6 marketing strategies to boost your footfall, from the unique to the affordable

What is footfall?

The term footfall refers to the total number of people who enter a business within a defined period. Footfall is the key to understanding how effective your marketing strategy is.

In food and beverage, footfall excludes your customers who are ordering online or through delivery apps. So, we’re strictly talking about in-house customers when discussing footfall.

How do I increase footfall to my small business?

In short, you need to get creative and know the basics. There are also a lot of businesses out there you can learn from, which we’ve highlighted below:

1. Try themed events

O.Noir in Canada and Dans le Noir from Paris have something in common: they both have customers enjoy their meals completely in the dark. Meanwhile, Bunga Bunga in Covent Garden goes the other way, using a maximalist approach with its live entertainment dining experience.

You can keep things casual, or you can go over the top, but the key is to have an interesting theme that will attract foot traffic to your establishment.

Dans le Noir provides customers with a sensory-based experience and an interesting hook. Source: Dans le Noir? London on Instagram.

Of course, you don’t need to go all-singing, all-dancing. The same principle can be applied to a more modest dining experience: it’s just about having a hook. Themed nights are an effective, low-cost way of offering diners a unique experience.

Here are some examples:

• Murder mystery nights
• Black-tie themed nights where patrons are encouraged to get dressed up
• Silent discos, where you pair a playlist to the meal
• Live entertainment/open mic nights
• Cooking classes or free barista sessions
• Pet-friendly evenings where customers can bring their best friends along

Another good tip is to try to take advantage of seasonal events. Your cafe or pub could offer wreath-making classes at Christmas or pumpkin carving on Halloween.

2. Leverage social media

There’s little point in hosting some fun, creative theme nights at your establishment if nobody knows about them. Make sure you have a well-thought-out social media strategy, using TikTok for your business and marketing your business on Facebook.

You should be using social media to show off all the mouth-watering food and drink you’re providing, tell the story of your business, and let people know about your next big event.

L’Enclume is a fine dining establishment, but new business owners could learn from its well-considered social media strategy. Source: L’Enclume on Instagram.

A big tip: don’t ignore video, as it’s the fastest-growing medium on social media. Make sure to show off the personality of your business and staff through Instagram Reels and TikTok.

For example, L’Enclume in the Lake District might be high-priced fine dining, but even the most basic eatery can learn from their successful social media posts, where they introduce their staff to the world and highlight their business practices.

3. Make your customers feel special

One of the best ways to increase footfall is to make sure the same feet are coming back in. You should incentivise repeat business with loyalty schemes that will encourage customers to return.

The loyalty punch card (usually used at coffee shops) is one of the most well-known examples, but there are plenty of options to keep customers happy. You can offer a free drink on their birthday or a referral bonus for telling a friend about your business.

Beyond personalised loyalty programmes, you should also be offering special offers to all your customers. Tactics like happy hour discounts are tried and tested. But the fun thing about customer perks is that you can let your imagination run wild:

• Quirky offers: Get creative, like if a customer’s name begins with an F, then you get free fries on a Friday.
• Secret menu items: Have off-the-menu exclusive options that are spread via word of mouth.
• Social media contests: For example, a photo of the most annoyed-looking cat wins a free meal for the owner.

These don’t all have to be jaw-dropping offers; sometimes it’s the simple things that keep customers coming back. Free WiFi is always an incentive for people to visit a cafe. By creating a base of regulars, this will also help fuel word-of-mouth recommendations.

4. Be a part of your community

The majority of your customers will either live nearby or be based in your area for work, so this is the target audience you should focus on. At the very least, you should be setting up a Google Business Profile, so you can start collecting customer feedback and positive reviews.

You should also consider using Google Ads to target your potential local customers. Beyond the digital realm, try getting involved with as many local community events as possible, as well as local charities and not-for-profits, to see how your business can provide any assistance.

5. Gamification

An interactive element can really make a dining experience pop. One of the most well-known examples currently is the Dishoom Matka Game. This involves trading in a token at a Dishoom restaurant for a six-sided die. If the lucky customer rolls a six, then the entire bill is taken care of.

You don’t necessarily need to be giving away entire meals for free, but there’s a lot to be learned from Dishoom’s fun and unusual dice game. Source: dishoom.com/matka/

It’s unique, word-of-mouth games like these that can really make your branding stand out from the crowd. However, this could also be as simple as providing old-school arcade games, pinball machines, or board games for your patrons to enjoy while they dine.

6. Eye-catching menus

Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck in Berkshire is well-known for its tasting menu full of bizarre creations like bacon ice cream. There’s also Chef Tom Seller’s Restaurant Story, which is a creative tasting menu built around likes and dislikes.

The Fat Duck is bursting with creativity, such as its Journey menu, which comes in the form of a map. Source: The Fat Duck on Instagram.

You don’t necessarily need a Michelin star to make this idea work and boost foot traffic; the beauty of it is that the concept can be applied in a simpler setting. Coming up with a narrative-led tasting menu or offering unique food creations can be an effective method of making your diners feel like they’ve had an experience, not just a meal.

If you’ve got a particularly talented chef working in your kitchen, you could consider making them the ‘star of the show’. Open plan kitchens are a great way of showcasing your kitchen staff’s talents to your guests, or you could consider providing a ‘chef’s table’ style dining experience.