10 Marketing Tips for reopening hospitality in 2021

After months of closure restaurants, pubs, cafés and hotels now have a roadmap for reopening in spring 2021.

With hospitality managers and operators under huge pressure to get everything right for reopening, it’s all too easy to put marketing down as an unnecessary time and cost, but the restaurants, pubs and other hospitality businesses that will get back on their feet fastest will be the ones who communicate regularly with their customers.

With constant changes to the rules and regulations and understandable nervousness on the part of some consumers about being in busy public places again, it’s vital that hospitality businesses communicate regularly with customers to show you are ready to welcome people back, have thought about their safety and that they can come out and enjoy themselves.

Here are my Top 10 marketing tips for reopening:

1. Create an emotionally rich and engaging relationship

   
   One thing that the last year of lockdowns has taught us is to be grateful for things we have always taken for granted - not least being able to pop out to meet friends at the pub or enjoy someone else’s cooking at a restaurant. People have started to appreciate the emotional connection they have with their local pub or neighbourhood restaurant or with somewhere they hold fond memories of or dream of visiting.
   Understand that emotional connection with your customers (past, current and future) and use it to bond with them. Marketing communications should be honest, empathetic, generous and authentic. Develop the personality and story of your brand and share your experiences of the last year and your hopes for the future in a way that makes your audience want to be part of your story and support your future.
   
   

2. Review your target audience

   
   Has your audience changed over the last 12 months due to travel restrictions:
   - can you gain new customers who are staying in the UK for their holidays. How do you reach with them?
   - can you connect with more local customers who are staying closer to home and now recognise what they have on their doorstep?
   - have customer expectations changed? If you traditionally have an older audience they may need more reassurance about how you will keep them safe. A younger audience may be more concerned about things they are now restricted from doing.
   - do review your offer, your menu and your price points and make sure they are right for your current audience.
   
   

3. Sell the dream through good photos and videos

   
   What we all need right now is to get out of the house, see friends and family and have someone else do the cooking and washing up! Use photos and video to appeal to this emotion and show people that they can go out and relax - photos speak a 1000 words.
   Update images or create a short video of your outside space if you have it or of your ‘social distanced’ indoor dining area. Film a virtual tour - on your phone is fine.
   It goes without saying that photographs of dishes and ingredients whet the appetite of hungry diners - but think beyond the obvious and give a sneak peek behind-the-scenes.
   
   

4. Communicate a clear and consistent policy

   
   While nobody really wants to read all the rules and restrictions any more than you want to enforce them, do make sure you have published your policies on your website and link back to them from elsewhere. There are so many ongoing changes that people do need to be reminded what the general rules are as well as anything unique to your venue and it can avoid awkward and embarrassing moments when guests arrive.
   Communicate with customers about any new safety precautions you’re taking and the government rules and regulations you need to follow (mandatory reservations, gathering information for contact tracing, etc.) Remember to review your cancellation policy too.
   
   

5. Keep your audience updated everywhere you can

   
   During the next few months your competitors will be vying for your customers’ attention, so make sure you are front of mind and that they can find out what they need to know about you wherever they connect with you. Make time to update your website with your plans for reopening including your new opening hours, menus and anything else that’s new (garden bar, gazebo, marquee?). It’s quick and easy to post on social media, but also make time to refresh your Tripadvisor, Facebook and Instagram bios and any listing sites you appear on.
   
   

6. Review your Google Business Page

   
   Make sure you’re set up on Google My Business. It’s free, easy to use, and allows you to manage your online presence across Google, including Search and Maps. It is often the first place people find your information when searching specifically for your business or just searching your town or location for somewhere to visit. Add fresh images, and make sure your introduction is up to date and relevant.
   
   

7. Get the best out of social media

   
   Social media is perhaps the easiest and most effective way to keep your audience up to date and engaged as it’s easy to post regular updates. On Instagram use stories or reels to tell the story of reopening your venue and give your audience an insight into everything that is going on behind the scenes. This will create a sense of anticipation but can also be a relaxed way to convey the measures you are taking to make people safe. If you dare go there, TikTok is starting to play a part in developing brand stories and audience engagement. Here are some ideas try:
   - Create recipe videos
   - Take followers on a virtual tour
   - Create a “behind-the-scenes” video of the kitchen staff preparing meals
   - Interview employees and share their experiences
   - Hold a live stream Q&A session with followers
   
   

8. Create long-form evergreen content

   Create long-form evergreen content for your website whether that’s telling your story on an ‘About us’ page or creating a news section or blog. This is content that isn’t time-sensitive and includes keywords that you want to be known for that will drive traffic to your site. Begin by drawing up a list of three to five keywords you want to improve your rankings for – terms that people may search for and that are relevant to your business.
   Blogs can help your website appear authoritative. You can write content that answers common questions, helps customers understand something, or solves problems (like things to do on a rainy day in your location or introducing them to your team or favourite food & drink producers.
   
   

9. Don’t forget email marketing

   Email marketing is a really useful tool for driving customer loyalty and engagement as well as keeping people updated. If you capture customers email addresses on booking (online or in person) invite then them to sign up to receive email news from you. You can also ask people to sign up via your website. Use an email marketing service like Mailchimp which will help you comply with GDPR data regulations and enable you to create a professional looking template.
   -  Don’t make emails ‘salesy’ or pushy – share other news about what’s going on in your area or things you’ve been doing, reading or listening to.
   - That said don’t be afraid to include a clear call to action to book.
   - Link your email newsletter content to your website and blog, including short excerpts in the newsletter with links to read more on your website, this encourages people to engage more with your brand.
   - Send to many, write to one – approach every email as though it’s personal.
   - Be consistent in email frequency and make sure you keep topics varied and interesting.
   - Save time and effort by planning a couple of months topics in advance. 
   
   

10. Encourage reviews

    Reviews on platforms such as Facebook, Google My Business and TripAdvisor are powerful ways to build your reputation. Your business is more likely to show up in Google’s local pack if it has reviews that mention keywords you’re trying to rank for and the town/area where you are based. I often speak to businesses who understand that these reviews count but don’t know how to generate them, one way to do this is to include a call to action on your website, you can download a Google Review widget from your google. Another way ask people in a fun way on your menus or other signage. See our blog on managing your online reputation>

Why content marketing matters for restaurants

What is content marketing?

Content marketing is a way to build your community, engage with customers and provide information to your audience and influencers. Content marketing is just a term for all your communications through your website, blog, social media, video or newsletters. 

All your content across the channels must all have one thing in common - it must be interesting, relevant, genuine and meaningful.

Why does content marketing matter for restaurants?

Content marketing can be highly effective, costing on average 62% less than traditional marketing and advertising, while generating three times as many leads. Content marketing is a great equaliser putting the big fish on the same level as minnow star-ups.

Done well content marketing engages your audience and provides them with something of value that makes you stand out from the crowd and will make your audience remember you.

Customers want to visit restaurants, cafés and pubs that they know and trust, and by creating excellent and consistent content, you can stay in front of those customers while nurturing and building stronger relationships.

How does content marketing work?

1. TELL YOUR STORY

Since the dawn of time, human beings have been story tellers and we form connections through stories. Tell the story of your restaurant and your food and your (website, blog, press release or Instagram post) as if you are talking to a friend. Set the scene - a place, a time. Choose one ordinary detail that captures the essence of your story.  Be brave enough to share the emotion behind your story.

2. PAINT A PICTURE

Share photos and videos or paint a picture in words. It goes without saying that photographs of dishes and ingredients whet the appetite of hungry diners - but think beyond the obvious and give a sneak peak behind the scenes or create short videos of dishes being compiled. 

Without a good image your tweet, post or blog is invisible and while these photos or videos don’t always need to be professionally shot, take a bit of time to set up your photo, think about the light, props and styling.

3. BE REAL AND HONEST

Avoid bland corporate speak and be a real person. If you have someone looking after content or social media for you brief them about the style of language they should use, phrases to use and those to avoid. 

4. BE INTERESTING

Don’t just shout about new menus and how to book a table - these sorts of posts are fine in moderation but take your content beyond that - introduce your team, profile your favourite suppliers, feature a drink of the month and give people insight into the daily life of the restaurant or behind the scenes in the kitchen. This way you’ll gain more engagement and encourage people to share your content.

Where do I begin?

1. Define your strategy - you want to drive traffic to your website and increase new and repeat bookings. Identify your target audience and work out what they will engage with.
    
2. Build a calendar month by month and design your content around holidays, seasons and events. Join up all your channels from your website and blog, to your newsletter, pr and social media.
    
3. Develop your tone of voice - who are you and who are you talking to? Use a language, images and video that are authentic and interesting.
    
4. Drive traffic to your site - your website should be your hub - and search engines will reward sites that are regularly updated with fresh quality content. You don’t have to create brand new content for every channel but adapt it for different audiences and direct everyone to your website for the full story.
    
5. Promote your posts - promoted posts on Instagram and Facebook can be a great way to dip your toe into online advertising. For a tiny budget, you can create a campaign to a precise target audience and view the results.  Do set a clear goal and have a clear call to action - book a table, buy a gift voucher, come to an event.
    
6. Track and measure - monitor and respond to your engagement using Google analytics and insights on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to learn and adapt to what works and what doesn’t.

Content suggestions for restaurants

• Celebrate seasonal produce
• Feature producers/suppliers - celebrate the people who supply your ingredients
• Share recipes - but make them something people can try at home
• Highlight a wine/drink of the month - suggest menu pairings
• Introduce your team - give customers the chance to get to know your staff with a fun Q&A