Once you fulfill your dream of opening up a restaurant, you should make sure that you plan and execute a grand opening to attract customers and make it a successful venture. Marketing at the initial stages of your business can be the make-or-break factor when it comes to the longevity of any business.
Therefore, this article contains the top 7 restaurant grand opening ideas so that you can start your business with a bang and be on the path of continuous progress and success.
Invite the Influencers
If you want to create a buzz about your restaurant, you should invite influential people that belong to the area where your business is located. Generally, positive reviews from local politicians and business owners can give a huge boost to your business.
Moreover, digital marketing through social media networks is also a critical part of a business’s success nowadays. You should invite the local social media influencers to popularize your restaurant through social media and attract customers. Nowadays, social media influencers can make a business highly successful overnight, so you should definitely use these important resources to establish a profitable restaurant.
Month-Long Celebration
The traditional way of opening a restaurant or any other business is by throwing one large party. However, it puts a lot of pressure on the business owner and event manager to provide all of the best things and make the party memorable.
Instead of doing all of the activities on one opening night, you should spread out the restaurant’s opening celebrations throughout the month. It will allow you to promote different special deals on various days. Moreover, you can also arrange special live programs with local celebrities to gain media coverage and expand your customer base.
Use Social Media
You have to be creative with your social media posts if you want to gain the attention of the online users organically. Many businesses do a simple countdown, but it does not engage the users, and they often end up ignoring the posts. If you need help with your
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You should engage the users to keep them interested. One of the ways to do it is by posting videos and pictures of the restaurant while decorating it and adding a caption in which you invite the reader to the opening ceremony. Similarly, you can also provide a detailed breakdown of your upcoming menu and ask the social media users to come and try the delicious food.
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Supporting Local Charities & Nonprofits
You can promote your restaurant while also supporting the local charities and nonprofits like food banks and shelters by donating a certain part of the opening proceeds. It will also help you in building strong relationships with the local community that will benefit your business in many different ways on both a short and long-term basis. Need help finding a local non-profit?
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Food Challenge
Food challenges are a traditional way of marketing a new restaurant. Such challenges still work to a great extent because they help you through word-of-mouth advertising. You can decide the prize of a food challenge as per your conditions.
Generally, prizes like a t-shirt, a watch, or a free meal to the winner are offered. Whatever type of food challenge and prize you choose, you should make it as interesting as possible to ensure the customer enjoys being at your restaurant.
Prize Giveaway
Arranging a
prize giveaway is one of the best ways to encourage customers to visit your new restaurant and participate in the opening celebrations. Make sure that you include it in your marketing material that anyone who comes to the opening ceremony will be eligible to win a prize. It will definitely attract a lot of customers because people love winning prizes. You do not necessarily have to spend a huge amount of money on getting a high-end prize. Instead, you can distribute multiple simple prizes like customized pens, t-shirts, mugs, and other such products.
Grand Revelation
Adding a flair of drama to the opening ceremony of your restaurant will not only attract more people but also make it a memorable event in the local history. You can build a lot of suspense and intrigue around your brand in different ways, such as by revealing the name of your restaurant on the day of the grand opening.
You should plan a big reveal in advance of the opening night to ensure more people are excited about it. Moreover, you should also invite the local news stations to provide full coverage of the grand opening ceremony. Your
local chamber of commerce has a Grand Opening program where there is a ribbon-cutting with the local mayor or local officials.
Restaurant Marketing in Alexandria and Arlington
The bottom line is that there are many different ways and strategies through which you can have a grand opening of your restaurant and make it an attractive and memorable event in your neighborhood. The seven ideas presented in this article will take your opening ceremony to the next level and make your business a successful venture, so you should follow these tips.