My client, Justin Macy, owner of RaceAway Hospitality, recommended that we visit Roy’s Restaurant while we were in Las Vegas. He spoke highly of a chocolate souffle, and we were intrigued enough to check it out.
Roy’s features "Hawaiian Fusion Cuisine." Justin was right. The food was great. The service was great. And the chocolate souffle was heavenly. But this marketing coach was more intrigued by the business savvy.
It all started on the menu. I wanted to come back when I read about an upcoming wine tasting and other future events. No one at our table missed the measures – my husband commented on the private meeting room, and a friend commented on how wonderful it would be to have them in our area to cater private parties. Roy’s customer retention system was working. The dining experience was very enjoyable and fit the Hawaiian cuisine while providing a fine dining experience.
I was most impress, however, upon our departure. Our waitress made a point of thanking us for our business and verbally outlining upcoming events, menu changes and their e-mail system of notification. She handed both couples a beautifully designed card with only five lines of information needed. She sold us by saying "drop it in the box on the way out, and we’ll e-mail you coupons for your next visit." We did as she suggested.
Small business marketing tip #1: Go the extra mile, like Justin did, and recommend great resources to your customers, whether they benefit your business or not. In the end, customers will come back to you as an expert resource.
Small business marketing tip #2: Don’t let a customer leave without giving them reasons to come back. At Roy’s, they intrigued us with changing menus, e-mail updates and coupons, etc. They got our contact information.
