Most pizzerias try to use the best products they can. Poor quality usually earns the restaurant owner one of those “Out of Business” signs on their door. With all things being equal, what makes customers choose one place over the other? The answer is this...
I have found that when working with my clients that in today’s marketplace they can have greater sales if they take a few minutes to look at this business and see who their customers really are. When people buy today it is no longer because they need something. Eighty percent of the time it is because they want it. Research has shown that consumers purchase products, from cars to homes to pizzas, because it makes them “feel” good. When you market, you have the opportunity to make your customers feel good, and this will increase your sales.
Your first goal is to identify your target audience. This is important because you have a marketing budget, and you want to get the most return for your money. Kamron Karington says too many small pizza operators waste about half of their marketing dollars by pounding “cold” areas with mail. “You’ll get about 100 percent better response by mailing your ‘hot’ areas twice – and not wasting money on the cold areas at all,” Kamron says.
To identify your core audience, for two weeks – (using push-pins or a dry-erase marker) put a dot or pin on your delivery map for every delivery that leaves the store. In two weeks you will know exactly where your hot and cold areas are. Once you know this, stick to marketing heavily in your hot zones. This is what makes a fisherman successful – fish where the fish are biting.
Your next and long-term goal is to create a “brand” for your pizzeria. This should be used in every form of advertising that you do. Marketing has made us all aware of the latest and most fashionable item in every consumer spending category. We have become a society that is brand-aware, (think Nike and Coke). Over time, if you stay consistent, people will recognize your name and image and look to pick up your menu/flier each time it arrives in their home. We “feel” comfortable with things we know. So, put that brand in front of your customers as often as possible and you will make them respond each time they see it.
When you send out a menu with the right image, it will tell your story and let customers know you are aware of what is important to them and brand your product. Along with your brand creation, design your menu with lots of professional pictures that are appetizing and mouth-watering. Your marketing or printing company can help you choose images that represent your product and/or story of your business. This will show customers the quality of your food and maintain your branded image.
When making a menu that is going to be distributed you should include a few offers. We have found that our customers’ most effective offers are either combo deals, such as two pizzas, wings and garlic bread, or two pizzas with a free 2-litre of pop. These offers work for a variety of reasons. Particularly, they help the busy family choose a combination meal big enough to feed everyone, and who doesn’t love to get something for free! It also eliminates the process of forcing them to make decisions.
I have found through research and day-to-day experiences that all of us like to belong and to be part of a group. Knowing this, I often recommend that if you have the opportunity to mention an anniversary or winning a community award on the front of your menu, you should do so. When customers read that you are celebrating a 10-year anniversary, it gives them confidence that others have been choosing you for a long time, and they want to be part of this group. It also shows you have been a member of their community for several years, and most people like to “shop” within their own neighborhoods with “established” businesses.
Now, it is time to get your menu into your new and old customer’s hands. The best way to do this is through direct mail. As I mentioned before, you want to send your menu to your target audience, the ones that you previously gathered with the pushpins. If you have not gathered the information or you are unsure of your exact target audience, do your first mailing based on a two to five kilometer radius of your pizzeria. Your mailing company can help you find the right postal codes for you to include in your mailing.
Make sure your menu includes coupons that have to be redeemed. You will be able to collect the addresses of the people who order over the phone, and if it is pickup only, then you can ask for a postal code and write it on the back of the coupon to keep for future mailings. Over several weeks or the length of your program, gather the information about where your customers are located as this will help you to identify your target audience. This information will let you know who to target and how many menus to print for the next mailing.
An equally important task is to choose the right marketing company that will help to identify who you are and what your customers would like to see. Having the best food photography is vital to you as this is the first image they will have of you, and it is right in their own home. Pictures sell more than words. Don’t sell the steak...sell the sizzle. Remember you want to make them “feel” good. A good marketing company will have a photo library that is constantly growing so you can choose the best images that represent your pizzeria’s style. Your brand, the pictures and your message is so important because you only have three seconds to get their attention.
Remember, a picture is worth 1000 words. Those armed with the right tools and customer expertise will be the very best in today’s market.
– PMQ –
