Monday May 17th is now known as ‘Hospitality Day’ for those many eager business owners that finally get to reopen their hospitality business after nearly 6 months of being unable to welcome customers inside their premises.
Some have been fortunate to have outdoor space where customers have been able to enjoy some form of dining experience, but let’s be honest, the weather hasn’t been great, and who wants to sit outside in the the cold and wet anyway?!
Finally, you’re allowed to have customers inside your premises – Great news! Understandably you’re going to be busy getting your team back in place and once again adapting to social distancing, online bookings and regular cleansing.
However, this post is to give you a little nudge to do some simple online housekeeping to ensure customers are kept up-to-date on booking guidelines, opening hours and general expectations when they visit your establishment.
Action Point 1 – Google My Business Listing
Your GMB (Google My Business) listing is potentially one of the first places on the internet customers will find you when searching for your establishment, or something related to it (ie pubs near me, Italian restaurants in Newport etc.) Therefore, ensuring your details are updated is essential. Make sure your opening hours are correct, especially if they are temporary. Also add links to online menus, booking systems and latest covid updates so that customers know what to expect when they arrive.
If you’re happy to receive booking enquiries via message, you could also download the GMB app to your phone and turn on messaging, which will allow customers to message you (similar to Facebook messenger.)
Action Point 2 – Add new content to social media
Similar to GMB, social media such as Facebook and Instagram will be the go-to place for many of your customers to find out about opening hours, changes to menu and latest booking availability. Make sure you post new images of your establishment layout so that customers know what to expect when they arrive. If you’re offering a limited menu or daily specials, these can also be posted as images on social media.
Action Point 3 – Update your website
If you have a website for your establishment, then you’ll need to ensure that all opening hours and contact info is up to date. If you use an online booking system, make sure this is integrated into your website and customers can easily find it.
It might also be useful to have a covid-specific page on your website that details booking procedure, Covid related information and health and safety advice. Harvester restaurant have a good example on their website – https://www.harvester.co.uk/covid
Above all, we understand that the coming weeks and months are going to be uncertain, busy and often stressful times for hospitality business owners and we wish all of you the best of success!
If you’d like to discuss any of our hospitality related specific services, we have more information here or you can email hello@allianceagency.co.uk and call us on 01633 449885.
