"How Can I Get Customers to My Restaurant?"

For a new restaurant, offline marketing is the way to get started. That is not to say that you should ignore the internet. However, I think many eaters look for a restaurant online only after they know it exists. An online presence is good for displaying things like menu items, ingredients, location, hours, prices, events, etc..

Getting Started with Offline Marketing

I think reaching out to your target market as a group will get you the best results for the least amount of advertising dollars. Contacting only the people who will appreciate what you have to offer (instead of advertising to everyone) will save you money, and getting in front of a larger group at once will deliver more bang for your buck.

For example, if your restaurant is a great place for business people to meet with clients, contact local businesses and offer to deliver some sample lunches to their office for free (along with a stack of coupons that say why your location is a great place to conduct business).

Another example is a restaurant that serves quick healthy meals may be a great candidate to advertise to triathlon race competitors. You can pay to include coupons in race goodie bags, and this can be an easy way to introduce your restaurant and menu to local health fanatics.

A cheap way to make your own professional-looking coupons is to use an online print service like VistaPrint.com or Simpleprint.com to and design your coupon on a smaller business card or postcard.

Once you've started establishing your restaurant's offline presence, it's time to get the ball rolling with local search marketing online.