The winter holidays are one of the busiest – and most profitable – times of the year for restaurants, as families, friends, and colleagues gather together to celebrate the season. And while the current weather forecast may be giving “hot” instead of “ho ho ho”,  laying the groundwork early for the holiday rush helps you capture more sales and deliver a smoother guest experience.

Here are five ways to kickstart your restaurant into (holiday cheer) gear:

1. Begin building merry marketing campaigns 

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Your guests are already thinking about their holiday plans–so you should too. Ensure you’re on the top of their restaurant “nice list” when they’re ruminating on where to order from or dine in at, by consistently engaging them via strategic marketing campaigns.

Start promoting catering, seasonal menus, and event bookings as early as possible so guests can secure their plans with you. The easiest way to get ahead of these communications is by utilizing a marketing platform that serves up pre-crafted emails, texts, and social posts, creating a full month’s worth of content – and ensuring you’re getting your holiday messages out to the right people at the right time. 

Speaking of targeted audiences, you should also consider employing segmentation tools to dial into guests who have previously ordered catering or participated in holiday promotions of years’ past. By tailoring messages to their interests, and creating personalized content that creates familiarity, you’ll increase the likelihood of repeat business and make your marketing dollars go further.

2. Deck the halls with additional ordering channels

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These days, convenience is everything, and that’s especially true around the hectic holiday season. That’s why giving your guests multiple ways to order from your restaurant will ensure their bases are covered.

Ordering channels to consider include:

• Online ordering: Make sure your digital storefront is streamlined, mobile-friendly, and is updated with your seasonal offerings.
• Ordering events: Create special menus for everything from holiday meals to prefixed Thanksgiving dinners, and make tickets or pre-orders available through your existing online ordering solution.
• Catering: Large family gatherings or office parties call for catering, and your restaurant needs to answer that call with a dynamic ordering system built directly into your existing website that highlights your bulk holiday offerings. 

The easier you make it to place an order, the more likely guests will choose your restaurant for their holiday festivities. 

3. Don’t drop the ball on answering your phones

Many guests still prefer to pick up the phone when booking holiday events or catering, so don’t be a scrooge and ignore their ringing. If that seems like a tall order given the busy holiday season, lean on AI Answering to field calls. This tech tool can create custom holiday-related responses, promote festive food offerings, and send links for orders and reservations – ensuring you don’t miss a seasonal sale. 

A holiday script for your AI Answering service could look something like this: “Thanks for calling [Your Restaurant]. We’re currently taking catering orders for holiday gatherings. Ask about our catering menu to learn more!” Even simple adjustments can have a big revenue impact.

4. Decorate your menu with seasonal items 

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Part of what makes the holidays at a restaurant so merry are the seasonal menu items offered – from holiday cocktails, to family-style bundles or festive desserts.

Entice guests with your limited-time offerings by updating your core menu and highlighting holiday specials both in-house and online. 

To avoid the stress of manually changing downloadable PDFs or static web pages, consider investing in digital tools that let you instantly update menus across your website, ordering platforms, and third-party apps. You’ll get the seasonal information in front of guests faster, giving them ample time to order their holiday feast while also saving your staff time.

5. Brighten brand visibility with paid ads 

Organic marketing is powerful, but paid ads can help you stay top-of-mind during the holiday rush. Social media and search platforms allow you to target specific audiences, such as guests searching for “holiday dining reservations near me” or office managers seeking “local party catering options.” 

Key items to put on your paid ad checklist include determining your target audience, choosing the right bidding strategy, and creating content that highlights your seasonal promotions. And you don’t need a big budget to be effective – even a modest amount can pay off if executed the right way. 

Slay the holidays

The holidays are an exciting season for restaurants, but success starts with being prepared. By planning marketing campaigns early, diversifying ordering channels, embracing AI to manage phone traffic, efficiently updating menus, and investing in targeted ads, you’ll be ready to spread holiday cheer and capture your restaurant’s full revenue potential.