Valentine’s Day is one of the biggest days of the year for the restaurant industry, with US consumers planning to spend up to $26 billion to celebrate the holiday. With so much business on the table, there’s huge potential for foodservice vendors to step up their game and take a bigger bite out of the market.
However, with nearly unlimited restaurant prospects and only a finite amount of time, the role of data is essential for efficient sales and marketing campaigns. This article will explore how incorporating foodservice market intelligence into your sales strategy is key to making Cupid’s prospecting arrow land true.
Restaurants need to run a tight ship, especially on a day as high-volume and high-stakes as February 14th. For restaurant technology companies, this an ideal opportunity to demonstrate how their digital solutions help maximize efficiency and profit.
Loyalty program apps attract diners with promotional offers. Reservation platforms manage bookings and optimize table turnover. Scheduling and HR solutions enable restaurants to staff up for a big night. And while 49% of consumers plan to dine out for Valentine’s Day, 25% prefer takeout: a prime reason to offer delivery and pickup options via restaurant marketplaces.
All of these tech solutions and more are tracked through Brizo FoodMetrics, a market intelligence platform that covers 1.5M+ foodservice establishments. With insights on 500+ technology solutions, 2.5B+ menu items, and 1.3M+ exportable contacts, Brizo is a powerful tool for making strategic, data-driven decisions. Using Brizo, restaurant tech companies can analyze adoption of their competitors’ products in the market or pinpoint ideal prospects for their next sales campaign.
Restaurants often roll out limited-time menus and special items for Valentine’s Day, giving food suppliers the upper hand in a new sales pitch. Distributors of luxury goods like oysters, lobster, and filet mignon can leverage Brizo’s price range and menu ingredient filters to target establishments more likely to be interested in their wares. Valentine’s Day sales of lobster and steak dishes increase by 78% and 62%, respectively; an ingredient-level search within Brizo’s US database turns up 70K+ establishments with “lobster” on their menu and 40K+ with “beef tenderloin.”
Consumers are also 50% more likely to order dessert on Valentine’s Day. Since not all establishments have the capacity for in-house baking, suppliers offering decadent desserts have better chances of getting their foot in the door (did someone say “chocolate lava cake”?). Brizo filters for available meal types (ie. breakfast vs dinner vs dessert), in combination with ingredient- and dish-specific searches, are highly effective when investigating restaurant menus.
As consumers feel the pinch of inflation and increased costs, some chains set themselves apart with more affordable Valentine’s experiences that still bring a smile to their diners’ faces (and wallets). Take, for example, the annual “Love Castle” event hosted by fast food burger chain White Castle. Diners are treated to festive decor, tableside service, and exclusive merchandise. Now that’s a Valentine’s meal to remember!
No matter their price point, chains can see how they stack up against the competition with Brizo’s chain search function. Want a list of every White Castle location (and their contacts)? Brizo has you covered. It’s also possible to segment searches by chain vs independent establishments, as well as by median meal price, empowering businesses to analyze their competitors and develop educated pricing strategies.
Brizo FoodMetrics search results for all White Castle locations in the US.
When it comes to Valentine’s Day, it’s not just about the food: ambiance is everything! Luckily, Brizo’s ambiance filters offer a quick glimpse into a restaurant’s vibe. Vendors can segment establishments using filters like “romantic,” “intimate,” and “cozy” to identify those most receptive to the latest flameless candles or fresh floral centerpieces.
On the other hand, it’s important to remember that Valentine’s Day is a celebration of more than just romantic love: family and friendship are just as important. Searching for “family-friendly” or “themed” ambiances in Brizo can help vendors selling festive decor generate a list of prospects who might appreciate their more kid-appropriate or quirky decorations.
Just because Valentine’s Day is an annual holiday, doesn’t mean consumers should expect the same old experience year after year. Especially in a competitive market, restaurants need to innovate more than just their menu to stay relevant and attract customers. A fresh marketing strategy could be as simple as partnering with local florists or chocolatiers and as exciting as introducing an interactive activity.
Businesses interested in offering restaurants their unique proposal can use Brizo to define ideal partnership prospects. A deeper dive into Brizo’s ambiance filters can reveal establishments currently offering “live music”; these locations may be open to bringing in fresh entertainment acts or even something new, like a Valentine’s comedy night. Meanwhile, exploring some of Brizo’s more niche amenities filters can showcase opportunities to curate fun, intimate experiences for couples or groups, like “cooking classes” or “private dining.”
To ensure a high return on investment, Brizo’s proprietary Visibility, Vitality, and Reputation scores can help assess the online presence and recognition of local establishments. Restaurants with a strong social media footprint, for example, may be especially valuable candidates for a promotional partnership.
Ambiance filters offer a unique way to search for establishments within Brizo FoodMetrics.
The case is clear: data is an indispensable tool when it comes to foodservice strategies. This is true year round but especially when holiday spending is high; in a crowded market, businesses have more to gain and even more to lose.
With Brizo FoodMetrics, foodservice partners can harness data-led industry insights to build a targeted sales and marketing strategy and maximize their ROI.
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