Your menu is your biggest form of
marketing. More than a list of food items and prices, your restaurant’s menu is
a reflection of your brand and a means for driving profits. Not to mention, it
may be the only marketing tool that nearly all of your customers read.
Taking the time to plan, organize, and
design your menu can go a long way in terms of driving your restaurant’s
success. Consider the following five tips for creating superior menus that can help take your restaurant
to the next level.
- Think quality over quantity.
Focus on your best and most popular dishes. While providing hundreds of
options may seem like an easy way to please choosy customers, limiting
options makes it easier for patrons to find and select what they want.
Menu engineer Gregg Rapp says that diners tune out anything more than seven options. His advice? Choose no more than five appetizers, entrées, or desserts. Anything else is overkill.
- The eyes have it. For years, restaurants have assumed
that customers’ eyes are naturally drawn to the upper right hand corner.
However, new research suggests that diners tend to read menus like books,
starting in the top left corner.
Consider
how your customers read your menu and organize items accordingly. Give your
signature dishes prominent placement.
- Keep it simple. Organize items in a logical
manner and choose words that are easy to understand. Make it easy for
customers to search for dishes by arranging items sequentially and in
logical groups, starting with the appetizers and ending with desserts.
- Picture this. While incorporating images of
your food items may seem like a natural fit, keep food photography to a
minimum. For one thing, not all dishes will appeal to all customers. Plus,
high quality food photography can be expensive — and tricky to get the
optimal results.
In general, it’s often better to leave the quality of the food to the customer’s imagination. Consider using illustrations instead.
- Type matters. Choose typography that best
communicates your restaurant’s brand.
It should be legible and sized appropriately. If your customers
can’t read your menu, they won’t be able to order anything off of it.
In the end, there are no hard fast rules
when it comes to menu design. What works for some establishments may fall flat
for others. Do what’s right for your restaurant’s brand and personality. Don’t
be afraid to experiment — and count on Superior Menus to help!
We offer custom printing and design
services – Call 1-800-527-6368 and mention code AUGB14 for $10 off your next custom printing order of $100 or more.
Superior Solutions
Whatever your restaurant’s style —
classy and contemporary, fun-loving and wild, kid friendly and colorful —
Superior Menus offers a wide range of menu stock covers, inserts and sleeves
that make it easy to update and change your menu.
- Stock
Covers and Sleeves —
Update and protect your menu as little or as often as you wish. Simply
slide your choice of menu paper inserts between the sleeves. Superior
Menus offers a variety of stock covers and sleeves in a wide range of
styles, sizes and materials.
- Menu
Accessories — Add
and expand your menu as needed with flexible and functional menu accessories.
- Menu paper inserts are a tasteful and affordable
way to update and enhance the look of your menus — and are available in
25 different styles.
- Add-A-Pages are a convenient and easy way to
quickly make updates.
- Vinyl page protectors prolong the life of your menu
papers and help prevent moisture and food from creating undesirable
stains.
What’s YOUR strategy for designing superior menus? What works best for you?
We’d love to know. Please post your thoughts and comments below.
