'Date' Your Customers; Keep Them Coming Back

If you have experience won in the restaurant business, you know that making customers feel special can be a powerful tool for success. It keeps them coming back for more. And it’s actually not that difficult to do. In fact, sometimes it just takes a touch of creativity and some basic customer service skills to turn even the most dissatisfied customer into a fan for life. Here are thirteen ways:

1) Create a greeting card with your company logo on the front and "Thank You!" on the inside signed by your staff. It’s a great way to put a personal touch on a huge customer service project. It also makes for a nice gift for new customers or VIPs.

2) Give your customers something to take home if they need it, like free pens or T-shirts.

3) If you have gift certificates, give them out to new customers and/or VIPs. Remember that your loyal customers will probably want to visit with them in person, so make sure you include their name and phone number on the certificate.

4) Get involved in a charity in the community. Then host a fundraiser or donate gift certificates or special discounts to people who donate to your charity. Make sure you get your customers involved by asking them to donate, or get their input on which charity they want you to support.

5) Let people know what’s going on at your restaurant through a newsletter or an e-mail newsletter sent out on a regular basis. Make sure it’s fun and informative and includes fun contests (like drawings every month) and lots of coupons and other incentives for return visits. You can also send out newsletters announcing special events like birthday parties and anniversary dinners, etc..

6) Just making a customer feel truly welcomed at your restaurant is a big plus. It’s an important first step in serving them well. So make sure you greet customers with a smile and offer assistance if needed. Make them feel like they’re the only ones there, even if there are many customers waiting. This encourages people to become regulars and makes them more likely to return for further visits.

7) If you have good food and great prices, it’s easy to be successful in the restaurant business. Keep an eye on your prices. Make sure they’re in line with the competition, or even lower if possible, while keeping your food quality high. Don’t forget to take the cost of sales into account when you do this, too. You want to make sure you have a good profit margin on your food (25-40 percent is ideal).

8) Offer coupons at different times of the month based on what kind of special events you have going on. For example, offer a buy-one-get-one-free coupon for one month and a 50 percent discount coupon for another. Or one time you can offer a buy-one-get-one week coupon. Again, make sure you have a good return on your sales.

9) Don’t get too caught up in "ideas" that may not be in your best interest. For example, take the word of some customers who say they will no longer come to your restaurant if you use plastic silverware, even though most customers aren’t bothered by it. Don’t cave in to every single person’s request just because they seem upset about something (or upset because you wouldn’t cave in to their request).

10) Most customers don’t need to spend much money coming to your restaurant. If you have a good product and a good price, they won’t mind paying a little extra money to keep coming back. But make sure you keep your food quality high and people appreciate the amount of money you charge for lunch or dinner. Don’t offer "package deals" like $20 for eight people so that you can sell food and drinks at an outrageous price per person. That really doesn’t benefit the customer in any way, even if it does make you some extra money.

11) If you have any kind of marketing material at your restaurant, make sure it’s easy for people to read. You want everyone to have a good experience when they come in.

12) Be an ambassador for your restaurant in the community. That means being involved in your neighborhood and bringing lots of goodwill to the people and businesses surrounding you.

13) And finally, don’t ever forget that your employees are really important too! Make sure they feel appreciated and valued, so they will go out of their way to make customers happy. They’re the ones who are interacting with customers every day. And they’re the ones who can make another impression on your customers. So make sure your restaurant employees are always on their toes and that they know how to please people at all times. [ARTICLE END]

I hope these tips help you keep your customers coming back for more!

We see this often in the restaurant (and other service) industry: owners or operators become so focused on running a business that they forget about doing something as basic as thanking their customers for business. Yet, great customer service starts with thanking one’s customers. It is crucial that you thank your loyal customers periodically (e.g., once every 3-6 months) and make them feel special. Here are 9 to get you started

1. Make it a Point to Thank Your Customers.

"Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve you." [ARTICLE BEGINS]

2. Get Creative with the Way You Thank Your Customers.

"Thanks for making this your favorite place to eat!" "Thanks for choosing us as your source of food." (Preferably include the product they are buying or ordering, especially if it's a take-out order.) "We like being part of your celebration!" "We're very glad that we could be a part of it!" (This is good when someone gifts them an item as a gift.) 3. Offer Discounts and Other Incentives When You Thank Customers.

Conclusion: If done right, these incentives can really bring in some extra cash that you can use to serve people better.

5. Update Your Website and Print Out a Few Copies of It Every Month or So to Thank Your Customers.

"Thanks for choosing us as your favorite restaurant." "We're glad that we could be part of your celebration!" "We look forward to seeing you soon." (This is good if you have a periodical newsletter or any other kind of printout that you give out to customers sometimes.) [ARTICLE END]

Restaurants are busy places and things can be pretty hectic behind the scenes.