A beautiful sandy beach, breezy sunshine and your favorite drink in hand. Beach bars are nothing short of pure bliss. And we are here to talk about some really cool industry trends that you must know about.
A beach bar gives you the opportunity to relax, enjoy and drink and good food, and the best part is that youāll be a stoneās throw away from the sea! The wonderful sea breeze hitting you while you enjoy your food and drinks. Itās a feeling like no other.
Beach bars are truly a place of innovation. The amount of things you can pull off at these places is amazing. In fact, just about every beach club or beach bar revolves around three main pillars : branding, conceptualization and innovation.
THE INDUSTRY
If youāre an entrepreneur or a restaurateur who lives near a beach, working out a plan to open up a beach bar is a great option. Beach bars are trendy, innovative and attract crowds.
Beach bars fall under the nightclub and bar industry in the United States. Owing to a healthy nightlife, the nightclub and bar industry is very lucrative. The industry generates nearly 20 billion USD from around 45,000 recognized bars and nightclubs.
Most of the revenue generated in this industry is through alcohol, specifically beer. Reports have shown that nearly 37% of the revenue of nightclubs and bars comes through the sale of beer. In essence, it is safe to say that the rate at which nightclubs and bars grow depends heavily on the rate at which people consume alcohol.
It is important to remember that beach bars are not without competition. It has become a common trend these days so you must be really innovative in your approach. Reports have also suggested that the chances of a beach bar struggling in the first 6 months of launch must not be ruled out. So it is important to have a long term plan for a beach bar.
RESEARCH IS KEY
If you are considering the possibility of opening a beach bar, make sure you spend some quality time on research. Get some experts on board with you and make sure you know the local market well before you step in.
Beach bars have heavy competition from other hotels and restaurants that already may be in the vicinity of a beach. Therefore it is vital that you do enough research to know what can make your beach bar stand apart and attract customers.
Make sure that you do enough research on the average footfall at the beach you wish to open up a beach bar in. Survey the existing restaurants and bars in the area. Find ways in which you can offer something new to the customer so that you can hit the ground running.
GENIUS TRENDS
Having done your initial research, you must base your beach bar plan on the three key pillars we mentioned before : Branding, Conceptualization and Innovation. You have to find ways to make your beach bar stand apart and be proactive in constantly finding ways to keep your guests entertained.
Number 1: BRANDING
In todayās world, branding plays a vital role in just about everything. A strong brand image is required to foster a strong emotional response from your customers. There has to be an experience that the customer can connect to, something that separates you from the competition.
People are no longer looking for just products. They want experiences and stories and emotion. It has to be a holistic experience. The ambience, the theme, the food, all of it must constantly cultivate the narrative on which you build your business.
If you have a story that people can relate to, then you give them something to bond over. This generates loyalty. It creates a buzz and more and more people will want to explore this experience.
Be it through social media, print or word of mouth, put yourself out there. Have a vision, share your story and let your customers in on the purpose behind your business. Make them part of your journey and see how well they respond.
Number 2 : CONCEPTUALIZATION
In opening a beach bar, you must aim to provide your customers with a unique experience. It is true that food, drinks and music still will play a vital role in the success of your beach bar, but there is a lot more to it than that.
When we talk about club marketing and branding, you are trying to showcase features about your beach bar that make you stand apart. This is where conceptualization comes in. The ambience, aesthetic and theme of the bar play a vital role in the overall experience of the customer. These conceptual aspects must also showcase your brand story and create a unique identity for your beach bar.
Some beach bars focus on things such as sustainability, wellness etc as themes that can attract a certain kind of crowd. For example, there are clubs that claim to function on āzero emissionā and āzero contaminationā. For the environmentally conscious customer, this might be an important prerequisite.
Such conceptualization and differentiation also goes a long way to show the customer that you care. That this is more than just a source of income to you. That this business has a vision and stands for something. Such aspects make stronger connections and give people reasons to stay loyal and invite others too.
Number 3 : INNOVATION
This is a great way to make your customers feel more at ease and also set trends that keep you ahead of the competition. The industry today is constantly looking towards digital innovation to improve customer service and develop a smooth system within the restaurant.
One excellent way of adopting digital innovation is to switch to digital menus in your beach bar. You can get rid of the tradition and tedious way of ordering by simply setting up a QR code on each table. The customer simply needs to scan the code and they can access your customized menu.
A digital menu will give you the opportunity to showcase your innovative prowess and at the same time incorporate the other two pillars. You can customize the digital menu according to your brand. Add logos, colors, fonts etc that represent your brand so that your customer has instant recognition of your brand menu. At the same time you can ensure that your beach bar concept is also reflected on the digital menu.
Since beach bars are mostly open air, adopting an innovative digital ordering system will save you time and money. You wonāt have to worry about waiters missing orders in a plethora of tables and you can also avoid the occasional dine and dash that is common in such open restaurants.
In addition to that, a digital menu can provide your customers the opportunity to interact with your brand as well. You can provide them with links to follow you on social media. Request them to leave an online review about their experience. You can also run promotions for upcoming offers, live events and even collaborate with other businesses.
THINK INNOVATION? THINK ORDERIFIC
If the above section on innovation gave you some ideas for your new beach bar or even your restaurant or small business, we have the solutions readily available for you. Orderific- the smart waiter, is a sophisticated digital menu that can transform the way you run your business.
Orderific offers you a highly customizable digital menu, along with an integrated payment system. In that way your customers can view your menu, order online and pay simply by scanning a QR code.
The system is seamlessly integrated with a wide range of payment processors and relays orders instantly to the kitchen staff. Servers then simply need to carry the dish to the table from which the order was placed.
Orderific can make your customer experience excellent and give you an edge over the competition.
Contact us today for a FREE demo.