With the global spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, almost every business niche has taken a hit. More than anything, the hospitality industry has incurred huge losses for obvious reasons. Government and public health organisations are constantly issuing updates regarding the safety measures to take in order to deal with the outbreak. As far as businesses are concerned, they are pretty much on their own as they figure out how they can stay afloat.
From a business perspective, this is just another shortcoming that needs to be dealt with. With that in mind, in this article, we have discussed how restaurants and bars can survive the pandemic.
Let’s take a look!
Tips to Protect Your Hospitality Business
With businesses being unable to remain open, consumer confidence is at an all-time low. As a business in hospitality, you are faced with problems like loss of revenue, the safety of your employee and customers, and long term changes in consumer behaviour. You will have to fight tooth and nail for every sale you make as you take steps to do the best you can with the available resources.
You have to come up with new tactics to ensure that the money keeps coming in and your business doesn’t come to a standstill. So here are some steps you can take to ensure your survival.
1. Put Your Customers at Ease
Reassure your customers that you are doing everything you can to ensure the safety of your employees and your patrons by following all the procedures and processes. Spread out your tables to promote social distancing. Inform your customers about the steps you are taking within your establishment to keep everyone safe. Communicate the same message on your website and other social channels. Let your customers know that you are taking the necessary disinfection measures to the best of your ability.
2. Take Good Care of Visitors and Guests You Host
As a restaurant or bar, hospitality is your speciality so ensure that you give your guests the best experience possible. Add special touches to this experience keeping in mind the pandemic that visitors will surely take note of. This way you earn customer loyalty and repeat business in the future. You will reinforce good word of mouth about your services and the good reviews online will give you the necessary boost.
3. Optimize Your Menu
You should also optimize your menu according to the things that are not healthy in the Corona era like salty and fewer sugary foods such as snacks, cookies, cakes, and sauce. Pay attention to vegetables, fruits, dairy products, legumes, nuts, and whole grains. Try to serve them after cleaning or baking properly. You may also mention the benefits of your menu. You can consult with the menu printing NYC for the designing and texting on it.
4. Try to Make More from Each Visitor
There’s no doubt you will be putting your best foot forward to provide the best service to your patrons. Keep in mind that people are less likely to dine out at the moment. This means that when they do step out, they will probably splurge a bit. It is a good opportunity for you to step up your game as you up-sell those extra helping of desserts, sides, and bottles of wine. Throw in personalised beer coasters or custom beer mats bearing your restaurant’s name, logo, and contact details to benefit from the top of mind branding and marketing.
5. Make the Most of Delivery and Pickup Services
In this period of self-quarantine, people won’t step out of their homes but everyone has to eat and that’s where you come in. Consider how you can maximise your efforts in providing ‘No Contact’ delivery to your patrons. You can simply drop off an order at the doorstep and leave. If customers opt to pick up their orders, you could leave their orders on their cars so that social distancing is promoted. Promote and highlight these services on your social channels and spread the word so that there’s increased awareness about your services.
6. Host Low Key Events
As there are concerns regarding huge gatherings, you could look into hosting small, local events by keeping the number of visitors to a minimum. Take the necessary steps to ensure that there’s a safe and manageable distance between the tables you place.
Protect Your Business With Smart Brand Building Techniques
The goodwill of your business is everything especially during turbulent times like these. Take into account the way you communicate with your customers. Keep in mind that everyone is in this together facing the same challenges. Keep your customers at the forefront of all your business strategies so that you add more value to what you offer. Even if they can’t visit you at the moment, your efforts still count and will pay off eventually.
