Ghost kitchens are one of the main players in the restaurant revolution. While other virtual concepts have a brick-and-mortar store, ghost kitchens are 100% location-free. Instead, they take advantage of advancements in restaurant technology to offer a delivery-only model. Ghost kitchens work out of shared facilities or existing restaurant kitchens to offer online ordering for their customers. With no dine-in facility, ghost kitchens put 100% of their effort into food preparation and delivery.
When you focus on food delivery, building a brand might not seem important. Most of your staff won't work with customers directly, and you'll get free advertising just because you're listed on food delivery apps. However, building connections with your customers is a vital part of running a restaurant. Here's why you should make customer service part of your business strategy.
Why Do You Need to Make Connections with Customers?
Why do customers come back to the same restaurants? The quality of the food obviously plays a major factor. However, customers also return to familiar restaurants because they remember the name, branding, and excellent service. Here's why you need to build lasting connections with your customers:
- Customers need to remember your brand so they'll order from you again. If they don't, they have no reason to choose you over similar restaurants in the app.
- Customers are more likely to order from you if they know that you're a local business that serves their area, not a chain restaurant that popped up out of nowhere.
- Customers need to associate your restaurant with friendly people and quality service. Since most of your staff doesn't interact directly with customers, it's even more--not less--essential that you build virtual connections.
- Customers are more likely to choose your restaurant if you advertise yourself on social media. If they can't find any information on your restaurant, they might go with a more familiar choice.
How Do You Make Connections with Customers?
Fortunately, you can make connections every day with the right brand strategy. Here are a few ways you could connect with your customers.
Build a Website
Since you don't have a physical location, many people won't recognize your restaurant when they see it in their delivery app. If you don't have a website, customers can't gauge the quality and cleanliness of your food production. This makes them less likely to order takeout food from your restaurant. They might even question whether you're a legitimate business if there's no way to contact you or learn about your operations.
When you have a sleek, professional website, you show customers that you're an established restaurant in your area. You'll make connections by talking about your process, sharing pictures of the food, and sharing your values. Include contact information on your website so customers can talk to you and ask questions directly.
Have a Social Media Presence
Social media is essentially free advertising. You could earn hundreds or even thousands of followers simply by talking about specials, sharing pictures of your dishes, and showing customers what makes your business unique. Your customers will crave your food when they see full-color pictures of your delicious meals. Plus, they can make connections by commenting on your posts and sending you direct messages when they have questions.
Polished social media accounts also send the message that you're a legitimate business. When you have a strong online presence, customers know that you're part of the community, not a sketchy hole-in-the-wall restaurant that appeared on the app.
Go to Farmers' Markets
Farmers' markets give you the chance to interact face-to-face with the community. You can advertise your restaurant, talk to people about your process, and show customers how to order takeout food through delivery apps. Ghost kitchens can have trouble making sales because there's no brick-and-mortar location that customers might drive by on the way to work. Going to farmers' markets helps you bridge that gap.
You could even increase your sales by selling packaged food or ingredients at the market. If possible, offer samples so customers can try your food on the spot. They'll be much more likely to make a purchase once they've had a taste. Go online to look for farmers' markets in your region and surrounding areas--you'll find several options in the spring, summer, and fall months.
How Cuboh Helps Ghost Kitchens Thrive
Once you get your ghost kitchen listed on multiple delivery apps, you'll have to juggle orders from GrubHub, Postmates, DoorDash, and other apps all at once. This increases your chances of missing an order or making a mistake. Plus, you'll have trouble keeping track of your sales and analytics when you have to switch between different apps.
Cuboh streamlines the process by presenting all your orders and analytics in one convenient dashboard. Get in touch with us today to learn more or book an informational call and free demo.
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