Why Your Bar Crowd is Dead and How to Finally Get a Line Out the Door in Only 7 Days

After playing in a professional bar band for 4 years, I learned some things… you know… learned things past how to take shots of fireball, how to get better tips performing, and how to make the ladies like you. I learned that in order to book a gig at a new restaurant or bar… you had to be at the right place at the right time. What time was that? 3PM – 4PM. We spent a chunk of time each week visiting bars and restaurants between that time-frame. We would bring a packet that included a list of songs we played, a demo CD, some photographs, and list of other places we played. Fast forward 5 years later, and I’ve come up with a question: Why is it that bars and restaurants are so dead around those times? The most obvious answer is that it’s right in between lunch and dinner times. Okay… there is some truth to that. But what effort has the restaurant/bar made to get people in during those times? The answer? None whatsoever! Okay, maybe some have happy hours, but this doesn’t always work out. In this article, we’re going to share with you why your bar crowd is dead, and the little-known ways of fixing it with just a few steps… Here’s how:

1 – Your Offer(s) Sucks

If you don’t have a good enough offer to get people in the door, then you’ll never make it. Besides… every place has a “happy hour” and they’re all the same. $4 this, $3 that, $2 those. Tell me this: If every bar in town is dead around 3 & 4 and they’re all offering the same specials (and calling them the same thing), why the heck would you copy them? Because “that’s what all the bars do”??? Stop! Do something special and unique. Quarter beers for 1 hour! $1 beers for the second hour! Free PB&J. This is the hour in which you’re already losing money by staying open and not having customers come in… So you shouldn’t be afraid of losing a little money offering a sweet deal that’s sure to get people in the door. Once people are in the door – if they have a great experience, GUESS WHAT? They’re WAY more likely to come back a second time.

How to Fix It:

If you’re worried about the same bar regulars coming in trying to take advantage of the same deal over and over, you’ll want to use redeemable offers. Learn more here.

2 – You Don’t Have a Plan

What’s your plan to fill those times you don’t have customers? It is your job as a restaurant owner or bar owner to make a plan, stick to it and adjust as necessary. Didn’t know that was part of the job description? Well, it is! And if you don’t know how, you have two options: 1. Google it. 2. Hire someone that has a plan. A good plan has nothing to do with SHOUTING LOUDER about how you’re the best.

How to Fix It:

A good plan has a schedule and actions you take in a specific order. Do this alone, and might just get yourself a crowd. Here’s a tip… Go on Instagram. You can do more there. Right now, at best, you’re posting every day and getting comments/likes here and there. But you can’t put Likes in the bank! However, you CAN put conversations in the bank. WINNING INSTAGRAM FORMULA: Open the app, go to the Search Bar. Search and find your city in the Places tab. Look at the top posts. Go to each post and do the following… 1. Like the post. 2. Follow the user. 3. Comment on that post. 4. Send them a DM with a FREE offer explaining you’re happy to share such a great community with them and that you hope they stop by to give you a try. 5. Repeat this process on the next photo in the Top Posts. Eventually, one of these popular people are going to visit your restaurant and post about it to all their followers. This doesn’t cost money… it just takes the two things I’ve already mentioned… 1. A plan. and 2. Actions! Get to work!

3 – You Haven’t Built a Database of Your Customers

How many customers do you have in a spreadsheet or on paper along with their email addresses and phone number? If you can’t call almost any customer right now, you’re doing it wrong! The point is not calling your customers… the point is collecting their information allows you to reach out to them personally. When you can do so, you can create stronger relationships that will make them want to hang out as often and as long as possible. The absolutely easiest way to do this is by offering something for free in exchange for their contact info. This can be online by running an ad on social media or your website that offers a freebie, or can be done face-to-face. The #1 most important thing about building a database of your customers is that it will LOWER your COST. You’ll spend less on ads and stop wasting money on traditionally “dead hours”.

How to Fix It:

The method of this that we practice involves using Facebook Messenger Scan Codes in an automated fashion. Customers at your bar or restaurant scan the code to get a free item coupon. They show the bartender or server the coupon and get the free thing. A day later we have a message set to automatically message them on Facebook Messenger and offer something else to get them to come back in. All customers are pushed to a database (Google Sheet) and you can market to them in a different way than you market to others… They’re your customers. They know who you are, have instilled trust in you before, and know what it’s like to be in your bar. The language to them can be catered more towards the lingo that assumes you’re already buddies.

4 – Customers Think it Looks Like You Think It’s All About You

“We do this!” “We have this!” “We are the best!” and similar types of phrases don’t say you care about your customers. You need to make a mindset shift and you need to make it now or you’ll never stay open. Don’t get defensive… you’re not doing this and it needs to change. Imagine a story of a guy named Bob. Bob is a cool 27-year old dude with lots of friends. They like to go out at night 2-3 nights of the week. You would love for Bob to come in with his friends because they’re “your kind of people” and they’d probably spend a lot at your bar. Everything is okay with what’s been said so far… But wait a minute. You’ve decided to make social media posts and ads that say things like… “Ooo we have this awesome beer! It’s so good!”, “Come out tonight! It’s going to be awesome!”, “Our staff is so cool”. Think about what your customers want. Do they want to get drunk? Do they want to forget what a crappy week they had? Do they want to make new friendships or hang out with their old buddies from high school? Do your female customers want to meet more dudes? Do they want a quiet place where they can relax? “WHAT’S IN IT FOR ME?” they ask!

How to Fix It:

Talk at what your customers want instead of what you have to offer and your customers will listen and be more attracted to your business. Talk at the problems they have… internal problems, external, and philosophical. External (physical): they want to drink alcohol. Internal (how they feel): They’re feeling overwhelmed from work. Philosophical (how things should be): Mondays ought to feel like Fridays.

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