One of the most important things that a website can do for a restaurant or bar is to display it's best qualities. Sure, word of mouth is important for any business, but word of mouth doesn't describe an incredible meal or dining experience the way pictures can. The same goes for the feel of the environment. Your friends can tell you about how cool your restaurant or bar is and how much you enjoyed the time you spent there, but with pictures of your restaurant or bar, chosen by you specifically to show what kind of aesthetic you are hoping to achieve, placed on a website that fits the theme of your establishment, speaks a thousand words. Not only does the look of your website help to better convey what you offer, but you also have more opportunities to actually describe your establishment and the vision you have for it.
Having a website for your restaurant or bar can also save you and your customers valuable time. If someone is curious about your hours, locations, menu, allergy and nutrition information, reservations, dress code, price list, etc., they can find all of the answers to their questions without ever having to make a call to your business, therefore saving themselves time as well as you or your employees, who would instead have to take the time to answer their questions. An added benefit is that while they are already on your website looking for answers to their questions they are also being exposed to pictures of your establishment's food, increasing the chances that they will want to come and visit your establishment to try what they saw for themselves. You can also bring your restaurant or bar into the 21st century by adding modern features that are not possible without a website or just social media accounts. You can allow customers to schedule a reservation or even order online, which saves you even more time by not needing an employee to handle these tasks over the phone.
While some businesses and restaurants already have a presence online via their social media accounts, there is simply less that can be done to portray your restaurant properly. When it comes to getting information out to your potential customers, you are limited to what you post on your feed, which will not always reach everyone due to constantly changing algorithms on social media sites and apps, but you are also limited to small "about me" sections to describe what sets you apart from other restaurants or bars. Not only is it more difficult to set yourself apart, but 84% of people actually expect a social media page for a business to lead them to that businesses website, and they consider those without a real website and only social media to be less credible. When you have something new to tell your customers it can be easily lost in the huge feed of information they are getting from all the other pages they follow and many won't check individual pages where they might see your information. With a website, you can prominently display any important information like events, menu changes, and promotions in a way that won't be lost to those who miss it as a social media post, not to mention the ones who do not use social media at all.
Another plus side to a website for your restaurant or bar is that it can save you money in advertising costs. While you may still choose to utilize other ways of advertising your business, you can reach many more potential customers with a well designed website with well integrated search engine optimization. With a skilled developer, they will know how to make your restaurant appear higher in web searches, resulting in higher sales. In 2017 it was found that 97% of people searched for local businesses online, proving that simply having a website available for them to visit is a valuable advertising tool that everyone with a restaurant or bar should consider. Other ways you can save money by having a website for your restaurant is by bypassing the third party food delivery apps and choosing to handle online ordering/delivery on your own, saving your restaurant a large amount by avoiding the fees for using their services. You can also increase your sales with a website if you decide to sell gift cards. If a customer can purchase a gift card for your restaurant on your website, not only do you make an automatic sale without even serving a customer, but they or the recipient of the gift card are also more likely to spend more than the amount on the card once they come to your establishment, and once you've gotten them into your establishment you can potentially have their repeat business if they enjoyed their experience.
Having a website to visit not only helps in the ways we have already mentioned, but simply having a website also increases your search rankings on Google. As we mentioned before, this is a helpful form of advertising for your establishment because this enables your business to show up among the other restaurants in your area on Google. When your restaurant or bar appears in searches when people search for local businesses, not only does this benefit you by having users visit your website for more information, this can also help to drive potential customers to your bar or restaurant even if they never touch your website because they can find some simple information like hours, address, and a limited view of your menu. With only social media, you will not be found this way. Besides all of the reasons listed above, the numbers just prove that having a website for your restaurant or bar is a smart move. It has been found that 45% of people go out to eat multiple times a week, and it was also found that 77% of people visit an establishment's website before visiting the establishment. If someone goes to search for restaurants or bars in your area and yours doesn't have a website, you are losing a chance to impress that 77% who are trying to discover new places to dine.
If you're ready to get people hungry and wanting to try your food before they even leave their house, contact us! We'd love to help get your restaurant or bar online and reaching potential new customers! We're located in New Albany, Indiana, serving the Southern Indiana and Louisville, Kentucky area, but we're also available to help anyone who needs us, no matter your location!