Deliciousness: SMS Marketing for Cafes and Restaurants

Cafes and restaurants create flavor and atmosphere. The flavor is hidden in the menu, and it doesn’t matter whether it’s fried camembert, dumplings with cabbage, espresso, or purple sheng puer tea. The atmosphere manifests through details: the smile of the waiter, unusual napkins, and photographs in antique frames on the wall.

Visitors buy the pleasure of the moment. Sometimes it’s about having coffee alone; other times, it’s about enjoying time with friends. Sometimes people come to satisfy their hunger, or on the contrary, to enrich their taste experience.

The marketing campaign for food establishments is built around the feeling of pleasure. Other accents include quality, originality, price, convenient location, and more. SMS marketing for cafes and restaurants can become an additional promotion tool and help turn occasional customers into regulars. How to do this — read on.

 Analyzing the Target Audience: What to Consider?

Food establishments have long been a part of urban culture, a place to recharge, and we’re not talking about mobile phones. How well do you know your audience?

Location

Partially, the formation of a visitor base can be influenced by location — especially for cafes. It’s not hard to guess that if there’s a college, historical museum, or some ministry nearby, students, tourists, or middle management types will frequently stop by for coffee or lunch.

It’s more complicated if the location has no particular features. But even here, you need to clearly understand what attracts people to your establishment. This could be reasonable prices, a diverse menu, a friendly barista, or even the absence of competition — the main thing is to have a clear answer to the question “why do people come to me.” After that, there will be clarifications — who exactly comes, whether I want to develop specifically with these customers, and if so — how should I do it.

List of Values

In addition to the obvious values for this niche, such as “food” and “gastronomic pleasure,” SMS marketing for cafes and restaurants can also rely on the following:

• “Time-saving” — not everyone considers it worthwhile to cook at home, and it’s easier to go to a café during a lunch break than to bring food from home;
• “Convenience” — this is especially relevant for people who travel or have unexpectedly stayed longer where they hadn’t planned;
• “Health” — perhaps in your area, it would be worth offering a separate dietary or vegan menu?;
• “Silence” — seclusion, even for half an hour, is still a value, especially in a million-plus city;
• “Original cuisine” — many establishments bet on exotic or national dishes. It should be noted that in this aspect, SMS marketing for restaurants is easier to implement, as the kitchen’s specificity was considered during the creation phase. Cafes do not always have unique offerings on their menu;
• “Original place” — an establishment that people visit solely for its atmosphere exists in every city. Some manage to become cult favorites — just recall a famous bar in the capital, where a mystical theme plays out in every detail, and you need to book a table weeks in advance.
• “Communication” — business discussions happen just as often in cafés as friendly gatherings;
• “A place for the perfect date” — no additional comments needed here;
• “Trendy” — this is truly an ideal positioning story if your café becomes a meeting place for quad bikers or chess enthusiasts;
• “Extra space for work” — there are a number of professionals who find inspiration in food establishments.

Six SMS Marketing Options for Restaurants and Cafes

1. SMS for New or Occasional Customers:

The goal is to leave a pleasant aftertaste from your establishment, and at the same time, your contact information — it’s unlikely that someone will delete the SMS.

Does the first message guarantee that this customer will come to you again? It depends on many factors, including personal ones. But it’s an extra chance that the customer won’t forget your name, address, and will recommend your place to their friends.

Sometimes it’s worth incorporating current promotions into these SMS — very few people can ignore the opportunity to save a little.

Examples of messages:

“Hello from Café ‘X’! Every Tuesday we have Tasting Day. Bring a friend — get a discount”;

“Thank you for choosing our sushi bar! Get two rolls for free on your next order. Show this SMS to the waiter.”

2. SMS for Regular Customers:

This SMS invitation to the restaurant is aimed at informing regular customers about updates to the menu — the arrival of new dishes, seasonal treats, etc.

Examples of messages:

“New! Autumn soup 🙂 from our chef’s recipe. Available only until the end of November”;

“Juicy burgers with truffle sauce! Add your secret ingredient. Reserve your table by phone.”

3. SMS with Promotions and Discounts:

These messages attract the audience’s attention and increase the establishment’s visit rate. These can include “Promotional Days” for regular customers, special dishes for certain days of the week, and even game stories like “Win your discount at the entrance — from 5% to 25%.” Promotional SMS can also attract the attention of inactive customers who have visited your establishment once or twice.

Examples of messages:

“Happy hours: every day from 5 PM to 9 PM — all desserts 40% off”;

“We’ll help you organize an unforgettable date! 25% off for all couples.”

4. Event Notifications:

This type of mailing will be useful if you host various themed parties at your establishment. For instance, tastings, chef masterclasses, creative gatherings, etc.

Examples of messages:

“What coffee are you? Find out the answer in our restaurant quest. Come, enjoy, taste”;

“We invite you to French cuisine evenings with a masterclass from our chef. Book your table by phone.”

5. Loyalty Program SMS:

These mailings are aimed at encouraging people to visit the establishment again and again. This doesn’t necessarily have to happen frequently — what matters is that the customer prefers you over your competitors.

Examples:

“You have 280 bonus points in your account. Exchange them for a discount on your next visit. 1 point = 1 hryvnia”;

“Every fifth glass of wine is free. Only three glasses left to your gift.”

6. Holiday Messages:

People often choose cafes or restaurants to celebrate important personal events. Therefore, it’s worth considering special offers for such occasions — discounts that always pay off. There can also be pleasant conditions if a customer reserves a table for a large group. This can be for 10 people or even more than 40.

Examples:

“Celebrate your birthday with us — get a 20% discount and a surprise from the chef!”;

“Experience the true taste of Christmas! Reserve a table for a friendly company on a convenient day with a 10% discount.”

In Conclusion:

SMS marketing for restaurants and cafes is an additional mechanism that should be integrated into the overall marketing campaign. The main thing is to understand who exactly you are sending the messages to and why.

For example, a campaign from one Georgian restaurant to a so-called “sleeping database” immediately revitalized visits to the website. That same day, there were 53 new inquiries, some for table reservations and some for food delivery. Thus, the $240 invested in the sending paid off several times.

Detail: this restaurant has maintained its own high-quality customer database from the very beginning — the sending referenced in the example was sent to 9,000 phone numbers. Therefore, from the first days of operation, get to know your customers and engage with them. This information becomes fundamental for optimal segmentation of mass texting.