Email marketing for restaurants and bars

One unforeseen consequence of the restaurant industries current reliance on discount vouchers for its marketing activity is an apparent loss in thought and attention across other aspects of their communications.

This week is a case in point. With our history and client base, it’s obvious that we are going to have a keen and enthusiastic interest in restaurant marketing, and as such I receive numerous marketing emails, and, as with any industry, they vary hugely in quality.

But two this week really pushed the boundaries of what is acceptable. I’ve been following Gourmet Burger Kitchen’s efforts to build up an online members club over the last few months since its launch, as it struck me as a communications platform with the potential to escape the downward spiral of discount vouchers. I love the idea of making your customers feel part of the brand, and that you are treating them as members of your team, but their approach is both too hurried and scatter gun.

For father’s day, they sent out an email offering vouchers for families – appropriate and valuable (if they’ve got the targeting right) – but the effectiveness of the offer was reduced by packing the messages full of jokey references to kiwis. Maybe I am in a small minority of customers that didn’t know that GBK was owned by New Zealanders, but I can’t believe that I’m the only one that doesn’t care. It’s great that they are trying to get away from the business/client relationship – but it has to be done on a step-by-step basis, and you can’t make leaps using elements that are not important or interesting to me.

Meanwhile, the people at Bay Restaurants appear to have gone temporarily mad. This week’s La Tasca mailing promoted a special discount offer. What’s so strange about that, you ask? Well, the discount isn’t for La Tasca – it’s for another chain of bars that Bay owns – Slug and Lettuce.  It began with this confusing and inappropriate line:

‘We know how much you love our tasty tapas and Spanish cuisine, but also realise that you may sometimes fancy something a little different!’      

Next, it  drove me to their fantastic new site that wasn’t finished yet. I don’t believe I ever gave permission for alternative brand messages to be sent to me, but even if I had I’d like to think that the messages would have stronger connections than ‘the people who own this brand also own another one’.

Come on guys – just because sending an email is simple, it doesn’t mean that effective email communications are easy. You have to think these things through and question why you are doing something, and whether it’s appropriate. At best you are leaving people confused – at worst, completely alienated.