5. Getting constant feedback - Restaurant managers gain relevant information regarding customers’ tastes and
preferences through daily interactions. Despite growing empirical data on customer
loyalty, researchers noted that both brand image and brand loyalty
play a distinctive role in solidifying customers’ perceptions through successful
experiences with a brand. To standout to your customers, you must understand the customers, and to do so, gather daily feedback, on premise, and online. Encourage customers to contact you and engage in return for a discount or some other goodies. this builds customer loyalty and relationship.
4. Not knowing the market size in terms of total value of market available - The U.S.
consumers spend an average of 13% of their household expenditures on food, with only
6% accounting for food consumed away from home at restaurants. This data can hold true for other countries as well with variance based on culture and urban vs sub urban settings in terms of recency, frequency and monetary value of the each consumer individually, or per household. Knowing this can help you set target expectation, as calculated by average house hold income, foot traffic, and online DTC (Direct to customer) sales directly from your own website or through 3rd party platforms (which ofcourse comes at a lower profit margin per sale).
3. Focus on Customer experience not revenue - Full-service restaurant managers who are knowledgeable in brand equity theory
can develop and deploy strategies to ensure a strong impression of their brand implants in
consumers’ memories through favorable experiences. Brand equity is the consumers’ perspectives of a product or service
based on the brand name associated with the product or service. One of the biggest mistakes restaurant owners can make is to get so busy with day to day operational activity, that they forget to take a step back and see gauge customer experience which is a key influencer in customer and brand loyalty. Customer loyalty relates to a person’s intention or preference to
repeat business with the same establishment. So what steps can you list that will increase customer loyalty and how will your execute these steps in a measured way ?
2. Focus on Customer Satisfaction - Customer satisfaction is the overall fulfillment of
customers’ expectations regarding purchased goods or services. Websites such as Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Urbanspoon were developed
so that people can share both their good and bad experiences with other potential guests. Remember it is all about perception. Does your restaurant present customers with opportunities to form happy and satisfied memories ? If yes, think of ways how you could improve these opportunities, and if no, then think about creating such opportunities. Having a website, gives customers assurance that your business is professionally run. Research suggests that customer who can not find a website for a restaurant i.e. the restaurant happens to be on social media but lacks an individual web presence will tend to impress new and existing customers less than establishments who maintain a good and up to date website where content is fresh, and is a living extension of the establishment online.
1. Focus on what can and does go wrong, and mitigate the probability of it - The restaurant industry is the largest portion of all the hospitality industries. Restaurants serve a
much larger volume of guests; therefore there are many more interactions and the
possibility of a negative experience is increased. Disgruntled customers can go online on 3rd party websites and leave poor reviews, these reviews many times can not be deleted or moderated. One way to counter the possibility of negative impressions is to have a great up to date website which shows the daily section or updates so customer can have both sides of the story i.e. if they see a negative review about the cleanliness, lets say, but when they click on the website, they see pristine conditions, they are likely to reduce their unfavorable opinion and give the establishment higher credits for maintaining a good website with pictures and images that show the true nature of the establishment.