automation processes that will help you sell to customers long after the holidays are over.
Don’t wait until the holiday rush to test out this tactic. Get ready for this restaurant holiday marketing plan by launching online ordering a few weeks before the holiday season to get out any kinks and make sure your online ordering process works well for customers and your team.
Related: Guide to Online Ordering Systems for Restaurants
#4) Design ads to target customers while they travel and shop.
During the holidays, people spend more time traveling, shopping, and eating out. While this year might be different due to COVID-19, it's likely that people will still spend extra time away from home. Use this as a restaurant holiday marketing opportunity.
Consider all of the places where your target customer will be during the holidays, and use geofencing advertising to reach them while they are in those places. Create geofence ads to display your holiday promotions and use precision marketing to show the ads to people who are most likely to visit your restaurant.
For example, you can choose to show ads to people:
- In hotels near your restaurant
- In malls and shopping centers near your restaurant
- In restaurants like yours
Related: How Effective Is Geofencing? 3 Examples of Real Campaign ROI
Don’t Wait. Launch Restaurant Holiday Marketing Campaigns Today
The holidays will be here before you know it. You only have a few months to get ready. Every day that passes is a day that you could be setting up restaurant holiday marketing campaigns that will attract customers and drive up end-of-the-year revenue.
Launch holiday marketing campaigns that can and will produce a high return, and get started today.
If you need help planning and executing any restaurant holiday marketing plans, MyArea Network is here to help. Contact us today for a free evaluation to see how we can help you set up the campaigns outlined here as well as other targeted campaigns that are specific for your business and customers.
