Everything you need to know about restaurant marketing automation

What is restaurant marketing automation?

Restaurant marketing automation refers to a set of professional tools which allows you to connect with your customers and encourage repeat business. Data collection and marketing activities are automated to ease the burden of carrying out these tasks manually and can play an important role in helping drive customer engagement. 

Collecting data is the key to understanding the kind of service your customer expects, enticing them through the door and converting first-time visitors into repeat customers. Tools such as email marketing, SMS, social media, EPoS and an adept CRM for hospitality can all link together synergistically to power up your marketing operation. 

There are several providers of tools specially designed for the hospitality industry, such as EatApp, SevenRooms and Access Acteol. Another option is adapting tools which have not been specifically designed for the industry, such as MailChimp. 

How does restaurant marketing automation work? 

Restaurant marketing automation works by gathering data from many sources – such as the restaurants EPoS, wi-fi, social media interaction and delivery system. This data then flows into the CRM where it can be segmented and used to inform marketing campaign activity.

The great thing about automated marketing campaigns are that you can create them, set them up and then…leave them to do their thing!

Some commonly used automated email campaigns include:

• We miss you – lapsed customer emails (customer hasn’t visited for 6+ months)
• Cancellations – Encourage customer to rebook at a different date
• Post-visit thank you and feedback collection
• Happy birthday – send a birthday discount offer (Top tip – send this one two weeks before the actual date to increase the chance they choose to celebrate in your venue)

There are so many points of interaction that are possible with the customer outside the walls of the physical restaurant. Each one is a potential opportunity to boost your brand and win customer loyalty. Managing all these requires well thought-out and easy-to-use tools, which is where Access can help. 

Why should you use marketing automation for your restaurant?

1. Personalisation 

Automation allows for more targeted marketing efforts, making each customer feel valued and special before and after their dining experience.

Collecting customer data allows a restaurant to create customised campaigns for different segments of the market – for instance customers who have previously visited with children could receive news about family-orientated events over the summer holidays, while diners who have previously booked in early evening slots might receive emails about a new pre-theatre menu.

An easy way to see the effect personalisation can have is to monitor how often customers are opening emails: one casual dining brand which used the Acteol CRM to design an automated email campaign saw open rates increase to 41% by applying targeted content and personalised subject lines*.

2. Timely activation

Automation can help ensure that marketing efforts are consistent and timely, which can lead to better results and higher return on investment.

Automated email campaigns that are activated by metrics such as time lapsed since last visit, or are sent automatically the day after a visit inviting the customer to submit a review, can noticeably boost engagement without additional effort. 

3. Saving time through automating tasks

Automating repetitive tasks such as email campaigns and social media posts can save a lot of time for staff, allowing them to focus on connecting with the customer. While marketing is essential to the success of a restaurant, the team can be small – or perhaps just one individual – and their time needs to be used as efficiently as possible. Campaigns that run automatically can save time as well as having more impactful results. 

4. Ideal for small teams and large businesses

Restaurant marketing automation is suitable for emergent companies as well as established brands, and indeed will allow smaller businesses to compete with the big players on their own terms. But as your company grows, your software can take on more. Some platforms will charge more for more volume, so that is something to be aware of, but it is telling that large operators often use the very same software as independents. More expensive software has more features and functions, so it is really a case of matching these features to your needs. 

5. Customer data marketing insights

Restaurant marketing automation products mean that your marketing insights can be as fine-grained as you like. Collecting someone’s email address is just the first step in painting a picture of what your customers likes, how much money they have to spend and what will make them a loyal repeat diner.

Our hospitality CRM can help you do more with your customer data. Compare Acteol Enterprise, our CRM for 16+ sites, with Acteol SE, ideal for businesses with less than 15 sites, to see which product best suits your operation. 

6. Cost saving 

A restaurant’s budget can only stretch so far, and most restaurant owners would prefer to be investing in the best quality ingredients and excellent staff than spending more on marketing; and their customers would prefer that too.

The cost-saving aspect of having multiple marketing functions - such as social media scheduling, email marketing and SMS - in one place frees up budget to be invested in other priorities. 

7. Flexibility 

Hospitality fortunes can change with the weather – quite literally. The enhancing effect of an unexpectedly sunny day (or the urge to stay at home on a rainy one) can bring another element of unpredictability to the industry.

An automated restaurant marketing system would allow you to add in an extra reminder to guests of their reservation that evening, or run a one-off “winter warmer’ promo to tempt customers from their couches. Apply this thinking to less-than-predictable events such as a run of sporting victories and you have an agile marketing set-up able to respond to the unexpected. 

Are there any disadvantages of restaurant marketing automation?  

• Bringing automation on board: Automating your marketing will requires a certain level of comfort with technology and a reliable internet connection. While most restaurants now have the latter, the former will determine what level of sophistication you are looking for in restaurant marketing automation software.  
• Initial set-up costs: Investing in the right tools is a big decision. You might want to get a whole suite set up at once in order to make sure it flows well together. Or you might be very happy with your current EPoS and so be looking for tools that fit with that. Although automated restaurant marketing will save money in the long run, set-up is inevitably not free so careful thought needs to be given to your requirements and your budget. 
• Overreliance: Automated marketing can be so powerful and easy to use that it can be tempting to forget that you are ultimately still in charge. Campaigns need monitoring to make sure they are still effective and driving sales. There are other examples where automation must simply take a back seat. Take a negative review on a local Facebook group. While you may or may not be able to persuade an unhappy customer to return with a personal response, other potential customers can see your thoughtful, calm reply that addresses the specific issues raised, and will go a long way to offsetting any negative effects. As good as your automation set up may be, you always need to dip in to make sure you are there to give the human touch when needed. 

How to use marketing automation in your restaurant 

Step 1: Define your goals  

Before getting started with marketing automation, it's important to define your goals and objectives. This could be anything from increasing covers overall, to working on repeat custom, to opening up new market segments. Knowing your wider goals will help you determine which automation tools and strategies will be most effective for your restaurant. 

Step 2: Gather customer data 

Collect and organise data on your customers, including information such as their contact information, purchase history and preferences. This will be used to create targeted marketing campaigns and personalise communication. 

Step 3: Choose the right tools 

Research and compare different restaurant marketing automation tools to find the ones that best fit your needs and budget. A demo is an ideal place to start as a representative can talk you through fitting different tools together to create a seamless marketing system. 

Step 4: Integrate with your electronic point of sale system 

Integrate your marketing automation tools with your restaurant's EPOS to ensure that customer data is being collected effectively and then transformed into targeted campaigns that will catch a customer’s attention and put them in a marketing lifecycle to convert them into loyal guests. 

Step 5: Create automation workflows 

Once you have the right tools in place, create restaurant marketing automation workflows to automate repetitive tasks such as email campaigns and social media posts. 

Step 6: Follow the analytics 

The next step is to test and optimise your restaurant marketing automation campaigns to ensure that they are effective in achieving your goals. Use data and analytics to make adjustments as needed.  

Step 7: Monitor and improve 

Regularly monitor the performance of your automated campaigns and make adjustments as needed to improve results. As you collect more detailed customer data you can use these insights to fine-tune your campaigns and discard those tactics which are no longer working for you. 

Step 8: Training 

Train your staff on how to use the automation tools and how to interpret the data and results so they can help you make data-driven decisions. 

Ready to automate?   

This article has taken you through the concepts that make restaurant marketing automation effective for your business. We have covered the benefits of gathering customer data, personalisation, automating campaigns and using analytics to monitor your successes.  

Our hospitality CRM, Access Acteol enables you to achieve more with your customer data including supporting automated marketing campaigns based on triggers such as customer birthdate, visit frequency and even the local weather. Our advanced audience segmentation tools mean that your automated campaigns can be highly targeted to engage your target audience.  

Check out a 5-minute demo of our Acteol SE CRM system for businesses with fewer than 15 sites.