As the school year approaches, restaurant owners and marketers have a unique opportunity: marketing to college students and effectively attracting and retaining these student diners. In this blog post, we’ll explore a highly effective restaurant marketing strategy tailored for our restaurant partners. Discover how to harness the purchasing power of college students not only this September but also in the long term.
Why Target Student Diners?
The first question you might ask is, why bother attracting students in the first place? Here are some compelling reasons:
- Population Size and Impact: College and university students represent a significant portion of the population. In 2022, there were over 22 million students enrolled, and they spent a whopping $71 billion on back-to-school shopping, including dining expenses.
- Increased Dining Frequency: Students often eat out more than the average person due to their busy schedules and social nature. This presents a fantastic opportunity for restaurants.
- Group Dining: Students frequently dine with friends, making them a valuable target market for restaurants looking to fill tables.
- Mobile-Centric: A staggering 88% of Gen Z students use social media to decide where to eat. To reach them effectively, you need a strong digital presence.
- Long-Term Loyalty: Establishing a connection with students early on can lead to long-term brand loyalty and a lucrative lifetime value of customers.
- Seasonal Influence: The back-to-school period is a prime time for students to explore new dining options, making it an ideal time to capture their attention.
The Three Fundamentals of Restaurant Marketing Success
The Guest Getter Framework for restaurant marketing success is built on three pillars:
- Attention and Awareness: Your marketing should aim to get noticed. After all, people can’t dine at your restaurant if they don’t know it exists.
- Attraction: Once you have their attention, you need to entice potential customers to step through your doors. Getting those “butts in seats” is crucial.
- Retention: It’s not enough to get a guest one time. Building long-term brand loyalty is the ultimate goal. This involves retaining customers and fostering lasting relationships.
When these fundamentals work together harmoniously, you achieve “accelerated word of mouth,” a powerful force for restaurant success.
The Winning Strategy To Attract College And University Students: Lotteries
One key strategy is the use of student lotteries. Here’s how it works:
- Epic Prizes: Offer enticing prizes like a new TV, a trip, a MacBook Pro, or other high-value items. Offset costs by partnering with suppliers.
- Low-Cost Prizes: Include low-cost prizes such as complimentary appetizers, desserts, or swag items to maintain excitement.
- Gamification: Implement a digital scratch-and-win or spin-to-win mechanism. Participants must provide their contact information to claim their prize, and they must dine at your restaurant to redeem it.
- Database Building: This strategy helps build a database of student diners that you can engage with through email marketing, SMS, and retargeting campaigns.
Targeting Student Diners with Precision
To effectively reach students, you need to use digital ad platforms. Today, we’re working with Meta’s Ad Platform (formerly Facebook). Here’s how you can do it:
- Geographic Targeting: Drop a pin on the map around college campuses and target a specific radius. We recommend creating separate ad sets for different campuses.
- Specific Callouts: Craft ad copy that specifically calls out the university or college, creating a personalized connection.
Creating a Compelling Ad
The anatomy of a compelling ad includes:
- Specific Callout: Address the students directly (e.g., “Hey, UWO student” or “Hey, Fanshawe student”).
- Benefit-Driven Hook: Capture their interest with a benefit-driven statement (e.g., “Want a new TV for your dorm room?”).
- Transparency: Explain why you’re offering prizes (e.g., “We’ve put together over $10,000 in epic prizes because we want to be part of your university journey”).
- Strong Call to Action: Encourage them to take action (e.g., “Click to scratch and win over $10,000 in prizes with a 95% win rate”).
- Creative Visuals: Use visuals that interrupt patterns and stand out.
- Additional Benefit CTA: Reinforce the benefits in your headline and call to action (e.g., “Scratch and win over $10,000 in prizes”).
Where to Send Them for Opt-ins
To collect contact information and engage potential diners, create a landing page with a gamified experience. This page should:
- Include a scratch-and-win or spin-to-win game.
- Ask users to enter their information to claim their prize.
- Set a redemption deadline to create urgency.
Tech for Gamification: Coupon Tools
Making gamification easy is key, and we recommend a tool called Coupon Tools. This software simplifies the creation of gameified campaigns, making it a breeze to implement this strategy.
Conclusion
By following this strategy, you can effectively attract and retain student diners, boosting your restaurant’s revenue. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to capture the student market this September and beyond. Start implementing these tactics today and watch your restaurant thrive. Remember, it’s not just about getting one-time customers; it’s about building lasting relationships and accelerating your word-of-mouth marketing.
