The Essentials: Sell — Fast Food & Limited-Service Restaurant

How do I rank and convert on delivery apps?

Delivery platforms weigh factors such as rating, order acceptance speed, prep time, accuracy, and how well a listing converts. Respond to every review within a day, accept orders quickly, keep menu photos current, mark out-of-stock items promptly, and avoid cancellations. Compare plans on DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Grubhub: DoorDash lists 15%, 25%, and 30% commissions on delivered orders depending on plan, and 6% for pickup, so decide how much visibility you can afford. Price delivery items to cover the fee, and offer a direct-order link for pickup. Check the platform dashboard weekly for rating trend, average prep time, and missed orders, since small declines compound.

Is a loyalty program worth building?

For most quick-service concepts, yes. Getting an existing customer to visit one more time a month is usually cheaper than buying a new customer. Use a program built into your POS or a service such as Toast Loyalty, Square Loyalty, or Paytronix, and keep the reward simple: a free item after five or ten visits, or points on each order. Collect phone numbers or emails with consent, and follow TCPA and CAN-SPAM rules for texts and emails. Review signups against redemptions every month. If people sign up but do not come back, change the reward or the reminder timing.

Which local tactics beat broad advertising?

Geotargeted social ads within about three miles of the restaurant, a complete Google Business Profile with photos and the order link, flyers or lunch samples at nearby offices, school and sports sponsorships, and coupon bundles with neighboring businesses. Ask each customer how they found you at the register or in the order confirmation. Set a modest test budget, for example $300-$500 a month, and compare visits or redemptions per dollar across channels. Drop channels that do not produce redeemed offers within two or three months, and move the money to those that do.

How can catering and group orders fill slow hours?

Office lunches, school events, sports teams, and community groups provide larger tickets in slower periods. Build a simple catering menu with per-person or per-tray pricing, minimum order size, lead time, delivery fee, and payment terms. Test it by dropping samples at ten nearby offices and following up by phone. Prepare packaging that holds temperature, and assign a manager to check each catering order before pickup. One repeat office that orders $250 of lunch every other week adds about $6,500 a year.

How should I run a grand opening and later promotions?

Use a grand opening to create trial and reviews: a limited-time deal, free item with purchase, or coupon for the first week. The measure of success is how many trial customers return in the next 30 days, so record redemptions and repeat visits. Follow with a steady calendar of small promotions tied to slow dayparts or new items. Avoid deep discounts that train customers to wait for coupons, and stop any promotion that raises traffic but lowers margin below your target. Review promotions monthly with a short scoreboard of cost, redemptions, and repeat rate.

How should I coach my team to sell?

Counter and drive-thru staff influence average ticket more than most ads do. Teach a simple suggestive-selling script: offer the combo, ask about a drink or dessert, and mention the signature item. Track attachment rates by shift and give small rewards for improvement. Keep speed of service high, because customers who wait too long rarely return. Use pre-shift meetings to share the day's featured item and any promotion, so the whole team says the same thing.

How do I use Google and social media without wasting money?

Google Business Profile is the highest-return free channel: keep hours accurate, post weekly specials, add 20 or more photos of real food and the storefront, add the ordering link, and answer questions. Ask happy customers for reviews at the counter with a QR code. On social media, short video of the signature item being made, geotagged posts, and stories showing daily specials tend to work better than polished brand ads. Boost only posts that already perform. Track profile calls, direction requests, and order clicks in the Google dashboard each month, and compare them with sales after each change.

What are the common sales mistakes?

Assuming a delivery listing will produce orders without active management; ranking and reviews decline quietly. Discounting so heavily that customers only come with a coupon. Building a loyalty program but never checking whether members come back more often. Ignoring slow dayparts, when catering, group orders, and lunch bundles can add sales without adding rent. And failing to measure. A short weekly review of order volume, average ticket, delivery rating, promo redemptions, and repeat rate takes about 15 minutes and shows whether a strategy is working. Assign one person to own it, and change one variable at a time so you can see what caused a result.

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