What to measure Tickets in food are usually small, so a first purchase rarely covers the advertising. Measure differently: what a person spends over a few months and how often they return. A guest who comes every two weeks is worth a serious amount over a year. Acquiring that guest can cost a lot and still pay off. A guest who came once on a discount and never returned is almost always a loss. Hence the main conclusion: the goal of advertising in food is not the first visit, it is the second. # Photos decide Here the picture matters more than the words. What works: - Dishes shot in daylight, no filters and no plastic looking food. - Short cooking videos: hands, flame, knife work. - Real shots of the room with people in it, not empty interiors. What does not work: stock photos, other people's images, blurry flash shots. One good shoot usually does more than a month of extra budget. # Maps and delivery apps For a venue, the maps profile is the main source of new guests. Hours, menu, fresh photos, replies to reviews. Photos added by guests count too, so it is worth asking them to post. Delivery apps bring orders but take a serious commission. A sensible strategy is to use them as a storefront for new guests and gently move regulars to direct ordering where the margin is better. For example, a card in the bag with an offer for ordering direct. # What to advertise ## A reason, not a menu "We are open" is not a reason. A lunch special, a new seasonal dish, weekend breakfasts, a party platter, holiday catering. ## Tight geography People eat near home and work. A radius of a few miles almost always beats the whole city. ## Timing A lunch ad shown at nine in the evening is wasted. Schedule your ads for when people decide where to eat. # Bringing the guest back The most neglected area. What works: 1. A simple loyalty scheme: a card or stamps, no app required. 2. Collecting contacts at ordering with consent to messages, then writing no more than once a week. 3. A small treat for the second visit, given at the first. Return visits cost a fraction of acquisition and are almost never set up. # Reviews In food, reviews are read before every visit. Ask happy guests and reply to everything, especially the bad ones: a calm, factual reply is read by future guests. Do not buy reviews. For a venue, a suspended maps profile is a serious hit to the flow. # Where to start 1. Reshoot your ten main dishes in daylight. 2. Update the maps profile: hours, menu, photos. 3. Come up with one clear reason to visit this week. 4. Set a tight radius and a showing schedule. 5. Decide what will bring a guest back a second time, and put it in place before the ads start. On a review call we work out what a guest can cost in your area and how many visits it takes to pay back.
