So, while the world is still recovering from COVID-19 and many businesses are being forced to shut down worldwide, there’s good news: the retail food industry will experience growth in the coming years. The growth might be marginal, but owners of these stores should remain positive – half of the companies believe they’ll emerge stronger after the epidemic.
But make no mistake, your company’s future is in your hands. Although you may not know it, the coming months will be critical for how successful you are as an organization and what kind of business decisions you make moving forward.
Looking on the bright side, several strategies you can adopt as a food business to survive and even thrive in today’s global economy. This article discusses five of these strategic steps and how to adapt them for your company in the food and beverages industry.
1. Use Innovative Ideas
To overcome the challenges of social distancing, companies should innovate by expanding their products to meet new needs. For example, Panera Bread and Subway increased sales when customers stopped coming in during the pandemic because they started selling groceries. How can you expand your product line?
So think about how you can make unique changes that will address and meet the specific needs of your prospects and customers. A survey reported that 88% of Fortune 500 businesses that existed in 1955 are no more. You can attribute part of this to the fact that most companies follow the strategies of others instead of trying something unique.
So if you want your business to succeed, think outside the box. Maybe you can hire a food truck, add home deliveries, or enable online ordering. Find ways to excite your customers, draw the attention of prospects, and make a profit, all at the same time.
2. Digitize Your Marketing
For those in the food and beverage markets, creating an online presence is more important than ever. A digital channel has become one of the most crucial factors for success among brands today. Indra Nooyi, CEO of PepsiCo, said that e-commerce would be “the next great revolution in food and beverage.” If you’re not already using it or your current site needs improvement, get the design and usability right, and optimize for SEO, even if it means cannabis SEO backlinks.
Once you successfully launch a fully functional website, you can improve its success by tracking user data. Look at customers’ behaviors to identify trends developing in their purchase histories so that you know how best to act on them.
3. Leverage The Power of Social Media
Stats from The National Restaurant Association shows that restaurateurs are increasingly dependent on social media marketing for their success, 90% of restaurateurs to be precise. Meanwhile, 95% of them have already been active on Facebook or intend to get there soon. This is due to the fact 28% of consumers decide where to eat using social sites.
To attract new audiences, use Pinterest since the most browsed and pinned category on Pinterest is food. People use Pinterest mainly because of shared interests with other Pinterest users, not necessarily existing offline relationships. You can use these social media platforms to connect and interact with those who share a passion for food.
4. Adapt For Mobile
As e-commerce continues to grow, m-commerce (also known as mobile commerce) is expected to see an even higher spike in the coming years. According to Statista, mobile commerce will record more than a 7% growth rate and make up over 10% of every retail sale in the U.S alone by 2025. Consequently, when people are hungry, they use their smartphones to find food. Therefore, make your website mobile-friendly so that you don’t leave a bad taste in their mouths even before placing their first order.
Next, focus on Google My Business(GMB) because more than half of all mobile searches in the US use location-related keywords. You stand a better chance of attracting these potential customers if you ensure your GMB has updated info, including city, region, neighborhood, relevant events near your, etc.
5. Encourage And Incentivize Referrals
Back to the old-fashioned way of growing any business – word of mouth. A new customer is more expensive to acquire than an existing one. It’s profitable for companies to have a loyal and large database of customers to use referral programs like discounts on second meals or happy hours and meal vouchers to get customers to spread the word.
Though several companies in the food industry already adopted these strategies in the past, few are proactive about implementation. That’s because the perks and benefits of the program shouldn’t continue if no referrals happen within six months.
Conclusion
The food, beverage, and restaurant sectors have been in the middle of some significant changes this year. The key to staying ahead is learning how to engage with your customers through social media, pay attention to relevant trends, and understand their priorities. These five simple tips can boost growth in your food business without burning a hole in your pocket. But remember, your business can provide added value by honing in on health & hygiene concerns facing consumers today – not just marketing your brand and preparing good tasting meals but making sure they’re safe too.
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