Restaurant Marketing Calendar - Strategic Schedule for Promotions

Running a successful restaurant is a thrilling adventure, but when it comes to planning and executing effective marketing promotions, things can get a bit overwhelming.

That's where the restaurant marketing calendar comes in. It's your secret weapon to strategically schedule promotions, fill your tables, and keep your customers coming back for more. No more last-minute scrambles or missed opportunities!

So, if you're ready to spice up your promotional game and take your restaurant to new heights, join us as we explore the ins and outs of the restaurant marketing calendar. From key components to expert tips, we'll equip you with the knowledge and tools you need to create a strategic schedule that will make your restaurant the talk of the town.

What is a restaurant marketing calendar?

Alright, let's dish out the details on what exactly a restaurant marketing calendar is all about.

A restaurant marketing calendar (aka a marketing plan) is essentially a visual roadmap that helps you map out your marketing efforts over a specific period, be it a month, a quarter, or even a whole year. Think of it as your behind-the-scenes hero that brings order to the chaos of running marketing for your restaurant. With a marketing calendar in hand, you can plan your campaigns, events, and seasonal promotions well in advance. 

Your calendar may include:

• Your marketing campaigns (e.g. menu launches, events, or other brand initiatives)
• Your marketing projects (types of content, e.g. social media posts or blogs)
• The names of who is involved with each project (for accountability)
• Deadlines / key dates
• Goals 
• How you’re measuring success

But wait, there's more! This nifty tool also helps you create a cohesive brand message and build anticipation among your hungry new customers. By aligning your promotions with key dates, events, and trends, you'll serve up a marketing feast that leaves your audience salivating for more.

Why you need a restaurant marketing calendar

Improved planning and organisation

A marketing plan provides a structured framework for planning and organising your restaurant business' promotional activities. It allows you to strategically schedule marketing campaigns, events, and promotions in advance, ensuring a well-coordinated and cohesive marketing strategy.

Consistent and effective promotion

With a restaurant marketing calendar, you can maintain consistent promotion of your restaurant throughout the year. By mapping out your marketing activities in advance, you can ensure a steady flow of engaging content, targeted campaigns, and timely offers that keep your audience engaged and excited about your restaurant.

Strategic decision-making

A restaurant marketing calendar enables you to make data-driven and informed decisions. By tracking and evaluating the performance of your marketing efforts, you can identify successful strategies, optimise underperforming campaigns, and allocate resources effectively, leading to improved ROI and overall business growth.

Boost sales and drive revenue

A strategically implemented marketing calendar can have a significant impact on your restaurant's sales forecasting and overall revenue. By carefully planning promotions, events, and targeted campaigns, you can create a sense of urgency and excitement among your target audience, compelling them to choose your restaurant over competitors.

How to start your calendar

Step 1: Choose your tool

Make sure when you create your calendar to choose a tool that suits your business (whether that’s pen and paper, a printed PDF, a spreadsheet, your business calendar, or a unique online tool like Monday or Trello). There are plenty of templates out there you can use as inspiration on how to set out your calendar. Just make sure it covers your core needs.

Step 2: Work out your marketing strategy

It’s easy to start making a strategy, despite how intimidating the word ‘strategy’ can feel! All you need to get started is to know:

• Who is your audience? (Do your marketing analysis)
• What do your customers want? (Use customer data to refine your products)
• What are your objectives?

Now you get into techniques:

• What is your budget?
• How can customers see your campaigns? (Choose the right channels - in the beginning, start small as big campaigns require lots of time and resources)
• Who will create your content? (You, your staff, freelancers?)
• How can you create content for your campaigns? (Think about the tools you need and if you need training to use them. Will you film videos on your phone? Will you create graphics on tools like Canva? Will you write blogs for your website? Who is in charge of uploading it to your social media?)

At this point you make your marketing plan and calendar! We’ll expand on this later in the blog on what else your strategy and calendar should include.

Step 3: Create your calendar

Now it’s time to make your calendar. It’s good practice to plan the full year if possible, or at least 6 months, understanding that you’ll likely come back to it often to update it.

But, there’s nothing worse than putting all your hard work into creating a winning strategy…to then forget it. So put your calendar somewhere you’ll see it often! We recommend that you add it to your browser’s bookmarks and add reminders in your business calendar.

Step 4: Know what you’re doing day-to-day

Your marketing strategy on a daily level may look like this:

1. Create your content.
2. Share it.
3. Measure what is working on your last post. 
4. Evaluate if it went well or not. Ask yourself: what content should you continue or stop, and how/when should you share it.
5. Update your marketing calendar with this new information, so you keep planning more of your best-performing projects.

It looks pretty manageable like that, right?

Key components of a restaurant marketing planning calendar

Now let's get into what your calendar should contain.

Campaign themes and objectives for restaurant marketing

Start at the top, and work down to the minutiae. That means setting your objectives and themes first. 

• A campaign theme is the central message of your restaurant marketing strategy.
• Your objectives are your marketing goals. 

Both your theme and your objectives will guide your overall marketing plan and help you set deadlines in your restaurant marketing planning calendar.

For example, you should have the dates you want to achieve your objectives and define your themes in your calendar. This will help you stay on track and implement your marketing strategies in a timely manner. The clearer you are with your objectives and themes, the easier it will be to seamlessly integrate them into your calendar.

Important dates and events

The marketing strategies will inevitably cross over with important data and events. Whether they're national holidays (Easter, Christmas etc.) or specific special days (Doughnut day, Burrito Appreciation Week etc.), these important dates can and should be used to promote your business.

Once you know what's coming up, take some time to brainstorm ways your restaurant marketing strategy could incorporate these events and use them to promote your restaurant. For instance, for a holiday like Easter you should consider Easter promotion ideas for restaurants.

Depending on the event and the type of restaurant you're marketing, these specials could become traditions and a unique selling point for your business. It's easy to see the appeal of a Mexican restaurant known for its Burrito Appreciation Week for both old and new customers!

Budget and resources

As the old adage goes, you have to spend money to make money. Restaurant budgeting is crucial in the hospitality industry. Your budget and your available resources play a very important role in what kind of restaurant digital marketing strategies you'll be able to implement. After all, if you can't afford it, you simply can't do it!

To ensure that you can use your resources effectively in your marketing plan, you must create a fully costed budget that gives you a clear overview of what you can afford. This will allow you to pursue your objectives without worrying about how much everything is costing you.You should also make a list of resources you have at your disposal. Evaluation and analysis

Once you've implemented the main elements of your marketing plan, you need to know how it’s working and whether or not it’s reaching your restaurant target market. There are several ways you can do this including: noting how many new customers are coming into the store, tracking visits to your website and social media accounts via analytic tools, and asking your customers to fill out surveys about your marketing plan.

Tips for effective restaurant marketing calendar management

Set clear goals and objectives:

Define specific goals and objectives for each marketing campaign in your calendar. Whether it's increasing brand awareness, boosting reservations, or promoting new menu items, having clear objectives will guide your marketing efforts and ensure alignment with your overall business strategy.

Collaborate and communicate:

Foster open communication and collaboration among your marketing team, chefs, and staff members involved in executing marketing initiatives. Regularly update them on upcoming campaigns, share creative ideas, and gather feedback to ensure everyone is on the same page and working towards the common goal.

Be flexible and adaptable:

While a marketing calendar provides a structured plan, it's crucial to remain flexible and adaptable. Market trends, customer preferences, and unforeseen circumstances may require adjustments to your planned activities. Leave room for flexibility in your calendar to accommodate changes and seize new opportunities.

Track and analyse performance:

Regularly monitor and analyse the performance of your marketing campaigns for your restaurant business. Keep track of key metrics such as customer engagement, conversions, and return on investment. Use this data to identify successful strategies, optimise underperforming campaigns, and make informed decisions for future marketing initiatives.

Stay ahead with trend research:

Continuously stay updated with industry trends, emerging technologies, and consumer preferences. Conduct research to identify new marketing opportunities, innovative promotional tactics, and upcoming food or beverage trends. Incorporate these insights into your marketing calendar to stay ahead of the competition and capture the attention of your target audience.

Final thoughts

Building a marketing calendar is an essential part of a marketing campaign. Without it, your plan can quickly run off the rails and lose its effectiveness. While you're building your calendar, it's important not to neglect the other duties as a restaurant owner such as staff management and inventory checks.

With an Epos Now point of sale (POS) system, you can automate your admin and build a more effective kitchen. Our restaurant POS system are designed with small businesses in mind and can take your restaurant to the next level.

If you'd like to know more about how Epos Now can help you, get in touch with our expert team below.