There are several reasons why restaurants need a website.
Many new restaurant owners may be trying to decide whether they need a website or whether Facebook or Instagram will be enough.
Well, if you have a quick google search now, you will see that most restaurants, particularly the best-performing restaurants, have a website.
7 Reasons Why Restaurants Need A Website
1. Branding
First impressions mean everything, and often you don’t get a second chance to change someone’s mind.
A professional website design for your restaurant can be a cost-effective way to showcase your restaurant’s core values, the type of food you offer, the restaurant’s ambience and mood, and so on.
This can be key for attracting your correct target audience.
Have you ever seen a review from someone online complaining about the restaurant they have been to but know they are not the right fit for that restaurant?
A website gives you more control of your branding than a Facebook page.
No matter what you do to your Instagram or Facebook page, the social media giant controls who and how people see it.
A website offers you much more control if you want to present your restaurant to your clients.
The content on your website can be ever-green.
What do I mean by that?
Well, on Facebook, you need to keep pushing out content due to the Meta algorithms lowering older posts.
2. Customer Service
One of the most significant benefits of having a website for a restaurant is the improvement in customer service.
Modern websites can now take online bookings through their website, allowing owners to free up staff to focus on their customers in the restaurant right now.
As well as online bookings, you can upload daily menus, update operating hours etc., which will stop the need for a customer calling to see if you are open at 12 pm or 3 pm, what the specials are today, and so on.
A website for your restaurant business offers you the best resource to limit the pointless time-consuming tasks that take your staff away from their number 1 goal, i.e. providing excellent service to our patrons.
Google has made fantastic gains in recent years in limiting the number of clicks a person makes online to get the needed information.
Clear contact and visiting information on a website will align with Google’s algorithm and show to users trying to find restaurants in their area.
3. Improve Credibility
A report by BrightLocal shows that 84% of customers trust reviews just as much as recommendations from their peers.
Your website allows you to create trust and credibility before they set foot in your restaurant.
You add some fantastic testimonials and images of your most popular dishes and import google reviews directly to your website, making them look legitimate and not copy and paste or overhyped reviews.
4. Boosts Online Rankings In Local Searches
Websites super boost your online presence and put your restaurant in front of the eyes of hungry customers.
Search engines don’t give social pages like Facebook much attention, and Instagram pages don’t typically rank very well.
Google & Bing like well-made websites that give their users reliable information and show some credibility.
With more restaurants developing an online presence to remain competitive, you could be left behind without one, especially since 92 per cent of people only look at the first page of search engine results.
Using just social media pages for promoting your business limits your ability to be found online.
Google’s search volume for local businesses ultimately outweighs social media.
According to a report in 2018, Google accounted for nearly 70% of online searches in the United States compared to Facebook at 1%.
Remember, this was when Facebook was the best thing since sliced bread.
5. Online Vouchers
Adding a simple payment gateway will allow clients to purchase vouchers for your business through your website.
A trendy gift for birthdays and Christmas gifts.
Recently we have been approached by many beauty salons to add this feature to their websites, as it’s a great way to increase sales and does not require any staff resources to accommodate these.
6. More Than One Marketing Channel
You need a website for a restaurant business because you can’t rely on one marketing channel.
A website is one of the longest-standing marketing channels compared to social media that appears to be constantly changing where we’ve gone from Bebo (those who are old enough), Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Snap Chat to now Tik Tok.
It’s impossible to keep up and focus on all of these, but a website is one of the best marketing channels you can focus on.
Growing an email list through your website is one of the best and cheapest marketing channels available to any business that offers the possibility of enormous ROI.
According to HubSpot, email offers the best ROI with $36 for every $1 spent, with 64% of small businesses using it to reach their customers.
7. Promote Additional Services and Offering
Do you plan on hosting private room functions, parties, etc.?
Do you have another bar or restaurant in the area you are trying to promote?
You can create separate pages on your website that cater to parties with high-quality images, price packages, etc., which will help with search engine optimisation for people looking for ‘private room restaurants’, for example. In addition, patrons visiting your restaurant for the first time might not be aware of the services you offer.
Websites are great tools to help you cross-promote special events, special menus, etc.
Conclusion
I’ve gone through several reasons why restaurants need a website.
You can promote and market your restaurant business through social media or word of mouth, but if you want to compete with some of the biggest and most popular restaurants, you need a website.
Check online, and I’m sure you will see that 99% of them will have a website.
If you are interested in a website for your restaurant, please reach out to us HERE.