Focus On Your Strengths
A friend of mine called me the other day all excited about buying a restaurant. On one hand he was excited about the prospect of buying a business and being self-employed. On the other hand he was concerned about his ability to operate the business, since he had no real experience running one. He had heard that running a restaurant can be expensive, demanding of ones time and not always profitable.
As we talked I reminded him of his back ground – he was in advertising and marketing for many years. I explained that, as an owner, he had to lead with his strengths and that marketing is the twenty percent of the business that makes the other eighty percent financially viable.
In about twenty minutes I helped him develop a the basics of a marketing plan that began to meet the expectations of the restaurants target market:
- Tasty and consistent recipes that created a sense of comfort for the patron. (“Comfort” food sells).
- A limited menu of favorites along with a limited number of daily chef’s specials.
- A promise of good food and excellent service.
- Most important, a database of his patrons addresses and emails along with their likes and dislikes so he could target promotions of new menu choices and specials.
- Development of a consistent advertising and marketing campaign that enhanced “word of mouth”.
- Finally, a small catering program that would deliver lunches to local retailers and businesses who may not have the time to leave their offices.
As the conversation ended I convinced him to develop an ongoing training program for all his employees that would guarantee consistent and excellent service night after night. I told him this was the most important part of the ambiance of his business and, besides the food, would be the major reason people would come back again and again.
The day-to-day operations of the restaurant would be delegated to his managers who, when the marketing produced a consistent and loyal clientele, would be highly motivated to provide excellent service.
The success of a business depends on the strengths of its owners.
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