This module examines the aspects of business strategy, The importance of SWOT analysis, and marketing through social media.

1. Street Food Success What Next
Module 6

2. Strategy / Marketing – it’s about what you know as well as who
you know
Learning Outcomes
Following completion of this module, the learner will begin to
understand the basics of a business strategy and how important it is.
They will complete a working strategy document and SWOT analysis.
They will also look at the ins and outs of traditional media and the
importance of all the social media channels.
They will also complete a marketing plan from a template and
contribute to a group discussion on the challenges their business
faces, i.e.:
• Day to day management vs strategy, thinking it through with a
realistic viewpoint, taking into account the first 5 modules – is this
really the way you want to go, etc.?
• High impact, low cost marketing, traditional, social media,
networking

3. Materials
• Business development strategy exercise - developed
from the previous sessions homework
• SWOT analysis sheets
• Marketing plan template
• Strategy templates

4. Business strategy
Here is a typical strategy for a restaurant
• Develop a mission for your business so that you and
everyone else understand the overall objective, e.g.:
• “Our restaurant will be an inspiring one, combining
an eclectic atmosphere with excellent and
interesting food. Have a great food selection.
Efficient and superior customer service.”
Company Summary
• The restaurant’s interior will possess the following
areas, designed to facilitate customer’s comfort.
• Main restaurant for dining purpose – family friendly.
• Outdoor area
• Lounge (for waiting)

5. Strategy
The menu
• The menu is multi-cultural and will cater to families in a buffet style.
Location and Operations
In an affluent suburb of the city where residents are mainly middle class
families with a high disposable income.
Operations
• The restaurant will service lunch and dinner during the week and
weekends.
• Free Home delivery will be available for residents within a 3 Km radius
of the restaurant.
Market Segmentation
• We have defined the following groups as target segments that
contribute to our growth projections:
• Teenagers, Families, Couples, with customers generally falling
between 15 to 50 age group.

6. Continued
Marketing strategy
• We will focus on establishing a strong identity in the community with a grand
opening.
• All menu items are moderately priced for the area. Regular Customers will be
provided with a loyalty card through which they can claim 10% discount on
every 2 visits.
Marketing programme
• Billboard advertisement. Distribution of pamphlets. Advertisement in local
newspaper. Advertorial on local cable channel. Providing Sponsorship to the
schools with prizes labelled with the name of the restaurant.
Sales strategy
• Our sales strategy requires consistently high quality food and service. We can
accomplish this through hiring employees who genuinely enjoy their jobs (i.e.
are passionate about the industry and possess a genuine penchant for excellent
customer service.) Interacting with our customers personally, so they know that
their feedback goes directly to owners. Regularly evaluate the popularity of
menu options.

7. Objectives
The business objectives for the first three years of the operation
include:
• Keeping food cost under 35% revenue.
• Keeping employee labour cost between 24-29% of revenue.
• Commit to being a small restaurant, dedicated to excellent food and
service.
• Averaging sales between £ x – y per year.
• Ongoing promotion of the brand throughout the local area.
Future Scope
• Beyond the initial three years, we envisage that there will be an
opportunity for expansion at both a local and national level.

8. Swot analysis
• SWOT Analysis is not a complicated thing to do, yet it is a very
worthwhile task to take on if you want to know the best marketing
strategies for your restaurant.
• If you are going to go to a bank for funding, then they will insist that
you complete a SWOT Analysis for your restaurant or your restaurant
concept. The primary reason for a SWOT analysis is to show you how
your restaurant is, or will be, placed in the current market, and how
well you will be able to compete in that market.

9. Swot analysis
A SWOT analysis closely analyses the good and bad points
of your restaurant or concept and compares them with
those of your competitors. This gives you an opportunity
to amend or strengthen certain operating practices or
promotions you may be running to gain an advantage in
the marketplace you are trading in. Don't be put off by
the technical sounding name, SWOT Analysis is simple and
straightforward, let us start by telling you what SWOT
stands for:
Strengths.
The strong points of your restaurant - Examples
are:
Your business exterior is clean and tidy.
Your prices are cheaper than your competitors.
Your service style is new to the area.
You offer a product no other business offers.
You have a branded image
Weaknesses.
The weak points of your restaurant - Examples
are:
Your restaurant is new and not established.
You have limited funds available.
You offer a product which is already available
on the market.
Customers have to travel further to get to your
restaurant.
Opportunities.
Benefits for your restaurant - Examples are:
A new office complex is opening nearby.
A new housing development is being built
nearby.
A main competitor has closed down.
The building next door has become available so
expansion may be an option.
Threats.
Instances that can harm your restaurant -
Examples are:
A high street brand is moving into the area.
Your operating costs are set to increase soon.
Your business lease is up for renewal and a rent
increase will happen.
A main competitor has lowered their prices and
started a price war with you.

10. High impact, low cost marketing,
The competition amongst restaurants is indubitably fierce, and as such
you’ll need to give your all to be successful. Here are 25 food business
marketing ideas / strategies that promise to help you improve your
business and get attention from growling stomachs everywhere!
Foodie Photos
• If you’ve ever logged onto Instagram, you’ll understand that food
porn is alive and well.
• Arguably the very best way to promote your restaurant online is with
high-quality, drool-inducing photos. Visual content is in high demand
online these days, and having delicious looking photos on your
website and across various social media outlets is essential for
drawing hungry eyes.
• Consider hiring a professional to take some top-notch photographs,
or try it DIY style with your smartphone. Be warned though – taking
great food photos can be tougher than it looks, as lighting is often a
key factor.

11. Loyalty Programs
• Partnering up with online food apps should definitely be a consideration as part
of your restaurant marketing plan. Partnering with online apps encourages
visitors to check out your restaurant through gamification and customer loyalty
programs, which offer visitors a free purchase or discount for visiting a certain
number of times. Beware though these schemes can be expensive
• Be aware you will get some negative feedback no matter how good you and
your food are, it’s a fact of life that you can’t please all of the people all of the
time and you are going to upset some of your competitors if you are taking
business away from them as you inevitably will be. If you do get negative
feedback the first rule is to not take it personally (hard I know,) always answer
in a polite, professional manner and always play the gracious host.
Here are few more tips:
• If you’re responding to the negative review publicly, thank the reviewer for the
feedback, apologise for the incident, and promise to improve in the future. You
may also want to consider contacting the reviewer privately for more
information about any negative incidents.
• Some business owners offer to send gift cards to those who have had less than
favourable experiences, hoping to get them back in the door for a second
chance.

12. Set Up Your Google+ Facebook and Twitter
Accounts
• The importance of setting up your restaurant’s social media
accounts can never be over overstated
• Also, encourage visitors to review the business.

13. Geo-targeted Ads
For most restaurants, local is the name of the game. Most folks
are looking for good eats close to home, and you’ll get the most
value out of your online marketing efforts by investing primarily
in geo-targeted ads on Google + Twitter and Facebook.
Geo-targeting ads help you save money, ensuring that only users
in certain cities or within a specific radius see your ads.

14. Get on Instagram
• Having a strong Instagram presence is another semi-obvious
(but too important to ignore) restaurant marketing tip. Use
Instagram to promote your business’ best visual content.
• Show off your storefront, get up close with your top dishes,
and use this social media main stage as a place to play around
with your brand identity. For example, an all-natural health
food store might try snapping pics of people kayaking,
cooking, farming, or other activities you think your fan base
will enjoy.

15. Trip advisor
• Ask restaurateurs their opinions on TripAdvisor and you can expect a
response not too dissimilar to that regarding Marmite. Whether you
love it or hate it, the fact of the matter is, the number one leisure and
dining review platform is here to stay and its usage is consistently
growing.
• TripAdvisor is in effect a Search Engine in its own right - albeit one
specifically used to locate a place to eat or sleep, or both. Just as with
Google, those who sit close to the top of its results page, benefit so
much more than those that who choose to ignore it or not to pay it
the respect it deserves.
Here are a few tips:
• Fully complete your profile
• This should go without saying, but a half-completed profile is not
going to capture the audience or their imagination. Fill out
everything, add all the cuisine types you offer, make sure your web
address is typed in correctly and the physical address is pinpointed to
the exact location you’re at. Oh, and don’t forget to add some
photos…

16. Encourage customers to leave reviews
• The more reviews the TripAdvisor community leaves about your
restaurant, the greater the chance you have of climbing the ranks. If
you’re the kind of owner who spends time talking to the restaurants
guests, casually drop in to the conversation about your presence on
the review platform. Diners often enjoy speaking with the proprietor
and restaurants management, so you’ll find the response rate is often
surprisingly high. Other offline methods of encouragement include
displaying messages on the menu and table signage, bottom or
reverse of customer receipts and even on business cards with the
restaurants TripAdvisor details on to it hand out to departing guests.
Respond to ALL of your reviews
• Even the world’s best restaurants cannot leave every customer
completely satisfied, so be prepared for the occasional negative
review. As long as you deal with them in a polite and efficient manner
you can often turn a negative into a resounding positive.
• Be sure to reply to each and every one with a well-constructed
response as your presence on the listing will show potential
customers that you are interested in serving them and that you listen
and respect the opinions of your existing customers.

17. Promote Your Reviews
• TripAdvisor offer a range of embeddable widgets which you can
incorporate in to your website to promote the reviews you’ve
received.
• This acts as a fantastic trust indicator for potential customers who
have landed through a search query performed in Google, been
recommended from colleagues at work, driven past or even seen you
in a glossy magazine; essentially, everyone visiting your website will
hold a more positive view of your restaurant if they can see good
reviews from existing customers. Statistics show that around 50% of
all visitors to a restaurant will have checked its website at some point
before dining.
• First impressions count, so make them as positive as possible with
your base of impartial reviews.

18. Final thoughts
• Keeping the listing updated with revised menus, new
pictures, and other related details will make sure that people
know you’re active and progressive.
• Today’s consumer trusts others’ opinions more greatly than
ever and review sites such as Trip Advisor are holding a
stronger weight in their decision making process.

19. Send Out an Email Newsletter
• Remember, your restaurant newsletter doesn’t have to be weekly – in
fact, users will probably appreciate a less flooded inbox if you simply
send them a newsletter every month or so.
• Use your email newsletter as a chance to celebrate your success,
discuss new menu items, or share special discounts. You will find
hundreds of templates that you can choose from if you use a product
like Mailchimp.

20. Promote User-Generated Content
• User-generated content (lovingly dubbed UGC) is a great way to
develop personal and intimate engagement with users. Host a photo
contest by asking customers to share their favourite meal at your
establishment, and share the entries on a dedicated content page
(and/or share submissions across your various social networks).
Consider awarding some random lucky contestants with a free
appetizer or other prize!
• Hosting and promoting user-generated content shows customers that
you appreciate them, turning occasional visitors into die-hard
devotees.

21. Show Off Your Staff
• In an age of robotic customer service reps and soon to be self-driving
cars, the human element is severely lacking. Show off your 5-star staff
doing what they do best! Seeing happy, smiling employees does
wonders for your reputation, as customers long to be served by joyful
workers.
• Showing off your pleasant employees also provides major reputation
points – happy workers say a lot about a business, and fans are sure
to take notice.

22. Monitor Your Social Media Presence
• Social media marketing strategies are an undeniable force in today’s
world. Pamphlets and delivery menus slipped under doorways simply
won’t cut it anymore.
• Often, the restaurants with a strong social media presence as part of
their restaurant marketing plan are the ones that fare the best, and in
the competitive food industry, ignoring social media is a death
sentence.
• Of course, you’ll want to create a Facebook business page and a
Twitter account to share special discounts, exclusive coupons, photos
of your newest dishes, and promote your own news accolades. But
setting up these accounts is only half the job – it’s also essential that
you keep up with activity happening on your social sites.

23. Share Positive Press
Another major restaurant marketing tip – when you’re mentioned in a
news outlet or magazine, be sure to show off your good publicity on
your website and via social media. Fans will spread the word, and
newcomers will be encouraged to visit in person when they see trusted
sources celebrating your restaurant.

24. Set Up Google Alerts
Google Alerts notify you when your business name (or other designated
keyword term) appears in a new piece of content on the web! This
makes it easy to keep tabs on who is talking about you and your
accolades

25. Start a Blog
• Starting your own blog is a great way to build community and engage
with your customers. Blogs offer the chance to experiment with your
restaurant’s voice and personality. Share your successes, struggles,
funny stories, recipes, and anything else you think might interest your
customers.
• A blog can be a huge project, but it doesn’t have to be. Keep your
blog as simple or complex as you’d like. You don’t have to be
constantly posting (quality over quantity), but it’s good to have your
restaurant blog set up for when you have an announcement or news
you want to get out to the world. If you’re serious about taking over
the world.

26. Develop Your Restaurant’s Brand Identity
• Building your restaurant’s brand identity can have a big effect on your
social media performance. Your goal should be to build you
restaurant’s identity around your target customers.
• Does your food target patrons who prefer healthy eating? Or does
your restaurant have a more beer-and-wings kind of vibe?
Understand who your target patrons are, then build your brand
around what they are interested in – online tools such as ‘yougov may
be effective in this regard. Reflect these interests on your social media
platforms and in your promotional material.

27. Time Those Tweets
Twitter can be a true treasure for restaurants, and timing your tweets
can have a big influence on hungry stomachs. Try crafting and scheduling
tweets at different times of the day to specifically target the breakfast,
lunch, or dinner crowds (depending on your offerings.)

28. Have a Sleek, Functional Online Menu
• Users love to do research online before ordering from or visiting your
restaurant. Don’t make users scramble to find your menu – publish a
high-quality, easy to read menu that is up to date and accurate. Some
delivery sites publish your menu online for free.
• If you don’t have a good online menu which customers can peruse,
most of your other restaurant marketing strategies are basically
useless! Customers expect to have access to an online menu,
otherwise they’ll simply look elsewhere.

29. Partner Up With Delivery Services
In today’s online-driven environment, ease of use is the name of the
game. Many online delivery services streamline the ordering process,
and internet-savvy patrons often love taking advantage of such delivery
services.

30. Offer Coupons and Discounts
• Providing coupons and discounts for your restaurant is always a sure-
fire way to bring customers running. Offer a free dish to your new
email newsletter
• Alternatively, you can try advertising a discount through Groupon – if
you go down that route, you’ll get a TON of exposure, but you’ll end
up paying a hefty portion of sales to the deal website, which is
something to keep in mind.

31. Online Reservation Tools
One fine dining restaurant marketing idea is to consider signing up for
Open Table.
Open Table is an online reservation tool which lets customers book
reservations for your establishment online! Patrons love it when you
make life a bit easier for them, and Open Table already has a base of
loyal customers you can tap into.

32. Use Mobile Ads
• It’s predicted that this year, half of all paid clicks on Google will come
from mobile. Restaurants are one the best candidates for mobile ads,
as users are often looking for nearby dining options while on the
move. Mobile ads tend to be cheaper than desktop ads, and mobile
boasts impressive conversion rates.
• What’s cool is that AdWords allows for all kinds of mobile
customization and targeting options that let you get the most out of
your bids. For example, you can increase your bids around
dinnertime, when users are often looking for fast food on their
mobile phones. Boosting your bids during the dinnertime period
increases your chances for showing up for a specific query. This
means you could be the first ad to show up for a “pizza” search when
hungry users are on the search for a slice. If you’re a restaurant
marketer, don’t miss out on digging into a slice of the mobile ad pie
(we’re talking deep dish).

33. Fish Bowl Business Card Giveaways
• Let customers drop their business cards into a bowl for a raffle. The
reward can vary – a lunch for the winner and 10 friends, a 2-hour
happy hour with discounted drinks, whatever you feel like!
• Not only are these raffles fun, but you can also make use of those
business cards by emailing customers. Let them know that while they
didn’t win this time, they can sign up for your newsletter to be
notified of their next chance to enter, plus the opportunity to hear
about discounts and other offers they’d enjoy.

34. Source Local Ingredients
Customers love to hear that they’re eating local, and
sourcing local ingredients from nearby can do a lot to
boost your fan base and give you a positive
reputation in the community. If it’s not out of your
budget, definitely consider this option!