Do you own a dine-in restaurant? A website for your restaurant business will create new income streams, build an efficient system for food deliveries, and enhance customer service.
Are you running a home-based food business? Supporting your cook-from-home business with a website will organize your operations, augment brand-building strategies, and improve market visibility.
A website is an indispensable tool, especially for a food business where enticing visuals, comprehensive menu descriptions, and excellent user experiences are crucial “ingredients” to converting consumers into customers.
If you don’t have a website for your food business, it’s not too late to get in the game. And if you have one but it’s not delivering the desired results – read on. We’ll show you what it takes for a food business website to deliver the goods.
The Website – Your Restaurant On The Internet
“The proof of the pie is in the eating.”
Chefs spend a good amount of time on food presentation. However, if the food doesn’t taste good, all the garnishings and trimmings won’t get the customer to enjoy what he’s eating.
At the end of the meal, the entire experience would be forgettable.
Similarly, it’s not enough for your food business website to look good. It must also function well.
Web pages must load fast. Buttons must work. Links must take visitors to the right landing pages and not be redirected to ones that no longer exist. Built-in features should function as they were intended.
At the end of the visit, the entire experience should be memorable.
The Qualities Of An Effective Website For A Food Business
71% of businesses have websites.
However, that’s not a reason to have a website.
Setting up a website isn’t an afterthought or something to have because others do. A website is an investment in your business. For the investment to pay dividends, the website development process needs strategy, purpose, and intent.
Website design and development isn’t a one-size-fits-all process. A food business website has functions specific to the industry’s demands and the market’s needs.
You can’t apply the features of a real estate website to a food business website.
In this article, we’ll explain in detail the qualities of an effective website for a food business.
We’ll divide the qualities into 2 groups: The Non-Negotiable Qualities and the Key Features of a Food Business website.
The 6 Non-Negotiable Qualities
Non-negotiable means that these qualities are not open for debate or discussion. Your food business website must have these 6 non-negotiable qualities. Without them, the 6 key features needed for your website to be effective won’t matter.
1. Mobile Responsive
Mobile responsiveness refers to the ability of your website to set up and appear on various mobile screen sizes. A website that requires you to zoom in so you can read its content isn’t mobile responsive.
It’s important to have a mobile responsive design because 61.21% of consumers run online searches from a mobile device. If site users can’t read your website’s contents clearly, they’ll abandon the search.
A website that’s not mobile responsive is like having no website at all.
2. Fast Download Speed
Your service might be fast but if your website isn’t, your customers will order from your competitor’s high-speed website.
40% of site users will abandon the search if the web pages take too long to load on the screen. A good benchmark for page loading speed is between 0 to 2 seconds, although 3 seconds is acceptable.
3. Optimized for Search Engines
There are hole-in-the-wall restaurants that have become successful. However, you don’t want your website to be discovered “by accident”. You want it found and indexed for the SERP.
Optimization means enhancing the website’s visibility on the Internet so it can be found and indexed by search engines.
Web developers use various on-page and off-page Search Engine Optimization (SEO) techniques to help boost your website’s rankings.
4. Ease of Navigation
If customers enter your restaurant and are confused about where to order, they’ll leave the premises immediately. Site users respond similarly to websites.
42% of site users leave websites with poor navigability. Generally, people aren’t patient especially, when they are hungry.
5. Strong Security Protocols
If the customer clicks on your website and sees the words “Not Secure” preceding the URL, he’ll think “I’ll just try another restaurant website.”
According to Security Magazine, in 2024, one cyberattack happens every 39 seconds. Consumers are well aware of the rising number of cyber attacks.
If you can’t secure your website with SSL Certificates, how can you ensure site users that their data won’t be stolen?
6. ADA-Compliant
In 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice passed the American Disabilities Act (ADA) which required companies to have their technologies accessible to people with disabilities. “Technologies” include websites.
If your website isn’t ADA-compliant, your business could face lawsuits from people with disabilities and be fined US$150,000 by the US government.
To learn more about ADA-compliant websites, contact us. We can do a scan of your website and advise you of what needs to get done to make it ADA-compliant.
6 Key Features of an Effective Food Business Website
Designing a food business website is like designing a brick-and-mortar restaurant. You want to build a venue where diners can have a memorable experience that makes them want to come back again.
Serving excellent food is just one part of the overall experience package.
Superb customer service, sparkling cleanliness, unmatched comfort, and convenience – impressions that are housed within walls adorned with breathtaking and awe-inspiring visuals – are factors that also contribute to having an excellent customer experience.
The website is your restaurant in the digital world. Implement our 10 key features of an effective food business website and both your cash register and checkout counter will be busier than ever.
1. Compelling Unique Value Proposition
The home page is the front door of your virtual restaurant. When someone clicks on your URL, he will land on your home page. If what he sees upon entry doesn’t convince him that he clicked on the right URL, he’ll leave within 8.25 seconds.
The first thing he sees on the home page is your Unique Value Proposition (UVP). The UVP is a short statement that answers the question:
What makes your restaurant unique from everyone else?
Likewise, the quality that makes you unique must add value to choosing your restaurant over others.
Here are 3 important qualities of writing a compelling UVP that gets the job done.
- Focus on relevancy. If the site user is searching for “charbroiled burgers”, the UVP must include those same search keywords.
- Clearly state its value. Cite the advantages of eating your charbroiled burgers.
- Create differentiation. There are other charbroiled burgers in the market. What makes yours different?
By applying these qualities, you can easily create a compelling UVP for your charbroiled burger restaurant:
“Big, juicy, and flavorful charbroiled burgers made fresh every day from 8 different cuts of beef.”
Right below the UVP, you can include the following description in smaller letters:
“Chuck, brisket, rib, short plate, short loin, sirloin, flank, and round. Our burgers have all the 8 best cuts of beef covered.”
Thus, when someone lands on your home page, he will see this UVP:
Big, juicy, and flavorful charbroiled burgers made fresh every day from 8 different cuts of beef.
Chuck, brisket, rib, short plate, short loin, sirloin, flank, and round. Our burgers have all the 8 best cuts of beef covered.
With a UVP as compelling as this one, you can be assured the site user is about to become a site customer.
2. Eye-Catching Logo
If the UVP answers the question, “What makes my restaurant unique/different?”, the logo provides the answer to, “How do I want my customers to see/perceive my restaurant?”
That’s why an eye-catching logo is a great complement to a compelling UVP. If the UVP is the “why”, the brand logo is the “who”.
The logo is the graphic representation of your brand. It encapsulates the salient attributes of your company and communicates to customers the values that guide you in running the business.
Here are the 5 elements of a great, eye-catching logo that keeps your brand top-of-mind.
- Relevant – Creating a great logo involves Psychology. The components of the logo: colors, graphics, and font style must be easily associated with the industry and the market you’re targeting.
- Memorable – A memorable logo is one that successfully balances out its aesthetic appeal and the context of the message. Think of the Apple logo where the apple represents an idea.
- Simple Design – Simple design makes it easier for people to zero in on the design and understand its message. 1 or 2 colors plus the smart use of white space can give you a simple but elegant logo.
- Versatile Design – The logo will be used in your social media accounts, packaging materials, menus, and other collaterals. The design has to be adaptable to different platforms and media so you can resize it without affecting its visibility.
- Timelessness – The true test of timelessness is time itself. Changes to your logo will be needed to reflect the current times. You’ll know if your logo will be a classic one if it continues to resonate with its market even with minor revisions.
3. High-Quality Images
“People eat with their eyes first.”
You might not be hungry but if you see a picture of a thick, juicy, grilled burger with cheese and all the fixings, we’re sure your hunger pangs will start rumbling soon.
If there’s a secret ingredient to a successful food business website, it’s the images that grace the web pages. High-quality images can influence site users to answer your CTA.
It’s not a good idea to use stock photos because another restaurant might have purchased the same images for its website.
Use proprietary images which are photos of your food and restaurant. They are unique to your business and will help your website stand out from the rest. Google gives plus points for unique content. Your website might get a boost in the search rankings.
You might have a mobile phone with the best built-in camera but you don’t have the eyes, experience, and expertise of a professional photographer. Don’t take chances on your photos and get a pro to do the job right.
4. Video Content
What are the benefits of using video content?
- 65% of viewers watch a video at least 75% through. With videos, you can keep site users longer on your page which reduces its bounce rate and improves your search ranking.
- Having videos on your website will make you 53x more likely to appear on the first page of the SERP.
- Videos can increase sales conversions by 80%.
Here are a few ideas that you might want to consider for video content:
- A short history of your business.
- Behind-the-scenes look at the kitchen.
- Customer testimonials.
- Take the viewer through the ordering process.
- A day in your life and the lives of some of your crew.
For long-form videos or those that exceed 10 minutes, it would be a good idea to hire the services of a professional videographer.
5. Smart, Well-Thought-Out Web Pages
Planning the pages of your website is like planning the areas of your restaurant. Each page has a specific purpose and serves different but important functions that will help your website succeed.
Here are some of our ideas on how to make these pages stand out
- Home Page
Adding an explainer video will be a great way to get site users to stay longer on your page and be more engaged. 95% of consumers say an explainer video helps them learn more about the company’s products and services.
Since people who click on your link will land on the home page, this page gives you the best opportunity to convince visitors to stay. For this reason, add social proof on your home page.
Social proof refers to the actions or behaviors of consumers that are influenced by the decisions of others.
For example, if you read a positive review about a restaurant, you’ll be enticed to try it out. Every bit of social proof that a site user sees, nudges him closer to becoming a paying customer.
If you received favorable reviews, 5-star ratings, and other mentions in social media, highlight these types of social proof on your home page. Did your restaurant receive special awards such as “Best Burger Restaurant”? Proudly display these accolades on your home page.
- About Us
Storytelling is a powerful tool for building solid, long-lasting relationships with your customers. By sharing your story to site users in the About Us page, you’re letting them know who you are.
Give them a brief story on how you got interested in cooking. Maybe cooking was how you spent quality time with your Mom. You got into the food business because setting up a restaurant that featured your Mom’s cuisine was your way of honoring her memory.
Wasn’t that story more compelling than letting your site users know where you graduated and worked before you started the business?
- The Menu Page
Use technology to take your standard restaurant menu to another level. Here are a few ideas that are useful and have the “wow” factor as well:
- Do you keep a customer information sheet in your restaurant? Find out if you attract foreign diners and learn where they’re from. Website analytics will give you a demographics report which includes a breakdown of where your audience is located.
- Include a feature that allows your website and the menu translated into the language of the top nationality that patronizes your restaurant.
- Include a PDF version of the menu that can be downloaded and saved on the phone.
- Include links to the takeout/delivery page and FAQ page.
- Add a chat plugin that can provide customer assistance services.
- Use animation to make the page look more dynamic and “alive”.
- Add a feature that allows the user to book a reservation on a specific date and time.
- Provide each menu item a link to another landing page where users can find more comprehensive product descriptions including macros.
- Take Out/Delivery
This is the e-portal page of your website.
- Give customers multiple payment options.
- Include shipping/delivery charges in the calculation of the final bill.
- Send a cart abandonment email to the user if he doesn’t push through with the purchase. A cart abandonment email can reduce the rate of abandoned purchases by 10% to 30%.
- Blog
Blogging might be considered old school but it remains a cornerstone in a results-driven content marketing plan. Blogging has been proven to increase lead generation, improve the sales conversion rate, and drive inbound traffic. Collectively, these benefits will give your website a boost in the search rankings.
For a blogging strategy to be successful, you must post 1 to 2 optimized blogs per week. However, blogging takes time. Your best option is to outsource blogging to a proven service provider.
Our blogs have been cited as among the best in digital marketing by UpCity. Contact us and we’ll take care of your blogs.
- Contact Information
What are the benefits of having a contact page on a website?
- Professionalizes and legitimizes your business.
- Improve User Experience by giving users valuable information about your business.
- Generate more leads.
- Reduce the number of spam emails.
- Contact forms improve communication between you and your customers.
The information shared on the Contact Us page – address, email address, and phone numbers – must be accurate and updated.
6. Links to Social Media and Powerful CTA
If your efforts in promoting your business on social media can drive traffic to your website, it’s now up to your website’s CTAs to convert interest into sales.
Therefore, it’s important to have fully functioning and well-designed social media and CTA buttons on every page of your website. In particular, the CTAs have to be powerful enough to compel the site user to action.
After all, a CTA is a command. You’re telling the site user what to do next. The CTA must be forceful and definitive, “Buy Now” not “Click Here”.
Keep in mind that the decision to purchase is 95% driven by emotion. Consumers are susceptible to being influenced by a strong, powerful, and direct CTA.
Conclusion
The food business is identified as having tight profit margins that range from 3% to 5%. Factors that weigh heavily on profit margins are a high employee turnover rate, high labor costs, high food costs, and leasing spaces with exorbitant rent.
Having an online version of your restaurant website will give your business another stream of revenue that costs significantly less than a brick-and-mortar restaurant.
If you’re still thinking about getting a website for your food business, it’s time to take the thinking cap off and go into action. Contact us and let’s discuss your food business website with a free 30-minute consultation.
