25 ideas and tips to help you market your cafe!
When you are considering ways to market your cafe, always consider your brand and what it stands for. Does the marketing you are going to do align with your brand? We have put together a list of 25 marketing ideas and tips for your cafe. These cafe marketing ideas will get your started and can easily be altered to suit your brand and help you get your cafe out there!
1. Offer a special deal for customers exclusively via social media. Advertise it in-store as well to gain more followers on your social platforms.
2. Hold mini-event days to encourage customers to gather in your cafe, you could put up some decorations and have a themed meal deal for the day. Help them celebrate events like Mother’s day or make up days like Favourite Friend Friday!
3. Are you offering your regular customers loyalty cards for a free coffee?
4. Start a mailing list for the locals and offer exclusive deals, like a free coffee on their birthday!
5. Feature your logo on takeaway packaging with custom printing, a sticker or stamp.
6. Invite local bands to play in your cafe and create a relaxing ambiance.
7. If you have the wall space, host an art exhibition for local artists.
8. Encourage customers to take photos of their food with an instagram hashtag advertised in-store.
9. Get those reviews going on food review sites. Ask friends, family and loyal customers to leave reviews to get you started.
10. Make sure you are everywhere your customers are! Are you the first cafe to appear in a google search for cafes near you. Set yourself up with a google account. Think about what your tourists and potential customers will search for to find cafes in your area.
11. You don’t need to create a website for your cafe, but you do need to have some kind of online presence. Create a facebook and instagram profile and link your google account to one of your social media accounts.
12. Be sure to post to social media at least once a week with updates, specials, friendly faces etc. If you don’t have the time to run social platforms yourself, ask an employee to be admin for the account.
13. Run a competition to encourage your customers to share photos of their food and selfies in your cafe by using an instagram hashtag. A prize will give them an incentive to take a photo, plus it gives you some content to share on the cafes social media.
14. Ask your staff to be in the spotlight! Not everyone is keen to have their photo taken, but if you can find some staff happy to say cheese, get them to pose with some food or make a coffee with a smile. Not only is this great social media content, it also helps your customers get more familiar with the staff members.
15. It will take a bit of trial and error, but try to find the best day and times to post. Are you customers early birds or are they night owls? Once you know when you are getting the most engagements, keep posting at that time.
16. Partner up with another local business to create unique menu items or run a larger competition.
17. Even though we are in a digital age, alot of people still have business cards. Consider having a fish bowl on the counter for business card giveaway each month for a free coffee.
18. You don’t need to take photos every day for your social media accounts. Have a photo shoot! Take a load of photos in a day and space them out over the following day. Take photos of a variety of things like coffee, food, decor, staff, customers, signage, brand materials or even the local area. Be sure to stick to a style that suits your brands personality.
19. Run a facebook ad or google ad for your local area.
20. Think outside the box and offer something that other cafes around you don’t. How about some free WIFI or dog friendly stations.
21. Invite a food blogger or influencer to dine for free in exchange for a shout out on social media.
22. Join a delivery app.
23. Look at local spaces you can advertise such as magazines, bill boards or radio.
24. Create a website that includes blogs, menu and online reservation bookings.
25. Offer free samples to people passing by, this may encourage them to come in for more!
