10 Ingredients for Restaurant Websites That Sell

Restaurant Websites That Sell

www.adaptorelse.com l [email protected] l 817.522.0512

prepared by:

Ryan Chambers, Principal

10 INGREDIENTSfor

10 Ingredients For Restaurant Websites That Sell l 2

Restaurant Websites || Social Media || Innovative Restaurant Wi-Fi || Flexible Online Ordering

According to The National Restaurant Associa-

tion’s January 2012 Restaurant Industry Forecast,

U.S. restaurant industry sales will reach a record

$632 billion this year – a 3.5% increase over 2011.

On the flip side, restaurateurs cited rising food

costs, the sluggish economy, combined with

building and maintaining sales volume, as the

top challenges they expect to face this year.

With a promising outlook challenged by an

uncontrollably rising cost of doing business, it’s

crucial for restaurateurs to maximize their return

on every marketing dollar whenever possible.

At quick service restaurants, four out of ten diners

said they would use in-store self-service order-

ing kiosks, or use smart phone apps to look at

menus, order delivery, or place online orders for

pick up. In addition to apps, kiosks and other

technologies that are available, an overlooked and

surefire place to begin evaluating your marketing

effectiveness is your restaurant’s website. Too

many restaurants lose opportunities to easily grow

sales, because (a) their website does not reflect

the true personality of the brand and (b) these

sites aren’t designed and developed with the

objective of SELLING the restaurant to the visitor.

Effective restaurant websites go beyond just

displaying your latest specials and slapping a

‘Like’ button on your homepage. The average

restaurant website usually fails to entice, attract,

FOR RESTAURANT WEBSITES THAT SELL

and compel visitors to take any action that could

potentially increase revenue for the restaurant.

Whether it’s time to update your restaurant’s site

or start fresh with a brand-spankin’ new one, the

process doesn’t have to be complicated or stress-

ful. However, it needs to be thoughtful, purpose-

ful, and creative. Any chef knows it only takes a

few “secret” ingredients and a fresh approach to

jazz up ordinary food and turn it into a “wow” dish

that keeps customers coming back for more! The

same holds true for your restaurant’s website. The

following 10 “ingredients” can turn your website

into a powerful brand-building, sales and market-

ing tool that adds dollars to your bottom line!

10 INGREDIENTS



or the delicate Belgian chocolate shavings art-

fully placed on top of your mocha crème brulee.

Don’t forget to include food photos in ALL

sales and marketing channels: Facebook, Pin-

terest, promotional collateral, coupons, bro-

chures, signage, ads, tradeshow booths, etc.

The investment you make in profes-

sional, appealing food photography will

be well worth the money spent.

How many times have you flipped through

menus filled with grainy, unappetizing food

photos? The photos didn’t do much for you,

right? The response is even WORSE when visi-

tors see unsavory, “I-took-it-with-my-phone’s-

camera” food images on your restaurant’s site.

Your customers are visual and BUSY people. As

soon as they land on your home page, appealing

photos of your food and drinks should be front

and center, and scattered throughout your web-

site. If the photography looks unappetizing and

bland, your customers will expect your menu to be

the same. Not only will they pass on your website,

but they may not walk through your door either.

That’s not worth losing a potential customer or

large group in less than three minutes – simply be-

cause your product wasn’t represented well online.

Even if you are pressed for time, don’t skimp

on putting your cuisine’s best “face” forward!

Food photography is VERY different from other

photography. As opposed to making a person

look good, you are highlighting key characteris-

tics that make the dish delicious. “The consider-

able effort a chef puts into presentation should

be visually conveyed to the customer. Expert

lighting, composition, focal point, and depth

of field will showcase those efforts,” advises

food photographer, Jeremy Enlow. Show off the

fresh-pink color of your signature salmon dish,

MOUTH-WATERING FOOD PHOTOS

The considerable effort a chef puts into presentation should be visually conveyed to the customer. Expert lighting, composition, focal point, and depth of field will showcase those efforts,” advises food photographer, Jeremy Enlow.

INGREDIENT #1



Foodies are an especially discerning bunch

and they know what they like and don’t like. If

your website’s navigation is not user-friendly,

you will quickly lose visitors to your site.

Create a simple navigation so it’s “easy on the

eyes”. Your goal is to make it easy for visitors to say

“yes” to your restaurant, so they eventually walk

through your doors, place an order online, request

catering, etc. AND become return customers.

Always remember the “Three Click Rule”. Stud-

ies have shown that most users will not click

more than three links to get to the informa-

tion they want. So every page on your website

should be accessible within three clicks- tops! 2

USER-FRIENDLY SITE NAVIGATION

INGREDIENT #2 Ideally, you should organize and structure your site’s content BEFORE you design your site.



Mobile access to the web will eclipse internet ac-

cess using PC’s by 2013 and by 2014, 3 billion of

the world’s adults will be making mobile financial

transactions, according to research giant, Gartner.

The future of mobile visibility and market-

ing is here for the restaurant industry. Mo-

bile is one of the hottest and fastest ways to

instantly connect with your customers.

How many times have you had or overheard

questions that get solved with this state-

ment, “Wait, let me look that up on my

phone!” Everywhere you turn, your custom-

ers are attached to their mobile devices.

Now more than ever, it’s important for your web-

site to be easily read and understood from mobile

devices and tablets. If you have a website, that’s

great. But if you don’t have a mobile version of

your site, you are losing out on a HUGE marketing

opportunity! Websites built to be viewed on desk-

tops typically provide a poor user-experience on

mobile devices. Your mobile website allows you to

focus on highlighting the important areas of your

site that consumers care about, instead of every

page and the content of your regular website.

SEASONED FOR MOBILE

INGREDIENT #3According to a recent survey from Compuware, 40% of users have turned to a competitor’s site after a unsatisfactory mobile experience.



When designing your restaurant’s web-

site, the aesthetics and flow are crucial.

Think about the ambience of your restaurant

for a second: how do you want your custom-

ers to “feel” the moment they walk through

your door? The same thought should be ap-

plied to your website design strategy. What

does your website design and layout say

about the experience a customer should ex-

pect once they step inside your restaurant?

Design, layout, fonts, and color schemes should

create the “desired brand experience” as soon as

visitors land on the first page. For example, color

has a psychological impact on people’s behaviors

and emotions. Rich-earth tones evoke a casual,

friendly, and relaxed feeling. Warm, cheery colors

create a vibrant, upbeat atmosphere. And bold,

flashy colors relay trendy and hot – i.e. a swanky

hip bar that may appeal to the urban jetsetter.

These design features can also apply to

your food menu (see Ingredient #1). When it

comes to making a dining decision, people

are more particular nowadays about how

they spend their money, so that first impres-

sion is more important than ever before.

APPEALING DESIGN & LAYOUT

INGREDIENT #493% of communication is non-verbal and we process visuals 60,000 times faster than text.3



The words you include on your website should

target and focus on what you do best. Food

trends may be hot one week, and next week they

may be stale! So keep up with food lingo and din-

ing trends that relate to your culinary concept.

And don’t just say your restaurant has the

“best food” in town. – use specific words to

describe how and why your food is authen-

tic, tasty, and loved by customers. Here’s

a quick, basic exercise to illustrate.

A. “At Luigi’s, we use only the finest olive oil…” Or B. “At Luigi’s, we import our quality, cold-pressed, extra-virgin olive oil from Palermo, Sicily…”

Which of these basic descriptions do you think

would appeal to a pasta-loving consumer?

To steal a line from our copywriter, Therese,

“Statement A lacks “flavor”, but state-

ment B has sauce and sizzle to it!”

FOOD WORDS THAT SELL

INGREDIENT #5“We’re not dealing with a consumer who is uneducated,” says Geoff Wilson of FsStrategy. “We’re dealing today with consumers who understand food. They watch The Food Network, they travel. It’s not all of them, but even if you don’t have a huge income, you’re a little more knowledgeable about differ-ent kinds of foods…”4



As restaurateurs, it’s important to take advan-

tage of local search marketing. By 2015, 30% of

all searches will be local, compared with 12% in

2009.5 Mobile search is also set to generate 27.8

billion more queries than desktop search by 2016.6

Local search can help your restaurant

marketing in the following ways:

• By creating local profiles in directories and

search engines (i.e. Google+, Yellow Pages®,

Bing®, Yelp®, MerchantCircle®, TripAdvisor

etc.), you increase your chances of being

easily found by local consumers and travelers.

• Increases the visibility of positive customer

reviews and feedback (download our How to

Avoid Negative Online Reviews white paper).

• Videos and photosw included in local pro-

files make your restaurant look more inter-

esting and appealing to new customers.

When you observe both the rise in local search

on mobile devices with the topics being que-

ried, it is crucial that your restaurant’s web-

site is properly optimized to be viewed and

found easily on mobile devices. If you don’t,

you will miss out on customers who are try-

ing to make their next dining decision NOW!

OPTIMIZE FOR LOCAL SEARCH

INGREDIENT #6In a Pew Research Study, the top 5 of 16 local topic-searches online include restaurants, local businesses, schools, housing, and local jobs. 41% of the lo-cal searches for restaurants/bars/clubs were done by 18-34 year olds.7



Isn’t it funny how the most important concepts

are usually the simplest? Despite their “sim-

plicity”, they often get overlooked. The big-

gest frustration for a website visitor is digging

through your website for basic information.

Make sure you include the following in VISIBLE,

easy-to-find locations on your website pages.

• Phone number

• Location/address

• Hours of operation

• Directions & maps

• Menu

• Order Now

KEEP THE SIMPLE STUFF SIMPLE

INGREDIENT #7



A content management system (CMS) allows

you to easily stay up-to-date on your site’s main-

tenance, and helps you keep your content ac-

curate and fresh. A website’s CMS provides:

• Control over your website’s content,

even if you’re not the one updating it

• Fresh & accurate content on-the-fly –

with new specials, events, menus, etc.

• Decreased customer issues because

your site has correct information

• The ability to easily improve

search engine rankings

• Consistency across the entire website

• Drastic reduction in website maintenance costs

EFFICIENT CONTENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

INGREDIENT #8It also allows you, your marketer, man-ager, and/or website administrator to easily access and control your content.



1. For starters, it should include an opt-in form

so customers can easily join your restaurant’s

email marketing list. Keep the form

simple (name, email address, birthday,

zip code). This helps grow your email

lists and keeps customers up-to-date on

your specials and promotions, etc.

2. Promote your catering and special

events’ services on your website.

3. Don’t forget about your bar! By promoting

your bar, wine/beer lists, cocktail specials

on your website, you could potentially increase

your wine/beer and liquor profits. A 2011 survey

by the National Restaurant Association found

that beverage sales accounted for an average

21 percent of the full service restaurant’s sales.8

4. Include social media plug-ins (i.e. Facebook and

Twitter “share” buttons) on your restaurant’s

website. These plug-ins make it easier

for site visitors to connect with your

brand online and share your website

pages with their friends and followers.

5. Show your dining menu and keep it up-to-date.

MAKE IT SALES & MARKETING FRIENDLY

INGREDIENT #9Your restaurant’s website should help your marketing and sales team sell more effectively. If it doesn’t, then why bother to have a site?



Ok, so you have great food photography, a mobile-

ready website, and your site’s design and layout

is on point. BUT have you monetized the visitor

experience by enabling them to order directly on

your website? In a National Restaurant Association

study, convenient ordering options are popular

among consumers, with four out of 10 adults

saying they would be likely to order online through

a website or via a smart phone application.9

“With the proper online ordering system, guests

order, pay ahead, and avoid waiting at the res-

taurant. There are no phone discrepancies, and

employee time is not wasted taking orders. Giv-

ing your customers this added convenience will

result in increased efficiency, productivity, and

customer loyalty”, Jason points out further.

Online ordering is not just for fast casual brands.

In a 2012 survey conducted by Adapt of over 4100

diners loyal to full service restaurants in the Dallas/

Fort Worth area, we asked if they would use online

ordering for their favorite full service restaurant.

92% diners responded that they were in favor of

this convenience. Surprisingly, many of the same

respondents would also use online ordering to

fulfill small catering needs – i.e. for their office.

Your restaurant’s website goes beyond just post-

ing information about your latest specials and

MAKE ONLINE/MOBILE ORDERING AVAILABLE

INGREDIENT #10

deals. Your website plays a dynamic role in your

marketing and sales strategy. If you have put it off

or haven’t thought it necessary to create a restau-

rant website that sells, think about the potential

customers you aren’t reaching…and thousands

of dollars you leave on the table each month.

“It’s imperative that restaurant owners adapt and afford their customers the ease and convenience of the latest technological trends, such as online ordering”, implores Jason Iseman, Director of Marketing at online ordering company ChowNow.

ABOUT ADAPTAdapt Marketing & Design is an award-winning,

boutique restaurant marketing agency that

delivers results to restaurant and food-service

brands. Our team focuses on helping restaurants

stay engaged, accessible, and relevant, while

injecting personality into restaurant brands.

Adapt’s number one goal is to facilitate the

success of restaurateurs. Let us know how we

can help your restaurant brand succeed.

ABOUT CHOW NOWChowNow is a strategic restaurant technology

partner of Adapt Marketing & Design. ChowNow’s

innovative use of the latest online ordering

technology increases sales from the Facebook,

smartphone, and online crowd that you’ve been

missing. Through ChowNow’s proprietary soft-

ware, your customers can order directly from

your restaurant’s branded iPhone and iPad apps,

Facebook page, or website. In just a few quick

steps, orders are placed, filled, and charged. And

they’re just as easy to manage on your end.

Whether it’s time to update your restaurant’s site or start fresh with a brand-spankin’ new one, the process doesn’t have to be complicated or stressful. However it needs to be thoughtful, purposeful, and creative. Are you are ready turn your website into an attractive marketing & sales machine…or is this your first site? Contact Adapt today to learn more about our restaurant-focused web design & development services.

817-522-0512

[email protected]

www.adaptorelse.com




1 http://supermarketnews.com/latest-news/restaurant-industry-forecasts-growth-2012

2 http://www.business2community.com/online-marketing/5-tips-to-designing-effective-website-naviga-

tion-bars-0123592)

3 http://www.billiondollargraphics.com/infographics.html

4 http://www.bakersjournal.com/content/view/3723/62/

5 http://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2012/7098/five-must-dosto-get-the-most-out-of-local-

search#ixzz1tAFGBbtM

6 http://www.mobilemarketer.com/cms/news/research/12628.html

7 http://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2011/6090/pew-americans-rely-on-multiple-media-for-local-

info#ixzz1tAHHEu7S

8 http://www.rkma.com/2011restaurantSAMPLE.pdf

9 National Restaurant Association’s 2012 Restaurant Industry Forecast - www.restaurant.org/forecast

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10 Ingredients for Restaurant Websites That Sell

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