How to Turn Your Bathroom into an Advertising Giant
Where is the one place every guest visits? If you think it’s the bar, think again. We are all human, we all use the bathroom. Are you utilizing this super secret advertising spot?
Think about it. Your restaurant is a busy atmosphere. People are preoccupied with food, friends, and drinks. They rarely pay attention to advertisements for upcoming events. Bars are notorious for restroom advertisements. Beer/Liquor labels usually provide them with free promotions.
So how does a fine dining restaurant adopt this strategy without looking too much like a bar? Here are 4 simple tips to using bathroom advertising:
1. Packaging is EVERYTHING!
You are a restaurant, not a bar. The typical Budweiser poster board with your specials in black type is tacky. You have to class it up.
Hire someone to create simple and classy designs. Frame them and hang in front of urinals, bathroom stall doors, and on top of the toilet. These are places people stare while using the restroom. It sounds simple, but VERY effective.
Wildflower Restaurant in St. Louis, MO uses this approach. On top of their toilets is a small framed ad promoting their “Country Club Fried Chicken” on Sunday nights. The owner Phil has adopted this strategy with great success. He is very innovative at making simple advertising concepts work effectively. Take notes.
2. The Best Advertising is Free Advertising
It honestly kills me to see restaurants advertising with traditional media. It’s so expensive! How do you afford $300-$1000 on a small print ad? How many people actually pay attention? Face it, your ROI on traditional advertising sucks.
A major concern of most restaurant owners is getting more customers. Why not rehash your current customers? They are already in your restaurant. If the experience is awesome, they are more likely to come back. Die hard patrons keep the lights on and your survival depends on them. It’s free to offer them an incentive to come back. Placing upcoming events in your bathroom is a sure fire way to keep them coming back. Best of all, it’s FREE!
3. Make Your Copy Short, Billboard Style
If you have little experience in writing copy, visit Copyblogger. You’re selling an incentive to come back. Make it short and to the point.
Think about billboards. How do they advertise? A billboard only has a few seconds to get the point across.
Bottom Line: Say more with less.
4. Secret Ninja Move: Go Digital, Everyone is Doing it!
Want to know the super secret technique for bathroom advertising?
Go Digital.
Digital picture frames are now wireless, and that’s freaking awesome. Mount them in front of urinals, bathroom stalls, or next to the sink. Make sure to secure them so nobody steals them. Cover them with Plexiglas to protect the screens and make the ads change every 10-15 seconds. Have a graphic designer create a handful of advertisements. Elance is great for outsourcing cheap graphic design.
Now you can stream multiple advertisements directly from your in house computer. The frames are classy and look nice. They will attract eyes, and keep customers coming back.
What do you guys think? Are there other underused advertising opportunities? Start the discussion below!
Tags: advertising, bathroom, marketing, ninja advertising, restaurant, restroom