Grow your-sales-with-the-web

www.cateringmentor.co.uk

Grow Your

Sales

With The

WebQuick, Simple and Cheap Solutions

Guide Book #3

http://www.cateringmentor.co.uk/


Grow Your Sales with the web

Learn how to drive customers from the web to your front door.

In this guide book we will take you step by step through nine online platforms and solutions that you simply must engage with.

They are all free and quick to use, but best of all there is virtually no technical skills required.

Contents

Google Places – Create a local presence online

Facebook - Build a Fan Page

Yelp - Join the biggest restaurant review community

Twitter - Text message the world

MailChimp - Email marketing just got easier

TripAdvisor - How to manage your reviews

FourSquare - The next big thing

Word Press - Start Blogging

Google Alerts – Finally what are people saying about you



Ok lets get started. Everyday millions of people search Google for local businesses.

One in five Google searches today is a local search.

A search term like “Cafe Dublin” on Google will give cafes based in Dublin more priority over any other cafes.

Google will display a map with Dublin Cafes at the top of the search results, with pins to indicate their locations.

Stop reading this guide for a minute and quickly Google your restaurant to see if it appears.

If it doesn't this guide will show you how to get it listed.

If your business does appear this guide will show you how to claim it as yours and how to start using it to drive business to your restaurant.

Remember it's easy, free, and you don't need a website of your own.

Why would you ever pay for a yellow page ad again!

Google Places

If you take nothing else from this guide.

CLAIM YOUR LOCAL PLACE NOW



First you have to have a google account to use google places so set one up. Just go to:www.google.com/accounts/NewAccount

Next you need to visit www.google.com/places

Click on the Add A New Business button.

You will be forwarded to a page where you will be required to choose the country that the restaurant is located in and the restaurants main telephone number to see if Google Maps already has some information about your business. Remember google is everywhere so they may already have a listing for you.


http://www.google.com/accounts/NewAccount

http://www.google.com/places


Next enter the name, street address, correct telephone number, website etc.

Google will automatically find your location and display it on a map in the left panel. You can drag and drop the pin if the exact location is not correct.

Scroll down the page to see the other details that you can add including photos and videos, opening hours, and payment methods accepted. Finally hit the submit button at the bottom of the page.



Next you will be required to claim the page as yours to avail of all the google place tools and also prevent unauthorized edits to your listing in the future. You do this by validating that the business is yours

Google will contact you direct with your unique personal identification number and activation instructions.

This can be done over the phone, by SMS or by post. Choose which method you would prefer and hit the finish button at the bottom of the page.

Your listing will not appear until you complete this validation process.

Google also has lots of support articles and a support forum to answer your questions.



Now that you have added your location, google it again to see your listing. Click on the places page link to see your local page. Scroll down the page to see any reviews of your business.

Remember as the business owner you can manage your listing information including adding business description, product/service details, photos, videos, etc.

You can even add special promotions and coupons to attract more customers completely free and add a status post of 160 characters long, which can be updated as often as you want, to let people know what’s going on with your business.

Finally you can use the dashboard to track visitors to your place page.

Yahoo offer a very similar service at

http://listings.local.yahoo.com/.

A basic listing is free and allows you to add

business hours, telephone numbers etc. To

enhance your listing with photos you will have

to pay $9.99 per month.


http://listings.local.yahoo.com/


Create a Facebook Page

Facebook has just exploded over the last few years. There are now over 500 million Facebook users around the world.

Just like your friends have set themselves up with a profile your restaurant can have a Facebook page.

The biggest advantage that we see for your restaurant is the friend to friend recommendation of your restaurant on Facebook .

The Outback Steakhouse alone has almost one million fans.

With a Facebook page you can •Drive traffic to your store•Announce events and wait time•Post recipes, photos and video•Hold contest •Promote daily specials and discounts•Give tour of your kitchen •Customer service and engagement tool•Hire new employees

But most importantly you can become part of your customers community. Once a user becomes a fan all their friends will know too.

If you have a restaurant you simply must

have a face book fan page



To create a Facebook page you must first be a Facebook user so if by some small chance you don't have a profile set yourself up with one now.

Next scroll to the bottom of your Facebook page and click on the tab that says advertising. It is kind of hidden away. Next click on the Facebook Page link in the middle column and finally click on the green button in the top right corner that says Create A Page.



Next fill in your name and type of business in the Official Page column and hit the Create Official Page button. Remember you wont be able to change the name once you have created the page.

So that's it. Just start adding content, pictures, videos, links, menus etc. Publish it once you have added some content and be the first person to hit the Like Button.



Top Tips for Facebook

Facebook fan pages can be an effective restaurant marketing tool for keeping in touch with customers, and even finding new ones. But simply creating a fan page because everyone else is isn’t enough.

1.Update regularly –Updating your page once a month can make it seem a barren wasteland, rather than a vibrant community of foodies. It’s quick and easy to post links and updates to your page which then appear in your fan’s feeds, which can help it to grow ‘virally’.

2. Interact with your fans – Responding to people’s questions is a great opportunity for interacting with customers and building positive feelings towards your restaurant. You can also try turning the tables and ask your fans questions by running polls or quizzes e.g. what would they like to see added to the menu.

3. Promote your fan page – It’s unlikely customers will find it on their own, so advertise it on your menus, on your website, in your emails and on business cards to build up your fan base.

4. Offer value - The key to attracting and retaining fans is to be able to offer them something of value they’ll be happy to see popup in their news feed. This can include special offers, recipe ideas and inside info on your restaurant itself, such as photos of recent special events and the people working there.

5. See what other restaurants are doing. Take a lead from the best.

Facebook fan pages can be an excellent restaurant marketing tool for interacting and staying in contact with your customers. Just remember to keep it updated to gain the maximum benefit and to attract more customers.



Yelp is an online community of restaurant reviewers.

People use Yelp to write amateur reviews, read peer reviews, get information about restaurants , and to discover other places they may be interested in.

Yelp allows consumers to share the experiences they've had with local businesses and lets business owners share information about their business with their customers. Simply put, it's word of mouth-- amplified.

Over 38 million people visited Yelp in August 2010 to make spending decisions.

Lot of small restaurant owners first learn about Yelp when the google their name and find that the first thing to come up is the yelp site full of reviews about their business.

As a restaurant owner you need to join the conversation about your business - and again it's free

To help business owners get the most out of their online presence, Yelp offers a suite of FREE tools for business owners.

Yelp!

Remember having lots of reviews on Yelp .

Helps you rank well in Google.



Just like google local you can claim a restaurant if it is yours.

Just go to https://biz.yelp.com and hit the create your Free Account Now button in the centre of the page.

Next you will have to start by finding your business. Enter the restaurant name and location and hit the search button.


https://biz.yelp.com/


You will be presented with the relevant restaurants. Scroll down and find your location and hit the unlock button. You will then be required to enter your name, email etc and choose a password.

Finally Yelp will need to verify that you are the business owner.

To verify your account you will be provide with a short code. Make sure you are near your phone as yelp should call you almost straight away.

Give them back the code and your account will be unlocked. Check out this short video for more informationwww.yelp.com/business/unlocking


http://www.yelp.com/business/unlocking


Once you've unlocked your page you can use Yelp for Business Owners to provide updated information on your business, post announcements and special offers, and communicate with your customers. All of this is done through the yelp dashboard.

There are two great ways that you can join the conversation about your business. Firstly You can send private messages to people who have written reviews about your restaurant. Frankly we recommend that you respond to every review. Even if it is a good review, just a simply response saying thanks for the feedback and if it is a poor review apologise and ask what can you do better. Yelp users often upgrade their reviews because the business owners contacted them or go back and review you again.

You can also add a public message. I.e. if a customer reviews you and says that you don't have a particular product on your menu and you add it let everyone know. Be as diplomatic as possible. Just like you wouldn't want to get in to a shouting match on the dining room floor don't engage in an online squabble.

Remember show that you are watching, responsive and care. These are your customers so respond to their feedback.



Twitter

Twitter is a great way of reach thousand of potential customers instantly.

Simply put Twitter lets you text message the world.

It is free and easy to use. So what would a restaurant tweet to the world. Well what about asking the simple question

“Today is cold outside. We have tomato basil or Chicken Noodle soup. Which one would make you feel warmer? ”

The best tweet I have ever seen was just a few words “How can we help you?”

Two things to remember about Twitter.

Try to blend the humour with your tweets. People come to twitter not only to communicate. They come there because it is fun. When the Minister of the Exchequer recently visited a Pizza Express they tweeted. “After a tough week George Osborne was spotted at lunch in Pizza Express Wilmslow. He came to the one place he knew he could find some dough.”

Don’t over do it. Only tweet when you have something to say. Don’t try to bombard with useless information to your followers.



To start just go to www.twitter.com

And click on the sign up button. Enter your full name, user name, email address and choose a password. Your username should be your Restaurant Name and your twitter address will become twitter.com followed by your user name i.e.http://twitter.com/pizzaexpress

A great idea is to follow who follow you. When some one is following you that means they liked your message or what your restaurant has to offer. Following them back is like saying that yes we are open to talking with you too.


http://www.twitter.com/

http://twitter.com/pizzaexpress


Mail Chimp

For the last 15 years email marketing has probably been the number one way to communicate with your potential customers and without any doubt the most cost effective.

Sending emails that let your customers know about new menu items, coupon specials or special events , keeps your restaurant in front of their minds and their stomachs!

Mail Chimp helps you design, send and track your email campaigns. Best of all Mail chimp is totally free for lists below 1,000 subscribers, so give it a try.

Mail chimp allows you store up to 1,000 subscribers. And send up to 6,000 emails a month. There are no expiring trials, hidden charges or sneaky contracts. They don't even ask for a credit card.

For larger lists Mail Chimp has monthly plans starting at $30 per month.

You'll be amazed by all the powerful email marketing features, so go to www.mailchimp.com


http://www.mailchimp.com/


Hit the Sign Up Free button to get started.

Fill in your details, choose a password and hit the Create My Account button. Mail chimp will then send you an email to verify that you are the user, click on this and you are ready to go.

MailChimp offers help creating your first email campaign with a 45-minute "Getting Started" webinar every Wednesday. The webinars are designed for first-time MailChimp subscribers with helpful advice on how to get started. There are also a number of great training videos on the site.



Top Tips for gathering Email Addresses for an Email Club

Creating an email club is a fantastic way of connecting with your customers. You can email special offers, seasonal menu changes, you could even create a database of people birthdays and send out birthday greetings. But a lot of owners worry that that using this platform will become a nuisance for guests and their emails will be categorized as junk. Emailing people who have not explicitly asked to be on your club is an excellent way to lose your guest's trust.

The golden rule of email is NEVER SPAM. Only ever email people who have opted in.

So how do you get people to opt in.

ASK! - The single most effective way of gathering email addresses it to simply ask your guests. It's so simple. This is best done by verbally mentioning it to them and giving them a sign up slip that they can use to fill out their information.

IN-STORE SIGNAGE - Promote your email club through signage in your restaurant. Why not place a jar next to your cash register announcing a "Weekly drawing - Leave your business card – And join our email club" .Then, each month, draw a business card

THROUGH YOUR WEBSITE – If you have a website you should always have a way for customers to sign up for an e-newsletter . We at Catering Mentor are always shocked at how few restaurant websites do.

One last thing that we need to mention when discussing this topic:

Your emails addresses should never be shared outside of your business, remember you wouldn't want your own email address getting traded, so never do the same to your loyal customers Oh yeah, it's illegal too.



Trip advisor has over 40 million reviews and is the first port of call for many people planning their travels.

Trip advisor may be more focused on hotels than restaurants. But you should still keep it on your radar. Got to www.tripadvisor.comtoady and see what people are writing about you.

Trip advisor makes money by selling adds on their sites, but buying ads doesn't help your ranking.

Before we go any further we need to warn you that the No 1 rule with trip advisor, is never add your own reviews, trip advisors users are very savvy and an owners review always stands out a mile., with that said you can make trip advisor work for you and encourage people to write good reviews. Oh and by the way TripAdvisor takes review fraud very seriously.

Trip Advisor


http://www.tripadvisor.com/


Like some of the other online tools that we have described earlier you can register as a business owner and access trip advisors business tools.

Just go to www.tripadvisor.com/Owners

Select your business type 2. Enter the location and click "Search

Fill in the required information and again you will need to verify that the business is yours.


http://www.tripadvisor.com/Owners


As the business owner you can access the following business tools.

Business Listings: add your contact information to your listing for a low annual fee (accommodations only)

Notification of new reviews: receive your latest reviews by e-mailCustomized request-a-review link: encourage guests to spread the word about your property

The owners' newsletter: stay informed about our latest tools and benefits for you

Track performance: analyze your customer satisfaction trends and compare to your competitors (accommodations only)

Finally a question that we always get asked is should I respond to bad reviews. The unequivocal answer is yes, as your brand’s engagement can make all the difference in how your customers perceive your business.



Four Square

You may have never heard of Four Square but you will soon. My guess is it is going to be the next big thing. www.foursquare.com

So what is Four Square, well think Yelp + Google Places combined , only for mobile. (Smart Phones).

In a nutshell, it's a location service-based social network-come-game. The whole system is based around what is known as "checking-in". You check-in from bars and restaurants, perhaps with a little message about where you are and what you're doing -all very brief - and the system will then register what you're up to.

Why Foursquare is important to the user:•They can check in at their current location, see where their friends are.•They can earns points and badges for regularly returning to a certain location.•Find new places they have never heard of.•Get tips from friends for what to order at places new and old.

Why Foursquare is important to the business owner:•You can claim your business and create incentives, for example every 5th check in you get a free appetizer.


http://www.foursquare.com/


As a business owner, you can use foursquare to engage your increasingly mobile customers with foursquare "Specials," which are discounts and prizes you can offer your loyal customers when they check in on foursquare at your venue. If you want to dive right in, get started by claiming your venue right from its foursquare venue page.

When you claim a venue, you're asking to become the manager of the venue on foursquare.

When you claim your venue, you'll be asked to provide FourSquare with some contact information, which they use to verify that you are authorized to manage that venue on foursquare. You can begin that process by going here. www.foursquare.com.

Foursquare business owners can even request official Foursquare window stickers to advertise that a business is Foursquare-friendly.


http://www.foursquare.com/


WordPress

If you don't have a website get one built now with WordPress. If you already have a site think about ditching it and start a blog.

Basically a blog is the same thing as a web site. It is just a much more flexible product so that you don't have to keep on paying a developer to change your sites. Blogs have a back end infrastructure so you can easily update them.

To get started just go to www.wordpress.com it is all free.

At a latter date when you have mastered wordpress.com go to www.wordpress.org to download their more enhanced blogging tool.

Remember sites that are updated regularly

rank higher on Google.


http://www.wordpress.com/

http://www.wordpress.org/


Finally use google alerts to find out what people are saying about you .

Google Alerts are email updates of the latest relevant Google results (web, news, etc.) based on your choice of query or topic.

This is free tool and now that you already have set up a Google Account to manage your Place Page it is very easy to get started.

Sign in to google and then go to www.google.com/alerts

Next enter your search term i.e. your restaurant name, the type of information that you want to see (for example blogs, news etc) and finally how often you want to get update. We advise once a week.

Google Alerts


http://www.google.com/alerts