Marketing For Ghost Kitchens

Top ten strategies for ghost kitchen marketing

Ghost kitchens rely primarily on online food marketing to generate revenue. While third-party marketplaces, such as Grubhub, will directly sell your kitchen concept in an app, you may incur substantial expenses.

Some cloud kitchens have chosen to bypass this step and instead rely on innovative ideas for marketing a ghost kitchen. Where a ghost kitchen’s website serves as its online storefront, social media is a vital marketing avenue for them to increase traffic and, as a result, sales.

Below are the top ten strategies for ghost kitchen marketing:

1. Download Food-delivery Apps

Ordering your favorite dish from a restaurant is no longer a hassle, thanks to the apps that help deliver it on demand. With a simple tap on the phone screen, you can access hundreds of delicious cuisines from different restaurants. Similarly, downloading a favorite food delivery app is an essential step towards marketing your ghost kitchen online. Through the app, you get some built-in ghost kitchen marketing for your restaurants and online kitchens. 

Fortunately, these applications use your business location to suggest nearby restaurants, so you’ll be advertised to folks in your region by default. Your business page will attract customers if it includes your logo and looks, as well as those high-quality food photos. Additionally, you can create your meal ordering app or sign up for delivery services like Doordash, Uber Eats, or Postmates. The benefit of using a third-party app is that you gain access to the company’s vast client base and a steady supply of delivery drivers. However, be careful while selecting a third-party app because it comes with a fair share of challenges, namely;

Some apps may be costly, although the cost varies with the service provider. Most food delivery apps integrate several delivery partners that make it challenging to keep track of shipments as they arrive. Order aggregation and management systems like KitchenHub let virtual restaurants take control of their orders. The process makes juggling tablets and re-punching orders a thing of the past. When you’re using various third-party distribution platforms, using compatible logos and designs is impossible. Furthermore, requesting logo updates from multiple delivery partners can be time-consuming. 

2. Take Control of Your Social Media Presence

Social media presence is key to increasing your visibility across different platforms. Therefore, stamping your presence across many platforms gives you an edge over your competitors. If you have a limited budget, choose the platforms that best fit your business and focus your efforts there. Here are the most important social media channels for ghost advertising:

‍Instagram

‍Instagram is a social media platform that offers a creative, fun, and simple way to record and share photos or videos. However, for business owners, it is a robust platform for marketing a ghost kitchen, with the potential to increase your sales. The platform has over one billion active users, making it the ideal place to showcase visual content and lure customers into eating your food. Your Instagram content has the potential to strengthen the bond between your company and its clients.You can post images of mouth-watering cuisines, step-by-step recipes, tutorial videos, and behind-the-scenes photos of what happens in the kitchen.

You can also interact with your consumers in the comments section, where you will be responding to frequently asked questions. You can gather as much opinion on how to make your clients happy too. You can increase audience engagement by hosting promotions, awarding bonuses, and sharing reviews from past customers who liked your services. Sign up for a free Instagram account to begin your ghost advertising campaign.‍

Facebook‍

According to Statistica, Facebook is the largest online community bringing together an estimated 2.89 Billion active users every month. Talk of numbers; you have it already set up in this fantastic platform. Besides its general socials general social platform, the company introduced its new feature dubbed Facebook for Business. The additional platform came in handy to help business owners reach their target audience online.

Facebook for Business helps you build relationships with your audience, optimize your business performance, add photos and videos. Additionally, you can use the built-in messenger to add a live chat to your ghost kitchen’s websiteYou might include extra information about the restaurant and focus on exciting text on Facebook. It also has a higher-paying audience, which means you may attract clients concerned about appearance, service quality, cuisine and, more importantly, are prepared to pay for it. 

You can also use Facebook to entice clients by informing them of special offers. By including calls to action in your postings, you can ensure that people are motivated to take action. As a restaurant sales strategy, you can allow customers to order your cuisine, download content, or receive discount codes with a click.

‍TikTok

‍TikTok is one of the fastest-growing social sites, with a user base of around 700 million. The Chinese-owned social network is only five years old, yet making revolutions for online marketers. It features comics, dances, and educational content from different promoters. As a result, restaurants are more aware of its potential as a food online marketing platform. How else can you reach out to a younger audience unless you upload comic videos on TikTok? You can showcase a new dish with a short movie, demonstrate how you’re putting safety measures in place, or make a video with a comic element if it fits your brand. Are you a TikTok user? If not, here’s how to sign up.‍

3. Create an Appealing Website to Lay the Groundwork

‍A restaurant website platform is the internet home of your ghost kitchen. It gives potential customers a comprehensive picture of your company. A website also serves as a central location where customers find links to your social media accounts, examine menus, and even place an order.It is therefore critical to invest in a solid restaurant website platform if you want to be successful online. It should showcase appealing visuals, faster page loading time, and quality content that makes your clients come back.

Use engaging pictures of your food, as well as high-quality images or videos expressing your brand’s personality, on your website. Because you don’t have a physical dining room, this is the place to show off what the ambiance of your restaurant would be like in the real world. This will significantly assist in attracting more customers. However, for effective results, give your customers a thrilling call to action. You may include your restaurant’s story, links to menus and social media platforms, and buttons such as ‘Order Now’ or ‘Get 10% Off Your First Order.’ It is critical to invest in a solid website if you want to be successful online. 

‍4. Use Digital Consumer Retention to Your Advantage

‍Once you’ve persuaded a consumer to purchase a meal, you should entice them to order for more. It’s significantly less expensive to keep a customer who has already expressed interest than it is to find a new one.

For this reason, you need digital solutions that match the digital age. You can provide a variety of incentives such as loyalty benefits, a discount on their next order, or a special deal when they buy a meal for a friend. When designing a ghost kitchen marketing plan, your goal is to develop a solid relationship with your customers. Therefore, robust customer relationship management is the key. You can utilize a customer’s email address or phone number to retarget them when they order their first meal. You can use these channels to inform your consumers about a new menu or a special holiday deal to entice them to return. AWeber, for instance, is a free email marketing tool. It enables business owners to create and grow an email marketing list from their customers. You can sign up for free and take advantage of their basic package. 

‍5. Encourage Referrals Over the Internet

‍According to the Search Engine Journal, online reviews are an essential feature in online marketing. About 91% of young consumers aged 18-34 believe in online reviews and trust them before purchasing.

Therefore, you should generate as many favorable references as possible across various channels to boost your online presence. This allows your company to be found online more rapidly. It also adds confidence and trust among first-time buyers. Encourage your most satisfied customers to submit reviews on Google, Facebook, Delivery Apps, Instagram, and other social networks. These sites are significant because they frequently appear at the top of search results. They all contribute to the visibility of your brand.

You can even offer a discount or other incentive to customers who leave positive reviews. But something as simple as a note in each takeaway bag asking for a review can quickly have a significant impact. Some popular review sites like Glassdoor, Yelp, and OpenTable offer honest, reliable reviews about business services and customer satisfaction.‍

6. Improve on Negative Reviews‍

Remind yourself: reviews are the way to go! It is critical to keep your consumers satisfied, and reviews may provide you with fast feedback. Some of your evaluations will be immediately actionable: for example, if a customer is dissatisfied because the food arrived cold, you may wish to adjust your packing. If someone mentioned that the salad had too much dressing, you might want to keep your condiments in a separate container. What your customers say about you on the internet is important to potential customers.

As a result, it’s critical to respond to your evaluations, especially the bad ones. Answering the consumer and explaining what went wrong or simply informing them that you’ll do better next time demonstrates that you care and want to make it right.‍

7. Send Out a Frequent Newsletter Using Email Marketing

‍Email lists are like gold dust for digital marketers. According to HubSpot’s digital marketing specialists, email marketing is one of the most effective food online marketing tools you have. Once you have your customers’ email addresses, you may send them emails weekly or monthly to keep them up to date on new specials or dishes on your menu. 

You can use this to remind them to place another order or to engage them in a special offer, to mention a few possibilities. Customers will look forward to the newsletter once they have grown accustomed to getting your frequent offers and information via email. When done correctly, this may be a vital instrument for building loyalty and repeat business.

8. Master the Art of Menu Management‍

Maintain the visual appeal of your menu by including photographs, accurate product descriptions, and distinctive names for meals or combo offers. Consider which recipes are the most cost-effective to make. Every second matters in a ghost kitchen, and food must arrive in impeccable shape. Aside from the visual element, it is critical to align your menus on your website and other platforms. Make sure the logo and design are similar across platforms, as well as the menus.

‍9. Enrich Your Website Traffic

‍Moving your Business ahead depends on getting to know your customers. Conduct a market segment to help you understand your consumer needs. Afterward, craft content that meets their taste and demand. Do people have varied tastes in different areas? What is the typical age of your customers, and what do they like to do? Once you’ve determined your consumers, you may target them with the appropriate information via the right communication channel. This will aid in the retention of current clients as well as the engagement of new customers. You can have the tastiest food in the world, but if no one knows about it, you’re out of luck. When setting up your website for delivery food, make sure to consider all of these factors.‍

10. Prepare Your Ghost Kitchen for an Omnichannel Approach

‍The key to unleashing the potential of your restaurant sales strategy is consistency in branding, pictures, and communication style. When you have complete control over how your brand is seen online and are present on all essential platforms, you can quickly transfer customers across channels and maximize the potential of your ghost kitchen marketing strategy.

This is known as the Omnichannel approach, and it is critical to understand when marketing a cloud kitchen in today’s restaurant market. Learn more about the modern omnichannel restaurant here to increase your chances of success and adequately promote your ghost kitchen.

‍To Summarize: Are You Ready to Stamp Your Online Presence?

‍There are numerous methods for marketing your restaurant or ghost kitchen online. They include food delivery apps, social media platforms, creating a website, retaining past customers, and credible referrals. Additionally, you can build a frequent emailing list, design an appealing menu management system, and use an omnichannel restaurant.

Besides this, you should commit and keep true to your brand. After all, food is the most effective method to foster community. By implementing an effective ghost kitchen marketing strategy, you will increase your popularity and provide your delicious meals to an increasing number of people.