Prices are fluctuating, mainly going up, and it’s quite impossible to keep the same menu with the same old prices.

Changing your menu is a good way to attract new customers and spice up things at your restaurant, especially for summer.

Regardless of the reason, changing your menu items every now and then is a great way to respond to market changes whether in prices, market taste or trends.

Changing the menu is a smart marketing tool as well if you want to create catchy content for your restaurant on social media and online platforms.

Of course, changing your menu is never enough without a proper marketing strategy and customer service in addition to the apparent criterion, taste of food.

So, how to market your new menu?

Partner with an influencer

People listen and are greatly influenced by bloggers and celebrities where 71% of consumers are likely to buy products or services based on social media referrals. It’s simple, they love a certain celebrity or a blogger and they follow their lead for any recommendation.

Not only influencers affect people’s opinions and choices. Food critics also are now very popular and they have a big influence on how people choose their dining destinations.

Having an influencer or a food critic promoting your restaurant is an effortless marketing tool that doesn’t require you to brainstorm marketing ideas.

Host tasting events

It’s important to taste your waters for the new menu especially if the menu isn’t fully set yet and simultaneously advertise it and announce the change. For this reason, host tasting events where you invite journalists, food critics, influencers and celebrities.

In this way, you gain feedback of your menu and it won’t be late to make any changes depending on this feedback and you create publicity for the new menu.

Have the chef give a taste of your special dishes or signature meals to food bloggers or influencers so they can spread the word about them and at the same time get their feedback.

Hold your event on slow days or evenings so you don’t lose lots of sales. 

Don’t underestimate the power of great photos

Your new dishes deserve high-quality professional photographs as their pictures. It makes a big difference, especially the ones with high profitability that you care to promote.

Even before social media, pictures were powerful to deliver messages that words cannot. With social media, it has become even more powerful.

Pictures attract new customers, casual internet users, and potential customers to check your menu and visit your restaurant.

Adding visuals to your content adds your views and increases your conversion rates so why waste this chance to spread the word about your new menu.

Change your decor if possible

We’re not talking here about a whole new decor that is going to cost you a lot of money. We’re saying small additions that go with the new menu such as wall paintings or wall decor or canvas that match the whole new spirit.

We’re simply spicing up the restaurant and not changing its whole concept. So few decor additions that hold the restaurant's existing concept but align with the changes in the menu will do the job.

Announce it on social media and website

Post the changes well in advance and tease your customers with exciting posts and pictures and entice potential customers with

You can hold contests so they can guess the ingredients or names of the new dishes to engage your audience.

Answer your followers’ questions and concerns if any and keep the game on even after launching the new menu.

Let your customers post pictures of the new dishes at your restaurant to win a coupon.

Bottom line, keep your customers engaged and enticed to try the menu and recommend it to their friends as well.

Work with your team

Your customers should be excited about the new menu but so is your staff.

Your front liners are selling your new dishes and it’s important that they hold this excitement to pass it to customers.

The staff should also be aware of all the details and ingredients of the new additions or twists to answer customers’ inquiries. They should be able to pair the new dishes with dishes from different categories and beverages.

Now you can go ahead and spice up your restaurant with a new menu.