How Will Your Franchise Restaurants Compete Against Competition?

Mcdonalds Franchise

Last year, the Wall Street Journal reported that McDonald’s was no longer the world’s largest restaurant chain. No longer will McDonald’s and their Big Macs be known as the largest chain. Rather, Subway will bring it’s iconic green and yellow logo and $5 foot-longs to the top of the list and take claim.

While the general public may find it surprising to hear that McDonald’s was overtaken, should one take a closer look at Subway and the strategy they undertook to get where they are today can serve as a great model for franchise restaurants as far as defensibility against other restaurants and expansion strategies.

Knowing is half the battle

In the mid-80’s, the popular phrase “Knowing is half the battle” was coined by G.I. Joe. While G.I. Joe no longer does PSA’s on television, restaurants that stay ‘in the loop’ are the ones that are most likely to succeed.

If you look at some of the top restaurant chains in the United States for example, you will note that one common denominator amongst them all is that they are constantly getting feedback from their customers on ways to improve the service they provide as well as suggestions on future products. Corner Bakery for example is known for their careful attention to detail when it comes to their customer service and making sure that they are providing the highest quality product possible to its 25 million + customers annually. Continue reading How Will Your Franchise Restaurants Compete Against Competition?

4 Lessons From The FastCasual.com 2012 Top 100 Movers and Shakers List

Each year, FastCasual.com puts out their list of the Top 100 Movers and Shakers in the Fast Casual Restaurant industry. Nominated by readers,  and voted on factors like innovation and growth, the Top 100 list provides a learning opportunity for restaurant owners all around.

1. Get Social. Grow Your Brand.

Smashburger

If there is one common denominator that is present in all of the fast casual restaurants mentioned on the Top 100 Movers and Shakers list, it’s the importance that social media plays in regards to brand building and brand awareness. Continue reading 4 Lessons From The FastCasual.com 2012 Top 100 Movers and Shakers List

What I Love About Dining Out

When I was younger, my family rarely went out to eat without reason; there always had to be a special occasion or a guest over. While I loved (and still love) my mother’s cooking, I remember always hoping we’d be traveling somewhere for dinner because I craved the experience. I craved having other people around, being comfortable, and feeling… “cool”, for lack of a better word.

Let me explain. Before Starbucks went McDonald’s on their concept a few years ago, people attributed a lot of their success to the experience of being inside a Starbucks. The stores had a distinct ambiance that made you feel like you were somewhere else for a little while. Even if it was just Yuppieville inside, the smell of coffee, dark color scheme, and smiley ‘bartenders’ wrapped in green aprons made me want to stay there for a while. The coffee usually tasted burnt (Pike’s Place, of course), but being there kind of made you feel as if drinking black caffeine was exactly what you needed. I figured I could have just as easily gotten my afternoon coffee for about $0.34 at home, but going to Starbucks made me feel good for just an additional $1.16! Not surprisingly, I paid that extra $1.16 all through my college years, and still pay it now — just for the ambiance. Continue reading What I Love About Dining Out

Can Your Restaurant Afford to Make this Mistake? (Part 1 of 2)

I once went to a presentation by the President of Blenz Coffee, George Moen. Blenz is an international coffee chain that has over 85 stores internationally and growing. George offered this piece of advice for any business: If there’s time to spare, use that spare time to market and advertise your business as much as possible.

Marketing isn’t as simple as printing up business cards, and having people handing out flyers at the door during a slow night. Marketing requires discipline and understanding the habits of your customers and their use of technology.

Great Marketing Depends on Technology Trends:

Much or marketing depends on the trends of technology and the relationships that customers have with technology. What happens is that when a restaurant grows successful is that it often becomes complacent and uses old forms of media to continue to promote the restaurant. Continue reading Can Your Restaurant Afford to Make this Mistake? (Part 1 of 2)

Top 3 Social Media Tools to Market Your Restaurant (Part 1/2)

I’ve seen it happen before. It’s the mistake that many restaurant and cafe owners make. The failure to acknowledge the importance of marketing.

Marketing is what determines the survival of a good restaurant. Even when you have a three star Michelin Chef, raving reviews for your food from around the world, and some of the best service in the city, your restaurant can still close. This was the case for the now defunct, but famous restaurants, Lumiere’s and db Bistro Moderne in Vancouver, Canada which was run by world famous chef Daniel Boulud.

What was interesting was that once people knew it was closing down, people I knew were talking about it on Twitter, Facebook, and spreading the word about it virally, including local TV personalities. Strangely, they received a lot of publicity and marketing, but at too late of a stage and for the wrong reasons.

So how do you prevent yourself from getting in the same situation? What can you do to market your restaurant so that customers think of you when they want a place to eat? Here are three social media tools to help market your restaurant so that customers always think about you.

Social Media Tool Number 3: Facebook Fan Page

I’m not going to go into the details of how to create a fan page. But I will tell you the one key ingredient to Facebook marketing. Interaction with your online customers.

It’s actually possible that a customer will “Like” your restaurant and never see messages you post again on their Facebook news feed, and that’s because of EdgeRank.  Edgerank is a formula that Facebook uses to calculate how important you are to be on a Facebook user’s newsfeed when the user logs in. If EdgeRank thinks that your restaurant isn’t important to their user, then it’s not going to show up high on their news feed. Continue reading Top 3 Social Media Tools to Market Your Restaurant (Part 1/2)

The Best Way to Attract New Customers

One of the biggest issues for restaurants is getting new customers to come a restaurant.  While most restaurants will have a loyal following of customers, many of these customers will only be around for so long. Some will move to a different part of the city, others may not be able to eat out as much due to the recession, while others will go to the newest and hottest restaurants in the city.As the former manager of a cafe myself, I believe the best way to get new customers in the door is through referrals. No coupon, website, or paper advertisement can be as powerful in getting a person to try a restaurant as a close friend recommending a restaurant.

Why referrals are so valuable

Here’s the trouble with referrals: they tend to come sparingly. They either come when someone has just finished eating at a restaurant a day or two later at most or they only recommend when someone asks for a great restaurant for a special occasion. If you’re lucky, a customer that likes your restaurant will recommend it 3 or 4 times a year. Continue reading The Best Way to Attract New Customers