When people travel, they often look to try something unique and food experiences are high on the list of what some are willing to splurge on. If your restaurant is located in a place that is frequented by tourists, you have to find ways of attracting them and giving them an experience worth writing home about.
Relook at your online presence
Since tourists may not be familiar with the dining options available in your area, they might do an online search for the best places to eat. In order for your restaurant to make it to the top spots on the search results page, you have to have a strong online presence. Your website has to be optimized for search engines. In addition, your website should paint an inviting picture of your services. It should also be easy to navigate so that customers can easily find the menu and place their orders.
Your restaurant should have a Google My Business page, as it will help the major search engine Google index your business efficiently. In addition, your exact location will appear on Google Maps, making it easy for tourists to find you. However, for this to work, your contact details and the restaurant’s physical address should be correct. This goes for all the channels and platforms that your restaurant uses for communicating with clients, in order to be found your contact details should be up to date.
Ace client reviews
Most travelers will look at online reviews and make their decisions based on what other diners have to say about a restaurant. As human beings, we trust the opinions of other people and are likely to make purchasing decisions based on recommendations from others. It is therefore essential that you create pages for your restaurant on review sites such as Yelp and TripAdvisor. Having a well-run restaurant and providing great customer service, will help you to garner good reviews.
Help guests stay connected
Even though tourists are on holiday, they still need to stay connected, either with their families, friends or work. However, they may not be able to use their data packages from their country, thus they value finding free Wi-Fi. When you do provide free Wi-Fi to your guests, make sure you publicise this across your website, social media channels, review sites and any other platform you use. This will give you an edge over other restaurants and draw in more customers.
Partner with local businesses
Look around your area and find tour companies and hotels that tourists frequent. These can be allies in driving their customers to your restaurant. They may allow you to advertise your business with them, by leaving your menu and contact details at their location, where customers can easily find them. You may also return the favour by having their advertising merchandise, such as fliers or contact cards at your restaurant. Additionally, you can run promotions with local businesses by giving their customers discounts when they dine with you. This will open up your restaurant to customers that would ordinarily not be aware of your business.
Make your restaurant unique
When tourists travel the world, they look for experiences that they would not have in their home country or town. Provide a unique service or way of doing things that will make people want to come in just to see it. Once you figure out what you can do to stand out, invite people to take pictures during that activity. They will naturally share the pictures online and this will make other people want to come in to have the same experience.
Regardless of where on the globe visitors to your area come from, they usually share the need to find a restaurant where they can enjoy a great dining experience while staying connected to their businesses or families. By following the above suggestions, your restaurant can attract tourists and gain loyal customers.
