5 ways a restaurant can respond to new Covid-19 restrictions

As the hospitality industry continues to get fucked by the Government, here are 5 ways restaurant brands can combat the new Covid-19 restrictions placed on hospitality:

1. Make safety and professionalism a part of your brand DNA. Guests’ confidence will be eroded by the recent Government rhetoric so we collectively need to reinforce safety as a primary priority. It may seem obvious to most operators that they take safety seriously but many potential customers will be nervous. Emphasise safety procedures and attention in marketing comms.

2. Attempt to widen the peak service period to start earlier as it must now finish earlier. This can be done with special menus or promotions to fill up an early 5/6pm sitting. Try and avoid discounting though. Another idea to extend service is to package up dessert to go. This could be implemented stylishly, with great packaging, include a dessert wine option, making a point of enjoying dessert at home.

3. Run targeted and optimised paid search advertising to capture any demand for what you do. We’re finding search marketing performance is generating high returns in this market. Make sure you work with a professional agency like Ignite for this as it’s very easy to waste money on paid search if it isn’t implemented correctly.

4. Go big with your marketing. High-visibility campaigns will help you capture as many customers as possible. More on this in a recent post by Ignite’s CMO here.

5. Ramp up your Ecommerce functionality as this will become an increasingly important revenue stream for restaurants throughout this Crisis and beyond. Ignite’s Fuse ECommerce platform can provide all requirements on a single system including Gift Vouchers, At Home Meal Kits, Delivery, Click & Collect and Event Tickets : www.fusebyignite.com

Hope these tips can help. Get in touch if there’s anything we can do to support you through the Covid-19 crisis. Gotta keep positive people, we WILL get through this as an industry. ❤️