I'm stumped... How would you explain the benefits of an Online presence to a restaurant owner??

I would tend to go towards the - people are searching for you and you are not showing up on the Google local search" tactic. Any business that is not showing up that I am interested in I send them a letter. On the bottom of the letter I insert a picture of a screenshot that shows their competitors being listed in the "luck 7". Follow up with a visit or phone call. Try and get in the door with anything you can - Google local listing - email marketing - SMS text marketing - anything they can use.

do many people really go on Google and look ofr restaurants? It's all well having a nice shiny site top of the S.E.'s but if customers aren't looking is there relaly a point to it all?

If you have to work that hard to convince them, then you must not have properly qualified them in the first place.

I would just make them aware of how many of their patrons are busy using their smart phones while they are frequenting their restaurant.

Surely if they have a decent amount of younger employees, they must realize how attached to their phones that people have become.

Then ask, what percentage of that traffic is your web site currently receiving?

I have several big clients that are restaurants.

I show a new potential client how they should show up on a Google Maps Search and also show them Facebook/Twitter pages that have large followings and interactions (my clients). I also show them how people search on their smart phones and are posting items like Foursquare and Yelp Check Ins.

I look up restaurant sites on Google to find their hours and view the menu. If they have delivery and/or online ordering, that's a plus.

Why wouldn't a restaurant have a web site? Do they have all the loyal customers they could ever possibly want? Even if that is true, people do die and move away.

A lot of restaurants get people to sign up on their list and then email a special birthday offer.

92% of all local online searches result in a sale.

Nuff said.

ok fair enough..i never have.

Honestly, aside from getting the restaurant to show up for the more generic geo-related terms, example: "smithville mexican food" "smithville mexican restaraunt" etc....

In my experience the BIGGEST issue that restaurant owners need to tackle is online reputation management. The food business is definitely one where A LOT of people are going to be reading what other people have to say about the overall quality of the food and their dining experience. The industry also attracts a lot of jealousy from local competitors, as it is clear some of the reviews being left on social media/review sites are not really compeltely legitimate all the time.

Make sure they have a presence on all of the major "community review" sites too. Oftentimes the local TV station and/or local newspaper company will own these types of review sites.

So, I'd say that an online presence on all of the community review and community dining sites PLUS a solid marketing plan to increase and leverage/syndicate these online reviews should be a vital ingredient for your solution...on top of the regular organic SEO stuff. And the mailing list/SMS list should be included ASAP too. Also, depending on what area you are working in, QR codes for restaurants can do some amazing things if you plan them out correctly. Though in more rural areas this might be a bit tougher...

- Jim

I have friends that do NOTHING but restaurants. Also, having worked at them when I was in high school, I know they are some of the most interested in advertising where ever they can. My buddy actually does "expert" ebooks with them and starts out by selling them a how to use email advertising effectively for restaurants. After that, they all started coming to him looking for more advice etc.

They use email lists very well, or anything that can deliver coupons and specials. Google places of course has a coupon section, and Groupon and so many other places. You could easily even convince them to have a weird billboard with a QR code on it that has titled heading that says "What the hell is this?"

Basically, anyway you can get a "come in on Thursday coupon" will get you in the door. Also, they have problems keeping full in between certain times; some are classic others have odd hours when they empty out and would rather at least have three or more tables going as opposed to completely empty. All of which they can benefit from online campaigns, email lists, mobile and just about everything. They actually need it more than most companies do.

On the short end you can explain it to them that it used to be if you typed in "hamburger" in a search engine, it would return the entire global result and now it goes for the nearest location result. Many people still don't get that yet. Your ISP server is geo-located and so is your mobile device, so one way or another the searches are all leaning towards "jane smith is in Springfiled USA" so she must want some page that is located nearby, as opposed to just whatever page comes up the most times.

However, just like most internet based marketing, list building is HUGE.

I love finding new places to eat. How else would I do this other than the internet? Now, I don't usually use random searches. I am usually on a few community and review sites checking out what people have to say.

So, SEO may be useful to them, but having a social presence and managing their reputation is more important IMHO.

It will depend actually if the owner caters delivery sort kind of services; if they do then you can introduce getting online orders plus its benefit aside from the sale.

I would go the mobile route. It's more fitting for restaurants. People really do use mobile devices to locate and contact restaurants while they are on the go.

Show them how the mobile web is expanding and the imminent probability that their competitors will soon be implementing the technology.

wow! thanks for the response! i'm pretty overwhelmed! will go through this thread! thanks once again

If a business owner cannot see the power of having an online he/she is out of their mind. Go back in 6 months and pitch to the new owner.

It's 2011 and EVERY business needs to have an online presence. Absolutely ridiculous to think they are "on the fence" about it.

So many routes you could go..
-Website
-Facebook page
-YouTube
-Twitter
-Yelp
-Foursquare
-Mobile site
-SMS messaging
-Email marketing

An online and mobile marketing presence will allow restaurants to connect further with their clients and keep them updated on ongoing promotions and news. Doing so will increase their value in terms of branding along with having a greater retention rate of customers.

Tell them they can open a cyber cafe and serve virtual food for dieters. For those who dont mind spending that extra dollar to get Zero Calories.

There's countless way's this can improve their business!

Seriously, when I'm looking for somewhere to take a friend or a lady, the first thing I do is google and then look for reviews.

Well first of all they can have their menu online so people can see what kind of food they do whereas another restaurant nearby may not have this feature and will automatically give them the upper hand.

Secondly, it's getting their BRAND out there. It will make them more recognisable in the area for anyone search restaurants in the area and will make people remember. It will play on there minds and they will start saying, "Hey we will try that place soon".

Thirdly, anyone who doesn't live in the area and is looking for somewhere to eat when they get there is going to see them on google.

Having a website is VITAL now-a-days. I don't know the last time I picked up the yellow pages looking for somewhere to eat. Seriously, I don't need to. If I want to go somewhere I google it and if the restaurant isn't up on there I just assume they don't exist.

Hope I've helped.

I prefer to go the text messaging route with restaurants. With a 96% open rate (84% within 10 minutes) they can deliver instant "flyers" to their list when they want/need to.

When I go in and talk to them I explain it in language they understand. Just like above, I equate text marketing to flyers and the ability to get it in their customer's hands right away. "Slow day" specials, sending the message right before lunch or right before they get off of work, etc. I use the "What if" approach... "What if you had as little as 100 people on your test messaging (VIP Club) program? If you sent a message 1/2 hr before [lunch/supper] and 84 of those people read it immediately, how many of those people do you think would come here based on your offer? (Shut up for about 10 seconds.) Now, what if you had 200 or 300 or 1000?" Le the customer estimate it to themselves. Everyone has a different perception of marketing success. They will think of the number that is attractive to them because they WANT IT TO WORK.

When I talk Google Places, the easiest way to explain the importance is to equate it to the phone book. In November 2009 (two years ago) statistics said that only 31% of US households have a phone book and people under 35 don't have them at all.

Google Places has now become the new Yellow Pages and this is their opportunity to get on the first page; later it'll cost more to do the same thing. Because, if you are not on page 1, you might as well not be there at all. Every restaurant in the world knows the importance of being in the Yellow Pages. You just have to point out that it's no longer in print (and it's NOT yp.com either).

QR Codes are also an outstanding marketing product for restaurants because people are sitting waiting for their food. A table tent with QR & instructions produces results.

The biggest thing, as pointed out numerous times here, is NOT to sell them but to HELP them get customers (increase profits).

Get in with a small monthly fee (QRs or text for example) then, after they trust you, upsell them into other things. It's common knowledge that it's easier to sell something to someone you already have a relationship with than having to go out and find others.

If you want any more info about any of this, PM me and I'll be happy to share.