Marketing your hospitality business: 4 steps for a fresh start
When we ask members what their biggest challenge is, time and time again they’ll tell us it’s getting people through the door. You can plan the best theme night in history, or run the most incredible special offer, but customers aren’t going to come and spend their money if they don’t know about it!
We know you probably didn’t get in to hospitality to faff about with search engines and social media, but finding the time to do just a few things well will make all the difference to that oh so important footfall.
So here are our top tips for taking a fresh look at your marketing to make sure you don’t miss out:
1. Profile your target market
All we really mean here is “who are your customers”? The reason we ask this question is because if you know who you’re selling to, not only can you make sure your offering meets their needs 100%, but you can make sure you’re marketing where they are actually looking!
There’s no point taking out a full page ad in the Telegraph if your customers read the Guardian.
So, if you’re a bar in a student town offering cheaper booze for a good night out, it’s going to be liaising with the Student’s Union, Instagram and Tik Tok for you. Chocolate box country gastropub at a higher price point? Get on those tourist guide and rambling websites, and embrace Facebook.
It sounds obvious of course, but it’s so easy to feel you need to be doing EVERYTHING, ALL THE TIME. You don’t – stick to a handful of activities which will mean the most to your customers, and do those well.
For beginners: It’s likely you have more than one customer type. That’s ok – just think about your top 2 or 3, list all the places they might find out about you and choose as many as you can realistically handle.
Pro tip: When we say profile, we mean profile! How old are they? What’s their ethnic or cultural background? How much money do they earn? Doing what jobs? Where do their kids go to school? Is visiting you an affordable staple or a rare treat? The better you know your customers, the more you can tailor your marketing to them.
2. Take a look at your brand with fresh eyes
If you’re not into marketing, the word ‘brand’ is a bit of a nonsense one. But if we boil it down, all ‘brand’ really means is ‘how do customers feel about your business?’. Existing customers base their feelings on their past experiences with you, but new customers only have what they see or read about you to go on. And most make up their mind within around 10 seconds.
If you were your own ideal customer, based solely on what you can see online, would you visit your venue? Be honest.
Firstly: Is there enough out there for them to find you in the first place?
Assuming there is, does your logo, font, website, imagery, social media content etc. appeal to your customers?
You never want to look too cheap, but there’s no point looking expensive and inaccessible if you’re trying to appeal to the everyman. A business hotel needs to immediately communicate that it meet’s certain needs (not look like a hostel!).
If you’ve got a mis-match between customers and ‘brand’, then it’s time to invest in an upgrade!
For beginners: You really don’t need to spend a lot of money to get the basic ‘brand assets’ you need (logo, font choice, some good quality imagery). Online tools like Canva do all the hard work for you. But do get feedback from a few different people (ideally your best customers) to make sure you’re hitting the right tone.
Pro tips: Once you’re happy with your logo etc., think about running a brand-building campaign.
3. Get the basics right
If there are two things you need to get spot-on, it’s your website (or Facebook page), and your Google Places profile. A new customer might find you because of your incredible looking pizzas on Instagram, but it’s one of these two places they’ll head to before their first visit (if only to get your address).
A lot of our members stick to a Facebook page rather than have a website (we get it, it’s free), but they are only effective if you are also updating your content.
If you haven’t posted anything since Halloween 2019, customers are going to think you’ve closed and move on.
A website might have costs associated with it, but once you’ve got it, there’s no ongoing commitment of your time. You needn’t look at it again for a couple of years if you don’t want (although, you probably should!).
For beginners: Our partners at Inapub offer a great package for £350 (you don’t need to be a pub). Please don’t forget to include your address (plus directions if you’re hard to find), opening hours and ways to get in touch.
Pro tips: Integrate your social media feeds into your website so customers can see the latest straight away – it drives a lot of traffic between your website and socials.
4. Embrace social media
Love it or loathe it, it’s not going anywhere
The top three channels for hospitality marketing are Facebook, Instagram and Tik Tok. You might consider LinkedIn too if you operate more than one site (it’s great for recruitment). Sadly, it’s not enough to just have social media, you actually have to post content if you want people to find you. But, that doesn’t mean it needs to take over your life – 3 posts per week will mean you’re doing far more than most.
For beginners: Choose the one platform which best aligns with your customers, and learn to use it well:
Pro tip: Invest in a camera, light and microphone to make your content look truly professional.
Follow us on Facebook and let us know how you’re getting on and what marketing is working best for you and your customers!