The economic changes influenced people’s consumption habits and changed how and when they decided to eat. The days of making three meals at a fixed time are already a thing of the past. Now, snacks and meals at any time appear as growth opportunities for restaurants.
In recent years, we have seen how more consumers prefer to take advantage of offers and make smaller purchases, even when it comes to food. They are asking for less at the main meals – which makes them hungrier during the day. And for all this, they spend the day pecking, they are fond of snacks and eat at different times than traditional ones.
According to the Techonomic study, snacks between meals have grown steadily in recent years. Still, since 2016, 83% of consumers have accelerated even more in 2016, compared with 76% in 2014 daily. Among the causes of this are:
- The accelerated pace of consumer lifestyles
- The increase in the number of smaller households (which allows greater flexibility around mealtimes)
- The increasingly widespread notion is that Snacks are part of a healthy diet
Several studies have shown that restaurants could attract loyal customers during low-demand hours if they offered, especially discounts.
And more so when 77% of adults – including 85% of millennials – say they would most likely go to a restaurant at low hours if they paid less.
If you want to increase sales in these periods, your goal will be to increase traffic and do so without affecting sales at peak hours, using, for example, these three slots:
Morning and afternoon
One selling opportunity during breakfast hours is to offer smaller foods, such as fresh fruit, some mix for the road, and bites to snack on later. Most of your customers go to lunch afterward, and having these options will make them want to take them to eat at their break time or before or after lunch.
The time between lunch and dinner also offers a new opportunity to increase daily sales. Many restaurants and coffee shops have chosen to create mid-afternoon menus and offer special promotions to attract customers at those lower hours.
Happy hour
It is also an excellent strategy to increase sales in the afternoon and snacks and happy hour (usually between 5:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m., although it may vary depending on the mealtimes in each country.).
This time slot allows taking something out and for a better price, which will make it more attractive to those who look closely at their budget. The star choices are special menus for happy hour, cocktails at special prices, smaller plates, and snacks.
Happy hour can also serve as a bridge for dinner. The economic change has meant that many restaurants have also become a bar. More and more consumers decide to stay in one place instead of moving, so restaurants become the chosen destination for the whole night.
Sunset-night
Other types of customers who are also present at the end of the afternoon can be a potential source of income for you. The key to success is to do it properly since the night customers are quite different from the rest of the day.
The people who will visit you to extend the night tend to be younger (from 18 to 24 years old) and look for a different experience or a different environment from those who dine during the typical hours. These nights, clients can come from a game, a show, or a concert, and to attract this group, you must make your restaurant fun, with a good atmosphere and economical during these hours.
We usually change to a more straightforward menu to take advantage of this segment, with sandwiches, small plates, snacks, and plates to share.
But not making mistakes that are not traditional in terms of time and way of consuming does not mean that they do not value good service. They still like to be well taken care of after and feel they care about them.
They also choose a good atmosphere, so some restaurants adjust the lighting and combine it with different music. Others offer board games to encourage customers to have fun and relax.
Suppose you choose to open now; select staff with the necessary resistance. Select a team that does not mind the time or the type of audience.
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