When the economy went in the dumper there were a lot of restaurants that were scrambling to try to find ways to keep their heads above water. There were a lot of menu changes, and a lot of new services that were suddenly being offered. Now that the smoke is starting to clear it’s time to start to reevaluate the changes that you had to make so you can have a successful restaurant in the years to come.
With so many changes being made, it’s easy to lose the focus on who you are, and what you offer your guests. New products and services can take up so much of your time and energy that your core business offerings are left to fend for themselves.
For instance, a lot of restaurants began to offer more takeout, and began offering box lunches and party trays to local businesses. Both are great ideas, as long as you can support both. Depending on the capabilities of your kitchen, you may not be equipped to adequately support a huge increase in production demand. What do you do when you have a business client that has a large lunch order right in the middle of your restaurants lunch rush?
Sometimes it is easy to make a snap decision without really thinking through the consequences of that decision. Then, once the new program is started, you’re not sure how to implement it in a way that brings the most benefit to your restaurant.
Another issue that you should consider is, when is the best time to stop running a program that you’ve begun, or to decide that the new program will stay, but something else has to go. You may find yourself in a situation where a new program is so popular, and so profitable that there is no way to get rid of it. That’s a great thing, as long as you can sustain doing it. If not, something is going to have to be cut out.
So, if you decide to keep a new program, and to get rid of a previously established program, are you going to be able to maintain your brand? Proper branding of your restaurant is an essential part of your marketing. Once your brand is established it becomes easier for people to remember who you are, and what to expect when they come to eat at your restaurant. What happens when you change who you are?
You may find yourself having to re-brand yourself. This isn’t an easy thing to do, bot it is something you may have to consider if your products and service change dramatically. You need to be able to let your customers know who you are.
In order to survive in a tough economic environment it is critical that your restaurant can adapt and change. Make sure that you give those changes a lot of thought before they happen, and then make a plan for how to handle those changes.
