If you're a restaurant owner, then it's safe to assume that you understand that marketing is essential for the success and growth of your business. Many restaurants, especially restaurant chains turn to advertising agencies for their expertise and specialized knowledge since they may not have their own marketing department, and so, may need the expertise an agency can provide. Agencies will also make sure to focus on your ROI and aim high to get the results you are looking for.
I know what you might be thinking, "but an agency is too expensive! Is it really worth the money? What if I just build up my own marketing department?"
Here’s 8 reasons why an advertising agency can provide value to your restaurant marketing and how an agency will help you boost your ROI.
Have you heard over and over again that you have to be doing social media if you want to make it in today's world? So, you take this advice and throw together some social media channels and promise to yourself that you will make the effort to post, but alas... your daily tasks get in the way and your social media efforts fall to the wayside. Sound familiar? To generate ROI using social media, you must have a strategy. Did you know that 71 percent say having a social media strategy works for their restaurant? When you are running the operations of your restaurants, it is most likely that you do not have the time or the experience to build and manage your social media strategy. Hiring an outside agency could really make or break your social media efforts.
Oftentimes, when we are involved in the day-to-day of our business, we do not see who our main competitors are. If we see who they are, our perceptions may be skewed. It is beneficial for a team of outsiders to take a deep dive into your business and research competitors from a fresh perspective. The only way to do this is with an outside agency.
The benefit of working with an agency is that they have multiple specialists. So, you can find full service all under one roof. In this study, 61 percent of restaurants find email marketing effective. If you have taken the time to build a healthy list, it will pay off in your ROI. With just one email, you can incentivize your customers to come in and try the new specials of the month or use their free birthday coupon. It is really the most direct contact to your customer base so, it must be used properly. An agency can help make sure you execute your email marketing successfully.
An advertising agency can use your website to build your ROI through SEO and and content marketing. Your website is the online hub for everyone to find your restaurant. It must be cultivated with pointed content and it must be fast and easy to navigate.
Jimmy's Famous American Tavern's
Tracking, tracking, tracking! What is the point of investing in your restaurant marketing if it can't be tracked? Advertising agencies must track their results to prove to you, the client, that your hard-earned money is working for you in your new marketing efforts. If you are doing your own marketing, then it is most likely going to go unmeasured. It's just the nature of the beast.
Now, to track results you must have set goals. Agencies love setting goals and meeting those goals. It is what proves to them and to you that their efforts are worth your investment. Be sure when you hire an agency, the goals are S.M.A.R.T. goals.
One way we have found to have a quick return on investment is the engineer of your menu design. Do you know what menu items are the dogs or the stars? Do you know where to put your stars for maximum return? This all comes down to menu engineering. We have a great menu engineering worksheet that will help you pencil it all out to make your menu a money-making machine!
We are all in business, so we know the importance of managing your costs. Many companies feel there are financial benefits of bringing the team in house. In actuality, when you calculate in benefits taxes and insurances... hiring an agency ends up being more cost-effective. The other benefit is that you get to work with one point person, your account manager. So, instead of training and managing a team of marketers, you just communicate with one person, and the agency gets to deal with the team.
In conclusion, boosting your restaurant marketing ROI is very important to many people. You just need to take a look at your business model and decide if outsourcing the marketing tasks will give you a better ROI than doing it yourself in-between your normal operations duties. We get it. Your shoulders carry a lot! Why not release some of the load to professionals who care and do their best to make your restaurant stand out from the crowd?
Ready to take your restaurant to the next level? Contact us today to get started (951) 479-5411
Jimmy's Famous American Tavern's
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