How to do effective Marketing for a cafe in four steps?
Once again, we sign a contract with a cafe, several times we had short projects, but there are also those in which the cooperation lasts half a year or a year. And one thing we meet with every project is the lack of a clear idea for marketing. I’m not even talking about the company’s strategy and marketing strategy, but a very simple scheme on how to avoid the biggest mistakes.
It seems simple that the client in the cafe wants to feel good and drink good coffee, by the way the client can eat something. However, often even the simplest expectations are not met. Today, a quick hint. Article for the Beginners, where to start your marketing activities.
How to do effective marketing for a cafe in four steps?
Here we go
An example of a movie that we made for a cafe in Munich.
Square format used for social media.
HIGHLY PROFESSIONAL BRAND DEVELOPMENT AND MOVIE CREATOR. VERY STRATEGIC AND ENGAGED. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND CLOU MEDIA.
How to do effective Marketing for a cafe in four steps?
STEP 1 SEE WHAT YOU STAND
We start building each marketing strategy with an in-depth analysis.
Although this is not a simple task, take a cool look at your cafe. Do you need to improve, fix or refresh your decor? Does the staff always address guests as you would like? Are coffee, drinks and food always prepared according to recipes? When was the last time the menu was updated – not only in terms of price increases, but also offers? Are there ingredients or dishes that have become fashionable and fit your concept?
Instead of answering these and similar questions in your head, write your answers somewhere. Believe us, what is written down is much easier to analyze later. Divide your analysis into several categories, starting from outside your cafe:
1. Front: is your cafe inviting from the street? Are all messages (on windows, trips, on windows) clear and visible to pedestrians?
2. Entrance to the cafe: does the staff greet guests at the entrance with a smile? What is the view after entering the cafe – is everything clean, tidy, inviting. Maybe I need to replace the old pot flowers?
3. Service: read reviews of guests from the last few months on social media and on Google. If any comments are repeated, it means something might be wrong.
4. Offer: is the menu attractive in terms of visuals and content? Will guests find something for themselves in your offer? You have something for vegans or vegetarians – this is a dynamically growing group of consumers that is worth encouraging to visit your cafe.
5. Additional amenities: are you child friendly? If so, are the toys clean, nice and attractive to children (and their parents)? Remember, if you have a children’s corner, you should also have a children’s menu, changing table and space for prams.
Write down the above issues on a piece of paper. Maybe something new will come to your mind? If you find it difficult to assess your cafe personally, ask someone from the outside for help.
Finally, if you have not already done so, write your SWOT analysis and look at the strengths and weaknesses of your cafe, its opportunities and threats.
STEP 2 HOW YOU COME TO THE COMPETITION BACKGROUND
After looking closely at what you can do better, see what your competition does and how it does it. If you find a moment, it would be good for you to go to cafes that are your direct competition. Pay attention to similar things that you analyzed in your cafe – look at the signboard and external sites, pay attention to the level of service, thoroughly analyze the menu in terms of offer and prices. See how the competition communicates with its guests via Facebook, Instagram, maybe they use other forms of promotion that you haven’t thought about yet?
In the analysis of competition, apart from examining their real position on the local market, the most important thing will be to answer the question: What makes your cafe stand out from them? Determining your USP (Unique selling points) or distinguishing features will be crucial in the further marketing plan.
STEP 3 TARGET GROUPS AND COMMUNICATION CHANNELS
You already know what makes you different. Now decide for whom your offer is created. Who will you want to reach with information about the cafe? Reflecting on target groups will help you choose the right communication channels for your potential guests and in what language to speak to them.
If your budget and time allows you to focus on only one channel to reach guests, we recommend Facebook. Although the statistics say that Instagram is developing more dynamically than Facebook, especially in the group of 16-34 year olds,
Facebook, however, is more “extensive” than Instagram.
In addition, thanks to specific ads on Facebook, information about your cafe can reach a wider, but specifically profiled group of potential guests. You don’t need a huge advertising budget – you can start with ads for a few euros a day!
If you focus only on communication via Facebook, take time to make photos and content published there “refined” and reflect the soul of your cafe. Understand this platform well how to use it. If you don’t have time, outsource it to another company.
STEP 4 MARKETING PLAN
After the analysis, it’s time to write down your marketing plan, starting from the first upcoming quarter.
When you write a plan, start by setting goals.
What do you want to achieve? The more specific the goal, the easier it will be to choose implementation tools for it. Is it the organization of the event and the 10 guests who participate in it? Or maybe an increase in sales of a particular dish by X%? Sometimes we also set goals in social media: reach of posts, engagement, likes, etc.
Don’t give yourself goals you can’t measure. For specific goals, list the activities that must occur to achieve this goal. Think about your budget for promoting the issues and how you intend to use it.
If you lack the inspiration for what could be done in your cafe, look for various unusual holidays. There are plenty of them and they are a good starting point for coming up with promotional campaigns. If you write these ideas in advance, it will be easier for you to communicate this to guests and reach more people who will visit you.
You can approach methodically to marketing, just like to finance. Analysis of your cafe and writing plans for the coming year or quarter will help you navigate more easily from the competition and from month to month welcome more guests to your doorstep.