Love Comes Through the Stomach
If love comes through the stomach, then where does it end? Joke:) Bring life to romance.
Let the old saying ” Love comes from the stomach ” to be your motto this Valentine’s Day. Traditionally Valentine’s Day is one of those days in the year when restaurant owner expect a big crowd in restaurants around the world. While many people will argue that Valentine’s Day is the product of American consumer society, and that day has been invented to make people spend all their money and for traders to get more profit, this holiday is truly traditional and dates back to the Roman era. Today’s Valentine’s Day that we celebrate on 14th February, dates from the third century, the time of the Roman Empire. Emperor Claudius II forbade to soldiers to marry to prevent them to be tied to their family and, therefore, avoid going to war.
All priests except one – called Valentin compiled the emperor’s command. This priest resisted to the Emperor’s decision and keep on marrying young couples secretly. After they discover this disobedience Valentin has been imprisoned, and on 14th February executed. Soon, he has been declared as a saint and lovers around the globe still celebrate this day of love every February every year.
Why Valentine ‘s day is so Important for Restaurants
Valentine ‘s Day is for many people the perfect opportunity to prove their love. Some of them will only buy some gift to their beloved while others will bring their loved one to dinner in a romantic restaurant. But one thing is sure, for those who are in love more or less is very important to spice up their love with delicious food and pleasant flavor of the wine. Let your restaurant be their choice where they can enjoy in privacy.
And yes they love to spend a lot of money during Valentines holiday. Just take a look at these statistics:
- The average annual Valentine’s Day spending is $ 13.19 billion dollars.
- Amount that average consumer spends on Valentine’s Day is $ 116.21
- 61.8 % of consumers celebrate Valentine’s Day
- 34.6 % of consumers who celebrate Valentine’s Day will go out to have dinner in restaurants.
Source: Retail Advertising and Marketing Association, Valentine’s Day Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey.
It’s now clear that Valentine’s Day is great opportunity to attract new guests in your restaurant. If you did not have success last year, read some ideas for your restaurant promotion on Valentine’s day and don’t let that failure happen again. I will give you more then love cards in February, I will write about news of restaurant promotion on Valentine day. Probably most restaurants have an offer that really fits for lovers, which is really cool, but is this offer good enough to fully satisfy them on Valentine’s Day?
Valentine ‘s Day is the perfect opportunity to introduce your guests with your offer and to give them unforgettable experience and a romantic evening in your restaurant.
People, regardless of whether they are old or young are always in demand for new special events and experiences, and for their money they demand more, not only good food but also the appropriate ambiance and something special.
Valentine ‘s Day is an event when your restaurant simply must be changed into the love nest.
If some couple regularly visits your restaurant, it means that they feel comfortable in it and that they like specialties that your restaurant offers. Probably the same couple will decide to have dinner at your restaurant on Valentine ’s Day so it is very important that you offer something unexpected and unusual.
It would not be nice and not fair to them to offer the same atmosphere that your restaurant provides every day.
Are you missing fresh ideas for restaurant promotion on Valentine ’s Day? There are so many ways to attract new guests on this special day. I’ll write about ideas for restaurant promotion that are easily applicable to all restaurants with large and small capacity.
Enough reasons to start your marketing campaign for Valentine’s Day?
Planning on Time is Very Important!
People around the world celebrating this special day. If you’ve decided to organize something special for your guests on Valentine’s Day, then let’s make really special day in your restaurant.
All actions should be well planned. From “menu for lovers” to decorations. Everything is important, every detail.
If you start planning Valentine’s Day on time, then you can expect that traffic will increase and good results will not fail.
Write a list, underline the priorities and go to action.
Start Promotion of Valentine’s Day Offer in January
It would be the best to start restaurant promotion for Valentine Day at the end of January. Fifteen to twenty days will be enough to inform potential guests about your special offer. In this way, you will ensure that every table in your restaurant would be booked in advance, which allows you better organization and good preparation for this special day.
Use few different methods for restaurant marketing.Promote a special offer through all available advertising channels, your restaurant website, social networks, radio commercials and printed materials.
Start with ” Happy Valentine’s Day ” and then proceed with a description of the story that you will give to your guests at the Valentine’s Day party.
- Encourage your guests to make reservations, and offer discounts for first 30 booked reservations for Valentine’s Day.
- Visit the companies and stores in your neighborhood with a basket filled with small symbolic gifts and inform them about your restaurant offer.
- Set the ad about your offer for Valentine’s Day in front of the restaurant so that passers would be able to see it easily.
Try guerrilla marketing. Get dressed one of your employees into a big walking heart that will distribute leaflets about the special offer for Valentine’s Day. Passers attention – which are your potential customers will not fail.
Online Promotion of Valentine’s Day Offer
Allow to your potential guests to book their favorite table in your restaurant via the Internet. In everyday life every minute which you can save is precious, and people ” save time” wherever it’s possible. Online bookings are ideal for saving time, and everyone will gladly use this option.
For Valentine’s Day, when you expect a lot of guests, this option is a big relief to you either.
A well -conceived, strategic online marketing for booking through the web can double the traffic in your restaurant. Successful caterers use online advertising for restaurant promotion in their daily work.
Do not forget to advertise your special offer for Valentine’s Day via the web, Social networks, Facebook, Google +, Twitter and specialized Internet portals like Urban spoon, TripAdvisor, Yelp, Groupon, etc.
Allow to your customers to get extra discounts on a particular offer when using online booking on those sites. This should be hot news at your website, If you have a restaurant mobile application you should use it to advertise special discounts and offers managed only for users of your restaurant mobile application.
Send Greeting Cards to Your Guests
You certainly have in your database contact information about couples who often come in your restaurant together or your guest that you know that they are in a love relationship. Send them greeting cards for Valentine’s Day. This can be done by mail or email depending on what kind of contact information is available. Let the greeting card remain greeting card, not an advertisement for restaurant offer. Only at the end of your greeting card instead of “bye” you can write something like: “Free champagne for couples during the Valentine’s Day dinner in our restaurant”. They will become interested in your special offer.
Designing the Special Offer for Valentine’s Day
Your Valentine’s Day offer must be so attractive that your guests must fall in love with it and they will not find any better way to spend Valentine’s Day than dining in your restaurant with style! Ensure that your restaurant’s special offer is romantic, attractive, unique.You could also offer to your guest Valentine ‘s Prix Fixe Menu, different combinations of food, for one price.
Love is in the air. Creativity is in the air and has no limits. Be sure that your restaurant decorations and dishes that you offer are marked by love. There is no food that can not be served or prepared in a way to look like a symbol of love – heart. See examples on those pictures. With a little imagination, knowledge and skills, which I believe that your chef already had, he or she can make these little masterpieces. Let’s make your special offer for Valentine’s Day really special.
Include in your Valentine ’s Day offer world ‘s famous drinks and foods that contain ingredients that are known as aphrodisiacs. Special cocktails, alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks with beautiful colors poured into interesting glasses, lots of chocolate and cakes that are heart shaped with a lot of whipped cream. Also, you should put in offer meals that can be eaten from one common plate.
Tip: Offer to your guests a free glass of champagne during dinner, put candles and flowers on the table, play romantic music and dim the lights. Your guests will be happy and in love again in this romantic atmosphere.
When we talk about prices of special offer make it acceptable. Although this is a day when many of us want to reward themselves and our loved ones with delightful dinner and do not think about prices this day too much, do not make it too expensive. You should be satisfied if you have reservations for every table in the restaurant. Be sure to justify this with good food, great service, and excellent atmosphere.
Free Wine Tasting on Valentine’s Day
Make your guests intoxicated with love and wine. This kind of celebration of Valentine’s Day is one of the best celebrations for most of the couples I know. That should not be news for you, Few glasses of wine will surely intensify the emotions of your guests and atmosphere will be perfect. It is quite easy to organize a special event like a wine testing in your restaurant. This certainly promises good fun and that is what we all want right?
Include Small Gifts in Your Offer
Do not offer traditional surprises this year like flowers, cards or chocolates in the shape of a heart. Instead of that offer to your guests something absolutely different. Fill some decorative gift bag with surprises such as adult toys, sexy books, and romantic underwear. Ensure discretion and privacy – every gift should be wrapped in opaque decorative paper.
Romantic Music for Lovers
Dim the lights. Light the candles and decorate tables with flowers. One of the main factors when creating the desired atmosphere is the music. Depending on the restaurant concept choice of music will be different. Acoustic guitar or piano will be a good choice for classic restaurants. If you would not have live music, make sure that DJ plays only love songs this night. Leave lovers in privacy.
However, guests do not want to listen something that will make them sleepy and badger, play easy, relaxing, romantic music like Sade or George Michael or whatever you think that would be appropriate choice.
Restaurant Decoration for Valentine’s Day
The decoration of the restaurant for Valentine’s Day you can do by yourself or leave this job to professional decorators. If you work alone, be sure to have a lot of red or pink details, heart shaped items and handful of red roses. Let your guests feel the warm and romantic atmosphere at the entrance of your restaurant.
Many couples would like to crown their love with engagement on this particular day. Make your restaurant perfect place for this events. Red roses and petals of red roses are symbols of love and also my favorite choice for decorations of place and tables.
Be sure that the decoration match with the concept of the restaurant. For example, roses will be a good choice for restaurants with full service, while for restaurants that offer fast food red balloons will be a better choice. Staff can use rose or heart shaped badge pinned to shirt or t-shirt that will serve quite well.
Organize Valentine ‘s Day at Weekend
For couples who want to celebrate Valentine’s but are unable to go out on 14th February, organize a special offer the weekend before the date.
In this way, you provide a celebration for everyone and you’ll have double traffic which guaranteed profits.
Also, you can provide Valentine’s Day celebrations for couples who must even this day spend with their children or do not have the option to leave their children somewhere for keeping. Think about the special offer for these couples which should include entertainment for their children too. Make a list of children’s meal for Valentine’s Day heart-shaped with gifts and surprises. Organize games for kids, balloons, and a chocolate fountain. One part of the restaurant- possibly sufficiently isolated should be adjusted to the children’s needs. Find person for safekeeping so their parents do not need to think about them, at least not in this special night.
Valentine’s Day For Students
Young people are full of enthusiasm and are an excellent target group for Valentine’s. However, their budget is limited so most of them can’t afford a romantic dinner. Adjust prices on your special offer for this group. If they enjoy themselves, maybe they will become next generation of your regular guests.
Anti-Valentine’s Day
There are certainly people who don’t like Valentine’s and can be a target group for owners who are not organizing a special Valentine’s dinner. This group is large so begin your promotion by launching a competition on Facebook for best breakup story awarding the winner with something special from your offer.
Place items such as garlic on your menu and show movies that are not romantic. Motivate customers to bring photos of broken loves and burn them on this day. Possibilities are numerous, but the basic theme is an anti-Valentine’s celebration.
So this Valentine’s Day, do not just celebrate your love, give magic and romantic night to your guests.
Choose one or more ways to enrich your restaurant offer and share with us your experience.
I wish you to find a love in everyday life! Happy Valentine’s Day!