GoMarketing-Richard-Uzelac-Restaurant-COVID-19-Survival-Guide
"Our hope is to offer at least one new idea for each Restaurant Owner or Manager to help them through the COVID-19 virus pandemic." -Richard Uzelac, CEO of GoMarketing Inc.
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (PRWEB) March 26, 2020
“I write this press release here in Thousand Oaks California. We are all on lockdown due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. My first thoughts today were for any restaurant owners across the USA who was told they must shut down their dining rooms to stem the spread of the Corona virus. We are offering this free webinar to help them maybe a little bit," said Richard Uzelac, CEO of GoMarketing Inc.
We’ve decided to offer a FREE Webinar to help Restaurant Owners on Tuesday March 31st at 10am PST
To sign up, go to: Webinar Signup Here.
In the meantime, you can stay open to conduct your business:
- Delivery: You can take phone orders and deliver food to your customers. You can fulfill orders from Uber Eats, or Door Dash. Or use your own employees to deliver and offer ‘Free Delivery’ to all your customers.
- Pickup/Carryout: You can allow patrons to come into your restaurant, and pickup their phone orders.
- Drive -Through: If you are lucky to have a drive-through for your restaurant which can stay open.
Adjust Staffing:
- You will be able to keep some of your staff on payroll to handle the above options for conducting your restaurant business. Some owners have laid off most of their staff but kept thirty percent or so to conduct business.
- Your situation will dictate how many people stay on staff. Or how many you switch to part-time.
Getting Customers to Your Restaurant:
You can be all set to offer Deliver and Takeout, but if nobody knows you are open, what good is it? Do these things:
Marketing:
Website: Update your Website home page to reflect that you understand the COVID-19 restrictions, but you are OPEN! Don’t make people guess.
Examples:
“YES! We are OPEN for Delivery and Takeout!”
“Let us cook a great Dinner for you tonight!”
“CALL NOW! to Place Your Takeout or Delivery Order!”
“Call 222-555-1234 to order Pickup or Delivery! Or fill out this form:”
More on Website: Consider adding a home page banner or section that explains what your restaurant is doing to comply with the COVID-19 restrictions and health measures you are taking.
- Add a COVID-19 Statement on your website. Client Brent’s Deli, has updated their home page to reflect this.
- We added a message of precautionary steps they are taking to mitigate the spread of the Corona virus.
- They also state right at the top of the home page that they are Open for Takeout and Delivery.
- If possible, expand your Delivery and Pickup Menu to include more food options during this time.
- Delivery: If you are using your employees to deliver the food, tell them on your website! Tell them you offer ‘contactless’ delivery and you deliver in sealed containers with tamper-evident packages [like taping or stapling the order bags closed]. Offer Free Delivery with the money you will save by using your employees and not using UBER or Door Dash.
- Seal the order bags so Customers feel better about picking up their orders at your restaurant. Cashiers should offer a squirt of hand sanitizer to those that want them. Consider having the cashier wear rubber gloves and apply the hand sanitizer on them while working with the public.
- Emphasize Gift Card Sales at a discount to generate more cash flow during this restricted business situation.
Social Media:
- Update your Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and other social media accounts.
- Let your contacts know what you are doing to be safe and that you have great food available to them.
- People are already tired of cooking at home for every single meal. Take the offensive: Tell them you will cook it and deliver it safely to their home or for pickup.
- Update your restaurant days and hours if these have changed on all social media.
- Google Business Page: Update your content to show you are open for Takeout and Delivery. Update your hours here as well if they changed.
Advertising:
- Run targeted Google Adwords and Facebook ads to let everyone know that customers can still get your great food and you are open to help them.
- Advertising can get you on the first page of Google as well, and in front of people looking for an open restaurant.
- Yelp Management: We can offer management and you get you an extra 10% bonus in displayed ads from your current costs. And we optimize your Yelp presence as well.
Signs:
- Get a sign that says “We’re OPEN!” and put it in front of your restaurant.
- Paint a message on your storefront if appropriate. “Takeout and Delivery!”
- Have an employee hold a sign up on the main street to attract passersby to park their cars and order.
Financial Helpers
$2 Trillion Stimulus Plan:
Nothing here is been implemented, but it will be. Stay alert for what you need to do to get your fair share. This could be a huge benefit for your business to keep it afloat until you can go back to normal
Rent Holiday:
Ask for Three months Rent Free: Things are going to be tough for a while. Property owners know that. If you go out of business, it will be hard to re-rent that restaurant space. Landlords know that too. So, ask for a break, it doesn’t hurt to ask. Some Landlords will offer concessions or even free rent. Others won’t agree, but at least you tried.
Another Issue: Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Website Compliance Law: This has nothing to do with COVID-19, but it is worth mentioning.
This is a Law that prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities in many areas of public life. ADA has been interpreted as pertaining to website accessibility for visitors with vision, hearing, and speech disabilities. Restaurant websites need to be ADA compliant now. We can discuss how to be compliant in the Webinar, time allowing. Learn more about restaurant ADA compliance.
SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE RESTAURANT WEBINAR!
When: Tuesday March 31st at 10am Pacific Standard Time.
Where: Go to [link here] to sign up.
Then what? You will be sent a login and password and website address to go to participate in the webinar. We want participation. If you have questions, ask them, if you have answers that are working, share them all of us. Let’s help each other out.
A Message from GoMarketing.com:
You can implement any of these changes yourself if you would like to. Of course, if you want us to help you with implementing these ideas, we can! We can do it all for you, and for less than you might think. We are all in this together and we will work with you. Please call us at 805-413-7893 today!
About GoMarketing
Based out of Thousand Oaks, California, GoMarketing uses the following mission statement to deliver digital marketing results to their clients: “Understand. Engage. Succeed. Grow.” Acting as digital marketing professionals within a wide range of industry sectors, the GoMarketing team specializes in many Services, including; SEO, content strategy, website design and development, and more. GoMarketing provides a full suite of marketing solutions that generate online leads and sales for businesses throughout the country. For more information about their custom marketing plans, contact GoMarketing directly at 805.413.7893 or visit GoMarketing.
About Richard Uzelac, CEO of GoMarketing
Founder of GoMarketing and RealtyTech Inc., Richard Uzelac is an Emmy award-winning graphics producer, former Director of Realtor.com, and sits on several boards of directors. Richard Uzelac’s GoMarketing works with Corporations and Small Businesses to generate exposure, sales and improve online reputation. Mr. Richard Uzelac is also available as a Technology Speaker, Seminar Provider and Business Consultant. For more information, contact Richard Uzelac at 805.413.7893.