Shop Local
Like many I try to #shoplocal wherever possible – it’s more than a hashtag, it’s something that I actually do
But you know what – Shopping Local is not that easy – 9/10 times you have to search and delve deep into the rabbit hole just to find out the most basic of information
Over the weekend I was out locally in my home town and whilst I could list a dozen things that Slug and Lettuce and Wetherspoons are offering this Easter Weekend / St George’s Day – the 2 independents I visited I couldn’t even name their opening hours this coming Easter Weekend, never mind any special events / offers they had on
Indie Retailers, Restaurants and Pubs – if you want local people to #shoplocal then the reality is you have to market local!
And this is backed up by stats by organisations such as CAMRA
“80% of pub-goers have never been communicated to by their most local pub, but 24% of these people said they would be encouraged to visit the pub more often if they were informed of what events the pub had planned”
Think about this…… here are some lessons that you can learn from the big boys
MARKET THE BASICS
You know – the simple things like opening times, what you offer, what is different on each of the 7 Days a week
You’d be amazed how many independent businesses don’t even do this
BE BOLD
If you’ve never taken 2 minutes to look around at where people’s eyes are focused on – do it now!
Chances are most people are looking at their mobile phones. Yes people walking down the street, stuck at the traffic lights, sat in your premises waiting for a friend who’s running late.
Your print marketing needs to be big and bold to grab the fleeting attention away from the phones and to back that up you need to be on their phones through Social Media whether that is Twitter, Facebook, Instagram etc
Think Bold and give the double hit!
REPEAT YOURSELF
Do you know why I know Slug & Lettuce are doing selected £5 meals of British Classics on St George’s Day?
They had it on the A Board outside, posters on the walls, at the bar, the stairs to the toilet, in the toilets and they have offers on the back of the staff’s branded t-shirts
I’ll get an email around a week before and they’ll tweet it out leading up to the day
They say it takes 7 times for you to remember something – think about this!
CARE ABOUT THE THINGS YOUR CUSTOMERS CARE ABOUT
Why does Wetherspoons have an events calendar in the gents toilets?
It serves 2 purposes – 1. it focuses on what is coming up at the pub and 2. It’s actually what their customers care about be it sport, national days and ale.
If you’re into Six Nations or the World Cup you don’t necessarily need to be told what dates they are – but they serve as a talking point for what their customers care about
PLAN AHEAD
Remember the days when everybody worked 9-5pm Monday-Friday and every single person you knew hit the town centre at 5pm on a Friday?
No – me neither
The quaint days of the past where arranging a group night out was easy are long gone and with different working patterns large groups need to plan their nights out in advance
Make sure your marketing is planning ahead rather than leaving it till 7 days before and then being disappoint when it doesn’t deliver
WHAT NOW?
Marketing like a big business doesn’t have to cost the same as a Big Business
Altrincham HQ work with local businesses on their Social Media Marketing and Planning and how this integrates into their offline marketing (we have a fab team of local designers and printers who alongside us)
Contact Alex on 07806774279 to chat further or email alex@altrinchamhq.co.uk
“With over 12 years experience of Social Media and 17 years experience of online marketing in other companies, clients come to myself when they want a veteran rather than a rookie” Alex McCann
So true. You also have to send the message out so that different human senses can pick it up. Posters and signs for sight, messages on hold for hearing. The hard part is finding the time to look at the calendar and plan promotions. The good news is that the calendar almost never changes! Do it once, reuse it and tweak as you learn better promotions. Follow us on Twitter @IdeasOnHold and we’ll help you remember which holidays are coming up and when.
I completely agree with everything here however there are now ways you can complete with the big named brands at their own game!
Like it said, you look around and people are on their mobiles, why not market to your customers using their mobiles? Solutions such as uRRestaurant enable small businesses to have their very own app for their customers to download. This solution provides the ability for the customers to make purchases through the app as well as gives the business the capability to market directly to their customers via push notifications and messages.
In regards to the topic of care about what your customers care about the uRRestaurant solution has an optional marketing package that not only allows you to also market via email but they supply email templates with features related to current topics such as sporting events and key public holidays.
Info@urrestaurant.com
+44 113 834 6114