If you have a love of cookery, then one of the ways you can turn it pro is to start running a cafe of your own. However, running a cafe can be a tricky and competitive business. You need to find a selling point beyond being a convenient spot for people to grab a bite and a drink.
Here, we’re going to look at some of the ways you can inject a little charm into your cafe to keep the customers coming.
Have some sort of signature
If you want to stand apart from all of the other cafes in your town or area, then you’re going to have to think about what, exactly, your cafe specializes in. Do you have a drink or a signature food option that has real potential for widespread popularity and appeal? The idea of something exclusive, especially if it’s made in-store, can be alluring, indeed, to your customers.
Be serious about your coffee
If your cafe ends up like most others, then there are going to be customers who primarily come for your coffee. These customers can be some of your most loyal and reliable, so providing a great coffee shop experience, from offering a decent range of drinks from trained baristas to making perfect latte art, can be very effective. It can also justify some tidy profits on your coffees.
Remember and reward customers
Your customers are going to be the best asset your cafe has. It’s their referrals and recommendations that tend to get other customers in much more reliably than any marketing you might be investing in. To that end, you should aim to build their loyalty, whether it’s with an in-house loyalty system that you use to offer discounts or free coffees. You can do it a little more informally as well, but you have to be sure you’re not just playing favourites. Reward customers equally.
Create a welcoming space
It’s not just about the food and drink that you serve, nor how friendly your team is. People go to a cafe often because they want to be somewhere comfortable and friendly outside of their own homes. To that end, make sure you’re following some cafe decor tips to establish an atmosphere. The mix of comfort and practicality is a must, and if you can find some theme you think fits, lean into it, without making it overwhelming.
Display your best items
Poster frames and glass cases can play an important role in getting people to order. Find your most photogenic or pretty items and give them some pride of place so that people are more drawn to take a closer look at your food options in the first place. You can create a nice, cosy vibe with the right display of foods.
The tips above are far from the only ways to bring some charm to your cafe. If they have inspired any ideas of your own, then that’s even better. Finding something unique to lean on can be a huge help.
Images courtesy of pixabay.com and unsplash.com
