Tons of hungry customers always show up at your restaurant’s doors, ready to devour a delicious meal. You’ve got regulars that come in once a week, and business is booming.
You do have one area for improvement, though, and that is increasing your restaurant’s reservations.
While you’ve mastered crafting the perfect meal, you’re not sure how to grow reservations for your restaurant. Don’t worry– we know a few useful and effective ways to grow your restaurant’s reservations.
In this article, we’ll explain four strategies for growing your number of restaurant reservations today.
Strategy 1: Promote Your Reservations
You need to announce to the world that you take reservations, but not by hiring a fleet of cars with noisy megaphones promoting reservations. Promote reservations with the following tactics:
Let Your Website Visitors Know You Take Reservations
Promote your reservations on your restaurant’s website. It may sound obvious, but it’s essential to ensure that the first thing people see when they land on any page of your website is a link to where they can make a reservation. Just like with social media, the idea is to constantly remind people that your restaurant prefers customers to make reservations.
Whenever customers visit any site page, like your menu, blog, or homepage, they’ll be reminded that they can make a reservation. Constant reminders on your webpage will drive home the fact that you prefer reservations, which should help increase the number of reservations you receive.
You’ll want to ensure that every customer leaving your restaurant knows that making a reservation for their next visit will guarantee them the best seat in the house. So, train your staff to gently remind customers to make a reservation for their next visit. Doing so should result in more reservations in the long run.
Strategy 2: Implement Your Own Online Booking System
Taking restaurant bookings over the phone is a thing of the past. It’s 2024, and to keep up with the curve, you’ll need an online booking system. But you can beat the curve by creating your own custom-made booking system using an app builder like Adalo.
What is the best thing about using an app builder to make an on-brand booking app for your restaurant? You don’t need to know any programming, coding, or technical knowledge to make your custom booking app. Adalo uses an intuitive drag-and-drop interface that lets you build your booking system with the click of a button.
Choose a template that you like from Adalo’s library, and configure colors that match your taste. You’ll have the design freedom to tailor your booking app’s layout, appearance, and functions.
With Adalo, you can make your app appear exactly how you want. Your customers will love the professional appearance and convenience that your app will bring.
Customers will also love the convenience of accessing your booking app. After you build your app, you can make it immediately available for download on the Apple App Store, Google Play Store, or your own website. This feature lets your customers download your booking app and reserve a table in seconds.
Link Your Booking App to Your Google Business Profile
After you create your own booking system, allow customers to make reservations on your Google Business Profile. If you don’t have a Google Business Profile for your restaurant, you really need to make one. Set up your Google Business Profile by following these steps:
- Create a Google account if you don’t have one already.
- Go to Google Business, click “Manage Now, ” and then click “Add Your Business.”
- Fill in your business name, hours of operation, website, contact information, and a description. Turn on reviews so customers can rave about your tasty food.
- Verify your business location by filling out the form on the page. Google will do this by sending you an email or by calling you. Once this is done, your restaurant will be on Google Maps.
When you get on Google Maps, your customers can easily find your restaurant. Once you set up your Google Business Profile, you’ll want to link it to your reservation system so customers can easily make a reservation by tapping a button on your Google Business Profile. Do this by following these simple steps:
- Copy a link to your app’s location. If you built your app with Adalo, click on the “Share” button on the bar at the top of your screen. This will provide a link to your app.
- Log into your Google Business Account and navigate to the “Booking” section.
- Select the option to “Add a Link” and paste the link to your Adalo app.
- Save your changes.
Once you finish this, give it a quick test to guarantee your booking system is linked to your Google Business Profile. Doing this is crucial for your restaurant booking system because many people prefer to find restaurants on Google Maps.
When you use Adalo to build your own booking system, you can take advantage of the 5,500 integrations that Adalo has. Let your customers pay for their meals immediately after taking their last bites with connections to popular payment platforms like Stripe, PayPal, and Square. Convenience like this will put your booking system ahead of the competition while saving your staff time. \
Strategy 3: Launch a Loyalty Program for Customers that Make Reservations
Give your customers a reason to reserve tables by starting a loyalty program. Each time a customer makes a reservation using your booking system, give them a credit toward a certain reward. This reward can be a discount on their next meal or a free appetizer or drink.
Don’t use traditional paper cards that get stamps. Many times, customers will lose these easy-to-misplace items, which means you might constantly find yourself handing out multiple cards to the same customers. Instead, use an online system.
You’ll never have to worry about customers not having their digital reward cards when they show up at your doors. Just enter their names into the system on your computers, and they’ll be signed up and ready to “stamp” every time they eat at your restaurant.
Customers will be pleasantly surprised when they discover they’ve earned a sweet discount on their next meal, making them want to return to your restaurant in no time. You’ll also not have to worry about stamping a customer’s card whenever customers make a reservation, saving you time.
If you used Adalo to create your booking system, you can create and seamlessly integrate your own loyalty program. Here are a few other options for making your own loyalty program:
- Giftbit for creating your own simple digital point and reward cards.
- Coupontools for creating fun, gamified loyalty programs.
- SumUp for creating automated rewards cards that give points every time you make a sale.
Once you get your loyalty program going, remember to feature it on social media, your website, and through staff-customer communication. The more popular your loyalty program is, the more reservations you will get. A popular loyalty program for reservations can put butts in seats - fast.
Conclusion: Reap Your Booking System’s Benefits
Always remember to continually promote reservations, so you need to make your preferences to take reservations stick out like a hot menu item. When more customers learn that they can experience your restaurant without waiting for a table by making a reservation, you’ll fill up more tables more often. Your revenue numbers might also go up.
Prioritizing reservations over walk-ins can also ease your operations and help you predict how busy each night will be. Leveraging an online booking system allows you to deliver an optimal customer experience– which is nearly as important as the taste of your food.
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