Before we start, what is a ‘millennial’?
According to the google definition, Millennial ‘denotes people who are reaching young adulthood in the early 21st century’. Anyone born between 1980 and 2000 is considered part of the millennial generation. That means, as of the publication of this blog, anyone aged between 20 and 40 is a ‘Millennial’.
1. The Experience
Millennials are looking for experiences. The expectation has gone from a simple meal and/or drink to a full-blown night of entertainment! They want something they can look back on and remember, so try to create an experience that stands out. You could host events or activities at your venue that are relevant to your brand image, for example, if you were an art cafe, maybe you could invite a guest-artist to speak about their work. Or you could host a ‘Wine and Paint’ evening!
Food festivals, markets, trucks and pop-ups also present themselves as great opportunities to engage with customers.
Try to think about the music, lighting, interactions, customer service and the general ambiance of your restaurant. A good combination of all of these elements will create a great experience for the customer.
Smile for the camera! Encourage guests to take photos.
2. 'Instagrammable’ venues
You may be surprised to find out that some Millennials use google to search for the ‘most instagrammable places’ near them before dining out in an attempt to visit a ‘camera-ready’ restaurant that will look good on their social media profiles! Looking good might be the difference between gaining their visit or not. The aesthetics of the interior of your restaurant have a massive influence on their decision making, so, it might be fair to say that customers are judging a book by it’s cover on this occasion…
In response to this, make your restaurant stand out by adding some funky wallpaper, fairy lights, a flower wall or maybe a neon sign or two. Visitors will capture the evening with photos in front of backdrops such as these, and then share them online - creating consumer-generated marketing, which looks great for your brand and saves you money! This will also get them wanting to come back for more as you are encouraging guests to make memories that they will then want to share with friends and family (encouraging them to re-visit).
Most brands will provide you with some of their visual merchandise which can be installed as a display in your venue. For example, brands such as Tanquery have created exciting wall displays in venues that stock the drink as a form of promotion. These create 'instagrammable moments', allowing the customer to take photos infront of the feature, and also advertise that particular brand, encouraging customers to order it at the bar.
Get your staff to prompt social sharing of your brand by offering them a free drink or appetizer if they tag your restaurant in a social media post. You could recommend a dish that your chefs know will look great on camera, and upsell the menu item to guests. You could also promote your events and deals through links or QR codes on receipts, or through advertising visuals on the front of a dual-screen EPOS terminal.
3. Diversity & Creativity
With nearly 50% of the millennial population identifying as non-white, make sure your brand is inclusive of all nationalities, sexual orientations, and disabilities. Discouraging racist and discriminatory behaviour should be a given, but make sure you have a 0 tolerance policy for rude conduct such as this. Have you got disability access in and out of your venue? Make sure you’re prepared for every customer.
You could create adventurous new dishes that will attract curious eaters. Take a well-known dish and add a twist - maybe a Lasagne Burrito for example. A cultural, culinary fusion! A creative menu and experimental dining will attract millennials to your restaurant.
Get your audience to share pictures of the delicious food your chefs produce!
4. A Good Social Presence
Show your company’s personality and story through your social media accounts. Millennials want to see the “real” side of your business and gain an insight into your motivations and passions. Not only is it a good way to showcase information about your brand, but it is also a good way to interact with your customers. You can receive feedback in real time through comments and direct messages, meaning you can see what is doing well and what isn’t.
Take the time to capture great photos of your food and drink. You can use these on your website, but you should also post them on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! The delicious menu items will sell themselves, and viewers will be drooling in hunger!
5. Sustainability
Millennials love businesses that care about the environment and other causes. Forbes reported that millenials have a very high opinion of companies with a strong charitable and ‘green’ spirit. Consider ways that your restaurant could cut down on paper, packaging, food waste and plastic. There are many ways to combat environmental issues, for example, consider taking part in recycling programs or using biodegradable packaging. Be transparent about your restaurant’s practices and let your audience know what steps you are taking towards sustainability.
Have you got healthy eating, natural and organic options for customers? Many millennials have a desire for nutritious and wholesome dishes. Allergies and intolerances are also more common in this generation. You can use SPARK epos to track allergens and make sure you’re not serving lethal meals to customers!
6. The Truth
Millennials want the truth from food manufacturers and restaurants. They want transparency about your ingredients and sources. Make informative food descriptions that will really paint a picture of your menu items and allow them to get a better understanding of how you produce the meal.
7. E-mail campaigns
When done strategically, emails will help you bring in customers and develop customer loyalty. The Millennial generation hates generic and predictable emails. Avoid using the same template each time - Mix up the style and focus on engaging and exciting them with something new each time. You can make it personal by using their name in the email to grab their attention and make it feel more tailored. Take into consideration that 88% of millennials read emails on their smartphones - so think about that when creating campaigns!
Create a '#' for your restaurant and encourage customers to share images with this tag on social media.
8. Social media influencer stars
In 2019 it was revealed that ‘Social Media influencer’ and ‘Youtuber’ were among the top career aspirations for children aged between 11 and 16. These ‘influencers’ have become the new celebrity! If your restaurant is visited by a social media influencer and they post about their meal, this could promote your brand to a large community of people! So, consider reaching out to relevant influencers and asking them to come and visit (offer them a free meal/drinks!) in return for some social promotion.
9. Invest in Technology
There are many ways that technology will help you bring your restaurant into the modern world. From mobile self-ordering to CRM, here’s a few suggestions that will help your restaurant stay up-to-date.
SPARK has digital solutions to help you modernise your business.
MOBILE ORDERING -
This generation knows their stuff when it comes to technology. They can easily interact with an online ordering system, such as that with SPARK, which allows the customer to order from the comfort of their table, or back at home! With 71% of customers aged between 18-34 prefering to order via mobile that wait five minutes in a queue at the till, now might be the time to implement a mobile self-ordering feature!
REVIEWS -
Millennials are more likely to read reviews before visiting a venue, therefore you need to make sure that the food and drink you produce is top notch, and that customer service goes above and beyond!
GUEST WIFI -
Millennials are always on their phones. Infact, if your restaurant doesn’t have wifi, the guest may not even stay. Ensure that your connection details are clearly advertised around the venue with posters, or even use SPARK’s Wi-Fi sticker feature which prints all of the needed details for your customer. This is something they can hold onto and use again if they chose to revisit!
RESERVATIONS -
You need to manage and organise your reservations to ensure you have a good system in place for customers that are booking tables. Modern customers hate to wait and expect things to run smoothly, especially if they're aiming to relax and unwind for a nice meal. SPARK Reservation is an easy to use organisational system that collects all the info you need in one place. You can view your bookings by list, table plan or timeline and increase table-turnover times.
KDS -
A good Kitchen Display System will reduce ticket times and improve the guest’s experience through fast turnover. Sending orders to the kitchen using a digital solution is also environmentally friendly as it cuts out the paper-ticket alternative!
TAKEAWAY -
Millennials demand convenience. According to Toast, 74% of millennials report a preference for delivery. With the growing popularity of takeaway delivery apps, it becomes harder and harder for your business to avoid implementing your own takeaway solution. For your restaurant to stay competitive with the millennial population, what can you do to include off-premise dining for your company? Our last blog has more information on this, click here for more.
CRM -
A good database of customers could certainly come in handy. Perhaps a 'influencer' or 'blogger' visits your venue: You could set up a cusomer profile with some of their details when they visit, then you could get in touch with them to offer a deal such as a free meal. This could lead to promotion of your brand via their social channels and result in bringing new customers to your restaurant! You can also use the customer profiles to track allergens, and to remember information for takeaway making it quick and easy for customers and staff to order and process orders going forward.
Give your guests a night to remember...
10. Memorable moments
The best way to get ahead of the competition and interest the millennial generation is to implement strategies discussed in this blog. Ultimately, Millennials want experiences! Create an environment in which people can have fun at your restaurant. Embrace new technology and be creative - get them wanting to come back for more!
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