Making Mom and Dad Happy
According to industry reports, the economy is having a positive impact on dining out. Parents with children are dining out more often which means restaurants are now challenged to attract that group to their restaurant. 50% of kids visiting a restaurant make their own buying decisions. Children as young as five years old are being taught to make a decision on their own. Parents also use the dining out experience to encourage kids to try new foods and experience different options. Gearing your restaurant towards children can increase revenues and return patrons.
What can you do?
Price continues to be a part of the decision process, but when kids are involved, look for other ways to attract them. Reports show parents will favor restaurants that have kid-friendly features – including entertainment. One example of this is a placemat that features coloring or puzzles. Menus also play an important role. As we mentioned, parents want kids to experiment with their food selection. Having a good variety on the kid’s menu can help attract young families. It’s also been shown that children like to mimic their parents, so another tactic could be to have the children’s menu composed of smaller portions of the adult menu. Parents want to teach their children to eat healthful, so having calorie information and other health data on the menu can help parents teach their kids to make health-conscious choices.
Changing your on-table promotions for appetizers and desserts should also be considered. Items that cater to kids, or are served in kid-sized portions, can keep families returning to your restaurant. And don’t forget your carryout menus. Just like your regular menus, these should be updated with selections that reach out to kids and help promote your restaurant as their favorite choice. All menus, regardless of use, should be optimized to promote your highest profit food selections. This is typical with adult menus, yet it is often overlooked with children’s and carryout menus.
Summary
Restaurants should consider updating their printed menus to offer more kid-friendly dining options. This should include dine-in and carryout menus, as well as on-table promotions. Adding entertainment options such as coloring placements or other games can influence return patrons. High-resolution images, menu optimization and on-table promotions can help drive purchasing decisions to your high-margin selections. MenuWorks has just released a new table promotion tool called “Table Tanks.” Table Tanks combine high quality printing and graphics with durable lamination for protection. See: https://www.menuworks.com/blog/57-table-tanks for more details!