Running a cosy cafe with delicious food and a loyal customer base may sound like the dream business for many a person. However, making it a success is not easy, especially in the age of ordering food directly to your door. That doesn’t mean it’s impossible, by any means. It’s just going to take a little extra energy and inventiveness to draw the kind of crowds you want.
Create A Signature Experience
A cafe should do more than serve drinks and food, it should ensure that customers have an experience that they can’t get anywhere else. Part of this is done through investing in high-quality furniture and furnishings, as unique drink menu, intentionally curated music, and thoughtful branding throughout the entire space. Pay attention to the ambience and the emotional feel of your space. People remember how your cafe makes them feel, so you should take the time to build something that’s truly memorable. A distinct and consistent identity can make it a place that they want to be.
Create A Truly Strong Menu
As a cafe, you want to provide staples that people will gladly order without having to think about it too much. However, those staples should have a distinct, high-quality taste that lingers with them. As such, sourcing products from local vendors, like artisanal bread or wholesale sausage rolls from a nearby baker, can elevate your offerings and add authenticity that the larger providers simply may not be able to match. Customers notice quality, and they also love knowing their purchases support multiple small businesses, so be sure to highlight your partners in the menu too.
Don’t Underestimate The Power Of Social Media
Lifestyle posts, and especially food posts, thrive in social media spaces. Rather than focusing entirely on the traditional online marketing tools, you should look at making good use of platforms like Instagram, where the visual appeal of a beautifully plated meal, latte art, or a rustic baked section can tap into the emotional appeal that food has always had. Don’t just rely on your own posts, either. Social media posts from customers become free promotion and increase your cafe’s online presence. Investing in that visual appeal in not just the food but the surroundings, can increase the Instagram-ability of your cafe.
Be Part Of The Community
Supporting local vendors is one way to entrench your cafe as part of the community, but there are other ways to do it, too. By hosting events that involve local people, such as open mic nights, art shows, or weekend markets, you can make it a fixture of community events. It also gets people to linger and socialise at your cafe, and to associate it with creativity and the local scene. Offering a space for pop-ups from local businesses, like florists, craft vendors, or food creators, can show a commitment to supporting the local business community, too.
It is a more difficult world out there for the cafe than it was a decade or two ago. However, there are success stories, finding their way with the kind of thinking displayed in the tips above.
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