Techniques to Grow Your Restaurant Email List

Marketing research shows that most people prefer email as the method of contact when receiving information about products, services, promotions and company marketing.  This means that growing your email list is one of the primary goals any business owner should have—especially if you are in the restaurant industry.   

So how do you accomplish this momentous task?  It’s easy.  Make customers want to sign up to be on your email marketing list.  Below are some of the “tricks of the trade” to make signing up something that is too good of an offer to refuse.  

1. Make it personalized.  Inform your customers that they will receive special offers that only apply to them on their birthdays, anniversaries, or other important occasions.  Let their experience with your restaurant be a personal one and let this be reiterated through your email campaigns.  
2. Give them a reason to sign up.  Offer 5% off, 10% off, a free menu item, or some other promotional offer in order to convince people to sign up.  Without this—you’re never going to grow your list as well as you could be growing it.
3. Let them know that there will be promotions that are ONLY available to customers who sign up.  This exclusive offer will make most people more than willing to supply you with their email address. 
4. Offer incentives for referring friends. Make sure there is some way to reward referrals.  This is a double reward for many—they’ll earn the sign-up promotion as well as a promotional offer for convincing their friends and family members to do it. 
5. Provide sign-up opportunities everywhere.  This includes on every page of your website and on every social networking portal you use, as well as on every bill you provide them at their table and the credit card receipt you provide them when they leave.  Never miss an opportunity to let customers know the benefits of joining your email list.