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It probably comes as no surprise that gift card sales always spike massively in December. Add in lockdowns and restrictions and you have plenty of reasons to put more focus on gift cards sales.



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 Selling gift cards is a closure-proof way to keep bringing cash in, whilst also securing future footfall and income at the same time. Did you know: the average gift card user in the UK spends £41 over the value of the card when using it!



Here are a few ways to ride the incoming demand and boost sales:



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-put-them-front-and-centre">Put them front and centre</h4>



Gift cards are often not the easiest things to find on websites, and social media bios might not even mention them. Some quick wins to turn that around:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Make a new homepage website banner to show them off &#8211; tools like <a href="https://www.canva.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Canva</a> can help create some seasonal banners with ease in minutes.</li><li>Change the button on your Facebook to Shop Now and add a link to your gift card purchase page.</li><li>Pin a post to the top of your <a href="www.facebook.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Facebook Page</a> feed directing people to the same link.</li><li>Add a Story Collection to your Instagram profile to give them a permanent spot on there.</li><li>Change your Instagram bio link to the gift card purchase page and add some text about gift cards in the bio too.</li><li>Send an email to your database (p.s. there’s a template in Stampede’s email builder).</li></ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Create higher value preset amounts</h4>



 The average value of gift cards purchased in the UK in 2018 was £58.



Given how much people would spend on a meal or a weekend stay, having preset values of £50, £100, £200 even £500 or £1,000 could increase sales value per card tremendously. 



By making the decision easier for customers they are more likely to purchase. If your preset values are under £50 then customers will likely choose one of those. Instead of entering a higher custom value. 



The fewer sales, higher-value approach isn’t for everyone, but reviewing your average spend per customer will help guide you to what preset values you should offer.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Offer a top-up or discount</h4>



 An incentive &#8211; such as double value gift cards &#8211; is always a reliable way to drive more sales. Especially if it’s a short time offer. Leveraging the festive season is a great way to get in on that now.



The drawback is a little bit more admin but the quick hike in sales can certainly make up for it.



Ensure you put together water-tight terms and conditions on these. Such as usage restrictions, maximum values and use-by dates and so on.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Final Thoughts</h4>



Many people will be feeling they’ve missed out on visiting their favourite venues this year. And their friends and family probably know that. 



It’s an ideal time to position your gift cards as an experience to look forward too. A gift card to enjoy some time at their favourite places to eat, drink, stay or relax will be an especially welcome gift this year. 



If you&#8217;d like any help setting up a <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/gifting/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">digital gift card solution</a>, get in touch with one of our team.

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Gift Cards: Income Now – Footfall Later

Today is a big day for us at Stampede, as we are now fully integrated with the Open Mesh / Cloud Trax ecosystem, meaning you can get up and running with our full suite of features, without visiting a site or buying additional hardware.

<img decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-4005 size-tb_x_large" style="width: 1200px;" title="Stampede Integration" src="https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/2735287/Imported_Blog_Media/Screenshot-2016-11-03-10_11_55-1200x627.png" alt="Stampede Integration" width="1200" data-constrained="true" />
<h2>Why?</h2>
Integrating with vendors is the next major frontier for us, if you&#8217;ve been selling / installing wireless hardware for some time, you will no doubt have your preferred vendor. Open Mesh (with over 80k networks globally) have a terrific product that &#8220;Just works out the box&#8221;, allowing Meraki level network management at a fraction of the cost. Using our seamless integration, you can now get access to beautifully branded login screens, custom data capture, one time logins, automated email / sms marketing, customer analytics and full UK compliance. Its our job to make sure you are able to offer the gold standard of guest WiFi, having an end user experience that is second to none.
<h2>How?</h2>
You can get up and running with our full featured product including a 7 day free trial:
<a class="eut-modal-popup" href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request?month=2020-02">Click here to get started.</a>
Together we can put an end to site visits, remote access and poor guest WiFi experiences.

Open Mesh Integration

Sharing Success and Inspiration

Expand Your Mailing List For Free

What’s On This Week – 14/12/2020

Adapt and Attract

What’s On This Week – 7/12/2020

Improve Your Campaign Measurement

Fresh Content Ideas To Fuel Your Marketing

How To Celebrate A Milestone

Stampede announces global channel launch of hospitality martech platform

What’s On This Week? – 23/11/2020

How does iOS 10 impact your Stampede network?
In short, it doesn&#8217;t. The new release won&#8217;t impact your network, however, there is something you should be aware off.
With today&#8217;s launch of Apple&#8217;s new operating system (iOS 10) and the forthcoming launch of the iPhone 7 you may be wondering how this has an impact on your Stampede network after seeing this message:
<img decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-3393" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; width: 338px;" title="Stampede iOS 10 wifi screen" src="https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/2735287/Imported_Blog_Media/IMG_6246.png" alt="Stampede iOS 10 wifi screen" width="338" data-constrained="true" />
A user may also want to find out more by clicking the blue information button and be shown this message, detailing the issue further:
<img decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-3396" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; width: 338px;" title="Stampede Secure network" src="https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/2735287/Imported_Blog_Media/IMG_6247.png" alt="Stampede Secure network" width="338" data-constrained="true" />
<h2>Why is this message shown?</h2>
This message is now displayed on all public WiFi networks that don&#8217;t have a password to protect them. Instead of a password, as I&#8217;m sure you are aware, Stampede offers a fully branded login screen. This makes the network equally secure, complying with legalities to the full extent. A specific device can&#8217;t detect that a login screen is in place, like it can when a password is in use. The device will make an assumption that there is no security on the network.
<img decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-3403" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; width: 349px;" title="Stampede 6Degrees north" src="https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/2735287/Imported_Blog_Media/Screen-Shot-2016-09-12-at-11_41_25.png" alt="Stampede 6Degrees north" width="349" data-constrained="true" />
Ready to try safe, secure WiFi for your business?
In this article we&#8217;ve shown you a bit about how easy and secure it is to use Stampede for your business.
Not using Stampede yet? That&#8217;s ok, we still like you.
But why not sign up for a free, no obligation trial today to see how we can help you grow your business and attract more customers.
<a class="eut-modal-popup" href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request?month=2020-02">Click here to get started.</a>

iOS 10 WiFi Security Recommendation.

<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fresh-content-inspiration-for-a-new-month">Fresh Content Inspiration for a New Month</h4>







This week marks the beginning of a new month! We had a little sneak peek for you and March is full of exciting topics and events to look forward to. Mother’s Day is less than a fortnight away! Get your customers prepped with brunch and gift ideas and don’t forget to promote your offers.



But let&#8217;s jump straight into this week’s topics. National Nutrition Month meets Pie Week and Peanut Butter Day. Healthy vs. no regrets? Take your pick!



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-nationalnutritionmonth">#NationalNutritionMonth</h4>



This year’s theme is “Personalise Your Plate” by making informed food choices, committing to healthy eating and physical activity. The campaign also features <a href="https://www.eatright.org/food/resources/national-nutrition-month" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">weekly key messages</a> with inspiring ideas on how to commit to eating and living healthy.



Tips to encourage and support your customers:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Share your favourite healthy recipes</li><li>Share healthy snack ideas</li><li>Share hacks around meal planning &amp; cooking</li><li>Share daily exercise tips from your staff</li><li>Start a ‘real food’ challenge and provide tips on how to swap&nbsp;processed with real food</li></ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1st-to-7th-of-march-britishpieweek">1st to 7th of March &#8211; #BritishPieWeek</h4>



The saying goes that: “We in Britain stopped evolving gastronomically with the advent of the pie.” It’s true: we Brits just love our pies and we’re a well-known pie nation. So why should we come up with anything more than that?&nbsp;



Pies brighten our dinner tables, complement a perfect picnic and make the most delicious dessert (apple pie!). <a href="https://www.tasteofhome.com/collection/our-best-pie-recipes/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Pie variations seem to be endless.</a> It’s not only about choosing the right filling, but also deciding on the right base. Just no soggy bottom, please! And to stick to British Pie origins, there should be a top and a base involved.



Get your customers engaged in pie week:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Offer a pie meal kit</li><li>Share your chef’s best pie recipes</li><li>How to get the perfect crust/bottom</li><li>Poll &#8211; what kind of pie lover are you?</li><li>Competition &#8211; share your homemade pies with us and win</li></ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-monday-1st-peanutbutterlover-sday">Monday 1st &#8211; #PeanutButterLover&#8217;sDay&nbsp;</h4>



It can be crunchy or smooth, rich and intense. It can go sweet or savoury. But it is definitely indulgent and comforting. Peanut butter! I would say, there’s (almost) nothing a spoonful of peanut butter can’t fix. No doubt, peanut butter is one of the world’s most favourite spreads.&nbsp;



Keeping National Nutrition Month in mind, there are lots of delicious <a href="https://www.self.com/gallery/healthy-peanut-butter-snacks-under-250-calories" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">healthy peanut butter snack recipes</a> out there! After all, peanuts are a good protein source and high in healthy fats.



Peanut butter is also part of some iconic duos &#8211; Which one is your favourite?



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Peanut butter &amp; toast &#8211; the straightforward one</li><li>Peanut butter &amp; jelly &#8211; the classic one</li><li>Peanut butter &amp; chocolate &#8211; the match made in heaven one</li><li>Peanut butter &amp; pork &#8211; the Asian-style one</li><li>Peanut butter &amp; pizza &#8211; the more adventurous ones</li></ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-content-ideas-for-this-week">More Content Ideas for This Week</h4>



Friday 5th &#8211; Employee Appreciation Day (Employee spotlight!) Saturday 6th &#8211; National Oreo Cookie Day Saturday 6th &#8211; White Chocolate Cheesecake Day Sunday 7th &#8211; National Cereal Day 



If you&#8217;re looking to get your stories and promotions in front of your customers <a href="https://stampede.ai/company/#contact" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">get in touch</a> with our team. We’re here to help with your email marketing and much more.

What’s On This Week? – 01/03/2021

Some of you may remember an article from earlier this year in which we looked at what made <a href="https://youtu.be/lTcesqUPu9U" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">this video</a> by Wagamama’s Executive Chef Steve Mangleshot so good. (You can catch up on <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/a-recipe-for-video-showcase-success/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">that article here.</a>) It’s still a great example, and like many others, Steve has kept going with the series.&nbsp;



 Since those early examples, video content from hospitality businesses has gone from strength to strength.



 We recently discovered <a href="https://www.restaurantbusinessonline.com/operations/transforming-restaurant-kitchen-video-studio" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">this article in Restaurant Business</a> discussing the success of video campaigns by various US operators and chefs over the past few months, as they iterated on the process and made it work better for them.



 The article has some fantastic technical detail on setup, devices, people involved and their role in the production. As with many others, the featured businesses started with simple cooking demos or meal kits, which then evolved into live events, and interactive cooking classes.



 Now that more people are well adjusted to using video software &#8211; having done so for several months &#8211; getting a sizeable audience to engage is far easier now than ever before.



 As a result of the iterations and lessons learned, businesses like those in the article are now able to generate some additional revenue from something that started as a bit of free content.



 It’s a short article but full of inspiration, and well worth a read.



 If you’ve been making videos, we’d love to see them, so send us your links!



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<div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link" href="" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">READ ARTICLE</a></div>
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With the exception of agriculture, it’s hard to think of an industry more affected by seasonal pressures than the hospitality sector. Along with the times of exceptionally high demand, surviving and even thriving during times of low demand is perhaps the <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/top-marketing-trends-in-the-hotel-industry-for-2020/">biggest challenge facing independent hotels</a>. Often lacking the efficiencies of scale and considerable marketing budgets of the bigger chains.&nbsp;So how do you boost your hotels&#8217; occupancy? 







However, there are plenty of ways that independent hotel owners can attract more bookings all year round. Without any huge investment or having to resort to third-party travel booking websites. In fact, believe it or not, right now you are surrounded by deep wells of untapped demand. All you have to do is figure out how to uncover them. And your hotel could be filled to overflowing, seven days a week, 365 days a year!&nbsp;



Once you open your mind to the possibilities, you will see opportunities to boost occupancy in all kinds of areas. To help you, we’ll cover four different ideas in this article. Bear in mind there are many more &#8211; really, we’re only scratching the surface.&nbsp;



As an independent hotel, you are in a uniquely powerful position to forge relationships. But also take advantage of trends that would take bigger organisations years to emulate. Intrigued? Let’s dive in and explore this together!&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Idea # 1 &#8211; Become a destination for Digital Nomads</h4>



We’ve written before about digital nomads. Those with in-demand skills who travel the world while working remotely, utilising just their laptops and smartphones to remain connected to their employers. This is a <a href="https://workationing.com/digital-nomad-remote-work-statistics/">trend</a> that is set to grow substantially over the years ahead. So establishing your hotel as a great place to stay and work could reap handsome rewards in years to come.&nbsp;



Of course, the beauty of these travellers for you is that they tend to be completely free of the need to follow the usual holiday patterns. They travel at any time of year, or often all year round. Making them perfect for filling your otherwise quiet times.&nbsp;



And how might you tap into this lucrative market, we hear you ask? Well, to begin with, you may already know of some regular guests who fit this description. So why not have a chat with them to find out what would make your hotel an even more attractive destination for them to visit. Recommend their contacts to visit also? Here’s a few more suggestions to get your ‘idea bulb’ flashing;



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Could you repurpose one of your function rooms into a bright and modern co-working space? Available to non-residents to take advantage of in return for a small monthly fee? This would be bound to attract free publicity, as well as boosting your status as a destination for remote workers!</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Create a dedicated page or section of your website specifically on how you cater for digital nomads. Index the page for search engine optimisation. So that this section of your website will start to get organic hits from those searching Google for ‘workations’ in your city or area.</li></ul>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Hundreds of social media groups dedicated to this lifestyle. Not to mention membership organisations and job boards. All of these contain opportunities for you to advertise or post links to your website offering your services. Why not kick off with a time-limited special offer just for those quoting code “Nomad” to claim?</li></ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Idea # 2 &#8211; Turn drop-in visitors into overnight stays</h4>



There is a branch laden with low-hanging fruit that many independent hotels overlook altogether in their marketing. We’re talking about the people who are right at this very moment utilising your hotel bar, cafe, or lobby area as a venue for a work meeting. A chance to catch up with a visiting friend, or just popping in for a quick meal on their way to their next destination.&nbsp;



These visitors may have never used your facilities before, or they may be regulars. But you just haven’t given them a reason to stay overnight yet! They all know exactly where you are. They know many of your facilities, and they have had a chance to experience your service. Without a shadow of a doubt, they represent a much easier prospect for you to entice to visit. Compared to someone who hasn’t visited your hotel yet.&nbsp;



And if you’re wondering how you can get the contact information of these drop-in visitors, wonder no more! <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-marketing-with-wifi-benefits-your-business/">WiFi Marketing</a> gives your visitors the option to connect to WiFi in your hotel, and at the same time lets them opt-in to get special offers from you. Easy!&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Idea # 3 &#8211; Special Offers for Senior Citizens&nbsp;</h4>



This might seem like the kind of strategy more suited to a hairdresser than an independent hotel but stay with us. Similarly to digital nomads, retired travellers are not constrained by traditional holiday seasons. Not only that, the current generation of senior citizens from all around the world are more likely to travel than any of the previous ones. With <a href="http://www.travelweekly.co.uk/articles/309398/travel-most-important-for-over-half-of-retired-people">over half</a> of the retired people citing “travel” as the most important part of their plans.&nbsp;



Even better, retired travellers stay for longer. They are <a href="https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Tourism_trends_and_ageing">less likely</a> to make use of rented accommodation and are known to be receptive to marketing campaigns that specifically aim for their patronage. (Did you know that <a href="https://www.saga.co.uk/">Saga</a>, which specifically caters for those over 50 years of age, has over 2.7 million customers?!)&nbsp;



If all of this sounds like a good fit for your hotel, you can follow similar steps to those outlined in the Idea # 1 Digital Nomad section above to target this market. Maybe you could create a bar and a socialising area specifically for your “Silver” visitors? Again, there are membership organisations, magazines, and travel companies that specifically target this sector. All you have to do is create some offers to attract the attention of savvy senior travellers &#8211; and get them out there!&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Idea # 4 &#8211; Partner up with Business Associations&nbsp;</h4>



As business travel tends to be a lot less seasonal than those on vacation. It makes sense to consider how you could position your hotel to be the ideal conference destination, or the obvious choice for employees of a particular PLC to stay overnight.&nbsp;



Again, this tends to be an area that is much overlooked by independent hotels. Perhaps you think that the big chains will always be the first choice for the busy business travellers. However, there’s no reason why that should be the case <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/5-useful-free-marketing-tools-that-anyone-can-use/">if you’re smart with your marketing</a>.&nbsp;



Study the industries in your district. Especially look out for any large companies that have headquarters, training centres, or other significant properties nearby. Don’t forget existing clients. There could be a CEO who regularly visits that could be persuaded to make your hotel the default option for all her employees.



Again, you can create a search-optimised dedicated page of your website for business travellers. Use offer codes for conferences that might be held in your city so that you win more of this passing trade. Create simple flyers that you can drop off at local companies. <a href="https://www.canva.com/">This tool</a> is a great way for even non-graphic designers to design attention-grabbing leaflets and postcards! Offering them exclusive rates in return for their patronage.&nbsp;Maybe even a free or discounted first drink in the bar?



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Bringing it all together</h4>



We hope that these ideas have given you plenty of food for thought on how you can boost your year-round hotel occupancy. All this without having to resort to offering huge discounts via third-party resellers. If you found this article useful, why not sign up to our email newsletter so that you can be sure not to miss out on future posts?&nbsp;



Want to find out more about how WiFi marketing can further boost your hotel occupancy?



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How to Boost Hotel Occupancy And Direct Bookings

“Yelp gave it 4.5 stars, but Sarah said the soup was bland, but John raves about the atmosphere…” We are living in an era where the age of information has made decision-making processes just a tad more complex. Back in the day, patrons would trust newspaper reviews to guide them to the most elite and fascinating restaurants. Today, there are a bunch more factors that come into play.&nbsp;But how do customers actually choose their next restaurant to go for?







We know that getting customers through the door is half the battle of running a thriving restaurant business. So, we decided to do some deep research into how today’s restaurant-goers choose the places they dine at.&nbsp;



Below we have listed the factors that our current generations base many of their dining decisions on.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-quality-and-innovation-of-food">Quality and Innovation of Food</h4>



According to a census run by <a href="https://www.touchbistro.com/blog/how-diners-choose-restaurants/">TouchBistro</a>, 70% of the participants agreed that they would re-visit a restaurant that made great food even if the customer service was bad.



Now, this is certainly no excuse to let good customer care fall to the wayside. But if you focus on creating quality meals that come with a touch of “je ne sais quoi”, then you are likely to retain a loyal customer base who appreciates your attention to detail.&nbsp;



You will also find that many diners are becoming a little picky with what they eat and they tend to be on the hunt for innovative meals that they can’t make at home – so, why not oblige them?



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-google-search-rankings-and-google-maps">Google Search Rankings and Google Maps</h4>



These days, hardly any serious foodie will make a “what’s for dinner” decision without checking for Google’s suggestions first. This means that you need to take your online presence quite seriously. Treat your website to a professional SEO campaign so that you can boost your rankings and land on the very first pages of search engines. If you’re on that first page, then audiences will automatically assume you have something good to offer.&nbsp;



And, if you are not already on Google maps, get yourself there! Log in to your Google account and follow the steps and get yourself listed. If you are already listed, make sure all the information included in your “tag” is correct.&nbsp;



Restaurant goers, like all consumers, feed off of convenience (no pun intended), and if they can see that your establishment is listed nearby, then apart from discovering that you actually exist – they’ll also visit you because of your nearby location.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-recommendations-from-friends">Recommendations from Friends</h4>



Despite our dependence on technology for guidance, as humans, we still depend on word-of-mouth reviews. These reviews are taken seriously when they come from someone who we trust, such as friends and family.&nbsp;



So, keep your patrons happy and they will spread the word!&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-online-reviews">Online Reviews</h4>



Current restaurant-goers turn to <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-respond-to-positive-and-negative-customer-reviews-online/">online reviews </a>when choosing a new restaurant to visit. In fact, Google and social media reviews have become the most trusted source for those seeking advice on which restaurant to choose from.



Did you know that <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/jaysondemers/2015/12/28/how-important-are-customer-reviews-for-online-marketing/#4a1232711928">88% of consumers trust online reviews</a> as much as a personal recommendation?



One negative review can instantly persuade a potential customer to move on to the next restaurant listed in their search. This makes customer service more important than ever before and social media engagement is key. &nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-discounts-and-promotions">Discounts and Promotions</h4>



Throughout the decades, diners have always supported restaurants that offer <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-use-pricing-and-promotions-to-make-customers-happy/">continuous discounts and promotions</a>. This trend still stands and loyalty reward programmes have proven to be an important element of any successful business.&nbsp;



We all live in a world where we need to try and save a dime or two where we can!



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lively-entertainment">Lively Entertainment</h4>



A lively atmosphere with a touch of entertainment has the potential to draw in the crowds on even the dreariest of days. Live and local bands will attract fans and a cosy and serene atmosphere will appeal to couples who are looking for an intimate night out.&nbsp;



Whilst most patrons will dine out for the food, many choose a restaurant that will give them a great dining experience with entertainment to boot.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-technology">Technology</h4>



From providing consumers with access to a <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/5-tips-for-setting-up-wifi-for-your-restaurant-or-pub/">free WiFi connection</a> to treating them to digital menus that make ordering a fun experience, technology is certainly something that appeals to modern-day patrons. 



According to a <a href="https://pos.toasttab.com/blog/on-the-line/restaurant-management-statistics">recent survey</a>, the most important tech features are table bookings and access to free WiFi. Plus, 73% of customers think that restaurant tech can really improve their guest experience.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-eco-friendly-dining">Eco-friendly Dining</h4>



We are entering a time where consumers are starting to make more conscious purchases. This means that they are thinking about the earth just as much as they are thinking about their palates.&nbsp;



Many diners are opting to eat at establishments that have eco-friendly practices. From serving vegan-friendly meals to ditching single-use plastics, a restaurant that’s eco-conscious is likely to get more support from the eco-friendly crowds.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-social-media-engagement">Social Media Engagement</h4>



With more than 200 million posts tagged #food and 23 million with #drinks, we can confidently say that social media is the number one spot for restaurant businesses to be. Patrons use social media platforms to look for new places to go to and you want to make sure that you are going to be right in their line of vision.&nbsp;



Restaurants that put effort into their social media presence and continue to engage with their audiences are more likely to hold on to loyal customers whilst encouraging (and intriguing) new audiences to visit their joint.&nbsp;



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You are now best prepared to become your customers&#8217; first choice restaurant. Want some more?



With our unique take on reaching out to audiences, we can connect you to new customers while you <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/engaging-customers-through-wi-fi-marketing/">retain a loyal support base</a>.

How Customers Choose a Restaurant

The popularity of order and pay solutions has grown massively over the last year. Lots of hospitality businesses looked into implementing (or already have) a similar solution at their venue.&nbsp;



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-css-opacity"/>



If you’re still swaying about adding order &amp; pay to your business, and need more advice keep reading. Our <a href="https://stampede.ai/prep-start-now/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">#PrepStartsNow</a> partners <a href="https://storekit.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">StoreKit</a> and Pour provide a closer look into the benefits of using such a system.



Here’s a quick summary of the main points:



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-does-order-pay-work">How does Order &amp; Pay work?</h4>



An order and pay solution lets your customers view your digital menu, place their order and pay all from their mobile device. It, therefore, allows for a contactless and safe interaction between your customer and staff, without the need for full table service.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-benefits-of-using-an-order-pay-solution">Benefits of using an order &amp; pay solution&nbsp;</h4>



Some might argue that an order &amp; pay app has negative impacts on your customer experience as it removes the personal service which is what the hospitality industry is all about. However, research by Pour shows quite the contrary: 82 % of customers want to have the opportunity to order through an app. Your staff will still be at your venue to welcome and serve your customers.



The main benefits for your business:



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Increased sales (up to 63%) &#8211; upsell/cross-sales opportunities, promotions</li>



<li>Higher flexibility &#8211; make quick changes to your digital menu</li>



<li>Increased order accuracy</li>



<li>Improved customer experience &#8211; quicker service</li>



<li>Get data your on customers&#8217; preferences</li>



<li>Create a more branded and personalised digital experience</li>
</ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-choose-the-right-system-for-your-venue">How to choose the right system for your venue?</h4>



Two main factors come into account when choosing the right order &amp; pay solution for your business.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-speed-and-ease-of-use">1. Speed and ease of use</h4>



One of the main purposes of implementing an order &amp; pay solution is to help you streamline your processes and increase operational efficiency. Hence, the app has to be straightforward to use for your and your customers to avoid complaints.



In general, they come as a downloadable app or progressive web app. The latter is quicker to use as there is no need for a download and it can be used without creating an account. But keep in mind that strong customer WiFi will remove any unwanted friction from using the web app.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-integration">2. Integration</h4>



Integration allows for your systems to communicate and share data. Being able to collate data from various different systems into one place is crucial. So make sure the solution you want to use integrates with your POS, accounting, inventory management etc. for that all-important single customer view.



There are many <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/5-technology-tools-to-help-hospitality-reopen-after-lockdown/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">other technology tools</a> that can support your successful reopening right now. <a href="https://stampede.ai/company/#contact" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Reach out</a> to our team for some more information and guidance to get you started.

Get More Revenue Using An Order & Pay Solution

<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-burst-into-your-customers-inboxes-and-maximise-your-promotions">Burst into your customers&#8217; inboxes and maximise your promotions</h4>



To make your job a little easier and save you time coming up with campaigns, we’ve created an Email Marketing Guide&nbsp;specifically for hospitality brands.



Download your FREE Email Marketing Guide for May 2024 now and start scheduling and promoting your campaigns.



Featuring 5 instant and seasonal campaign ideas, 3 ready-to-use templates and 8 additional resources from our blog.

May 2024 Hospitality Email Marketing Guide

These Automations Can Help When Short-Staffed

There’s a lot of talk about cutting costs these days. What better way to approach that than looking for free alternatives to some of your biggest expenses?&nbsp;



With all the free technology and website plugins out there, some must be at least semi-decent, right?



We wanted to find out more about what you don’t get with free versions, and what that might cost you in terms of customer experience and ultimately, revenue.



For this, we looked closely at 4 popular free WordPress (WP) plugins and compared the most important booking features against each other.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-free-wp-booking-plugins-compared">4 Free WP Booking Plugins Compared</h5>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<figure class="wp-block-table is-style-stripes"><table valign="middle"><tbody><tr valign="middle"><td class="has-text-centre" data-align="centre">Features</td><td class="has-text-valign:middle" data-valign="middle" data-align="centre">ReDi Restaurant Reservation</td><td>Five Star Restaurant Reservations</td><td>WPCafe</td><td>&nbsp;Quick Restaurant Reservations</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">Number of free venues</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">1</td><td>1</td><td>Unlimited</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">Reservation restrictions&nbsp;(block times/days/length)</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">X</td><td>Only for days and times</td><td>X</td><td>&nbsp;Yes</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">Data Export</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">X</td><td>X</td><td>X</td><td>X</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">Customisable</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">Yes</td><td>Only for the form, no custom fields</td><td>Yes</td><td>Only for the form, no custom fields</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">&nbsp;Automated reservation confirmation</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>Manual only</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">&nbsp;Booking reminders</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">X</td><td>X</td><td>X</td><td>X</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">&nbsp;Support</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">Yes</td><td>Yes</td><td>X</td><td>X</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">Integrations&nbsp;</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">X</td><td>X</td><td>Yes</td><td>X</td></tr><tr><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">&nbsp;Additional notes</td><td class="has-text-align-center" data-align="center">No analytics or statistics</td><td>No front end page to display bookings</td><td>No front end page to display bookings</td><td>No daily or monthly calendar view</td></tr></tbody></table></figure>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">7 Reasons Why Bookings Platforms Are Worth Paying For</h5>



Here are a few important things you might be missing out on by relying on a free booking platform plugin



Data access:



You often have to pay to access customer data and/or are not able to download it for further usage. This means you can’t contact customers post-visit to ask for feedback or send them offers to bring them back.



Integration with other tech tools:



If you can’t access or download customer data, an integration would at least allow you to use your data to some extent. Without any of those options, you are massively missing out on future revenue.



Limited live or backend support:



You always have to install the plugin on your website yourself, which can sometimes come with its own challenges and takes up time. Plus, not all providers offer free customer support.&nbsp;



Multi-venue:



The majority only have one venue included in their free version. Any additional venues cost extra. Same for having multiple users for your account.



Customisation:



Custom fields (i.e. dietary restrictions, extras) are vital to make your customer experience more personal. Quite often you can only choose from preselected fields, even in the paid plans.



Customer communication:



Most of them don’t allow you to send email/SMS booking reminders. This can lead to an increase in no-shows and high operational costs.



The same applies to the post-visit feedback request, which isn’t available on any free plan.&nbsp;



Automation:



Technology should make our lives easier and help us save time. Booking reminders and review requests are one of the simplest marketing automation to set up but are not included in any of the free plans.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">Takeaway</h5>



Free booking platform plugins might satisfy some basic booking requirements. However, the money you save on the free versions often costs you more further down the line.&nbsp;



Being unable to contact customers to drive loyalty is one of the biggest issues here. Your loyal customers are the ones that bring in new customers. And with their connection, the process starts over again.&nbsp;



In this case, it is definitely worth investing in a more complete booking system. Make sure to check out our <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/buyers-guide-11-key-features-your-table-booking-system-needs/">buyer’s guide</a> including the key features you should look out for when choosing a platform.



Get more tables booked, and manage your front-of-house operations efficiently. <a href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request">Book a demo</a> with our team to find out more about Stampede Bookings.

Are Free Booking Platform Plugins Any Good?

Service Recovery In The Hospitality Industry [Updated 2023]

So we’re heading into the colder months, and those setting the regulations still talk about outdoor areas for hospitality. It seems inevitable that we’ll be getting layered up to support our favourite venues for the next while.&nbsp;



 Whilst in a riverside pub terrace in York on a chilly evening earlier this week, we got talking about how we’d be happy to see mulled wine/cider etc. on the menu already!



Speaking of winter menus for outside dining, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-10-21/how-chefs-are-adapting-their-menus-for-chilly-outdoor-dining" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">this might be useful.</a>



In the news, Marstons have announced a £2m investment in upgraded outdoor spaces and seating, which will provide additional capacity of around 15,000 covers.



 If you’re exploring outdoor space options for the coming months, this is a reminder to check your customer WiFi coverage in these areas. Seating which is further from the source will mean poor or no internet connection for customers.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hardware"> Hardware</h2>



 Our Support Team have an expert knowledge of the best systems for any setup, and are happy to provide free advice on what you might need, as well as contacts for on the ground installation. We can also arrange a site assessment for you through our partners.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-customer-benefits"> Customer Benefits</h2>



 <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/wifi/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">WiFi</a> isn’t just about letting customers browse Facebook as they sip mulled wine. You can use it to push customers straight to order-and-pay apps (without QR codes), for <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/hospitality-reopening/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Track and Trace</a>, to monitor footfall and occupancy and more.



 It’s the gateway to better customer experiences in many ways.



 For your business, it’s the easiest way to boost the size of your mailing list, just in time to <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/marketing/#email" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">promote</a> your Christmas specials and offers.



 We’re here to help you, with WiFi setup questions or the customer experience, by <a href="tel:+441315107008" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">phone</a>, <a href="mailto:contact@stampede.ai?subject=Outdoor%20WiFi&amp;body=Got%20a%20question%20about%20outdoor%20WiFi%3F" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">email</a> or <a href="stampede.ai" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">live chat</a>.

Keep The Outdoor Connected

Supermarket shelves are starting to fill with Christmas treats, the festive countdown is on. There is still plenty of time to prepare your festive season promotions to capitalise on the Christmas boom. One thing is for sure, with high demand showing months in advance, competition will be fierce.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



Customers are eager to plan ahead but they also expect something magical for this year’s celebrations. A simple twist on your menu alone probably won’t do it for them.&nbsp;



Here are 4 revenue-boosting ideas that will help you to get the maximum out of the upcoming festive season:



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-fire-off-festive-season-offers-and-promotions">1. Fire-off festive season offers and promotions</h4>



The earlier you get your offers and promotions out there the better you can plan and organise the busy period ahead. Entice early bookings with a special deal such as: “Book before … to get …”.



To further leverage your customers’ excitement for this year’s festive season, spread your promotions across the whole month of December.&nbsp;



Some jolly ideas for December:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Run events &#8211; carol singing, wreath binding workshop, meet Santa, Secret Santa, gingerbread house workshop</li><li>Host your own mini Christmas market</li><li>Run a charity event throughout December</li><li>Offer staff parties &amp; hamper boxes for offices</li><li>Come up with <a href="http://restaurant-promo-ideas.com/restaurant-promotion-idea-28-twelve-days-of-christmas-promotional-ideas/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">12 days of Christmas promotions</a> with deals for each day</li><li>Run social media contests &#8211; #UglySweaterDay, #ChristmasCookieCompetition, #DressYourPet</li></ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">2. Boost gift card sales</h4>



With Christmas being the season of giving, it’s no surprise that gift card sales always spike massively in December.&nbsp;



The graph below shows the Google Trend for the search term &#8220;gift cards&#8221; in 2020:



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large is-resized"><a href="https://stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Screenshot-2021-09-22-at-13.26.16.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" src="https://image.stampede.ai/fill/1024/364/ce/0/aHR0cHM6Ly9zdGFtcGVkZS5haS93cC1jb250ZW50L3VwbG9hZHMvMjAyMS8wOS9TY3JlZW5zaG90LTIwMjEtMDktMjItYXQtMTMuMjYuMTYtMTAyNHgzNjQucG5n" alt="" class="wp-image-20443" width="724" height="257"/></a></figure></div>



Take some time to check and review your current gift card offerings. Have you had any feedback or suggestions from your customers? Do you need to amend your terms and conditions? What was the average gift card value? Is there anything you could optimise to create a smoother experience?&nbsp;



But more importantly, put your gift card offers in front of your customers across all your channels to give them a booster. Think about a seasonal website banner, a pinned post for your socials and an email to your database (including previous buyers!). And don’t forget to add the links to your gift card purchase page in your social bios.



Have a look at <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/income-now-footfall-later/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">our blog article on gift cards</a> for some more tips to make this year’s sales a success.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">3. Sprinkle some festive vibes around</h4>



Give your digital and physical assets a Christmas make-over to get your customers into the right spirits early on.



Consider creating a designated holiday page on your website. Have a look at this <a href="https://weston-hall.co.uk/christmas-new-year/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">example from Weston Hall</a>. Here customers can quickly get an overview of what is going on over Christmas and New Year.&nbsp;



Tools like <a href="https://www.canva.com/templates/?query=christmas" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Canva</a> have a whole lot of seasonal templates you can use for your emails, socials and website.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">4. Amend your booking policies</h4>



With pre-bookings coming in quickly, make sure you clearly communicate your cancellation policy and terms and conditions in the event of changes in rules and regulations that might come up.&nbsp;



Also, no-shows or last-minute cancellations can be even more damaging when it comes to big group bookings for the festive season. So, consider taking a deposit or credit card details from your customers to secure their bookings.



Need some assistance with promoting your festive season offerings via email and SMS marketing campaigns? <a href="mailto:contact@stampede.ai?subject=&amp;body=" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Get in touch</a> with one of our team. We&#8217;re happy to help.

4 Revenue Boosting Tips For Your Early Festive Season Promotions

Is it time to update your restaurant’s Instagram profile? Because if you don&#8217;t have a picture of something with mashed avocado on it, it&#8217;s already out of date. Hard but true. But how can you achieve this by also making positive use of your Guest WiFi?







Sure, we know you’re busy. You’re trying to run a restaurant, after all. But did you know that an out of date or just plain shoddy Instagram profile for your restaurant could be driving away customers? 



<a href="https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/millenials-restaurant-how-choose-instagram-social-media-where-eat-a7677786.html">According to a study done by the Italian chain Zizzi</a>, a full 30% of millennials, that highly coveted 18-35-year-old age bracket, say that they would avoid a restaurant if their Instagram presence was lacking.



Don’t despair, even if you’re a total failure at social media, there’s still hope for you. And that hope is coming at you in little doughnut-shaped radio waves. We’re talking about the <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/getting-started-with-guest-wifi/">Guest WiFi </a>you most likely have in your restaurant (WiFi broadcasts in ring-shaped waves &#8211; there&#8217;s your WiFi trivia for the day!).



You know &#8211; the WiFi that your customers love and you are probably giving away for free. What we’re talking about is asking your customers for just a <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/engaging-customers-through-wi-fi-marketing/">little bit of data</a>, as simple as just an email address, in order to access your restaurant WiFi and, in turn, <a href="https://medium.com/@marketing_37146/how-to-increase-social-media-engagement-125d48782702">boost that sad Instagram</a> profile.



So are you ready to rock your Instagram? Here&#8217;s how to get started!



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">STEP ONE: USE A CAPTIVE PORTAL</h4>



A captive portal refers to a method of asking your guests to log in through a web page first in order to access your WiFi. Instead of a hastily scrawled password on a chalkboard above the bar, your guests simply enter their email address in order to connect. Once they’ve verified their email address, they’ll have access to fast, safe and secure WiFi. But it doesn’t stop there.



When prompted to log in to your WiFi, your customer will see your branding on the splash screen, ensuring that you’re staying first and foremost in their minds. Another cool feature of the captive portal is the power of data. In addition to their email address, you can ask your customers for information like postcode, age, and gender. 



With Stampede, you can take this a step further and ask your own custom questions &#8211; the perfect way to do a quick poll on new menu items or offerings. So what is your favourite drink?



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



<div class="wp-block-media-text" style="grid-template-columns:38% auto"><figure class="wp-block-media-text__media"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="600" height="400" src="https://stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ebook-branded_experience@2x.png" alt="" class="wp-image-10666" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ebook-branded_experience@2x.png 600w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ebook-branded_experience@2x-300x200.png 300w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ebook-branded_experience@2x-150x100.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ebook-branded_experience@2x-592x395.png 592w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ebook-branded_experience@2x-90x60.png 90w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/ebook-branded_experience@2x-135x90.png 135w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /></figure><div class="wp-block-media-text__content">
<a href="https://stampede.ai/resources/branded-experience/">Learn more about the importance of a branded customer experience </a>
</div></div>



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">STEP TWO: USE THAT DATA</h4>



Ok, so you’ve broken down, gotten some captive portal software and now you’ve got a pile of interesting customer data. So what to do with it? 



Got an email list? How about exporting all those customer emails addresses you captured on your fancy new portal into your email list software? 



Don’t have an email list? Now you do! Thinking of opening a new branch of your business? Check the postcode data you’ve collected to see where your customers are coming from.



In addition, the data you’re asking your customers for, a good captive portal solution will also provide you with <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-marketing-power-of-wifi-analytics-for-your-business/">statistics</a> on time of day, length of visit and the devices used. What do you do with this? Good question. Let&#8217;s say you notice that you’ve got more people signing in from laptops rather than mobile devices, maybe it’s time to think about adding some under-seat plugs for the use of your customers.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">STEP THREE: GET THAT INSTAGRAM LOOKING GOOD</h4>



How is captive portal WiFi going to help your sorry Instagram account? Right, follow along here. That’s where <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/a-complete-guide-to-marketing-automation/">automated marketing</a> comes into play. 



Your customer enters your restaurant and sits down to your signature poached egg on toast &#8211; now featuring smashed avocado. The customer’s food arrives, and, of course, it looks fantastic and they want to preserve the moment in pictures. They pull out their phone to connect to the WiFi where they’re immediately presented with your brand and logo on the spiffy captive portal screen. After entering their email, they sign in to the WiFi, snap their picture and carry on with the meal.



Here comes the automated part. Minutes after leaving your venue, the customer gets an SMS or email from you, asking them if they’re <a href="https://stampede.ai/reviews/">enjoying their dining experience</a>, and if they’d be happy to share any photos they take on social media. In other words, you&#8217;ve combined boosting your Instagram with your Guest WiFi.



Whoa! Who’s going to say no to that? Your customer, who’s had their mashed avocado cravings fulfilled, naturally, posts their photo to your Instagram page. In one fell swoop we’ve solved three problems: your customer got access to awesome WiFi, they have a fantastic dining experience, and your Instagram account is happy again.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">NOT USING GUEST WIFI?</h4>



If, by some small chance, you&#8217;re NOT using a captive portal WiFi solution in your restaurant, pub or hospitality business and now you&#8217;re ready to start, why not give Stampede a try? We offer a free, no-obligation trial with simple integration. You&#8217;ll be up and running in no time.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>





<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



You&#8217;ll soon have more mashed avocado pictures than you know what to do with&#8230;



Check out our <a href="https://www.instagram.com/stampede_ig/">Instagram</a> as well to get some inspiration.



<a href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request?month=2020-02">Click here to get started.</a>

Rock Your Restaurant with WiFi and Instagram

As a hospitality marketer or restaurant owner, you know that providing your customers with an excellent experience involves much more than just preparing delicious food and drinks. It’s about creating memorable experiences and building strong customer relationships.&nbsp;



However, in order to be able to consistently deliver on this promise and grow your business, you need the right tools in place &#8211; including having a top-notch <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/what-is-a-hospitality-crm-system-a-full-guide">Customer Relationship Management (CRM) solution</a> for managing all of your operations efficiently.&nbsp;



With the help of data-driven insights, CRM systems can completely transform the way you operate by helping you increase revenue opportunities while offering an optimised customer experience every time – from initial contact through to post-visit follow-ups.&nbsp;



Keep reading to find out why a CRM system is absolutely crucial for any hospitality marketer looking to maximise their ROI and exceed expectations with their guests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What is the role of CRM in marketing</h2>



In the world of marketing, a CRM system can be a powerful tool to manage and maintain relationships with customers. Not only does it allow businesses to store essential customer information, but it also enables them to interact with their target audience directly.&nbsp;



With a CRM, businesses can increase the effectiveness of their marketing efforts while simultaneously measuring their performance. It enhances a company’s understanding of its customers and allows them to tailor their marketing strategy accordingly.&nbsp;



As a result, it can lead to more significant brand loyalty and increased revenue.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crm-in-email-marketing">CRM in email marketing</h4>



<a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/marketing">Email marketing</a> is a powerful tool for hospitality businesses looking to reach out to their customers and build long-term relationships.&nbsp;



A CRM system can significantly enhance the effectiveness of email marketing. By leveraging data gathered from previous interactions and different sources businesses can better segment their customer base. They can create highly targeted, personalised email campaigns that help them to upsell and increase repeat visits.&nbsp;



The best part is, using a CRM system in email marketing also saves valuable time, as there is no need to manually import and export contact information.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crm-in-sms-marketing">CRM in SMS marketing</h4>



SMS marketing can be a powerful tool for reaching customers on the go. With a high open rate, text messages can quickly grab a customer&#8217;s attention and deliver your message.&nbsp;



To make the most out of SMS marketing, businesses can also use their CRM data to target specific groups with promotions and offers.&nbsp;



For example, to fill in empty spaces businesses can send loyal customers a special last-minute discount code to their phone.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-crm-in-social-media-marketing">CRM in social media marketing</h4>



Social media has become essential to any business&#8217;s marketing plan, and proper social media management is critical to its success.&nbsp;



A CRM can play a pivotal role by helping companies collect and analyse important data on their customers. They can better understand how customers are engaging with their content, including what topics are most relevant and target their marketing efforts accordingly.



In addition, a CRM can help hospitality marketers to identify <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/breakdown-3-ways-customers-advocate-your-hospitality-brand">brand advocates</a>. These are customers who are highly engaged and are most likely to spread the word about your business.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Automate Your Marketing Processes with a CRM System</h2>



Marketing automation has revolutionised the way modern businesses operate, providing valuable tools and techniques that streamline workflows and enhance efficiency.&nbsp;



With a CRM system, parts of <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/easy-and-profitable-marketing-with-automations">email and SMS marketing can be automated</a>. Whether it&#8217;s an automated birthday email, a promotional offer to win-back customers or a follow-up message, a well-crafted automated campaign can make all the difference, engaging customers and driving sales.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Final Thoughts</h2>



Through the usage of CRM, hospitality marketers and operators can make their marketing efforts more effective and efficient. The ability to leverage customer data for predictive analysis gives businesses the opportunity to better understand consumer preferences and target promotions accordingly.&nbsp;



With automated processes in place, marketing resources are prioritised, saving both time and costs associated with manual labour. By understanding the power of a <a href="https://stampede.ai/amaze">CRM system</a> alongside proven strategies such as email, SMS and social media marketing, your hospitality business will gain an invaluable tool that will enable greater returns on investment while fostering stronger relationships with customers.

Why Is A CRM Solution Crucial For A Hospitality Marketer?

24,809,748 &#8211; that’s the total number of emails that our customers sent using Stampede in 2022!&nbsp;



Big data like this is cool, but we’re more interested in big results.&nbsp;



The actual power of email marketing comes from the data it tells. So we dug deeper into this data to compare the performance of those emails to the (former) industry average.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The State of Hospitality Email Marketing in 2023</h2>



Hospitality email marketing in 2023. It’s not looking great for most. The hospitality industry is criminally underserved when it comes to high-quality email marketing tools. Especially, if you compare it to other industries like retail, eCommerce and so on.&nbsp;



As a result, email marketing is underutilised and treated as a pariah, an outcast of marketing channels.



Now, it has been another tough year for the industry. Many operators were looking for ways to stay in touch with customers to keep the revenue stream up.&nbsp;



Usually, that’s where email marketing comes in, with an average ROI of <a href="https://www.oberlo.co.uk/blog/email-marketing-statistics">$40 for every $1 </a>spent. It is possibly the most reliable tool that allows businesses to connect with their customer to keep them coming back.&nbsp;



However, to achieve maximum results, a customer database is required, which is easily built with the right tech tools.



And that’s where the problem lies. Data is worthless without the right tools to hand to work with it.



So the first key takeaway here is: if the tools provided would be a better fit for the industry and its needs, more would get the big benefits from email marketing.



Before we dive into the 2022 email marketing numbers in more detail, time to bust one common myth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Myth #1 &#8211; Emails Are Not a Thing Anymore</h2>



A common objection people have to email marketing is that it’s a channel of the past and no one is really using it anymore. And the stuff that comes through might not be of the best quality, so people will probably ignore their emails anyway.&nbsp;



Numbers tell a different story:



In 2022 <a href="https://www.oberlo.co.uk/blog/email-marketing-statistics">over 333.2 billion emails</a> were sent and received EVERY. DAY.



<a href="https://www.constantcontact.com/blog/email-marketing-statistics/">61% of customers actually want to receive promotional emails</a> from their preferred brands.&nbsp;



So, if <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/3-time-saving-newsletter-tips-to-keep-people-engaged">done right</a>, your chances of standing out in a busy inbox are still better than you do on social media.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2022-key-email-marketing-figures-compared">2022 Key Email Marketing Figures Compared</h2>



For 2022 the <a href="https://www.campaignmonitor.com/resources/guides/email-marketing-benchmarks/">average industry</a> open rates for emails were 20%.



What does that tell us? If you have 1,000 people on your mailing list, 200 of them will open it. You probably reckon that’s not worth all the effort.&nbsp;



However, when the open rate is nearly 50%, that’s when you can’t afford to avoid this channel any longer.&nbsp;



So, let’s have a look at how average results from Stampede users compare to the average industry numbers when it comes to key email marketing 2022 figures.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="633" src="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Email-performance-bar-chart-1-1024x633.png" alt="" class="wp-image-22884" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Email-performance-bar-chart-1-1024x633.png 1024w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Email-performance-bar-chart-1-300x185.png 300w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Email-performance-bar-chart-1-768x475.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Email-performance-bar-chart-1-1536x950.png 1536w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Email-performance-bar-chart-1-2048x1266.png 2048w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Email-performance-bar-chart-1-1200x742.png 1200w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Email-performance-bar-chart-1-150x93.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



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Stampede emails have a higher delivery rate than the industry average with open rates being 2x higher and click rates even 6x higher. That’s a significant difference for all figures.&nbsp;



Why is that?



Customers expect a personalised experience, both in-venue and digitally. That’s when the data is needed.



With Stampede, you get access to multiple data sources from across the digital customer journey, which is automatically fed into the marketing tool.&nbsp;



Using this combined data they can foster an engaged customer mailing list. Through clever segmentation and automation, they can then send personalised campaigns that achieve much higher conversion rates.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Myth #2 &#8211; Tracking Results is Hard </h2>



Another common myth in email marketing is that people think it’s harder to show results to prove campaigns are delivering.



However, compared to other digital marketing channels such as social media, emails deliver much more tangible results that go beyond engagement, likes and views.&nbsp;



With the right setup, results can easily be tracked in real money spent.



It’s also a lot easier to set up this kind of tracking than conversion tracking on Google/Meta etc. Many of these require someone with good web development skills, but tracking email results in hospitality needs no coding skills at all.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Stampede Average Campaign ROI</h2>



The Stampede Marketing Suite allows for such detailed campaign reporting where users can track the results based on returning customers.



For 2022, we measured 13.8 million in-venue visits from those that received email campaigns via Stampede.



This means that more than half of the customers getting emails revisited the venue within 12 months! A reliable, steady flow of repeat business like this is going to be critical for success in 2023.



If each of those visitors spent £30 that&#8217;s £414,000,000 worth of transactions!



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Myth #3 &#8211; Too Much Work</h2>



Another big blocker for email marketing is the assumption that it is too time-consuming and too difficult to get right.&nbsp;



Plus, once the email is out it’s out, which causes insecurities, especially for new and non-marketing operators.&nbsp;



Whereas a social post can be deleted if needed and seems to be quicker to set up, so that’s where they’d rather focus.



However, creating and sending great email content is no harder than creating social media posts. Best tools make it easy for anyone to build an email with templates, functional drag-and-drop builders and great customer support.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sector-success-stories-in-2022">Sector Success Stories in 2022</h2>



Here are 5 examples of how Stampede customers have successfully used email marketing in 2022.



<figure class="wp-block-table is-style-regular"><table class="has-foreground-background-color has-background has-fixed-layout"><thead><tr><th>Venue type</th><th>Pubs &amp; Restaurants</th><th>Pubs</th><th>Eateries</th><th>Hotels</th><th>Bar</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Number of venues</td><td>19</td><td>15</td><td>4</td><td>3</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>Emails sent in 2022</td><td>9,812,955</td><td>1,196,940</td><td>108,533</td><td>383,531</td><td>354,452</td></tr><tr><td>Average open rate</td><td>36%</td><td>52%</td><td>70%</td><td>61%</td><td>50%</td></tr><tr><td>Repeat visits</td><td>1,030,177</td><td>1,500,107</td><td>268,309</td><td>174,845</td><td>9,112</td></tr><tr><td>Return-on-Investment</td><td>&gt;£10,500,000</td><td>&gt;£2,322,000</td><td>&gt;£185,000</td><td>&gt;£1,167,000</td><td>&gt;£218,900</td></tr></tbody></table><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Anonymised data based on Stampede users accounts</figcaption></figure>



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<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2023-email-marketing-forecast">2023 Email Marketing Forecast</h2>



Looking ahead to what 2023 might bring, we can say one thing for sure &#8211; email will remain the number one marketing channel for return on investment. 



Especially, for smaller hospitality brands email will become an integral part of their success strategy moving forward as tools become easier to use.



The rising trend of personalisation will continue and it will get even more powerful as more industries will figure out how to combine customer data.



Lastly, more businesses than ever will move away from big providers like Mailchimp towards industry-specific tools that meet their tailored needs.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



Don’t see the results you want from your email marketing? Reach out to get started with <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/marketing">Stampede</a>&nbsp;for better marketing and more revenue this year.

2022-23 Email Marketing Report – Get 2x Higher Open Rates

Feature Update – Improved campaigns, reporting and imports

Improving Conversion Rates in Marketing

Stampede Updates – July 2017

No doubt, digital tools have provided something of a lifeline for many hospitality businesses in recent years. Those tools come with valuable data that can be used to&nbsp;create a better and more personalised customer experience.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



However, many still argue that shifting too many interactions toward digital will diminish the overall customer experience. Making things impersonal when hospitality thrives from human interaction.



Over the next few weeks, we will tackle this common myth. Come with us as we explore&nbsp;how you can use data to wow your customers&nbsp;and create a personalised experience using marketing campaigns.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-personalised-marketing-recipe">The Personalised Marketing Recipe</h5>



For this, we’ve built a&nbsp;simple 5 ingredient success recipe&nbsp;that you can follow.



To start, we will use the example of a birthday campaign.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">1) The Data</h5>



First off, what&nbsp;data do you need and where do you get it from?



For our example, you’d need to capture:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Your customers’ date of birth</li><li>Their email or phone number</li><li>Their first name (at least)</li></ul>



This can be done through your WiFi sign-in, webform, booking platform, etc.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">2) The Trigger Event</h5>



The second ingredient is the trigger that sends your personalised email/SMS campaign.&nbsp;



In our scenario, the trigger event would be time-based, using the customer’s date of birth. E.g. when customer birthday is 3 weeks away &#8211; send the birthday campaign.



Time-saving tip&nbsp;&#8211; Most often you can&nbsp;automate these campaigns, so they will send by themselves. This is ideal for this birthday example.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">3) The Messaging</h5>



Messaging is the important bit. It is all about the personal touch here, so include your&nbsp;customers’ names&nbsp;in your campaign and acknowledge their upcoming birthday.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">4) The Offer</h5>



The goal here is to&nbsp;further entice your customers to come back. Birthday bookings are generally larger and more lucrative too.



This is how your personalised marketing campaign could look like combining the message and offer:



<a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-create-email-subject-lines-that-increase-open-rates/">Subject line</a> &#8211; [Name] It’s your birthday soon &#8211; we want to celebrate with you!



 Hey [name],



Have you made any plans for your birthday yet?



Why not celebrate your special day with us and make it a day to remember. No matter if you want to book a table for two or host a party, we’ve got you covered.&nbsp;



On top of that, we will treat you with a % discount.&nbsp;



Let’s celebrate &#8211; Book now



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">5) The Outcome</h5>



So, what can you expect to see as a result of those personalised marketing campaigns?&nbsp;



First off, you will get a&nbsp;returning customer&nbsp;that will eventually turn into a loyal one. Second, they will&nbsp;spread the word and bring in even more customers.



In our birthday example, if you can create a memorable experience, you’re not only satisfying your customer but also have the chance to win potential new customers. And they themselves will talk about the experience they have and share it on their socials.



Oh, and with their data, like birth date, this whole process starts over again, and again.



Keep an eye out for our next email to find out how you can apply our personalised marketing recipe to&nbsp;win back lost customers.&nbsp;



Need help segmenting your data for personalised email &amp; SMS campaigns?&nbsp;<a href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Get in touch</a>&nbsp;with one of our team who are happy to run you through it.

A 5 Step Recipe That Creates Profitable, Personalised Marketing [Part 1]

Deck the halls &#8211; or rather&nbsp;deck your digital assets&nbsp;&#8211; in time for the holiday season. You want your customers to feel excited and get them into the right mood early on. People will be keen this year, but with competition being fierce, you need your digital assets to stand out to highlight your seasonal marketing offers.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



 But where do you start? First and foremost,&nbsp;get your familiar branding aligned with recognisable festive themes. There’s some easy but highly effective things you can do with your assets that won’t take up much of your time or require any advanced design skills.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-seasonal-marketing-elements-images">Seasonal marketing elements &amp; images</h4>



Seasonal elements, illustrations and images&nbsp;are probably the quickest way to spread some festive cheer around.



Swap some of your images on your website with seasonal ones. You can reuse images from your previous festive seasons here or use stock imagery.



Include holiday-themed elements in your social media posts and in your emails. You can create your own&nbsp;festive template&nbsp;that you can reuse for all your assets (including your menu) to keep them uniform. Or to save some time, use ready-made ones. There’s a wide range to choose from online (e.g. template ideas for&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.canva.com/search/templates?q=winter%20season" target="_blank">Winter</a>&nbsp;or&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.canva.com/search/templates?q=holiday%20season" target="_blank">Holiday season</a>).



You can add some&nbsp;Christmas ornaments to your logo, the Santa hat is probably the most featured one around this time of the year. Profile frames and seasonal filters are also great for your socials.



Last, use a&nbsp;festive font&nbsp;for your offers and on your menu. Here’s some fonts ideas:&nbsp;



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Social-Media-Posts-2-14-2-1.png"><img decoding="async" src="https://image.stampede.ai/fill/1024/579/ce/0/aHR0cHM6Ly9zdGFtcGVkZS5haS93cC1jb250ZW50L3VwbG9hZHMvMjAyMS8xMC9Tb2NpYWwtTWVkaWEtUG9zdHMtMi0xNC0yLTEtMTAyNHg1NzkucG5n" alt="" class="wp-image-20636"/></a></figure>



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Seasonal marketing colour schemes</h4>



Seasonal colours make your holiday marketing instantly recognisable. Dark red, pine green and snow white are typical colours associated with Christmas, so are metallic ones (tip &#8211; take them from our email header image).



As a rule of thumb,&nbsp;keep your brand colours as a basis&nbsp;and use any seasonal ones as your background or text colours. Don’t overdo it, it’s more about sprinkling it over than going full-on.&nbsp;



What to keep in mind when picking your colour schemes:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Look for a colour palette that compliments your brand colours</li><li>Find pre-made colour palettes on platforms such as&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.canva.com/colors/color-palettes/" target="_blank">Canva</a>&nbsp;or&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/blog/free-seasonal-color-palettes" target="_blank">Shutterstock</a></li><li>Look for brands with similar colours and get inspired from what they’re doing</li><li>Pick around 3 seasonal colours you want to use throughout your assets</li><li>Pick colour shades used in the images</li><li>Use web browser extensions (e.g.&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/colorpick-eyedropper/ohcpnigalekghcmgcdcenkpelffpdolg?hl=en" target="_blank">Color Pick</a>) to get the&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://marketing.istockphoto.com/blog/hex-colors-guide/" target="_blank">hex code</a>&nbsp;from colours you’ve spotted to use in emails and designs</li></ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Seasonal marketing messaging</h4>



The last bit to sort out for your seasonal content is the messaging.



Help customers (and the search engines) find you for the right reasons this season. Add&nbsp;festive keywords&nbsp;in the right places on your website such as ‘Christmas Menu’, ‘Christmas Events’, ‘Christmas Office Party’.



And why not come up with your&nbsp;own branded, festive hashtag, e.g. &#8216;#[Company]XmasVibes&#8217;, to spread the word about your offers further on your socials.



<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.countryliving.com/life/a23477600/christmas-puns/" target="_blank">Seasonal puns</a>&nbsp;are always great fun. You can use them to spruce up (see what we did there?) your email subject lines: ‘Treat yo&#8217;elf this Christmas and book your table now.’, your post captions and your call-to-actions.



 Need a hand with promoting your festive season offerings via email and SMS?&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="mailto:contact@stampede.ai?subject=&amp;body=" target="_blank">Get in touch</a>&nbsp;with one of our team. We also have some festive templates available for you.

A Festive Checklist to Spruce Up Your Seasonal Marketing

Spooky times are creeping up at the end of this month, time to ramp up your&nbsp;Halloween marketing.



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We’ve come up with a bunch of promotional ideas to get you started and secure you some extra sales.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-halloween-email-campaign">1) Halloween Email Campaign</h5>



Highlight what you’ve planned this year and why customers shouldn’t miss out. Give them a&nbsp;sneak peek&nbsp;with some enticing images and menu previews.



Push them towards booking early on &#8211;&nbsp;‘limited availability &#8211; book now to secure your spot’.



Content ideas for your email:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Trick or Treat your customers &#8211; offers/deals</li><li>Planned events for kids and grown-ups</li><li>Menu &amp; drink specials</li><li>Include links to your socials for more Halloween content</li><li>Various booking call-to-actions</li></ul>



Time-saving tip:&nbsp;Stampede users can access the Halloween template from their account.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">2) Halloween Social Media Ideas</h5>



Seasonal events are great to&nbsp;give your accounts a little boost&nbsp;and put your brand forefront.&nbsp;



Here are some post inspirations:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Dress up competition &#8211; couples, families, pet</li><li>Take your&nbsp;<a href="https://www.countryliving.com/diy-crafts/g279/pumpkin-carving-ideas/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">pumpkin carving</a>&nbsp;to the next level (#SquashGoals)</li><li>Share homemade&nbsp;<a href="https://www.countryliving.com/food-drinks/g1194/halloween-treats/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">baking&nbsp;</a>treat ideas</li><li>What’s your favourite scary movie?</li><li>Trick or treat poll &#8211; which sweet do you go for?</li><li>Caption this &#8211;&nbsp;<a href="https://www.countryliving.com/life/a23012541/halloween-puns-funny-cute/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">halloween puns</a></li><li>Competition &#8211; find the hidden pumpkin on our website to win or how many ghosts can you spot on our website?</li></ul>



Find some best-performing Halloween hashtags&nbsp;<a href="http://best-hashtags.com/hashtag/halloween/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">here</a>.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">3) Halloween In-venue Ideas</h5>



You can go full-on with a themed party or just focus on some smaller events. Nevertheless, customers love to share their experiences on their socials, so keep&nbsp;“TikTok-ability”&nbsp;in mind!



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Host a theme party &#8211; mad hatters tea party, dinner in the dark,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.countryliving.com/food-drinks/g2640/halloween-cocktails/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">spooky cocktail party</a></li><li>Host a Halloween-themed&nbsp;<a href="https://www.countryliving.com/life/g37154795/halloween-facts/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">pub quiz</a></li><li>Install a spooky or pumpkin patch photo wall</li><li>Run a pumpkin carving competition for kids</li><li><a href="https://www.womansday.com/life/g40290350/halloween-bingo-cards/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Halloween bingo</a>&nbsp;for kids &#8211; can you spot the items in our venue?</li><li>Halloweenise your food &amp; drinks menu</li><li>For takeaway or delivery: sneak a nasty little surprise into the box</li></ul>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">Bonus: what&#8217;s trending this year</h5>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Offer a selection of&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/collection/halloween-mocktail-recipes" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">non-alcoholic beverages</a></li><li>Eye-catching&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cosmopolitan.com/food-cocktails/g40671448/halloween-snack-ideas/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">snack ideas</a></li><li>Get crafty with some easy&nbsp;<a href="https://www.oprahdaily.com/life/g28190402/diy-halloween-decorations/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">DIY&nbsp;</a>decoration ideas for your venue</li><li>Stand out from the crowd and get some costume&nbsp;<a href="https://www.allure.com/gallery/unique-halloween-costume-ideas" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">inspiration</a>&nbsp;from Harry Styles, Bridgerton and Stranger Things</li><li>Try something different &#8211; a Mexican-inspired&nbsp;<a href="https://www.tasteofhome.com/collection/how-to-throw-a-day-of-the-dead-party/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">“Day of the Dead” party</a></li></ul>



Need a hand with promoting your Halloween marketing?&nbsp;<a href="https://h.stampede.ai/meetings/stampede/demo" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Get in touch</a>&nbsp;with our team to find out more about&nbsp;<a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/marketing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stampede Marketing</a>.

Easy Halloween Marketing Ideas To Attract More Customers

Now that you know all the good, bad and ugly about AI-generated content from the <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/ai-tools-for-marketers-an-insiders-view">first part of our AI series</a>, it’s time to go a little deeper.



For this, we had a closer look into two of the most popular and widely used AI tools: <a href="https://openai.com/blog/chatgpt/">ChatGPT</a> and <a href="https://www.jasper.ai/">Jasper</a>.



We’ve compared their main features and capabilities and also came up with ways to get the most out of both.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-chatgpt-vs-jasper-the-basics-compared">ChatGPT vs. Jasper &#8211; The Basics Compared</h2>



For now, ChatGPT is a free tool. Its popularity practically blew up overnight and it became the fastest tool to hit 100 million users.



Unfortunately, this led to quite a lot of downtime and users not being able to access it. This is why they are now offering a paid version for $20/m which guarantees full accessibility and also faster responses.



Jasper, on the other hand, is a paid tool.&nbsp;



They offer a 5-day free trial to give you an idea and after that, their prices start from $49/m with a 50,000-word limit. Bear in mind that the word limit refers to all words created, even if you decide to delete them.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">3 Things To Keep In Mind</h2>



Before you dive into the world of AI-generated content, there are some things to be aware of.



Here are the 3 main ones:



<ol class="wp-block-list">
<li>They generate original content pulled from the web &#8211; you need to do fact-checking!</li>



<li>They have finished their base training a couple of years ago, so some of their knowledge is not up to date</li>



<li>They remember previous input and allow for follow-up adjustments if needed</li>
</ol>



The example below from ChatGPT shows what happens if you ask for recent events:



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="294" src="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-10.20.44-1024x294.png" alt="ChatGPT example" class="wp-image-22963" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-10.20.44-1024x294.png 1024w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-10.20.44-300x86.png 300w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-10.20.44-768x220.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-10.20.44-1200x345.png 1200w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-10.20.44-150x43.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-10.20.44.png 1442w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



Is there a way to get around this?&nbsp;



The solution, according to the platforms, is to feed in any necessary information that might be missing to provide more context. Basically, teach it yourself.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Ways To Generate AI Content</h2>



The most notable difference between ChatGPT vs. Jasper lies in the way you can create content.



ChatGPT



ChatGPT only offers one way, a chat function, which is dialogue based. It follows a question-answer pattern where you simply put in your request to start a conversation.&nbsp;



It’s therefore very easy to use (once you’ve cracked the commands) and a good tool to get you started.



Jasper



Jasper, on the other hand, comes with a plethora of tools for content creation, i.e. chat, 50+ templates, documents, recipes, and workflows.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="661" src="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-14-at-12.34.39-1024x661.png" alt="Jasper templates" class="wp-image-22962" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-14-at-12.34.39-1024x661.png 1024w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-14-at-12.34.39-300x194.png 300w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-14-at-12.34.39-768x496.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-14-at-12.34.39-1536x992.png 1536w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-14-at-12.34.39-1200x775.png 1200w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-14-at-12.34.39-150x97.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-14-at-12.34.39.png 2028w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



This can be a bit overwhelming for first-time users with a lot of options to choose from. To help you better navigate around the platform, Jasper offers various live training sessions and a <a href="https://learn.jasper.ai/bootcamp/overview?_gl=1*6nj48j*_ga*MTY3NDQwNjgxMC4xNjc1MTU0NjQ0*_ga_D4P3CS8W5P*MTY3NjQ1Mzg1OS4xOS4xLjE2NzY0NTM4NjAuNTkuMC4w">bootcamp</a>. Which we’d recommend making use of.



Now, the main difference between their individual tools is the degree of guidance they provide.



For example, Recipes come with pre-set step-by-step instructions. You only need to fill in your own input where required. It’s a fast way to generate content and is also ideal to get a better feeling of how Jasper&#8217;s commands work.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="401" src="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-13.34.23-1024x401.png" alt="Jasper recipes" class="wp-image-22964" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-13.34.23-1024x401.png 1024w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-13.34.23-300x118.png 300w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-13.34.23-768x301.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-13.34.23-1536x602.png 1536w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-13.34.23-1200x470.png 1200w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-13.34.23-150x59.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-09-at-13.34.23.png 1542w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



The opposite can be found in their chat (same functionality as ChatGPT) or document option, which allows for much more freedom.&nbsp;



Workflows and templates are somewhere in between with a little guidance.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="730" src="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-15-at-12.49.35-1024x730.png" alt="Jasper documents" class="wp-image-22965" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-15-at-12.49.35-1024x730.png 1024w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-15-at-12.49.35-300x214.png 300w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-15-at-12.49.35-768x548.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-15-at-12.49.35-1536x1096.png 1536w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-15-at-12.49.35-1200x856.png 1200w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-15-at-12.49.35-150x107.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Screenshot-2023-02-15-at-12.49.35.png 1688w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



It’s best to give them all a try to understand their difference and when to use them.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">7 Tips For Higher Quality Output</h2>



To finish off, here are 7 easy tweaks you can do to your input to get the output you are actually looking for:



<ol class="wp-block-list">
<li>Upload your own content to teach it your unique writing style</li>



<li>Update input for each paragraph to avoid repetition</li>



<li>For creative output: use short sentences with few words</li>



<li>For more detailed output: include key facts, number of words and more information (see example below)</li>



<li>Guide the output: frame sections with headlines, subtitles, etc.</li>



<li>Use Jasper’s re-phrase tool for more variations</li>



<li>Play around with different tones of voices, use adjectives or individuals as reference</li>
</ol>



Detailed input example for the chat function:



As a technology writer please write a 500-word educational article using semantically relevant topics for &#8220;digital customer journeys in hospitality&#8221;, H2 and H3 subheadings with bullet points and relevant statistics, FAQ at the end. Use a catchy title. Suggest relevant resources (URL) to learn more about &#8220;digital customer journeys&#8221;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">ChatGPT vs. Jasper &#8211; The Takeaway</h2>



The question that remains is: is it worth paying for an AI tool?&nbsp;



It depends on how you want to use it.&nbsp;



If you want to play around to understand how AI works then you should opt for the free ChatGPT version.&nbsp;



The same applies if you’re mainly looking for some content inspiration or subject line variations.



However, Jasper definitely provides much more flexibility for different business tasks in marketing and sales.



So, if you’re looking for ways to generate a wide variety of mainly longer-form content Jasper is the better option.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



Uncover the power of tech and data with the <a href="https://stampede.ai/amaze" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stampede Customer Experience Platform</a> that drives 5x more repeat customers.

ChatGPT vs. Jasper: The Two Most Popular AI Tools Compared

Did you know that Guest WiFi and Reviews are interconnected? And that you can use the first to boost the second?







It comes as no surprise that great guest review scores are one of the main factors for your business’s financial success. One the other hand, it also doesn&#8217;t require much to understand the possible negative impact low star reviews can have on your business.&nbsp;



Guests score you on a number of factors, such as the level of service and the quality of products you provide. It is, in essence, a grade of the customer experience at your business.



So just imagine. The service is great, the staff are friendly and knowledgeable, the venue is fantastic and the food and drinks…to die for! Imagine letting all that goodwill evaporate when your guests can’t access the WiFi.



Now you may think that will not influence their experience as 4G is widely available,&nbsp;however, 86% of tablets require WiFi, not 4G for internet connection. Recent surveys have shown that 75% of respondents reported that a good WiFi experience would influence them returning to a venue and therefore has an impact on their reviews. 



There are some easy steps you can take to improve the guest WiFi experience and the review score of your business.&nbsp;



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<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Welcome Your Customers</h4>



A WiFi welcome page that is branded for your venue is a great way to welcome guests and to further advertise your business. It is also a way for you to ask customers&nbsp;information about themselves in exchange for free WiFi. This simple method is a brilliant way of getting more back from your WiFi, as well as offering a reliable connection for your guests.



Another step further, if you operate a <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-advantages-of-managed-wifi-for-your-hospitality-chain/">hospitality chain.</a> You are able to create a uniform brand experience allover your venues. So that your customers recognise your brand wherever they go. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Welcome Them Back</h4>



In every business the key to success is offering a product that people want to come back for, again and again. Once your guests return to your venue, they do not have to enter any information to connect to WiFi. They will <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/get-your-customers-to-login-once-keep-them-always-connected/">seamlessly connect</a> just as they would at home, and why not welcome them with a &#8216;welcome back&#8217; email? And why not share this experience in a positive review?



That&#8217;s now possible with our <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-marketing-with-wifi-benefits-your-business/">Marketing Automation Feature. </a>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Know Your Guests</h4>



As well as giving your customers a fantastic experience, wouldn’t it be great if your&nbsp;WiFi could give you, the business owner, something in return apart from positive reviews? With a good Guest WiFi solution, you can now know how often guests return, which days/times they return, how long they stay and much more. Very valuable <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-marketing-power-of-wifi-analytics-for-your-business/">analytics</a> for the savvy business owner.



Using these insights, you could then create special campaigns. Say you&#8217;ve identified a quieter time during the week, so why not send out special offers (2-4-1) to boost them?



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Keep the Conversation Going</h4>



So your review scores are increasing and you have a growing, happy and loyal customer base, that you know quite a lot about. The information obtained can be used to spread brand awareness with your customers and give “<a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/engaging-customers-through-wi-fi-marketing/">calls to action</a>” through loyalty programs, special offers &amp; discounts.



So, why not invest in great Guest WiFi system to make your customers happy, increase your review scores and use fantastic marketing tools to keep <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/building-customer-loyalty-with-blackbx/">them coming back?</a>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Increasing your <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-respond-to-positive-and-negative-customer-reviews-online/">Online Reviews</a></h4>



If all the above is not enough for you and you still want to get more reviews from your WiFi. Why not try out our reviews feature?



With this, you are able to automatically ask your customers for a review once they&#8217;ve left your venue. In a round-robin-like system, these reviews will be evenly distributed to your TripAdvisor, Google and Facebook. 



But this is not the best part of the feature. <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-respond-to-positive-and-negative-customer-reviews-online/">Negative reviews</a> often cannot be prevented, even if you gave your best. So, everything below 4 stars will go to a hosted form only you have access to. This allows you to get in touch with the customer and take any counteractions to turn a negative experience into a positive one.



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<div class="wp-block-media-text" style="grid-template-columns:36% auto"><figure class="wp-block-media-text__media"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="600" height="600" src="https://stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300.png" alt="" class="wp-image-12864" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300.png 600w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300-300x300.png 300w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300-150x150.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300-96x96.png 96w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300-560x560.png 560w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300-16x16.png 16w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300-592x592.png 592w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300-100x100.png 100w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300-60x60.png 60w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img-reviews_300-90x90.png 90w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /></figure><div class="wp-block-media-text__content">
Want to Take Full Control Over Your Reviews?



_______________



<a href="https://stampede.ai/reviews/">Check out our reviews tool</a>
</div></div>



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Got curious? Do you want to see all this in action? Get in touch with us now.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a href="#schedule-demohttps://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request?month=2020-02">Click here to get started.</a></h2>

How WiFi Can Help Boost Guest Reviews Of Your Venue

We all know Tripadvisor mainly as a platform for reviews and hotel bookings. But did you know that they also have a new Holiday Rentals section on their website?&nbsp;High market competition from vacation rentals and AirBnBs has always been a challenge for the hotel industry. The pandemic further led to a shift in demand patterns with customers looking towards a more private setting for their holidays.&nbsp;



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



With the lodging industry slowly opening up again, <a href="https://www.hotelbenchmarking.com/blog/2021/04/surge-summer-bookings/">(staycation) bookings</a> for holiday rentals are highly popular. Many places are already fully booked for the Summer season. Better opportunities for social distancing and staying within your own household might be a reason why people opt for holiday rentals rather than staying in a hotel.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-ways-to-ramp-up-your-hotel-bookings">4 Ways To Ramp Up Your Hotel Bookings</h4>



This all might sound daunting for hotels. However, if you level up your Tripadvisor strategy and get your promotions right, there is still a big piece of the pie left that could be yours.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-reassure-potential-customers-through-travel-safe-feature">1. Reassure Potential Customers Through <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/safety-measure-transparency-on-tripadvisor/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">&#8220;Travel Safe&#8221;</a> Feature</h4>



Win back customers and boost their confidence with the Tripadvisor safety measures option, which is not available for holiday rentals. Tripadvisor allows customers to filter their searches by properties who have added Travel Safe features. So, if you haven’t set it up yet &#8211; <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-update-your-tripadvisor-with-safety-measures/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">check out our quick guide</a> to get you started.



Extra tip &#8211; the Travel Safe section includes the date that it was last updated. Make sure it indicates a recent date to show that your measurements are updated on a regular basis and in-line with any regulations.



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-large"><a href="https://stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Screenshot-2021-04-26-at-11.07.25.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="414" height="434" src="https://stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Screenshot-2021-04-26-at-11.07.25.png" alt="" class="wp-image-19955" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Screenshot-2021-04-26-at-11.07.25.png 414w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Screenshot-2021-04-26-at-11.07.25-286x300.png 286w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Screenshot-2021-04-26-at-11.07.25-150x157.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Screenshot-2021-04-26-at-11.07.25-16x16.png 16w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Screenshot-2021-04-26-at-11.07.25-57x60.png 57w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/Screenshot-2021-04-26-at-11.07.25-86x90.png 86w" sizes="(max-width: 414px) 100vw, 414px" /></a></figure></div>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-keep-your-tripadvisor-page-updated">2. Keep Your Tripadvisor Page Updated</h4>



Just as you do with your website and social media channels make sure you keep your Tripadvisor page updated with fresh content.



Upload new images, showcasing all the health &amp; safety measurements you have in place to generate trust. The better your guests can picture their experience at your venue in advance, the higher the chance they’ll decide to stay with you.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-last-minute-offers">3. Last-Minute Offers</h4>



Many are still hesitating to book their Summer holidays yet. But most of the vacation rentals are already booked. So, this is your chance to promote last-minute deals in your hotel and win those customers over to your venue. Your turn-over is most likely higher than those of holiday rentals, which could present some attractive availability options for those bookings.



Whilst you’re promoting any last-minute rooms, use the opportunity to upsell. Think of an attractive combined offer with your restaurant/spa facilities.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-showcase-your-amenities">4. Showcase Your Amenities</h4>



Need a break from DIY meal-kits and takeaway food? Could you do with someone pampering you for a while? Keywords that might trigger a lot of us right now. The beauty of staying in a hotel lies in the fact that you don’t have to take care of yourself!



The all-in relax package, which holiday rentals don’t offer. A fact you should tap into right now and center your promotional messaging and Tripadvisor page around. “Get spoiled and take the break you deserve”.



If you need help sending out your email and SMS promotions to your customers or looking for more Tripadvisor best practice to increase your hotel bookings, <a href="contact@stampede.ai" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">get in touch</a> with one of our team.

How to Tackle Tripadvisor’s Latest Hotel Booking Challenge

24 social media content ideas for week 20th of December:



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-css-opacity"/>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-monday-20th-games-day">Monday 20th &#8211; Games Day </h5>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Competition &#8211; guessing game, how many … are in the jar?</li>



<li>What board games will you be playing these holidays?&nbsp;</li>



<li>Team board, video or card games?</li>
</ul>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">Monday 20th &#8211; Mindfulness Monday</h5>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Share your team’s relaxing playlist</li>



<li>What’s your Monday morning song?</li>



<li>Any place in the world &#8211; where would you like to be?</li>
</ul>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">Monday 20th &#8211; Go Caroling Day</h5>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>What’s your favourite Christmas song?</li>



<li>Complete the gap in the lyrics &#8211; Christmas songs&nbsp;</li>



<li>&#8220;White Christmas&#8221; is the highest-selling single of all time with over 50 million copies</li>
</ul>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">Tuesday 21st &#8211; Winter Solstice</h5>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Offer on your delivery menu / DIY kits</li>



<li><a href="https://insanelygoodrecipes.com/romantic-dinner-ideas">Candle-light dinner ideas</a></li>



<li>The shortest day of the year &#8211; what are your plans?</li>
</ul>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">Wednesday 22nd &#8211; Cookie Exchange Day</h5>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Free cookie for your coffee order</li>



<li>Show us your cookie bakes</li>



<li>Competition &#8211; can you guess the cookie recipe by its ingredients?</li>
</ul>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">Thursday 23rd &#8211; Christmas Marathon Movie Day</h5>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>What’s your all-time favourite? The most watched one is “Home Alone”</li>



<li>Can you guess the Xmas movie by the quote?</li>



<li>Which song belongs to which movie?</li>
</ul>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">Sunday 26th &#8211; Thank You Note Day</h5>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Thank your customers &#8211; % off only today</li>



<li>Promote your gift vouchers</li>



<li>Put a smile on someone&#8217;s face and hide a sticky thank you note</li>
</ul>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">Sunday 26th &#8211; Candy Cane Day</h5>



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Did you know … their shape represents the shepherd’s crook</li>



<li>Crazy candy cane flavours &#8211; which one would you try?</li>



<li>Ever tried <a href="https://www.delish.com/uk/cooking/recipes/a29685389/homemade-peppermint-bark-recipe/">peppermint bark</a>? Make your own</li>
</ul>

24 Festive Content Ideas For Week 20.12.2021

It&#8217;s Burns night here in Scotland and that can only mean one thing: haggis. Ok, maybe two things: haggis and whisky. No, wait &#8211; we&#8217;re forgetting the most important part of Burns night &#8211; poetry.&nbsp;

So in that spirit, we&#8217;ve prepared our very own Burns poem. Enjoy.&nbsp;
ODE TO A WIFI ROUTER&nbsp;
O my Router&#8217;s lights blink like a red, red rose, 
That&#8217;s newly sprung in June.&nbsp; 
O my Router opens up &nbsp;the wide, wide internet, 
That I unboxed at noon.&nbsp;
As beautiful as you are, my bonnie Router, 
So deep in luve am I. 
And I will reboot you as needed, 
Till a&#8217; the seas gang dry.&nbsp;
Till a&#8217; the seas gang dry, my Router, 
And Grumpy Cat melt wi&#8217; the sun; 
And I will luve the still, my dear, 
While my connection TTL shall run.&nbsp;
And fare-thee-weel, my only Router!&nbsp; 
And fare-thee-weel, a while!&nbsp; 
And I will come again, my Router. 
Tho&#8217; &#8217;twere a ping with a latency over 25 ms.&nbsp;
And if that wasn&#8217;t enough Burns for you, here&#8217;s everything you need to about the poet in a two minute animation:&nbsp;
<iframe loading="lazy" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/qMxIBqpryG0" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
&nbsp;
As you can see, we&#8217;re a little nuts about good WiFi here. So if you&#8217;re running a retail, hospitality or any other small business, Stampede is here to help. You can even take us for a free spin by clicking the button below.
And no more poetry, we promise.&nbsp;
{{cta(&#8216;67766406-fcf4-4f6e-b2b4-900631ed085d&#8217;)}}

Burns Night Poem – Ode to a WiFi Router

<h1 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-free-june-july-2024-social-media-calendar">Free June &#8211; July 2024 Social Media Calendar</h1>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-no-more-last-minute-panic-brainstorming-for-your-social-media-posts">No more last-minute panic brainstorming for your social media posts.</h4>



Operating a business and at the same time staying on top of your social media content can be tough. Constantly coming up with new and engaging ideas for your next posts takes time you might not always have.



Download your free social media calendar for June and July 2024 now.



Featuring topical post ideas, hashtags suggestions and image inspiration for each month.

June – July 2024 Social Media Calendar

It’s now been just over a week since the U.K. government set lock-down in place to prevent coronavirus spread. At Stampede we were already fully stuck in our work from home setup and up to speed again. We were really thankful to be able to do this. It allowed us to get on with some really important projects quickly.



Here’s a roundup of what we’ve been doing to help out our customers and the sector overall:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Built and launched a <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/new-feature-alert-gift-cards/">free digital gift card</a> generator</li><li>Made the Marketing features free to all</li><li>Built a database CSV import system for Marketing</li><li>Designed and added multiple new email marketing templates</li></ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Free Digital Gift Card</h2>



Something we’d had in the pipeline for a while, but seeing the immediate need for pay-it-forward systems as lock-down commenced meant we brought this to the top of the pile.



In roughly 3 days our product team pulled it all together and we had a working <a href="https://product.stampede.ai/gifting">digital gift card system</a> for anyone to use, for free.



Interest is already picking up and feedback from users so far has been positive. We look forward to seeing this getting plenty of use.



We’re now adding extra functionality and polish to the system but anyone can start using it right away



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Marketing For Free</h2>



There were two stages to this decision. First &#8211; we wanted to make sure any and all businesses using Stampede had an easy way to talk to their customers and give them critical updates. And so, <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/marketing/">email and SMS marketing</a> is now available to everyone regardless of their plan.



Second &#8211; if it was free for all customers, there’s no reason it shouldn’t be free to other businesses like them. They needed to send critical updates too and we wanted to help with what we can.



This pushed us to:



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Database Upload with CSV</h2>



It was a necessary addition to make sure businesses could make full use of the Marketing features. Like Gift Cards it was moved up to highest priority for the product team.



This is live now too, enabling any business with a CSV database of their customers to upload to Stampede and start sending emails.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">New Email Templates&nbsp;</h2>



After seeing what sorts of activities our customers were turning to in order to keep operating, our marketing success team built some brand new email templates inside the Stampede Marketing system. 



To help businesses promote these new activities faster there’s now a template for “We Deliver” with logos of popular delivery apps included; “Takeaway Available” for those offering takeaway; and “Gift Cards” to help promote the new digital gift cards businesses would set up, also within Stampede. 



As part of the Marketing feature, these are all free to use as part of the updates covered above. 



It’s been a fairly hectic week (and a bit) for everyone but as time marches on we hope that the new activities and processes become the new norm for people, and the businesses are able to find their feet in new and successful ways.



If you&#8217;re not an existing Stampede user you can sign up for access to Gift Cards and Marketing <a href="https://signup.stampede.ai/?source=marketing">HERE</a>.

Weekly update from Stampede featuring Gift Cards and Marketing

Last Week at Stampede

You run a business and you like to think you know your customers &#8211; but do you really?

Sure, you probably know your audience demographic breakdowns and probably some of your peak times, but are you doing anything with this information other than plugging it into a spreadsheet and playing with pivot tables? (not that there&#8217;s anything wrong with that &#8211; we love pivot tables).
<h3>Automatic WiFi Marketing to Your Customers</h3>
But instead of just letting that data sit in cells, here&#8217;s an example of how you could be using it to reach out to your customers.  How about sending an email or SMS message to your customers on their birthday, enticing them with a free drink or starter? Who could resist? And &#8211; since it&#8217;s a birthday &#8211; naturally they&#8217;ll be bringing along their friends as well. More people = more orders = more business for you.<img decoding="async" class="" style="width: 320px; margin: 0px 0px 10px 10px; float: right;" title="Stampede Marketing" src="https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/2735287/Blog/wifi-marketing.jpg" alt="Stampede Marketing" width="320" data-constrained="true" />
Even better &#8211; what if all this was done automatically?
And &#8211; hold on &#8211; we&#8217;re not done yet &#8211; what about if you were then able to add your customers email to your marketing list (automatically, of course) so that you could continue to send them promotions and specials in the future.
<a href="https://www.stampede.ai/how-it-works#marketing">All that marketing power</a> &#8211; and more &#8211; is ready and waiting for you just inside the Stampede Connect dashboard. And getting started with WiFi marketing in Stampede is even easier than you think.
<h3>WiFi Marketing with Stampede</h3>
Just take a look at this short video that shows you &#8211; in two minutes, believe it or not, how you can setup Stampede to automagically send your customers an SMS message the first time they connect.
<iframe loading="lazy" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uX-Vy3m0dcg?rel=0" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
Pretty darn easy, right?
So what are you waiting for? <a href="https://connect.stampede.ai">Login to your Connect dashboard</a> so you can get started right away. And if you&#8217;re not using Stampede yet (we won&#8217;t judge), sign up for a <a href="https://www.stampede.ai/get-started">FREE trial</a> so you can see how you can start laser targeting your customers.
How are you using Stampede with your business? Feel free to leave a comment below. Also, be sure to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxc2sJ3nBYJhLGQr_2RM60w">subscribe to our YouTube channel</a> so you get notified of the latest videos and if you&#8217;ve got something you want to see us do a video demo or explainer for &#8211; be sure to drop us a line.
<a class="eut-modal-popup" href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request?month=2020-02">Click here to get started.</a>

WiFi Marketing and Your Business: More Than Pivot Tables

We’re in an era where individuals expect free, fast, secure WiFi wherever they go. This demand has created a gap in the market where small business owners can harness the power of a secure WiFi network to engage customers. It’s an opportunity to subtly nudge individuals into your store or restaurant without “obviously” selling to them. And let’s face it – “obvious” sales should be left back in the 20th century. 







When looking at <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-future-of-restaurant-marketing/">recent marketing trends</a>, people tend to stay loyal to businesses that offer a personal service. They also prefer supporting services that are proactive when it comes to social responsibility. Add this to a stable and effective WiFi marketing campaign and there you have the perfect all-round customer engagement solution. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">A Recap on What WiFi Marketing Is</h4>



Perhaps we’re jumping the gun and you’re not yet familiar with the new buzz-phrase “WiFi Marketing”. Let’s quickly recap and take a look at the concept. 



WiFi marketing is the process where visitors provide certain important details. I.e. email addresses and phone numbers in exchange for the free use of your business’s WiFi network. Individuals enter these details by accessing a login area on their smartphones. 



Once a business has these details, an opportunity is created where they can communicate with potential customers on a more specific level. Individuals can now be reached via text message, email, or through <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/rock-your-restaurant-with-wifi-and-instagram/">social media channels</a>. 



Think of it as a way to tap people on the shoulder through their mobile devices and say, “Hey, we’re still here and we have something great to offer!”



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Why Is WiFi Marketing Important?</h4>



According to <a href="https://www.brickandmobile.com/mobile-stats/">Brick &amp; Mobile</a>, 84% of small businesses have reported that using mobile marketing methods increased their customer loyalty base. 



At the same time, <a href="http://www.devicescape.com/press-release/survey-quantifies-business-benefits-of-amenity-wi-fi/">62% of local consumers</a> spend more time in a store if WiFi is available.



It’s just a win-win situation!



<a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-marketing-with-wifi-benefits-your-business/">WiFi marketing</a> gives customers access to your wireless network and you get access to their information. This information is invaluable when it comes to creating a personal service and effective targeted marketing campaigns that truly engage people and their wants and needs. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Engaging Your Customers</h4>



One of the best things about WiFi marketing is that it gives you an <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-marketing-power-of-wifi-analytics-for-your-business/">in-depth insight</a> into the buying trends of consumers. The platform allows you to <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-marketing-power-of-wifi-analytics-for-your-business/">keep track of the customers</a> who have signed-up to your network by storing their following information:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>How often they enter your establishment and how long they stay on average</li><li>Which promotional material they engage with</li><li>What they generally purchase</li><li>How often they make purchases</li></ul>



And so on…



Now, you have a better idea of who your customers are and when and how often they visit your location. This data can be added to your CRM and other online engagement tools.&nbsp;



WiFi marketing also gives you the power to automate and personalise your messages based on customer demographics and frequency of their visits. 



It allows you to engage with your customers by implementing the following communication strategies:



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Proximity Marketing</h4>



Proximity marketing refers to the act of delivering targeted messages based on your customers’ behaviour while they were visiting your establishment. You can send out targeted promotional offers based on demographics, frequency of visit, and buying preferences.



For example, John Smith frequents your deli to purchase your famous chicken and avocado sandwich. So, you can send him a personalised message when this sandwich is on promotion – or you can simply remind him that “hey, it’s lunchtime and chickens on the menu”. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Campaigns</h4>



<a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/a-complete-guide-to-marketing-automation/">SMS, email, and push-notification campaigns</a> can be created to engage with customers who might visit you regularly. These portals can be used to send promotional messages, to invite individuals to participate in a competition you might be hosting. Or to simply remind them that you exist and that your doors are always open to them. 



By sending out subtle messages, you remind individuals that you are eager for their business. Also, that you are willing to provide them with the things that they want. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Social Marketing</h4>



When you ask customers to provide their details, you can do so by providing them with a splash page that features your branding information. Your guests are then given an option to share this information or to post a message on their social network profiles. This helps to increase social visibility for your brand.&nbsp;



Essentially, when one customer signs-up to your network, you can potentially reach out to their friends on social networks too.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Wrapping it up…</h4>



WiFi marketing creates a bridge that allows information to flow in both directions. In the future, the extent of this information will broaden and businesses will have access to endless marketing opportunities. You will be able to engage with customers on an extremely personal level. This allows them to indulge in your loyalty programmes and constantly inviting them back to your venue for another visit. 



Returning customers spend on <a href="https://www.bain.com/">average 67% more than first-time customers</a>. This means that you want to do everything you can to retain the customers you have while improving their experience with every visit. WiFi engagement is one such solution. 



Why not give it a go with our WiFi Marketing software?



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<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>

Engaging Customers Through WiFi Marketing

You might have heard that data is the new currency; it&#8217;s the key that unlocks ultra-targeted marketing that drives customers through your doors. But how do you gather the data you need for your restaurant? And what kind of data is useful for your marketing, and why?







If you&#8217;d like to make better use of your marketing budget you might have considered buying data to help you target potential customers. But why buy data when you can generate an own your own data?&nbsp;



At first glance, it can seem trickier for an offline business to collect data and put it to use. But the answer is likely simpler than you think. You can generate data for restaurant marketing using <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/5-tips-for-setting-up-wifi-for-your-restaurant-or-pub/">Stampede captive WiFi</a>. And our portal service keeps you on the right side of the Information Commissioner when it comes to GDPR. 



One of the biggest pros of this kind of <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-marketing-with-wifi-benefits-your-business/">WiFi marketing</a> is that it is a safe and compliant way to gather customer data. You can use it to build customer profiles, segment and target your restaurant marketing. It can give you an edge when it comes to providing superior customer service too. But where should you start? New customers often ask us what data they can collect and how to use it.



With Stampede WiFi, you can design your very own splash page to ask the questions you want to know the answers to. There&#8217;s a lot of potential data hospitality businesses can seek out. But of course, details and data hold different value depending on your business and marketing goals. Our captive WiFi portal does more than just gather data. It allows you to seek out information at different stages in the customer relationship and most importantly, add context. On your WiFi sign-in page, you can collect data directly about your customer and also gather context about their visit. Here&#8217;s how to do it.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Start with the basics</h4>



Name, date of birth, gender and address or postcode are <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-marketing-power-of-wifi-analytics-for-your-business/">common data collection</a> starting points. Your diner&#8217;s name is the first thing you need to begin building their customer profile. 



Date of birth helps you to segment them and lets you know when their birthday is too, which is handy when it comes to inviting them to celebrate with you. Gender is another variant that helps grow your segmentation options. Collect these four details from everyone who signs onto your WiFi and you&#8217;ll have a great foundation for planning simple and effective marketing campaigns.&nbsp;



This data can also fuel inspiration for events, menu changes or even rebranding to better fit your customer base. For example, you may work out that you have a lot of young mums popping into your establishment. You could encourage them to visit more frequently by changing your daytime offers. Or you might discover that you have a lot of single professionals visiting you for coffee. Individuals you could also target with offers for after-work drinks and nibbles.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Keeping in touch</h4>



Marketing to previous customers will generate a higher return on investment. So data that helps you to keep in touch with diners is very valuable. <a href="https://econsultancy.com/more-reasons-for-retailers-to-offer-wi-fi-in-stores/">One survey from OnDeviceResearch</a> found that 74% of people would be happy for a retailer to send a text or email with promotions while they&#8217;re using in-store WiFi. 



Captive WiFi is a cost-effective way to <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/email-marketing-tips-for-the-hospitality-industry/">grow email and SMS marketing</a> lists. You can check submitted email addresses and encourage reviews by sending guests an email thanking them for their visit. Asking them to leave feedback. Another option is to include an incentive such as money off or free item code within the email to encourage a return visit.&nbsp;



In some cases, your diners may not even need to fill out their contact details; you might choose to give them the option to login using their social profiles instead.&nbsp;According to information from <a href="https://www.cmocouncil.org/">CMO Council</a>, 56% of social network users stated they would use their social profiles to login in return for a customised experience. You gain valuable data associated with their social profiles. Helping you to build out their customer profile and allowing marketing segmentation. The customer benefits from a speedy sign in and the potential of tailored content and offers from their very first interaction.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Context and customisation opportunities</h4>



They say content is king. But in the data world, <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-marketing-power-of-wifi-analytics-for-your-business/">context adds an extra layer of value</a> that puts meaning behind your data. For example, you might ask your diner who they are dining with and the purpose of their visit. Is it a date night? Are they having a quick family tea? Is it a special celebration? What&#8217;s their favourite drink or pizza? 



This context helps you to understand why people are visiting, to try and attract more visitors aiming to do the same. It also allows you to customise your service and offers for them immediately. Providing them with a great eating out or entertainment experience.&nbsp;



Knowing how your customer found out about your venue, offer or event is also super valuable information to have. This lets you know how your marketing is performing and can help you to <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/tracking-digital-marketing-roi/">calculate your return on investment of digital marketing</a>. Also allows you to see how specific campaigns are performing. When customers are converted by marketing, it&#8217;s not always by the activities we expect. 



Data context really helps to ensure budget and time are being directed to the right activities to attract target customers. And when you combine this context and customisation with basic customer information, you have the makings of some great customer personas to inform your overall marketing strategy, campaigns and individual ads.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">In-store patterns</h4>



Some of the most valuable data you can collect from your Stampede WiFi doesn&#8217;t come from asking your guests questions. It can help you to better plan your staffing, identify problem times when you need to generate more customers. It can also help you achieve consistently better customer satisfaction levels. What is this data? It&#8217;s the simple connection data relating to each login.



Bookings don&#8217;t always match up with the numbers of covers in a service or the numbers of guests on the table. Nor do they tell you how quickly a table is turned. Reporting on your connections to your WiFi portal lets you see at a glance how many people were using WiFi in your restaurant. This means you can identify peak or slow periods and you also get an indication of how guests stayed.&nbsp;



As a customer’s device is associated with their login, it&#8217;s recognised by your captive WiFi portal whenever they visit. When those guests return to your venue or another one of your businesses, you can see patterns emerge that will help you build a fuller picture of your customer&#8217;s wants and needs. You might find that a regular customer always dines out late on Wednesdays. Or that you have lots of families visiting on Fridays. 



You might even decide to introduce a <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/engaging-customers-through-wi-fi-marketing/">loyalty scheme to encourage</a> those fortnightly visitors to come and see you every week instead. This way, you can continually work towards building a better picture of the lifetime value of your customer. And if the customer is someone who found you due to marketing and you know that, you can track against the original cost for acquisition



All of this information can be gathered without the need for your customer to download an app. With minimal data physically entered by them.



Do you have a firmer idea of what type of data might be useful for your restaurant or bar marketing and why? Set up a Stampede demo. To talk about the details of the very useful ways your WiFi can contribute to your restaurant marketing.



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Gathering the Right Data for Your Restaurant Marketing

A new venue opening is always exciting and creates a big hype.



Press coverage, opening events, social media posts, website launch… And of course, word-of-mouth from those who have already paid you a visit.



Inevitable, after all the buzz there will eventually come a time when the&nbsp;initial spike in your footfall&nbsp;will start to slow down.&nbsp;



The good news, there’s a way to prevent this from happening.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">Keep Up Your Footfall With Customer Data</h5>



If you capture customer data from the moment you open the doors of your new venue, you’re able to&nbsp;build and grow a strong mailing list.&nbsp;



This mailing list is the foundation for your marketing and helps you turn all those first-time visitors into loyal customers.&nbsp;



The graph below helps you visualise how footfall is impacted over time, depending on if you have access to customer data from the beginning or not.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><a href="https://stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screenshot-2022-10-17-at-11.08.29.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="636" src="https://stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screenshot-2022-10-17-at-11.08.29-1024x636.png" alt="" class="wp-image-22567" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screenshot-2022-10-17-at-11.08.29-1024x636.png 1024w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screenshot-2022-10-17-at-11.08.29-300x186.png 300w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screenshot-2022-10-17-at-11.08.29-768x477.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screenshot-2022-10-17-at-11.08.29-150x93.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screenshot-2022-10-17-at-11.08.29-592x368.png 592w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Screenshot-2022-10-17-at-11.08.29.png 1050w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></a></figure>



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-quickly-grow-a-mailing-list">How To Quickly Grow A Mailing List</h5>



However, building a mailing list from your&nbsp;<a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-revenue-boosting-combo-of-wifi-and-bookings-data/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">table booking system</a>&nbsp;alone will only provide you with a limited amount of data. You will get the data from the lead booker but not the entire party, hence you’re missing out on a big bunch of customers.



So, ideally, you want to&nbsp;get the contact details of everyone&nbsp;who is in your venue.



The best way to gather this real-time data is by using your WiFi as a <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/wifi" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">captive portal</a>. This means customers enter their contact details when they sign up for your WiFi. 



Now all you need to do is to set up email and SMS campaigns to reach out to those customers.



Save some time and make use of&nbsp;<a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/easy-and-profitable-marketing-with-automations/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">automated campaigns</a>:



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Post-visit&nbsp;&#8211; thank them for their visit and offer a discount for next time</li>



<li>Referral&nbsp;&#8211; offer a discount or upgrade if they bring in new customers</li>



<li>Win-back&nbsp;&#8211; reach out to those who haven’t come back yet with a special deal</li>
</ul>



Tip: If you ask for your customers’ dates of birth, you can surprise them with a personalised offer for their big day!



Start capturing your customer data to sustain your footfall in your new venue.&nbsp;<a href="https://h.stampede.ai/meetings/stampede/demo" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Get in touch</a>&nbsp;with our team to find out more about the&nbsp;<a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/wifi/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stampede Captive Portal</a>.

New Venue? Keep Your Footfall For Longer With Customer Data

Euan Campbell

AI In Hospitality Marketing: A Complete Guide

4 Ways To Optimise Your Hospitality Business With AI

The Pros And Cons Of Using AI In Hospitality

4 Revenue-Driving AI Tools For Hospitality Operators

3 Restaurant-Specific AI Tools That Drive Sales

How AI Can Facilitate Reviews Management For Hospitality Operators

How To Speed Up Content Creation With AI In Hospitality

3 Clever AI Tools To Support Your Hotel Operations

<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-get-the-knowledge-you-need-to-boost-your-revenue-with-customer-loyalty">Get the knowledge you need to boost your revenue with customer loyalty</h4>



Loyal customers spend up to 67 % more than new customers and present a great opportunity to increase revenue in your hospitality business.



Download your free eBook&nbsp;to start unlocking more revenue.



Featuring 7 unique industry examples, a breakdown of the different types of loyalty programs and detailed tips on how to run a simple, but effective stamp card program.

8 Tactics to Increase Customer Spend

How do you, as a bricks and mortar business, thrive in a digitised world where the challenges are mounting? You learn what the current challenges in the hotel industry are. Then you take strategic steps to not just get over them, but use them as a springboard to success. Tall order? If you have the right tools at your fingertips, such as <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/getting-started-with-guest-wifi/">WiFi marketing for hotels</a>, we don’t think so.







In this article, we reveal 5 of the dominating challenges in the hotel industry and give you real solutions for tackling them.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Expectations are changing</h4>



Your customer of yesterday is not your customer of today. Guest expectations and demands have undergone radical change.&nbsp;



Customers today expect personalisation, on tap WiFi, speedy check-in and more. It’s not just a matter of meeting expectations. You need to exceed those expectations. The bar has been raised thanks to technology, experience sharing and familiarity with streamlined services throughout all areas of an individual’s life.



Solution: Catch your guests where they are – on your WiFi. Beyond simply offering it, you then need to make it part of their personalised unique experience. For example, through <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-marketing-with-wifi-benefits-your-business/">WiFi marketing for hotels,</a> you can give them targeted offers to redeem during this stay or the next. Another solution is advance automated check-in. Indeed, whilst the <a href="https://www.bdo.co.uk/en-gb/insights/industries/leisure-and-hospitality/hotel-britain-trends">Hotel Britain Report 2018</a> put automation as a top prediction, we’d say it’s now not even optional.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">The sharing economy isn’t a hotelier’s friend</h4>



Perhaps the biggest challenge that the hotel industry is facing is the boom in ‘hospitality hosts’. In London, the number of Airbnb listings has <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-47910700">quadrupled in the last four years</a>. Indeed, research shows that <a href="https://www.hotelowner.co.uk/15939-airbnb-now-a-third-of-the-size-of-the-hotel-sector-in-london/">Airbnb is now one-third the size of the hotel sector in the capital</a>.



This is competition on a scale the hotel industry isn’t experienced with. What’s more, these hospitality hosts are able to offer something unique and highly personalised.



Solution: Get savvy and offer things that hospitality hosts can’t, because of their size and set-up. Up your service levels and use technology in unique ways.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Marketing trends are all about the digital</h4>



Linked closely to the above two challenges is a reality that marketing trends today are all about the digital landscape. Yet, traditionally, hoteliers haven’t done too well at embracing this shift. Online marketing is now mandatory if you want to survive, let alone thrive.



Your customer spends their time online. When they are checking you out, they check online first. They hunt down your reputation and offerings like a bloodhound. A whopping <a href="https://revenue-hub.com/respond-negative-positive-reviews/">93% check hotel reviews before making a booking</a>.



Solution: Digital marketing which focuses on engaging the customer is the way forward. You can do this through social media marketing, WiFi marketing and things such as hotel apps. Indeed, with Stampede you can make WiFi marketing effortless and make it easy for guests to leave reviews on major sites and get them boosting your social media profile through Facebook login. <a href="https://stampede.ai/product/features/">Check out more WiFi marketing features</a>.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Data matters</h4>



We need customer data if we want meaningful insights which enable us to improve our service and grow. The growth of the <a href="https://www.revfine.com/smart-hotel-room/">smart hotel room</a>, such as Hilton’s Connected Room and Marriott’s Internet of Things room, make valuable data collection and analysis possible. But it’s scary to know if you’re doing it legally and ethically. That’s before you consider the vulnerabilities and risks of attacks via connected devices.



Solution: Use smart and innovative solutions which take care of the tricky legalities for you. For example, we handle the GDPR side of your WiFi marketing so that you don’t even have to think about it.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Loyalty, loyalty, loyalty</h4>



Loyalty in the hotel industry has always been the Holy Grail. But now your customers are more fickle than ever. The digital world has made it easy for customers to succumb to enticing offers from competitors.



Solution: You need to be the one offering the right incentives at the right time, pulling your guests back, over and over again. With segmentation and data capture and analysis through <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-marketing-power-of-wifi-analytics-for-your-business/">WiFi marketing for hotels</a> then you can entice your guests back with things such as birthday gifts or meal offers.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">You have solutions</h4>



We’re not underestimating the challenges in the hotel industry. We are actively innovating to create solutions.&nbsp;Find out for yourself how<a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/effective-email-marketing-tips-for-hotels/"> WiFi marketing for hotels </a>is a simple and affordable solution to many of these challenges by using our free trial. Join other hoteliers including Emerald Hotel, Trump International Golf Hotel Scotland and more.



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A Guide On Current Hotel Industry Challenges

Is your kids&#8217; menu beige, boring and mainly consisting of chicken nuggets and chips? <a href="https://kam-media.co.uk/family-dining-opportunity/">65% of parents think that restaurants should be more inventive when it comes to their special children&#8217;s offerings</a>. After all, those kids will be the customer of the future, so better get things right early on. We&#8217;ve got some insight to share on what restaurants can do to appeal to families.



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<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-standing-out-in-a-crowded-sector">Standing Out In A Crowded Sector</h4>



As mid-market restaurant brands fall by the wayside, many have accused chains of being too samey. There&#8217;s no denying that plenty of brands share similar menus and price points. So how can those targeting the family market differentiate and win family diners away from competitors? 



The obvious answer is to take the time to understand and serve customers better. The little things really do make a difference. 



According to recent research by <a href="https://kam-media.co.uk/family-dining-opportunity/">KAM Media</a>, families make up 57% of restaurants&#8217; revenue. With children playing an important part in deciding where to eat out for over half of the families. Cater well for kids and their parents will reward you with their loyalty. 



We spoke to Lisa O&#8217;Keeffe, Senior Brand and Content Manager at <a href="https://www.dayoutwiththekids.co.uk/">Day Out with The Kids</a> to find out what families look for when dining out in the UK. She confirmed that nailing customer service is the key to unlocking loyalty for family diners.



She told us: &#8220;Dining out together is something our families do together up to four times a month, with a large percentage regularly heading back to tried and tested favourites for one simple reason: the service. There&#8217;s nothing more stressful for parents than heading to a restaurant with the kids that simply isn&#8217;t geared up for the real and honest side of family dining, even if they advertise themselves as family-friendly.&#8221;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-making-children-your-focus">Making Children Your Focus</h4>



You can do kids eat for a £1 or even boast &#8216;kids eat free&#8217; to get customers through the door. But as Lisa explains it&#8217;s not all about money. Gearing up properly to serve child visitors and putting parents at ease makes it easier for them to spend their cash with you.



&#8220;Our families tell us they&#8217;re often worried about their kids being too noisy, or too messy,&#8221; said Lisa. &#8220;Any restaurant that can help to put parents’ minds at ease and be totally accepting of both these things is certainly likely to be a hit.&#8221;



&#8220;Play areas, activity packs, bringing the kids&#8217; meals out first and space around the table for things like pushchairs are all simple things to implement, but are so often overlooked.&#8221; In fact, <a href="https://www.bighospitality.co.uk/Article/2015/10/30/75-of-families-eating-out-in-restaurants-more-regularly">63% of parents prefer restaurants that offer activity packs</a> for their kids.



A pushchair friendly floor layout, plenty of high chairs and kid-friendly cutlery and cups, are practical ways to serve this group of customers before anyone sits down. These initial moments before your guests even browse a menu are crucial in reassuring families that they are in the right place. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-using-wifi-marketing">Using WiFi Marketing</h4>



At Stampede we work with businesses to ensure their <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/wifi/">Guest WiFi</a> is set up to help them serve their family customers better. Context is everything when it comes to understanding customers&#8217; dining priorities. 



If someone signs into WiFi you can ask if they are visiting with children and show them relevant offers. You can add this information into your wider service strategy and use your insights to create <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/drive-revenue-and-loyalty-with-personalisation-part-i/">personalised marketing campaigns</a>. Knowing what proportion of custom comes from families and when they visit can help you to make informed decisions and grow your business. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-employees-that-make-a-visit-special">Employees That Make A Visit Special</h4>



You&#8217;re all set up for family-friendly service thanks to the great floor design, menu and entertainment, but to really nail things you need to excel with customer service training. Your employees need to understand the context and priorities behind guests&#8217; visits. 



Is a family looking for a quick and convenient bite to eat after school? Perhaps they&#8217;re hoping for a stress-free trip to celebrate a family member&#8217;s birthday? Encourage waiting staff to build personalisation into their service approach for great table service. They should be able to signpost useful information quickly. 



This means doing things like:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Asking about the reason behind the visit</li><li>Asking about/providing high chairs</li><li>Offering activity packs, crayons or information on your WiFi</li><li>Asking parents if they&#8217;d like children&#8217;s food brought out first and letting them know how long food will take, updating if necessary</li><li>Letting parents know where toilets, baby change, play areas are</li></ul>



It can also be helpful to let parents know if the kitchen can pack food to go. This may prompt parents to order dessert to eat at home later. It can also provide reassurance if a tired toddler meltdown means they want to head home earlier than expected. Omit, the key is to be attentive and offer fast efficient service without rushing diners. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-make-your-menu-malleable">Make Your Menu Malleable</h4>



A kid’s menu that offers good value signals that you&#8217;re set up for younger guests. However, despite what the adverts would have you believe, not every kid likes to eat chicken nuggets or spaghetti in tomato sauce. Some do. But others like to have exactly what&#8217;s on Mummy and Daddy&#8217;s plate. And while it&#8217;s great to have a balanced menu that encourages little ones to try new things, it&#8217;s also pretty smart to cater to what kids want to eat. This is something many restaurants are starting to pick up on. 



Lisa told us: &#8220;When it comes to the menu, we&#8217;re also seeing a growing number of chain restaurants implementing a &#8216;pick your own&#8217; approach to help meet the needs of fussier eaters.&#8221;



&#8220;The ability to create your own pairings makes it much more likely you can rustle up a meal for every child. But it&#8217;s also great when kitchens can be really flexible or even something as simple as plating up. Carrots stood in hummus rather than on the side can, and has, been the difference between a meal a kid will or won&#8217;t eat!&#8221;



Do you let diners mix and match starters and sides to keep kids happy? Do your serving staff know what type of requests your kitchen can accommodate? If you can magic up their real family favourites and keep kids munching long enough, parents could snatch extra moments of conversation. They might even order dessert.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-are-you-ready-to-step-up-your-customer-service-for-families">Are You Ready To Step Up Your Customer Service For Families?</h4>



As families’ disposable income continues to be squeezed in line with market pressure on restaurants, now&#8217;s the time to consider: is your establishment truly family-friendly?&nbsp;



<a href="https://h.stampede.ai/meetings/stampede/demo">Get in touch</a> to find out more about how Stampede can help you succeed with your customer service for families.

How to Nail Customer Service for Families [Updated 2022]

There’s no doubt that the hospitality industry is going through a bit of a digital revolution. Data collection is high on the list, for obvious reasons, but what else can be done with a customer database?&nbsp;



One of the best ways to make a customer database generate extra revenue is with emails. And the primary email we recommend is always the newsletter.&nbsp;



Here’s our top tips to making a fantastic newsletter:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Consistent branding. Make sure it has the same logo and colours as they appear on your website and any other branded materials. It builds recognition and trust in your digital communications. </li><li>Consistent timing. Sending the newsletter on a specific day of the week or month gives you a schedule to keep to, and regularity will improve the number of customers opening and reading the email.&nbsp; </li><li>Make it visual. Use a mixture of images and short pieces of text to cover a variety of topics. For the layout, think like a newspaper with different columns and sections.&nbsp; </li><li>Give the audience stories, not just offers. Everyone has offers, but your business has it&#8217;s own tales to tell. Keep customers interested with topics such as:<ul><li>Stories from behind the scenes</li><li>New menu items and their design process.</li><li>New staff members</li><li>The latest news from any charities or local sports teams that you’re involved with.</li></ul></li></ul>



A quick final note: make sure you have an <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/can-you-market-to-track-and-trace-customers/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">opted-in list of contacts</a> before sending newsletters.



 A regular email newsletter is the gateway to increased customer interaction.&nbsp;



As a routine part of your advertising and marketing it will deliver more repeat bookings and covers as it builds loyalty to your business and keeps you at the front of customers&#8217; minds.



 To learn more about emails, newsletters and how they can deliver more revenue, <a href="https://stampede.ai/company/#contact" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">get in touch</a> with one of our team.

Newsletters Are The Foundation

<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-get-the-knowledge-you-need-to-boost-your-sales-with-automated-email-campaigns">Get the knowledge you need to boost your sales with automated email campaigns</h4>



Between our customers and ourselves, we&#8217;ve worked on hundreds of automation campaigns that send millions of emails every year and generate tons of extra revenue for hospitality businesses.



So, we know a thing or two about the value of automation, and we wanted to share the best practice.



Download your free playbook&nbsp;to get started with easy and profitable marketing automation.



Featuring our easy-to-follow 5-step recipe to build campaigns that increase sales without an increased workload, plus 5 in-depth examples following the recipe.

Shortcut Your Way To 6x Higher Conversion Rates

Identifying your loyal customer base shouldn’t be a gut feeling that it exists in some way.



You can and should put a real number on how many you have.



All you need is the right tools and access to customer loyalty data.



You want to dig really deep into your data to get valuable insights from your loyalty numbers.



Here’s everything you need to know to define concrete loyalty for your business.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-customer-loyalty-data-sources">Customer loyalty data sources</h2>



There are many possible in-venue and online sources that you can use to gain customer loyalty data.



Some examples:



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>WiFi logins from your Guest WiFi</li>



<li>Interactions from your loyalty program</li>



<li>Bookings made via your booking system</li>



<li>Transactions from your POS</li>



<li>Purchases from your E-commerce</li>
</ul>



What you want to learn from this data is the number of interactions each customer had over a certain period of time.&nbsp;



Next, you need to narrow down this data a bit further.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Segmentation to identify loyal customers</h2>



Segmenting your data will help you to spot common behaviours that determine how engaged and loyal your customers are.&nbsp;



You are looking for patterns in the data here.



Key metrics to look out for:



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>How much do they spend on average in-venue and / or online</li>



<li>How often do they visit/book during a period of time</li>



<li>How engaged are they with your loyalty scheme, e.g. number of stamps, frequency of points&nbsp;</li>



<li>How often do they book special events</li>
</ul>



This helps you to spot trends, i.e. the frequency of bookings per month goes down after the 3rd visit.



From this, you can then take relevant action.



For example, set up an <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/easy-and-profitable-marketing-with-automations">automated email</a> to customers who have been at your venue 3 times. Feature some of your venue highlights and invite them to come back.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Clever analysis tool: retention cohort report</h2>



In addition and to get a black-and-white percentage of customers that have repeatedly returned over a time period, you can create a retention cohort chart.



But before you fire up a new spreadsheet and start manually adding your data, there might be a better and quicker solution readily available.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Making sense of your retention cohort report</h2>



A lot of e-commerce and other tech software comes with an automatically created <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/introducing-more-tools-to-thrive-stampede-2023-product-update">retention report</a> as part of their analytics feature.&nbsp;



Such a report might look a little complicated at first but is quite easy to read and understand.



The image below shows an example.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="690" src="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Group-11227-1024x690.png" alt="" class="wp-image-22925" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Group-11227-1024x690.png 1024w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Group-11227-300x202.png 300w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Group-11227-768x518.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Group-11227-150x101.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Group-11227.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure>



The left column refers to the selected monthly time interval. The top column represents the number of subsequent visits.&nbsp;



The chart starts with the first visit which is the total number of customers in that particular month. This will be your reference number moving forward.&nbsp;



Reading from left to right, it shows you how many of those initial customers have reached their number of return visits (along the top row)



The report displays cohorts. So each return visit number is a separate group with customers that share one characteristic: their number of return visits.&nbsp;



As a consequence, customers can only ever be in one cohort at a time, and there is no overlap.



What actions can you take from this report? You can, for example, build segments from your cohorts and create tailored marketing campaigns for them.&nbsp;



Someone who has visited 10 times will expect different communications from someone who has only visited 2 times.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



Stop guessing and start measuring your customer loyalty with real data and the <a href="https://stampede.ai/">Stampede Guest Experience Platform</a>.

How Hospitality Operators Can Use Data To Reveal Loyal Customers

If you’re a hospitality operator looking to keep your guests engaged and loyal, personalised marketing is your secret weapon. However, to offer truly customised experiences businesses have to include one invaluable tech tool in their overall customer relationship management <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-create-a-hospitality-crm-strategy-that-drives-results">(CRM) strategy</a>: their CRM platform.



In this blog post, we’ll discuss how hospitality operators can create personalised email &amp; SMS marketing campaigns powered by their CRM.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-personalised-marketing-and-why-does-it-matter">What is personalised marketing and why does it matter?</h2>



Personalised marketing is the process of creating and sending out email and/or SMS campaigns that are tailored to each customer. Studies show that <a href="https://www.epsilon.com/us/about-us/pressroom/new-epsilon-research-indicates-80-of-consumers-are-more-likely-to-make-a-purchase-when-brands-offer-personalized-experiences">80% of customers are more likely to make a purchase from personalised marketing</a>.&nbsp;



The approach involves combining data insights with creative messaging and personalised content to create the ultimate customer experience.



By leveraging data insights, hospitality marketers can create more relevant content that resonates better with their target audience. This leads to increased customer loyalty and a higher chance of repeat business.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How to get started with personalised email &amp; SMS campaigns using your CRM</h2>



If you&#8217;re looking to step up your email and SMS marketing game, then targeted campaigns are the way to go.&nbsp;



The data from your CRM builds the foundation for your personalised marketing. Data points can include everything from customer purchase history to personal preferences.&nbsp;



Once you have a good understanding of your audience, it&#8217;s time to use your CRM system to create targeted campaigns that speak directly to them.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Build a holistic customer profile</h4>



Creating a comprehensive customer profile in your CRM is crucial for any business looking to better understand its audience. To build a holistic customer profile, it&#8217;s important to collate all data sources in your CRM system to gain a full picture of the customer journey.&nbsp;



In order to get the most out of your customer profiles, you should strive to combine as much data as possible by accessing different sources. For example through your Guest WiFi, <a href="https://stampede.ai/get-bookings">table booking platform</a> or loyalty scheme. This includes everything from basic information such as age to interests and purchasing habits.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Create segments</h4>



To effectively reach and engage your target audience hospitality marketers need to create marketing segments within the CRM platform. These segments can be based on demographics such as age or gender as well as geography and behaviour.&nbsp;



By understanding the unique characteristics and needs of each segment, you can tailor your messaging. This way you will resonate better with them and improve the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns.&nbsp;



Additionally, businesses should make use of a CRM’s tagging feature. Profiles that are tagged based on triggers can further enhance segmentation by identifying specific actions or behaviours.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Set up automation</h4>



Marketing automation is one of the most valuable CRM features for hospitality operators.



With the ability to trigger email and SMS campaigns based on certain customer behaviour and interaction, businesses can create personalised messages that really engage with their audience.



For example, a simple <a href="https://www.coastdigital.co.uk/2020/01/02/email-marketing-why-you-should-embrace-birthday-emails/">birthday email can generate 342% higher revenue </a>compared to a traditional promotional email. Additionally, businesses can utilise automation to retain customers who haven&#8217;t visited their venue in a while with a special discount.&nbsp;



One big benefit is that this CRM automation saves valuable time for staff as once set up, they run automatically.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">How other hospitality venues have successfully used personalised marketing</h2>



One of our customers, <a href="https://stampede.ai/customer/birdhouse-london">Birdhouse London</a>, has saved 2 hours per week on their marketing by using automated email campaigns. When customers subscribe to their newsletter, they get an automated email with a free margarita offer.



Another successful example comes from <a href="https://stampede.ai/customer/the-coal-exchange-hotel">The Coal Exchange Hotel</a>. They’ve used the clever Stampede CRM segmentation tool to tag customers that would be interested in their ‘kids eat free’ deal. From this, they were able to generate over £900 return visit revenue.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Summary</h2>



Personalisation is transforming the way hospitality operators communicate with customers. With specific and personalised campaigns, you can increase your revenue by targeting customers who are most likely to take action.&nbsp;



The first step to getting started is building a holistic view of your customers using your CRM data. Other successful implementations are creating segmentations and setting up automation.&nbsp;



As seen in the examples above, hospitality businesses can double their sales just by using personalised <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/marketing">email and SMS marketing</a> in a more intentional way powered by their CRM insights. Personalisation is key when it comes to reaching higher ROI in your marketing campaigns.

How To Create Personalised Marketing Campaigns With Your CRM

In case you haven&#8217;t heard, <a class="" href="https://www.android.com/versions/oreo-8-0/">this week Android released Oreo, the latest version of their operating system</a> (Version 8.0 for those of you keeping score at home).
The new version of the world&#8217;s most popular operating system introduces a number of visual tweaks to make phone and tablet displays smoother and more fluid and some behind the scenes updates to keep Android devices running at peak performance.

One of these new features is the ability to turn on WiFi when close to a known access point. This will be a lifesaver for device battery life. Sure, you could just turn the WiFi on and off on your Android as you go about your daily life. But that&#8217;s kind of a pain. And how about those times you&#8217;ve turned off your WiFi to save battery power, then, when you think you&#8217;ve connected to <a href="https://www.stampede.ai/wifi-in-action#coffee">WiFi at your favourite Cafe or Pub</a>, wind up using a month&#8217;s worth of data streaming the <a href="http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/game-of-thrones/feature/a795227/game-of-thrones-incredible-easter-eggs-you-might-have-missed/">latest GoT episode</a> because you thought you were connected to the free WiFi.
And let&#8217;s not forget about security &#8211; keeping your WiFi off when you don&#8217;t need it is one of the best ways of keeping your beloved phone or tablet protected from the <a href="https://www.stampede.ai/blog/articles/data-comprimised-wifi-pineapple">hackers who love to spy on unsecured public networks</a>.
Like we said &#8211; a lifesaver.
Here&#8217;s the way it works: each time you connect to WiFi, Android will remember the location (provided you have location services enabled, of course). Every time you return to that known location, Android will automagically turn on the WiFi and connect you to the network.
<h3>Enabling Automatic Wifi in Android Oreo</h3>
Right &#8211; enough with the pregame show &#8211; here&#8217;s how to turn on this nifty feature in Android:
<ol>
<li>Open Settings</li>
<li>Tap on Network &amp; Internet</li>
<li>Select the WiFi Connection where you want to enable an automatic connection</li>
<li>Select WiFi Preferences from the bottom of the screen</li>
<li>Enable &#8220;Turn on WiFi Automatically&#8221;</li>
</ol>
That&#8217;s it!
<h3>Need More Cookie?</h3>
Like we were saying &#8211; automatic WiFi connections are just the tip of the iceberg of new features in Oreo. There&#8217;s also improved Picture-in-Picture, built in Google Fonts, and improved second screen displays.
But don&#8217;t just take our word for it. Here&#8217;s a quick roundup of some of the other cool new features:
<iframe loading="lazy" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Fn57JS9WnAQ?rel=0" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
What are some of the favourite features you&#8217;ve discovered in Oreo? Feel free to leave a comment below!
<h3>Get Connected</h3>
And if you&#8217;re running a pub, restaurant or other retail business, and you&#8217;re looking to provide awesome Wifi for your customers to connect their Android (and iPhones and tablets and&#8230;.you get the idea), why not give us a shot?
We integrate with most leading Wifi manufacturers like Cisco, Unifi and more and setup is a breeze.
What are you waiting for?
<a class="eut-modal-popup" href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request?month=2020-02">Click here to get started.</a>

Save Your Battery By Enabling Automatic WiFi Connections in Android Oreo

Gift card sales have skyrocketed over the past years with customers being keen to support their local businesses. Though,&nbsp;how many of your sold gift cards have actually been redeemed yet? Fact is,&nbsp;<a href="https://enjovia.com/make-more-restaurant-profit-with-vouchers/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">customers spend up to 72% more than the actual value of the card when they redeem it</a>. 



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



Time to unlock your hidden revenue with a personalised gift card reminder campaign using our simple 5 step recipe.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">1) The Data</h5>



For this campaign, you need to access your&nbsp;gift cards buyer data. The data should include the purchase date and gift card status, i.e. redeemed or unredeemed.&nbsp;



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">2) The Trigger Event</h5>



Now segment your data into customers&nbsp;who have purchased a gift card but have not redeemed&nbsp;it yet.&nbsp;



If your gift cards come with an expiration date you can use this as a trigger event, e.g. set up an automated reminder campaign for the month before.&nbsp;



Otherwise, you can choose the timeframe that works best for you. Ideally, you would run this sort of campaign during quieter times to further boost bookings.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">3) The Messaging</h5>



Your gift card reminder message should go straight to the point.&nbsp;Keep it simple with a strong call-to-action&nbsp;at the end. Also, use your subject line to tell your customers what your email is about to increase your open rates.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">4) The Offer</h5>



There’s no need for an additional offer in your campaign.&nbsp;



However, you can use your customers’ attention to&nbsp;promote certain events&nbsp;or&nbsp;fill in for last-minute cancellations&nbsp;with a prompt to book quickly due to limited availability.



Here&#8217;s how your gift card reminder email could look like:



Subject line &#8211; [Name] have you redeemed your gift card for [company] yet?



Don’t forget to pay us a visit and redeem your gift card!



Why not come by this weekend? We’ve got [event] coming up and only limited space available. So better be quick!



Book Your Space Now



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-the-outcome">5) The Outcome</h5>



You certainly don’t want to miss out on all this&nbsp;additional revenue&nbsp;coming with your gift card redemptions. So, keep on top of your gift card sales and make sure customers redeem them in time.&nbsp;



Besides, for many gift card holders this might be the first time at your venue. This is your chance to exceed their expectations and turn them into repeat customers.



Be sure to keep an eye out for our next part of this series on how you turn customers into regulars across all your venues.



Take your&nbsp;<a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/gift-cards/#gifting" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">gift cards</a>&nbsp;to the next level and go digital.&nbsp;<a href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Get in touch</a>&nbsp;with one of our team to find out more.

Unlock Hidden Gift Card Revenue: The Next 5 Step Recipe [Part 3/5]

One prominent trend in the hospitality industry is the rising&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://mailchi.mp/exp101/good-morning-ring-an-old-friend-today?e=68c993fe11" target="_blank">customer demand for personalisation</a>. Personalisation is your key ingredient to creating a&nbsp;memorable customer experience. An experience that makes customers come back and spread the word about you.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



 Simply put, personalisation is an easy and straightforward way to stand out, increase your sales and grow your business.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-you-should-focus-more-on-personalisation">Why you should focus more on personalisation</h4>



<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.revinate.com/blog/infographic-personalization-struggle-hotel-marketing/" target="_blank">62% of customers say they have recommended, chosen, or paid more for a brand that provides personalised service</a>.



It’s time to move away from the one-size-fits-all approach many businesses still rely on. Customers want to be understood as individuals and served according to their needs.



Data helps you to unlock the huge potential&nbsp;for a personalised experience. However, gathering data often raises concerns around security and the assumption that customers would not want to give their details away.



Despite that, recent studies have shown that&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://www.fsrmagazine.com/expert-takes/diners-crave-personalized-experiences-are-you-delivering?fbclid=IwAR3vB4e9iY0arMVdccpQQjmj99MSe0_HZn087oYLY-7vbAyxKtEZ0kApFvA" target="_blank">84% of customers say they trust restaurants with their personal data if it translates to a better, more personalised experience</a>.&nbsp;



So, make sure to use the data and derive real value from it to create targeted and relevant offers.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="how-to-grow-your-business-with-personalisation">How to grow your business with personalisation</h4>



Personalisation is not only about satisfying your customers&#8217; needs. There is more it can do to grow your businesses.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="foster-customer-loyalty">Foster customer loyalty</h5>



Personalisation is the foundation of your relationship building. If you greet your customers by name whilst already preparing their favourite coffee it might not be a big deal for you. But will definitely be remembered by your customers. Think of how Starbucks is applying this principle by calling customers by their first name when their order is ready.



The same applies to keeping track of dietary requirements and food preferences to adjust your personalised menu recommendations accordingly.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="increase-revenue">Increase revenue</h5>



In addition, remembering customer preferences based on past purchases gives you an easy&nbsp;opportunity to upsell. You know what they like, so why not proactively offer it to them when taking their order.&nbsp;



Also, email campaigns that include&nbsp;personalised offers and deals come with a much higher conversion rate (up to 6x). Start building customer mailing list segments based on transactional behaviour, interactions and demographics to better tailor your campaigns.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="boost-word-of-mouth">Boost word of mouth</h5>



We all like to share special moments with others. So whenever you exceed your customers’ expectations chances are that they will recommend you, post about you and leave a positive review. This will, of course, bring in new customers.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="improve-operational-efficiency">Improve operational efficiency</h5>



 If you know what customers want and like you can&nbsp;better predict trends. Give them more of what they like and take unpopular items off your menu. This will also help you towards better inventory management and further reduce costs.



 Watch out for <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-bring-customers-back-using-customer-data-and-personalisation-part-ii/">Part II of this blog article</a>, about what is needed to create a personalised experience, including some inspiring ideas.



Need help sending out <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/">tailored email &amp; SMS campaigns</a>?&nbsp;<a rel="noreferrer noopener" href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request" target="_blank">Get in touch</a>&nbsp;with one of our&nbsp;team who are happy to run you through it.

Drive Revenue And Loyalty With Personalisation [Part I]

In hospitality, it’s not just about serving great food or providing a comfortable stay – it’s about delivering personalised experiences that make each guest feel valued. To do this effectively, you need a deep understanding of their unique needs and preferences. Let’s explore how Stampede helps you gain these insights, empowering you to offer guests exactly what they’re looking for.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-segmentation-matters">Why Segmentation Matters</h3>



Mass marketing is out. In today’s world, people expect to receive relevant, personalised messages. Segmentation allows you to target specific groups of customers based on factors like behaviour, location, and preferences. By doing this, you ensure that each message resonates with the right audience, increasing engagement and loyalty.



So why is this important for hospitality businesses? Simple: when you send the right offer to the right person, the chances of that guest returning or making a booking skyrocket.



In the Forbes article &#8220;<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/blakemorgan/2020/02/18/50-stats-showing-the-power-of-personalization/">50 Stats Showing the Power of Personalization</a>,&#8221; Blake Morgan shares compelling statistics that highlight the effectiveness of personalised marketing in boosting customer engagement and loyalty.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-data-dilemma-offline-businesses">The Data Dilemma: Offline Businesses</h3>



One of the biggest challenges for offline businesses, like restaurants and hotels, is gathering useful and relevant data to segment their audience. How can you know your guests&#8217; preferences if you don’t interact with them online? This is where technology steps in.



Using a tool like Stampede Wi-Fi, you can collect guest data effortlessly. When guests first connect to your Wi-Fi, they fill out a quick form, providing valuable insights such as whether they are local or whether they like certain types of food. This data is a goldmine for building targeted marketing campaigns.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-create-segments-for-your-business">How to Create Segments for Your Business</h3>



Here’s a simple approach to audience segmentation for hospitality businesses:



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-collect-data">1. Collect Data</h4>



Start by collecting information about your guests through Wi-Fi sign-ups or surveys. You can ask questions like:



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Are you local?</li>



<li>Do you prefer spicy food?</li>



<li>Are you interested in special offers or events?</li>
</ul>



<div class="wp-block-columns is-layout-flex wp-container-core-columns-is-layout-1 wp-block-columns-is-layout-flex">
<div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="563" height="1024" src="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wifi-Login-563x1024.png" alt="Wi-Fi login example" class="wp-image-23627" style="width:313px;height:auto" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wifi-Login-563x1024.png 563w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wifi-Login-165x300.png 165w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wifi-Login-768x1397.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wifi-Login-150x273.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Wifi-Login.png 816w" sizes="(max-width: 563px) 100vw, 563px" /></figure>
</div>



<div class="wp-block-column is-layout-flow wp-block-column-is-layout-flow">
<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="639" height="1024" src="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Survey-639x1024.png" alt="Survey example on mobile" class="wp-image-23625" style="width:313px;height:auto" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Survey-639x1024.png 639w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Survey-187x300.png 187w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Survey-768x1230.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Survey-150x240.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Survey.png 954w" sizes="(max-width: 639px) 100vw, 639px" /></figure>
</div>
</div>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">2. Build Segments</h4>



Once you have the data, it’s time to create segments.&nbsp;



Use IF and AND conditions to refine your campaign targeting. In this example, we&#8217;re targeting guests who live nearby and enjoy spicy food. We selected &#8216;Custom Question equals Yes&#8217; (for those who answered &#8216;Are you local?&#8217;) and guests who liked a survey about spicy food.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="775" height="1024" src="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Segmentation-775x1024.png" alt="Segmentation in Stampede example" class="wp-image-23626" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Segmentation-775x1024.png 775w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Segmentation-227x300.png 227w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Segmentation-768x1014.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Segmentation-150x198.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Segmentation.png 942w" sizes="(max-width: 775px) 100vw, 775px" /></figure>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">3. Targeted Campaigns</h4>



With your segments in place, you can now create highly targeted campaigns. Want to promote a new spicy dish? Send an email to guests who previously said they liked spicy food. Got a special deal for locals? Make sure it’s only reaching people who live nearby.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="610" height="1024" src="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Email-610x1024.png" alt="email example" class="wp-image-23624" style="width:650px;height:auto" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Email-610x1024.png 610w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Email-179x300.png 179w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Email-768x1289.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Email-150x252.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Email.png 858w" sizes="(max-width: 610px) 100vw, 610px" /></figure>



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">Real-World Example: Segmenting for a Restaurant</h3>



Let’s say you run a restaurant and want to promote a new dish. Using your Stampede Wi-Fi data, you’ve segmented your audience into two groups:



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Locals who like spicy food.</li>



<li>People who are NOT local to your area </li>
</ul>



For the locals, you send a targeted email promoting your new spicy menu item. You know they’re nearby and love spicy food, so this campaign is highly relevant to them.



For the non-locals, you could send an “Upcoming events” email with a discount on their next visit, encouraging them to return with multiple reasons to come back to the area



By tailoring your message to each group, you increase the chances of conversion, bringing more guests back to your venue.



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">The Tools to Make It Happen</h3>



Tools like Stampede make segmentation simple. Not only does it collect valuable guest data for you, but it also automates the process of creating and sending personalised campaigns. With everything in one place — from data capture and marketing tools to detailed reporting — you can easily manage your entire marketing strategy. This all-in-one solution allows you to track the performance of each campaign and see what resonates best with each segment, helping you optimise your efforts for greater success.&nbsp;



<h3 class="wp-block-heading">The Bottom Line</h3>



Segmentation and targeting aren’t just marketing buzzwords – it’s a practical, powerful strategy that can transform how you connect with your guests. By gathering data, creating meaningful segments, and targeting the right people with the right message, you’ll see better engagement, higher loyalty, and more repeat business.



In hospitality, every guest matters. Make sure they feel that by sending them marketing that speaks directly to their preferences.



Ready to start using segmentation for your hospitality business? Get in touch today to learn how I can help you make the most of your guest data with tools like Stampede.

How to Use Segmentation to Increase Guest Engagement in Hospitality

3 Ways To Improve Customer Experience With Bookings & Reviews

5 Common Data Integration Flaws In Hospitality Tech

The Secret To Mastering Your Google Reviews

Why 3-Star Reviews Actually Matter More

How to Get Maximum Value From Customer Reviews Sentiments

How to Take Back The Control of Your Online Reviews

3 Ways to Keep Up With Changing Customer Reviews

It has been a big year here at Stampede. Join us for a throwback of the highlights of 2019.



Looking back, we spoke to a lot of amazing people around the globe, running all different kinds of businesses. But we&#8217;ve also invested lots of thoughts and time into improving and updating our product.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">The Platform</h4>



The platform itself got updated in the way it looks and navigates. We have released the fourth version of it, providing our customers with enhanced user experience and more detailed insights and statistics.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Features</h4>



Following feedback from our customers, we&#8217;ve added a couple of new, exciting features. All further enhancing their marketing efforts, providing them with even more ways to grow their business.



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Our Stories feature has transformed the way venue promotions are delivered to customers into a more dynamic and effective way. The first of its kind as an in-venue marketing tool.</li><li>The multi-site reporting saves time and allows for an easy way to compare metrics across various locations in just one report.</li><li>With our newest on-demand email marketing feature customers can be grouped into segments, which can be used for flexible bulk emailing.</li></ul>



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Integrations</h4>



Various new integrations have been added to our product as well. For those who love to get things automated and streamline processes in their marketing and data, we&#8217;re now officially listed on Zapier. Also, we now integrate with Airship.co.uk, a hospitality CRM service.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">The Stampede Family</h4>



Looking internally, a lot has happened as well. 



With our rapid growth in the last 12 months (and still ongoing), our employee size has more than tripled. We have even outgrown our office space.



The biggest achievement though is definitely our brand change from <strike>BLACKBX</strike> to Stampede in November. 



Have a look yourself at our 2019 review timeline:



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



<div class="wp-block-image"><figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="800" height="2000" src="https://stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2019-year-in-review.png" alt="" class="wp-image-13849" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2019-year-in-review.png 800w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2019-year-in-review-120x300.png 120w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2019-year-in-review-410x1024.png 410w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2019-year-in-review-768x1920.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2019-year-in-review-614x1536.png 614w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2019-year-in-review-150x375.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2019-year-in-review-592x1480.png 592w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2019-year-in-review-24x60.png 24w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/2019-year-in-review-36x90.png 36w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /></figure></div>



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



Many more highlights to come this year. So, stay tuned to not miss out on anything!

Stampede 2019 Review

Summer is a brilliant time for the hospitality industry. For starters, the nights draw in a lot later and the weather is warm. Both of these factors make it easy to boost trade in the evenings, none more so when it comes to hosting customers outside. It’s a unique time of year where we all feel more relaxed. What about giving your restaurant outdoor seating space a little boost and make the most out of it this summer?







Plus, with the copious amount of bank holidays, customers are more likely to arrive in large groups and stay out for longer. Summer is also a time when many sporting events happen, making beer gardens or outdoor seating a desirable location.



There are, of course, some stark differences when it comes to seating customers inside a restaurant compared with outside space. What needs to remain the same, however, is providing the same excellent customer experience.



Further reading: <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/6-restaurant-sales-promotions-which-ones-right-for-you/">https://stampede.ai/blog/6-restaurant-sales-promotions-which-ones-right-for-you/</a>



If you are interested in learning how to make the most of your restaurant outdoor seating space this summer, here are our top tips.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Give Your Space A Makeover</h4>



The great British weather can take a toll on the exterior of your premises. So if you are planning on hosting guests there, it will take more than a few tables and chairs to brighten the place up. Simple things such as a jet wash over patios along with a fresh lick of paint on fences and walls can make a huge difference. It’s also a nice idea to <a href="https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g186338-d12527182-Reviews-The_Ivy_City_Garden-London_England.html#photos;aggregationId=&amp;albumid=101&amp;filter=7&amp;ff=267262682">add hanging baskets or similar biophilia too</a>. If you’re going to be serving food outside, ensure the area is clean and appetizing. It should also comply with health and safety regulations too.&nbsp;



Aside from the obvious though, your outside space is a chance <a href="https://www.pinterest.co.uk/search/pins/?q=outdoor%20restaurant&amp;rs=typed&amp;term_meta[]=outdoor%7Ctyped&amp;term_meta[]=restaurant%7Ctyped">to inject some personality and character</a> into your restaurant. Current interior design trends include rustic pieces such as exposed brick or timber. By keeping things simple, you can actually create a modern and inviting space for your summertime guests. 



As the environment is also on our minds too, <a href="https://inhabitat.com/sparkman-wharf-cargotecture-restaurants-revitalize-tampas-water-street-neighborhood/">recycling or ‘upcycling’ pieces can work well for your outdoor spaces</a> too. The benefit of reclaiming old pieces is that it can be quite cost-effective. Especially when most pieces may only need slight tweaks to make them ready for use. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Food Trucks</h4>



Outdoor eating, drinking and socialising brings about a whole new experience for your customers. So why not experiment with how you serve your dishes? Food trucks are perfect for this, especially during the summer. Whether you create your own grill or pizzeria or even collaborate with other food providers to offer your customers something different. It can create a really new and interesting experience for your diners. After all, who doesn’t love a burger van <a href="https://www.gravyandcustard.co.uk/crumbleshack">or even apple crumble served out of a truck</a>?



For example, if you own an Italian restaurant, why not have an Italian food festival? With great weather, food and music you can really create a buzz in the local community. Your restaurant could provide the main meals, and food trucks stationed outside could serve gelato. Food trucks also have huge social media appeal, especially as they are less formal than a sit-down meal. You could also buy your own food truck and take it to local events or festivals to spread the word about your restaurant.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Entertainment</h4>



Alfresco dining creates a serene ambience that we only have for a few months out of the year in the UK, so as a restaurant you should definitely capitalise on this by providing entertainment. For example, live music would work perfectly in courtyards or even beer gardens.



You could <a href="https://pos.toasttab.com/blog/summer-restaurant-events">also experiment with themed nights</a> such as an outdoor cinema club or a games night. Table tennis or pool tournament would be a great idea too and is really easy to set up. Don’t forget to offer a prize for the winner!



Outdoor entertainment can also extend into your functions too. Given summer is home to both wedding and prom season, this is the perfect opportunity to utilise your outdoor areas to cater for large crowds. If your restaurant has sliding doors that lead to your outdoor space, you can merge the two spaces. 



This will also give you the option to create different zones for functions, such as the dance floor outside and the buffet inside. If your restaurant also has stunning views overlooking the coast or city, this would make your outdoor areas even better for providing entertainment too. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Conclusion</h4>



UK summertime may be short-lived, but that doesn’t mean you can’t harness the abundance of potential that alfresco dining has to offer. Whether your restaurant or pub already offers outdoor dining, or if it’s something you are considering, it’s definitely worth getting on board with. After all, the sun brings people out to enjoy themselves. Why not let them do so in your fantastic restaurant?



However, in order for your restaurant outdoor seating area to be a real success this summer, you need lots of customers to visit it. Here at Stampede, we provide businesses with <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/gathering-the-right-data-for-your-restaurant-marketing/">customer insights based on their Guest WiFi connections</a>. Allowing you to market your restaurant, along with your outdoor summer events. 



Plus, if your customers are on the WiFi at your summer dining experience, this creates the perfect <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-importance-of-user-generated-content-on-social-media/">content to share on social media</a> &#8211; helping to promote your business further. 



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-css-opacity"/>





<hr class="wp-block-separator has-css-opacity"/>

How To Make The Most Of Your Restaurant Outdoor Seating Space In Summer

Today, online reputation is everything. Within this, TripAdvisor and Facebook can be seen as the major players in the hospitality reputation space. But online reputation is also probably the most difficult thing to control. Once something is published online, it stays there. What if there would be a way of controlling it through your offered Guest WiFi?







<h4 class="wp-block-heading">The importance of online reputation</h4>



When asked by TripAdvisor, 93% of customers said that online reviews impact their booking decisions and that 53% of customers say they won’t visit a venue that doesn’t have any online reviews. 



Additionally, a study by Cornell University found that a 1x increase in a venue’s average user rating on a 5-point scale makes potential customers 13.5% more likely to come along. 



It’s pretty clear that <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-respond-to-positive-and-negative-customer-reviews-online/">online reputation</a> should be a critical objective for any business operating in the service industry. Especially, as online reviews affect bookings, revenue and much more. Both in the positive and negative direction. So, getting the control back over your online reviews and hence reputation should be your utmost goal.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



<div class="wp-block-media-text" style="grid-template-columns:38% auto"><figure class="wp-block-media-text__media"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="1024" height="768" src="https://stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more-1024x768.png" alt="Reviews-feature" class="wp-image-13241" srcset="https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more-1024x768.png 1024w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more-300x225.png 300w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more-768x576.png 768w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more-150x113.png 150w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more-560x420.png 560w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more-900x675.png 900w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more-592x444.png 592w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more-80x60.png 80w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more-120x90.png 120w, https://website-backend.stampede.ai/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Addons-reviews_more.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" /></figure><div class="wp-block-media-text__content">
Get the control back over your online reviews.



<a href="https://stampede.ai/reviews/">Check out our Reviews Feature.</a>
</div></div>



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



In order to get the most accurate picture of your guest experience, it’s important to get as much guest feedback as possible. As your online reputation is mainly built based on this feedback. However, if you don’t have your customers&#8217; contact details, how can you do this? 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Boost your online reputation with your Guest WiFi</h4>



Well, one obvious way is having an automated solution, integrated with your guest WiFi. This would allow you to send emails / SMS to your customers, asking them to review you on TripAdvisor and like you on Facebook. Pretty straight forward. 



With <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/getting-started-with-guest-wifi/">Stampede</a><a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/getting-started-with-guest-wifi/"></a><a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/getting-started-with-guest-wifi/"> Guest WiFi</a>, you offer your customers a <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/engaging-customers-through-wi-fi-marketing/">great WiFi experience</a> whilst they are on your premises. In addition, Stampede now has an integration that will automatically email guests after they have left, encouraging them to leave an online review on TripAdvisor and like you on Facebook. Also, it&#8217;s entirely up to you if you want to send this notification directly after they&#8217;ve left or an hour or so later.



On top of that, Stampede customers have experienced a 200% increase in Facebook likes by offering a smart guest WiFi solution.



Do you want to achieve the same results? Why not contact Stampede and start increasing your online reputation and <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-wifi-can-help-boost-guest-reviews-of-your-venue/">get more TripAdvisor reviews</a> and Facebook likes?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a href="#schedule-demohttps://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request?month=2020-02">Click here to get started.</a></h2>



Or sign-up for a free trial today. Boost your online reputation by using your Guest WiFi.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>





<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>

Improve Your Online Reputation Through Guest WiFi

Patrick Clover

The Power of Reviews and Recommendations

Out of sight, out of mind. How do you win back lost customers that haven’t paid you a visit for a while? It’s well known that&nbsp;retaining an existing customer is much cheaper than acquiring a new one.&nbsp;So, it’s worth sending a little reminder from your side to win those customers back.



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>



Your goal is to re-engage with those lost customers and make them aware that they’re missing out by not coming by for some time.



This is especially valuable for customers who used to come by on a regular basis and seemed to have changed habit. But it’s also very effective at enticing one-time customers back.



Let’s take our <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/a-5-step-recipe-that-creates-profitable-personalised-marketing-part-1/">5 step recipe</a> to set up a&nbsp;simple campaign to win back your customers.



1) The Data



For this scenario, you’ll need to access your&nbsp;time-stamped visitor data, which can be obtained from various sources:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Last WiFi login from captive portal / guest WiFi</li><li>Last booking date from booking system</li><li>Last stamp / interaction from loyalty scheme</li><li>Last purchase from eCommerce system</li></ul>



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">2) The Trigger Event</h5>



In this case, the trigger is if the&nbsp;customer hasn’t been at your venue for a certain period of time.



Choose a time interval that makes the most sense for your business and set it up as an automated trigger. Though, the longer you wait, the harder it gets to re-engage them.



You could even set up two triggers, a short time interval, e.g. three weeks and a long time interval, e.g. three months since last visit.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">3) The Messaging</h5>



Remind customers why they should come back by highlighting&nbsp;what makes your venue special and worth a visit, e.g. large outside sitting area, signature dish, events, etc.



You can also include new menu items, limited specials or any other updates that make customers curious or even fear that they might miss out on something.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">4) The Offer</h5>



Highlighting what makes you stand out might not be enough though. The easiest way is to further entice them by including an offer or promotion.



Make sure your&nbsp;offers are relevant and timely. Send drink or dinner offers out before the weekend, e.g. Friday midday. Whereas your ‘coffee for free’ should be in your customer’s inboxes the night before.&nbsp;



Here’s what your email could look like:



Subject line &#8211; &nbsp;[Name] we miss you here at [company] &#8211; here’s % off your next visit



It’s been a while since your last visit and we’d love you to come back!



Get % off your next visit.&nbsp;



Since we’ve last seen you, we’ve also introduced a new exciting [menu item]. You wouldn’t want to miss that!



Call me back in &#8211; Book Now



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-the-outcome">5) The Outcome</h5>



Retaining your customers couldn&#8217;t be achieved any easier than with an automated win-back campaign. Show customers that they matter to you and make their experience personal.&nbsp;



Also, not to forget the&nbsp;knock-on effect&nbsp;here. A happy customer can turn into a loyal one providing a solid revenue stream. Plus, they’ll also refer your business to others, which means more customers to grow.



Stay tuned for our next email to find out how you can apply our personalisation recipe to increase your gift card redemptions.



Need help segmenting your data for tailored email &amp; SMS campaigns?&nbsp;<a href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Get in touch</a>&nbsp;with one of our team who are happy to run you through it.

Another 5 Step Recipe: How To Easily Win Back Lost Customers [Part 2/5]

Our mobiles have become so close to us that we now carry them wherever we go. We check mails on the bus stop, add favourite songs to a new playlist while we&#8217;re in the queue and check Facebook at every chance we get.
<h2>Facebook Connects Everyone</h2>
Even with all the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/11/technology/facebook-privacy-hearings.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">recent privacy issues</a>, Facebook continues to be one of the most popular social media platforms. Why? Because it&#8217;s easy and enables us to connect with friends from all around the globe and share the latest cat videos with them &#8211; satisfying an ancient human urge. Jokes aside, the benefits Facebook brings are undeniable. Looking a few years back, it was unthinkable to stay in constant contact with friends from the other side of the globe and see what they were up to.
Now, Facebook prompts you when it&#8217;s someone&#8217;s birthday and even provides you with a handy birthday card template to send them a personalised greeting. Soon enough, we started using every little break to check what’s happening on Facebook, always fearing we might miss out on the next big deal, whatever that’s supposed to be.

<h2>Providing WiFi to attract</h2>
As Facebook grew in popularity, the sight of people walking down the street, their faces buried in their mobiles, started to become more common. Businesses spotted the trend and started providing free Guest WiFi in order to attract Facebook lovers to their venues. What a genius idea &#8211; if people can lean back and relax at your business, they are very likely to check their phone, checking social media sites like Facebook and staying for that extra cup of coffee or a snack. Providing for all core amenities (including free WiFi) is key to success, and that’s especially true for hospitality businesses. In other words, new ways to take care of guests, brought new possibilities for businesses to differentiate themselves.
<h2>Get your business online</h2>
Today, Facebook is way more than just a way to stalk your friend’s holiday pictures. It offers information on all kinds of content, as it expanded from a personal medium to a portal that also accommodates brands and businesses. The next step for companies was being found and loved on Facebook, as it offers fantastic ways to create engagement with the fans of the customer base.
If we compare successful businesses today, we often look at the amount of Facebook likes they have on their page as social proof. People now use Social Media sites like Facebook to see how other users rate a venue and how their experience was before making a visit.
So &#8211; you&#8217;ve got a Facebook page for your venue, right? If that’s not the case, stop reading for two minutes, <a class="" href="https://en-gb.facebook.com/business/learn/set-up-facebook-page" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">click here</a> and set up an account for your venue. There are over <a href="https://zephoria.com/top-15-valuable-facebook-statistics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">2 Billion Facebook users out there</a> that you could be reaching!
<h2>Create Online Visibility</h2>
Whereas big corporate companies have a dedicated department to shape the online presence of the company, smaller enterprises often face difficulties when it comes to managing and updating their online appearance. So what&#8217;s a small business to do?
We got you covered, don’t worry! When a user connects to a Stampede powered WiFi network, they are given the option to choose from <a href="/blog/wifi-in-your-venue-login-once-login-forever" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">entering their email address</a> or logging in through Facebook. This lets guests use the WiFi network with a single click by sharing the information that is public on their Facebook profile. This option holds a unique possibility for businesses, as they are then able to publish every connection that is made to their Guest Network on Facebook.
In other words, if a customer connects to the Guest WiFi Network, all their friends and contacts can see that the customer is checking in at your venue. This is a fantastic way to establish a strong and convincing online presence for your business and makes it easy for new and potential customers to find your venue online, check reviews of other guests and plan their next visit to your business.
As you can see, the right solution can help you to turn a necessity into a benefit for you business very easily. If you want to find out about the entire set of advantages that a Guest WiFi Software can bring to the table, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us.
You’ll be surprised what your WiFi can do for you.
<a class="eut-modal-popup" href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request?month=2020-02">Click here to get started.</a>

Facebook WiFi and your Business

A few weeks into 2023 and you might have ditched your new year’s resolutions already. No judgement, we’ve all been there.



However, a new year is always a great opportunity to reshuffle one’s business strategies in order to up the game.



Looking ahead, there are a bunch of exciting growth and marketing trends to watch out for. And yes, technology will of course play a part in those.



We’ve had a look into 5 key hospitality trends that you should integrate into your strategy to get the most out of 2023.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">1. Build A Unified Customer Experience&nbsp;</h2>



An outdated user interface will drive customers away.&nbsp;



So, you need to start judging your digital tools and assets as if they were your shop window or your venue decoration.&nbsp;



Think about your <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/avoid-these-3-common-guest-wifi-mistakes">Guest WiFi sign-up</a>, booking platform or order &amp; pay app. Are you happy with them representing your brand?



If not, the first step is to align all your tech tools toward a unified brand experience.&nbsp;



Here’s what to focus on:



<ul class="wp-block-list">
<li>Stick to your branding and brand voice across all channels and tools</li>



<li>Make sure the digital customer experience is as smooth as your in-venue one</li>



<li>Focus on easy-to-navigate tools for your customers (and staff)</li>



<li>Don’t neglect your website &#8211; a lot of attention has been paid to social media lately</li>



<li>All-in-one solutions allow for a unified experience as they don’t require integrations</li>
</ul>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">2. Opt For Industry-Specific Tools</h2>



Too many cooks spoil the broth. Time to move away from the clunky and disjointed tech stack that you might have gathered over the past years.&nbsp;



Instead, focus on ROI-delivering tech that helps you achieve the results you want when <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-save-money-on-your-digital-tech-tools">revising your tools</a>.



Industry-specific tools are what you’re looking for here, to replace the mainstream big-name ones everyone else is using.



Those specific ones are tailored to your needs, easier to use and are therefore also accessible to smaller operators.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">3. Focus On Hyper-Personalisation</h2>



<a href="https://financesonline.com/hospitality-trends/">Approximately 90%</a> of customers are willing to share behavioural data if it results in a better brand experience.



No question, personalisation will continue to reign.



What changes is that customer insights are no longer coming from separate sources. It’s the clever combination of multiple data sources that takes it to the next level and makes it even more powerful.&nbsp;



This is also referred to as hyper-personalisation and is based on real-time behavioural and transactional data insights and actions.



With this, you want to create a 1:1 customer experience that translates into longtime loyalty.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">4. Go Beyond Customer Loyalty</h2>



Customers trust their peers more than any other source when looking for new venue recommendations.



It’s up to you to identify your <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-use-data-to-unveil-your-true-brand-fanatics">super advocates </a>amongst your customers, those that spend more time and money at your venue than the average. <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-use-data-to-unveil-your-true-brand-fanatics">Hint</a> &#8211; your data can help you unveil them.



Once you’ve done that you can nurture them with targeted marketing and personalised rewards (i.e. loyalty or referral program) to start building a loyal community.



This community will help you spread the word, boost your reviews and attract many new customers. Loyalty always pays off.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-let-ai-powered-solutions-give-you-a-hand">5. Let AI-Powered Solutions Give You A Hand</h2>



Since the beginning of the new year, our feeds have been flooded with AI talk. There’s a lot going on at the moment, with new tools coming up in a blink of an eye.



Whilst some of it might still be in its early days, we can already see the benefits for businesses. It’s all about efficiency.&nbsp;



AI-powered automations can optimise various parts of your marketing and help you scale up. From content generation to email marketing, social media and operational tasks.



They streamline less-pivotal parts of your business and save you hours a week whilst generating revenue on auto-pilot. What’s not to like about this?&nbsp;



Arguably, there needs to be work done in some areas to make them more industry-specific so that they can be used by everyone without any programming background.



Make sure you stay busy all year round with the&nbsp;<a href="https://stampede.ai/?utm_source=hs_email&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;_hsenc=p2ANqtz--P70VbCxT_AnnS8JwuzgRrHnMbNXfBlgQ_e9X3bmhij7P8-rUVLSBDUzhZwHRS_Yse9ab7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Stampede Customer Experience Platform</a>&nbsp;that drives 5x more repeat customers.&nbsp;<a href="https://h.stampede.ai/meetings/stampede/demo?utm_source=hs_email&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;_hsenc=p2ANqtz--P70VbCxT_AnnS8JwuzgRrHnMbNXfBlgQ_e9X3bmhij7P8-rUVLSBDUzhZwHRS_Yse9ab7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Reach out</a>&nbsp;to find out more.

5 Key Hospitality Growth Trends You Shouldn’t Miss This Year

So, you’ve followed your dream and opened a restaurant. Serving up some of the tastiest meals in your local area. You’ve worked hard on the design, creating a stunning dining area where your customers can relax and enjoy the freshly prepared dishes. However, there are a few issues playing on your mind. How are you going to lure the customers and keep the orders coming in the face of competition from other local restaurants? We’ll answer these questions and suggest some tried and tested marketing methods for your restaurant in this helpful blog.







But how and where to get started with your restaurant marketing? There are a couple of easy and straight forward methods available. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Customer Research</h4>



There are a number of steps that you can take to build the profile of your restaurant to make sure the customers keep coming back for more. 



It’s best to start off with a bit of research. Finding out about the people who are most likely to spend their hard-earned money in your restaurant. You should also find out as much as possible about the competition. Focussing on how they are managing to entice the crowds. Should you be following their example or market your restaurant as an exclusive dining venue?



The research should then continue with some focus on the people who are already visiting your restaurant. Most importantly, you should take time to talk. Try to find out why these customers are visiting and how satisfied they are with the service. 



In addition, ask questions about everything from the reasons for visiting to thoughts about the restaurant decor. <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-marketing-power-of-wifi-analytics-for-your-business/">Such data</a> could be put to use in the creation of targeted marketing campaigns. But also general improvement of your restaurant. You can also find out the busiest times within your restaurant and make staffing decisions accordingly. &nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Social Media Marketing</h4>



Your customers might like to spend their time reading the latest tweets, chatting on Facebook, or looking at the pretty pictures on <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/rock-your-restaurant-with-wifi-and-instagram/">Instagram</a>. It’s important that you get to grips with marketing on the preferred social media channels. 



Further, you should keep your communications on brand and consistent no matter where your customers are engaging. Competitions could be set up and live updates posted about special events and discounts. You might even post pictures of the mouth-watering meals prepared by your kitchen staff. <a href="https://www.instagram.com/avagenes/">Ava Gene’s Instagram</a> account provides a bit of inspiration on this front.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Email Marketing</h4>



Another popular restaurant marketing method can be seen in direct <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-marketing-with-wifi-benefits-your-business/">email marketing campaigns</a>. This method makes use of all the valuable customer data collected. To get the data, customers may be prompted to give their email addresses, Facebook profile, or Twitter handles in exchange for access to the free WiFi. From there, you can then create targeted communications which can be sent out at opportune moments for customer engagement. 



Even better, emails can be automated for the successful retention and reward of your loyal restaurant customers. Such emails may be sent out a few days after customers have visited your restaurant. This will ensure that the positive experience remains top of their minds. You could also distribute emails to customers who haven’t visited for some time (e.g. over 30 days) to boost the levels of retention.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Geo-Targeted Advertising</h4>



You should have plenty of information to use in the digital marketing of your restaurant. Therefore, advertisements could be built around visitor characteristics such as age, gender, and location. 



Also, you should take the time to make sure that your restaurant can be found by local customers. Create content including targeted keywords and focussed on the interests of people in your community. In addition, register for local listings and take every effort to build a stand-out online profile. Within this, advertisements could be set up focussing on people under the age of 30, who are looking for ‘Tapas in Brighton’ or ‘Chinese Restaurants in Lincoln’.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Loyalty Programs</h4>



We told you about some of the best ways of earning repeat business in our <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/building-customer-loyalty-with-blackbx/https://stampede.ai/blog/building-customer-loyalty-with-blackbx/">recent blog on customer loyalty</a>. As mentioned, you can use the offer of free WiFi to collect some really valuable information about the good folks who visit your venue. Use this information for more targeted campaigns. You might take the opportunity to arrange special holiday discounts. Or schedule messages after the achievement of set milestones. 



There is also the option of setting up a points-based system, which the customers can track via their digital devices. As an example, you could offer a free meal for every ten points earned by a customer. However, ensure a quick and easy point redemption process. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Social Paying</h4>



Organise social payment events to ensure that positive word is spread about your restaurant. These events will involve customers paying for outstanding service and top-notch food in the form of social media updates and reviews. 



For example, offer free drink in exchange for the addition of a set number of Twitter followers for your restaurant and discount coupons in return for Facebook likes. You can then share details of positive customer experiences on your website and across social media. This will effectively set you apart from the rest.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Blog Writing / Outreach</h4>



There are plenty of popular bloggers and social media influencers who could help out in the marketing of your restaurant. Some of these online experts have reader and viewer numbers running into the tens of thousands. You can encourage them to spread the word by arranging free or discount meals and delivering on your promise of the first-rate service. 



The positive reviews are sure to be read by large numbers of people particularly likely to visit your restaurant. Have a read of the <a href="https://www.forketers.com/how-to-invite-food-bloggers-to-your-restaurant/">Forketeers blog</a> for some handy tips on how to reach out and build positive relationships with the foodie bloggers.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">WiFi Marketing</h4>



To get the most out of these restaurant marketing methods, you can use the <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/getting-started-with-guest-wifi/">Stampede WiFi system</a>. Most customers will be more than happy to exchange their email or mobile phone numbers for free internet access. You can use your customer information to create personalised messages encouraging restaurant reviews and social media posts. You could even have regular news pieces sent out with details of menu updates and exciting events. Have a read of some of <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/">other blogs</a> for further information about the prospects of WiFi marketing.



If you make use of the proven restaurant marketing methods highlighted in this blog, you can expect the levels of customer engagement and loyalty to increase. You’ll find that the positive word spreads and that you enjoy increased popularity. Maximise the prospects of further marketing success through the adoption of other tricks and tactics covered by Stampede.



Why not give it a go with a free trial of our software?



<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>





<hr class="wp-block-separator"/>

Must-Have Marketing Methods For Your Restaurant

5 Gamification Ideas To Take Your Loyalty Scheme To The Next Level

4 Steps To Master Customer Retention and Loyalty With Data-Driven Marketing

2 Ways To Keep Your Footfall Up With Customer Loyalty

When it comes to running a restaurant you are quite literally dealing with some very picky taste buds. Just like when asking your patrons how they like their steak, you are never going to get the same response each time someone then goes on to leave a review.&nbsp;That&#8217;s where guest<a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-respond-to-positive-and-negative-customer-reviews-online/"> review management</a> should come into place.







None of us are perfect, and the same is absolutely true for any business. Sometimes the quality might slip a little more than is ideal. Or perhaps you’ve gone out of your way to please your customer, and they are still not happy with the service they received. It’s frustrating, right?&nbsp;



If that sounds like you, don’t be discouraged. Running a restaurant is tough, but there are some great practical ways you can deal with negative reviews, that might even leave your business better off for it.&nbsp;



The reality is there’s a fine line between managing your reviews and letting them <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-power-of-reviews-and-recommendations/">sink your business</a>. So if you own a restaurant, here’s how to master your review management for the better.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Customer First Approach</h4>



As the saying goes “the customer is always right”. While the reality for those actually working behind the scenes might give a different response, what is true is that without any customers you don’t have a business. This could not be any more true in the restaurant trade, where you need a constant stream of diners to keep your business afloat.&nbsp;



It’s important to get into the mindset of your customer to understand both positive and negative feedback. Getting lots of positive feedback feels great for your whole team, and you could even look to reward particular chefs or wait staff that go beyond to give great customer experience.&nbsp;



If you receive a negative review then that means your customer has had a bad experience. The first port of call is to get on top of why that is. The key is <a href="https://smallbusiness.chron.com/examples-good-service-restaurant-industry-38058.html">to perfect your customer service</a> so that all your staff are on the same page, and know-how to professionally deal with the situation.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Social Media Complaints</h4>



Social media is a double-edged sword. On the one hand, it’s an incredible tool that can market your restaurant to thousands of potential customers. On the other, it’s a place where people can say exactly what they want about the experience they had with you. Even if it’s not true! Unlike in the old days where this would be handled over the phone or even in an email &#8211; it’s public for anyone to see.&nbsp;



So, what exactly should you do if you get a bad review on social media? It’s important to think about your response before you jump in. Remember that although we all use social media outside of work, it’s a very different beast when it concerns your business. Therefore, you must respond appropriately.&nbsp;



There have been many cases where restaurant owners <a href="https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/uk-news/tripadvisor-review-indian-restaurant-response-16801045">have responded inappropriately</a> to negative reviews. The outcome has gone viral for all the wrong reasons. All it takes is one screenshot and your business could be forever tarnished.&nbsp;



When crafting your response, remember you’re not just replying to the person who made the complaint, you’re also replying to all those who will see it when researching your restaurant to book. You need to show that you value your customers and are on top of any issues that may have occurred.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Sweetener Deals</h4>



The last thing you want is to see a negative guest review about your restaurant without trying to remedy the situation. If it’s in a public arena such as Facebook or TripAdvisor, it will only make your restaurant look as if it doesn’t care enough to respond, or worse still that it’s all true!&nbsp;



If a genuine problem or mistake has occurred, the best course of action is to contact the affected parties. It’s important that no matter whether someone is praising your restaurant or is grumbling about it, you respond with the same level of customer service.



One way of showing an apology <a href="https://www.marketingdonut.co.uk/customer-care/customer-complaints/how-to-handle-customers-that-ask-for-compensation">is to offer something to your customer</a>, known as a sweetener deal. Sweetener deals could include a refund on their meal or a discount on a future visit. You could even throw in a free drink, dessert or side if they are currently still in your restaurant.&nbsp;



If there has been a mix up with an order, this is a great remedy and it can really nip a potentially bad review in the bud. Sweetener deals may have a small cost involved to the business, but can save potentially thousands in lost custom due to negative reviews.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Appreciate the Learning Curve</h4>



Let’s be honest, nobody likes <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbescommunicationscouncil/2018/04/27/do-people-really-look-at-facebook-reviews-heres-why-it-matters/#51485b663b7b">getting a bad review about their business</a>. Not only does it feel pretty deflating, it can also harm your reputation. It is, however, something that’s unavoidable at least in small doses.



When someone leaves you a bad review, you need to take the time to recognise why that’s the case and if you or your team could have done anything differently. It might actually be an issue you weren’t previously aware of, so rectifying this could improve the customer experience for all your diners.&nbsp;



Food is a very personal thing so it’s impossible to please everyone all the time. It does, however, speak volumes if you are at least willing to listen to customer complaints and make the effort to take action off the back of it.&nbsp;



Running a restaurant can be stressful, not least when you have to respond to negative reviews within a public arena. The main thing to take away is that it’s important to face up to all reviews good and bad and learn from the situation. You must always put a professional foot forward and look for the best ways to remedy the situation without causing further problems.&nbsp;



If you run a restaurant, have you discovered our review management system? Our software can <a href="https://stampede.ai/reviews/?referrer=stampede.ai#reviews">display all of your reviews from social media in one place</a>, and remove the prominence of any bad ones for your peace of mind. Plus, we can streamline your marketing with personalised emails, SMS and automated messages, to keep your customers in the loop about your latest <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/free-restaurant-promotions-ideas/">deals and promotions</a>, sending updates right to their phones. 



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By having your <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-value-of-restaurant-marketing-automation/">restaurant marketed professionally</a>, you can concentrate on what you do best &#8211; serving up delicious food with amazing customer service.&nbsp;



<a href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request?month=2020-03">Book your demo today. </a>

Guest Review Management

The troubling news:&nbsp;72% of hospitality operators have noticed a dip in visitor frequency&nbsp;recently. But more importantly:&nbsp;59% have also observed an increase in spend per head!



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



While the frequency might go down, customers want to treat themselves whilst they’re out.



So, what’s the best way for hospitality operators to tackle this? Level up your&nbsp;upselling strategy!



Here are two simple techniques you can use to increase spend per head and table.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-deploy-marketing-for-pre-visit-upselling">Deploy Marketing For Pre-Visit Upselling</h5>



There are many opportunities to make some additional sales before customers come to your venue.



Start with your&nbsp;booking confirmation email. Make sure to highlight any offers or special packages straight away. Give customers a sneak peek of what they might miss out on and leave them with an&nbsp;easy option to book any add-ons.



On top of that, send an automated SMS (or email) the day before or on the day of the booking. This message should focus on your promotions once again but this time&nbsp;create some urgency, i.e.&nbsp;&#8220;last chance to enjoy our …”, “you don’t want to miss our … special”.



<h5 class="wp-block-heading">2 Quick Win In-Venue Upselling Ideas</h5>



The biggest upselling opportunities present themselves once customers are actually at your venue.



Check out these two proven in-venue techniques that will help you increase spend per head:



<h6 class="wp-block-heading">1) Train your staff for at-the-table upselling</h6>



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>Use cross-selling and offer pairing recommendations, i.e. drinks or sides</li><li>Make personal staff or customer-based recommendations &#8211;&nbsp;“I love our new …”, “One of our most popular …”</li><li>Try to upsell on high-margin items and suggest the larger option first</li><li>Highlight popular daily or seasonal menu specials</li><li>Make personalised recommendations based on previous visits &#8211;&nbsp;“Same … as usual?”</li><li>Let customers sample drinks</li><li>Offer desserts to go</li></ul>



<h6 class="wp-block-heading">2) Use digital upselling</h6>



The most effective in-venue upselling technique is to&nbsp;push your&nbsp;promotions directly to your customers&#8217; phones. Instead of relying solely on table displays which might not grab their attention.



This digital upselling can be done through a&nbsp;<a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/marketing/#upsell" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">captive portal WiFi solution</a>. Once customers have joined your WiFi you can immediately reach out to them with automated marketing messages.



Using digital tools for upselling also helps you to&nbsp;compensate for any staff shortages and busier periods.



<a href="https://h.stampede.ai/meetings/stampede/demo" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Reach out</a>&nbsp;to find out more about how our Guest WiFi solution can help you increase spend per head massively through&nbsp;<a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/marketing/#upsell" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">digital upselling</a>.

How To Sell More And Increase Spend Per Head With Upsell

We’re pleased to announce our latest integration for Stampede with order-and-pay provider <a href="https://storekit.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Storekit</a>.&nbsp;



This game-changing integration enables hospitality operators to turn transaction data into powerful marketing campaigns. In turn, this will improve revenues and profitability for hospitality brands working with Storekit and Stampede, whilst also providing the other benefits of both platforms.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-who-is-storekit">Who is Storekit?</h2>



Year founded:&nbsp;Storekit formally launched in 2020, although&nbsp;they&#8217;ve been working in hospitality tech for over a decade&nbsp; What it does:&nbsp;With <a href="http://storekit.com/">Storekit</a>, your customers can order and/or pay from their smartphone, wherever they are. For table ordering, that means bigger orders, and a better customer experience. For takeaway, that means growing your audience and improving your bottom line. Why customers love it:&nbsp;Storekit is the easiest and most beautiful mobile ordering system on the market – they&#8217;re bringing world-class consumer software to independent venues. It&#8217;s easy for your customers, easy for your team, and easy for you.&nbsp; &#8220;More sales. That&#8217;s the best thing about Storekit. 100%.&#8221; – Savan, Owner, The Arch Pub&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-integration">The Integration</h2>



So, what does this new integration look like? For operators using Storekit, they can now sync their customer and transaction data into Stampede automatically. This adds a new interaction within Stampede, which can be used to create targeted marketing lists.&nbsp;



Then it’s over to Stampede’s Marketing to send out email and SMS campaigns specifically crafted for those customers, based on their transaction history from Storekit. You can even stack the interactions with other Stampede features for more detailed targeting.



And it comes full circle too. When those customers come back to the venue, or make another purchase through Storekit, that information is attached to the campaigns sent through Stampede. This gives operators a level of reporting and ROI tracking rarely seen for hospitality brands.



Here are some examples of the kind of mailing lists you could build now:



Customers who have: Spent over £500 (via Storekit) AND have a birthday in the next 4 weeks (via Stampede Guest WiFi)



What to send: Send them a special birthday offer, knowing that they’re likely to spend big at your venue



<meta charset="utf-8">Customers who have: Spent more than £1000 (via Storekit) AND have left a negative review (via Stampede Reviews) What to send: Send them a win-back campaign as part of service recovery and turn them back into a brand advocate.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Improving Your Profitability</h2>



When it comes to acquiring new customers, many hospitality businesses still depend heavily on third-party delivery partners like Uber Eats, Deliveroo and Just Eat. All of which come with huge costs and minimal profits.&nbsp;



The combined power of Storekit and Stampede can help operators improve profitability by moving away from depending on these third party businesses. Gather customer data and bring more orders direct to your order-and-pay. Then, keep them coming back and ordering more with intelligent marketing that you control.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-working-together">Working Together</h2>



A shared philosophy by both Stampede and Storekit on what technology should do for hospitality brands has come to fruition via this new integration. Together, we want to provide restaurants, bars, cafes and more with the kind of tech previously only available to online and eCommerce businesses.



Angus Jackson, Co-founder at Storekit said &#8220;For us, it was a no brainer to integrate with Stampede; they&#8217;re building beautiful tech that fits perfectly with our product philosophy &amp; mission to support forward-thinking and ambitious operators. We&#8217;re really excited to see our mutual venues making use of the rich data that will be at their fingertips&#8221;



Our founder Patrick said “We don&#8217;t use this phrase lightly but this is a game-changer for our customers. Storekit’s order-and-pay product is best in class and the integration between Stampede and Storekit enables unparalleled visibility on the entire customer journey. “



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-getting-started">Getting Started</h2>



The integration is available to use from 2nd December. If you have both Stampede and Storekit already set up, integrating the systems takes only a couple of minutes. You can <a href="https://help.stampede.ai/en/articles/5778183-how-to-link-up-your-storekit-integration" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">find a guide here</a>, or talk to one of our team on live chat.



To learn about either Storekit or Stampede, and this latest integration you can <a href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">book a call with our team here</a>.

New Integration With Storekit

This final week of November looks like it’ll be a busy one but just before we dive in, November is coming to a close soon so it’s the last few chances to show off those mo’s to help raise awareness for the Movember cause. Don’t forget to share the donation links of any staff or customers, along with those epic face fuzz photos!



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Here are our top picks for this week:



Mon 23rd Nov &#8211; Espresso Day



The perfect way to start a fast-paced week: today is Espresso Day! The high-powered drink is often enjoyed by itself and of course, makes up the coffee foundation of many other popular cafe favourites.



It’s even adapted into a popular evening drink &#8211; the espresso martini.



The espresso itself is perhaps overlooked in favour of what else it becomes, so let’s make the tiny caffeine cups the star of the show today.



Share some coffee history or interesting facts about it such as that 14 billion espressos are consumed every year in Italy!



Thu 26th Nov &#8211; Thanksgiving



Despite Thanksgiving being a U.S. holiday, it still has a decent presence in the U.K. given the U.S. population living here and the influence they have on close friends. Plus, American-style dining has been on the rise here for a while too.



A simple Happy Thanksgiving message on social media is a great place to start. If you know your customers will be receptive to it, a special menu option for the day is worth exploring for takeaway/delivery/collection.



Last but not least, are always recipe ideas and how-to videos for any number of the well-known thanksgiving foods to benefit those home cooks getting involved too. These make for great social and email content.



Fri 27th Nov &#8211; Black Friday



Typically more of a retail-focused day, but with the power of online tools hospitality businesses can get some of the benefits of this annual sale event.



We’ve mentioned online discount codes before &#8211; many webshops and online ordering systems have the capability for these built-in. Reign in some extra business with your own Black Friday offers using these mechanisms and some email and social media promotion. 



It’s also a good opportunity to do a flash sale on gift cards or vouchers. Head back to Friday’s email for more details.



If you’ve got some branded merchandise for sale online it goes without saying that a Black Friday discount on these can help make room for some new designs next year.



As ever, if you’d like any help getting your content out to your email database <a href="https://stampede.ai/company/#contact" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">please get in touch</a>&nbsp;with one of our team.

According to the calendar, it’s the first official day of Autumn this week, which already is a treasure trove of inspiration. Changing seasons, changing ingredients, changing menus.



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 For this week, we’ve got these three topics to inspire your social media and email content.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tuesday-22nd-national-ice-cream-cone-day"> Tuesday 22nd &#8211; National Ice Cream Cone Day</h4>



 True fans of ice cream know it can be enjoyed all year round. A luscious multi-scoop cone with all the toppings will look great in social media feeds. Try asking fans and followers to tag who they’d get a cone with to celebrate the day.&nbsp;



 If you don’t serve ice cream cones, Tuesday is also white chocolate day which can provide just as big a visual impact on social media.



 Recommended channels: Social media



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-friday-25th-national-cooking-day"> Friday 25th &#8211; National Cooking Day</h4>



 We might have passed the primetime of virtual cooking demos, but National Cooking Day is a great opportunity to record a new video demo, or simply share one you recorded a few months ago again&nbsp;with customers and fans.&nbsp;



 You could go down the route of how to make a favourite dish super-quick or a longer more detailed presentation. <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/a-recipe-for-video-showcase-success/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Check out this article</a> about cooking video best practice, using Wagamama&#8217;s example.



 Recommended channels: Email and social media



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-saturday-26th-better-breakfast-day"> Saturday 26th &#8211; Better Breakfast Day</h4>



 The fast pace of modern daily life often makes many people skimp on or miss breakfast entirely, and Better Breakfast Day aims to remind us all of the importance of that first meal.



 If you offer a healthy and hearty breakfast menu, this is an ideal day to show it off. A one day offer could be just the incentive people need to stop by and fuel up properly in the morning.&nbsp;



Otherwise, there are lots of breakfast dishes that make for great visual content, like pancake stacks, health-food bowls and eggs of all kinds.



 Top tip: Schedule social media posts for Thursday or Friday.



 Recommended channels: Email and social media.



Want to learn more about how email can grow your business? <a href="https://stampede.ai/company/#contact" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Get </a><a href="https://stampede.ai/company/#contact" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">in touch</a> with one of our team.

What’s On This Week? – 21/09/2020

More effective way to run meta ads for hospitality

4 Ways CRM Data Can Be Used in Day-to-Day Service by Your Staff

Introducing Quick Campaigns

Snap Box – Stampede Network Application

A new kind of marketplace for hospitality apps

October Update – 3x Faster Guest WiFi and more

New Features & Updates – September 2023

A Quick Guide On First-Party Data Strategy For Hotels

Have you ever heard this one?

There is a famous marketing phrase, which goes along the lines of “the one marketing strategy that can’t miss, is to market to your best customers first!”
The traditional Guest WiFi journey for bars, cafés, and restaurants is that your customer walks in, uses the WiFi and walks out, never leaving a trace. Are you missing the chance to market to your best customers first?
Hospitality businesses that do not offer free customer Wi-Fi are losing competitive 
edge to these ones that do. Smartphones are by themselves reaching 50% of all time digital media time spent, and the time is used not only for web browsing, but also social interactions, research, and even purchases.
With Stampede, Smart Social WiFi, not only can you market your business to customers, when your guests are taken to your Facebook page, they are promoting your business to their friends, without you having to do anything.
People use their phones all the time. Look around any cafe, restaurant or bar and it’s easy to find multiple people looking at their smartphones. Why not use that to your business’s advantage and market to your best customers with loyalty programs, special offers or discounts, while your customers are on-premise?
With Stampede You can market to your best customers first and they, in turn, can help promote your business. It is a smart decision and when the money is flowing you’ll know you&#8217;ve made the right WiFi and marketing decisions.
<a class="eut-modal-popup" href="https://calendly.com/stampedeae/stampede-demo-request?month=2020-02">Click here to get started.</a>

How Important Is Mobile Marketing?

Are you thinking of opening a prohibition styled speakeasy serving custom-crafted cocktails flavoured with the latest Scottish gins? Or are you starting a pop-up cafe specialising in the latest trend? What about bucking all the hype serving up good old fashioned diner grub? No matter what type of food or drink you plan to serve your customers. There’s going to be one thing that your customers demand as soon as they enter your place: <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/wifi/">WiFi</a>. 



As a matter of fact, a recent survey showed that the most <a href="https://pos.toasttab.com/blog/restaurant-management-statistics">important technology feature for customers is free WiFi</a>. It&#8217;s a vital part of their overall experience and can influence their decision to come back or not. 







In order to give your customers the best guest experience, you need to get everything right. Including your decor, your staff, your food and, yes, your WiFi. With that in mind, here are our top five tips on how to set up WiFi for your restaurant or pub.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-use-professional-wifi-equipment">Use Professional WiFi Equipment</h4>



You’ve poured your heart and soul into your new business. So are you going to let your customers sign in to the same crappy WiFi router that your internet company gives to pensioners downloading pictures of their grandkids? No. It’s time to put on your big boy pants and pay for a decent router. But buying the best doesn&#8217;t necessarily mean you&#8217;ll need to empty your bank account.



Our top <a href="https://stampede.ai/supported-hardware/">hardware recommendations</a> for seamless integration with Stampede include popular brands like:



<ul class="wp-block-list"><li>TP-Link</li><li>Ubiquiti UniFi</li><li>Cisco Meraki</li><li>D-Link</li></ul>



The <a href="https://www.netspotapp.com/blog/wifi-security/explaining-wifi-standards.html">standard that WiFi</a> uses for connections is called 802.11, appended with letters to reflect the WiFi generation. For example, when WiFi was first released to the public, way back when in 1999, it was known as 802.a. As of 2022, the most widely used standard is 802.11ax or WiFi 6, coming with an even greater data transfer speed. 



But don’t sit around waiting for the latest standard to come out before you purchase your equipment. Since WiFi devices are backwards compatible, you shouldn’t have to worry about getting outpaced by technology.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-big-place-go-mesh">Big Place? Go Mesh</h4>



If you&#8217;ve got a large pub or restaurant with lots of hidden nooks and crannies, then you&#8217;re going to want to go with a mesh network. The idea behind mesh networks is to provide all-around coverage for your pub or restaurant. Even better it eliminates any WiFi blind spots. A mesh network typically consists of a number of WiFi separate broadcast units. Usually, between two to four, that seamlessly integrate into one network. 



Hooking up mesh networks isn’t as difficult as it sounds. The router software usually takes care of the integration for you. Even though you may have up to 4 devices bouncing a signal around your business, customers only have to worry about connecting to a signal network. <a href="https://www.techadvisor.com/test-centre/network-wifi/best-mesh-wi-fi-network-systems-3661110/">This article in Tech Advisor </a>is a quick read and gives you a nice overview on some of the best mesh routers out there.



Here&#8217;s a <a href="https://stampede.ai/resources/bar-tonic/">case study we did with Bar Tonic</a>, one of our customers who rely on a good WiFi signal due to their special location.



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<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Succeed with Stampede - Bar Tonic" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/SVpZWzhhNBY?start=4&#038;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
</div></figure>



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<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-setup-a-captive-portal">Setup a Captive Portal</h4>



Alright, so you’ve got your network all set up and broadcasting. You’re getting a great signal from every location in your place of business. Even in the most distant bathroom stall. Now all you need to do is write up your network password on all the walls so your customers can connect, right? WRONG. 



You’ve just spent some bucks paying for a professional WiFi network for your business. So why give it away for free? By using a software product like Stampede, you can set up what is known as a <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/wifi/">Captive Portal</a>, to give your customers access to your shiny new WiFi network.



Here&#8217;s how it works: After a customer connects, they’re prompted to register for your network with their email address or using their social media account. Once they’ve verified their email, they’re logged in. No passwords to remember and no chalkboards on the wall. Just a much smoother customer WiFi experience.



The other cool part about a captive network is that it will <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/get-your-customers-to-login-once-keep-them-always-connected/">automatically re-connect your customer</a> next time they pay you a visit. No more logging in! And the best part &#8211; at least for your business? You now have your customer’s email address that (with their permission, of course) you can use for our next tip &#8211; automated marketing.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-use-automated-marketing">Use Automated Marketing</h4>



You’re providing free WiFi for your customers and, in return, you’re getting their data. So use it! When you have a customer login to your WiFi with Stampede, in addition to an email address, you can ask for other details on the <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/wifi/#portal">Captive Portal login screen</a>. Name, age, gender &#8211; anything you can think of. You can even add custom questions. This is a great place to ask your customer opinions about new menu items or specials you’re thinking about offering. And not to forget about the fact that you can customise the log-in screen to your own branding.



Once registered, you can import your customers&#8217; email into mailing list software like Mailchimp. Use software like Zapier to do thousands of different tasks, like importing emails into a Google Docs spreadsheet. 



Or, you can save time and have all your data conveniently in one place with <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/marketing/">Stampede Marketing</a>. Automated text or SMS messages are a great tool for <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/a-5-step-recipe-that-creates-profitable-personalised-marketing-part-1/">personalised marketing campaigns</a> to bring customers back. Want to reward <a href="https://stampede.ai/resources/8-tactics-to-increase-customer-spend/">loyal customers</a>? Send them a message with a <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/new-stampede-marketing-feature-unique-voucher-codes/">voucher</a> for a dessert on their third visit. Haven&#8217;t seen a customer in a while and want to get them back? Drop &#8217;em a coupon for a free drink &#8211; who can resist that?



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-get-social">Get Social</h4>



So you’ve got an awesome WiFi network with a Cative Portal set up in your pub or restaurant and your customers are loving it. Now it’s time to spread the word! Put your Instagram, Facebook and TikTok handles EVERYWHERE &#8211; menus, the walls, even on your receipts. Encourage your customers to share their experience and, more importantly, their photos. 



Take it one step further and use automated marketing to gather customer feedback with ease. Reviews help you build trust and attract new customers. With <a href="https://stampede.ai/how-it-works/automations/#reviews">Stampede Reviews</a> you can send an automated message after your customers have left the venue and ask them to leave you a review and write about their experience. What&#8217;s even better, you can access all major review platforms (Tripadvisor, Facebook and Google) from one dashboard, allowing for a much easier reputation management.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-awesome-wifi-in-your-restaurant-or-pub-set-up">Awesome WiFi in Your Restaurant or Pub Set Up</h4>



Now you&#8217;ve got awesome WiFi that your customers love. They&#8217;re spreading the word about you all over social media and you&#8217;re keeping them loyal with automated marketing. That wasn&#8217;t so hard now, was it?



So, if you&#8217;re thinking about taking the plunge and opening up the restaurant or pub of your dreams, and see the importance of offering awesome WiFi. Why not give us a try? <a href="https://h.stampede.ai/meetings/stampede/demo">Get in touch</a> to find out how this could easily be implemented at your venue.

5 Tips for Setting Up WiFi for Your Restaurant or Pub [Updated for 2022]

Online reviews are increasingly driving customers both towards &#8211; and away from &#8211; service businesses such as coffee shops, bars, and hairstylists.&nbsp;







As humans, we are hard-wired to attach more importance to the experience of others than what a company may try to tell us about themselves. Our natural scepticism makes us believe the apparently independent reviews and all-important “star rating” that we see. Especially, when we search for a company on Google or Google Maps more than the companies’ own words about themselves.&nbsp;



As could only be expected with such a powerful trend in the marketplace, it wasn’t long before some individuals tried to game the system. Who can forget the <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/12/06/garden-becomes-top-rated-london-restaurant-tripadvisor-site/">man</a> who made his garden shed the top-rated restaurant in London on TripAdvisor, for example?! The ease of setting up new accounts on many review sites might tempt hospitality business owners or employees to try a similar trick. However, there are plenty of ways in which this can backfire spectacularly.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Why it might seem so tempting to leave fake reviews… and why you should resist it</h4>



Your online review rating suffers from another well-known quirk of human psychology; we are more likely to tell others of a negative experience than we are about a positive experience. According to <a href="https://www.inc.com/andrew-thomas/the-hidden-ratio-that-could-make-or-break-your-company.html">Inc Magazine</a>, it takes an average of 40 positive customer experiences to make up for just one negative (1 star) review! In the face of such daunting statistics, it is certainly tempting to “level the playing field” a bit by leaving some positive reviews for yourself.&nbsp;



Apart from all the ethical reasons why you shouldn’t do this, there are some solid common-sense reasons too. Firstly, fake reviews can often be detected. Not just by the review platform, but also by punters looking to make a decision on who to award their business to.&nbsp;



There’s something about a glowing five-star review that is light on substance. But heavy on praise which just seems&#8230; instantly suspicious. The “Amazon effect” spills over into your customers’ consciousness. It is now a well-known fact that Amazon is flooded with fake reviews. Therefore, people have sharpened up their BS filters accordingly!&nbsp;



Secondly, there’s no reason to stress unduly over an individual bad review &#8211; or even a handful of them. Believe it or not, they can actually <a href="https://neilpatel.com/blog/your-business-needs-negative-reviews/">boost your credibility rating</a>. <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-to-respond-to-positive-and-negative-customer-reviews-online/">Provided you respond to each</a> in a positive, professional way, apologising to the customer for their poor experience. Also, inviting them to get in touch to discuss it further. When a potential customer sees this, they will instinctively know they are looking at real customer interactions. And not fake ones &#8211; and they will trust you more accordingly.&nbsp;



As a bonus, the presence of a few negative reviews means that punters will also attach a higher level of credibility to the other reviews they see on the business as a result!&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Technology to the rescue?</h4>



There is a final and persuasive reason. You should give all the incentive you need not to risk playing with the fire of fake reviews.&nbsp;



<a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/how-marketing-with-wifi-benefits-your-business/">Technology platforms</a> now exist that allow service businesses like yours to harness the power of online reviews in your favour. In a far more effective (not to mention far more ethically sound!) way than you could ever hope to achieve by posting fake reviews.&nbsp;



For example, our <a href="https://stampede.ai/reviews/?referrer=stampede.ai">own system</a> has two powerful features that allow small to medium business owners to boost their online review ratings. A system to remind customers to leave reviews via SMS text message or email. Thereby overcoming the traditional apathy that those who had a positive experience might otherwise feel. Even further, our system places negative/low (1 to 3 star) ratings into a “holding area” for you to deal with before they get published online!&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">A brave new world for traditional service businesses&nbsp;</h4>



Traditional “brick and mortar” type businesses can’t afford to ignore online reviews. Or, for that matter, the importance of offering WiFi to their customers &#8211; any longer. Did you know, for example, that 70% of people prefer bars &amp; pubs that have access to WiFi?&nbsp;



As <a href="https://marketingartfully.com/what-are-important-customer-demographics/">customer demographics</a> change, statistics like these are only likely to ever move in one direction. Towards an increasingly connected, mobile, online world. Along with this, review platforms such as TripAdvisor, Google, and Facebook are adding new security measures and compliance systems to monitor and weed out fake reviews. Having noted the bad publicity that the ability of some organisations to rig the system in their favour have resulted in.&nbsp;



The good news is that accessing smart technology can help even the smallest coffee bar attract and retain loyal customers is easier than at any point before. Not to mention extremely affordable too. Sophisticated online marketing tools that used to be the sole preserve of big chains and nationwide organisations is now within the reach of the most time-pressed service business owner.



Along with this, the power of social media, which is encouraging many individuals to seek out an individual or unique experience that they wouldn’t get elsewhere that they can then share with their friends online. All works in favour of smaller, more bespoke establishments like yours.&nbsp;



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Bringing it all together&nbsp;</h4>



In conclusion, fake reviews, whether purchased or placed yourself, are simply not worth the risk. Here’s what you should consider instead to boost your online review ratings:



<ol class="wp-block-list"><li>Leave a polite response to any negative reviews that you receive online. Apologising sincerely (no matter how unfair the review might seem!) and asking the reviewer to get in touch. That way you can discuss their problem directly with you so you can look into it further</li><li>Encourage more positive reviews to be left by going the extra mile to impress customers with your own unique touch. Asking them to review you. If you want to automate the process of asking for reviews, systems like Stampede can do all the heavy lifting for you. Leaving you to focus on the customer service angle!&nbsp;</li><li>Consider the use of a review management platform. This allows you to place low reviews in a “holding area” before they get published. So you have an opportunity to intervene and make things right</li><li>Ask review platforms to investigate and remove reviews that you have reason to believe are fake</li></ol>



We hope you found this article useful. Watch this space for future posts that can help you take your <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/getting-started-with-guest-wifi/">service business to the next level</a>!&nbsp;Or why not give our reviews feature a try?



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Fake Reviews Can Hurt Your Business. How You Can Safely Boost Your Ratings

New service keeps spontaneous pub trips alive while supporting track and trace

Did you know that <a href="https://www.renderforest.com/blog/video-marketing-statistics">100 million hours of video</a> are watched every day on Facebook alone? It’s not just cat videos the internet are consuming either. Businesses across the globe are using video to communicate information about their products and services. So better start creating your first video for your restaurant marketing straight away.







In fact, you’ve probably seen everything from cleaning products to holiday resorts pop up on your own timeline. These videos are reaching millions of users, achieving sales every single day. The restaurant industry is no different. In fact, more restaurants are creating professional tailored content through video platforms than ever before.



 So, if you’re yet to get your restaurant on board with video marketing, now is the time to start! Here are our top tips to help you <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/vertical-the-future-of-video-content-for-digital-marketing/">understand video marketing</a> for your restaurant. It’s as simple as lights, camera, pasta. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">The Magic of Video</h4>



One of the reasons video works for <a href="https://www.storyboardgroup.com/blog/4-video-marketing-tips-for-brands-in-the-food-industry">marketing within the restaurant business</a> is because it’s so tangible. Think about your restaurant and how when you bring your dishes out there is huge anticipation. The food is expertly presented and looks delicious, the atmosphere is incredible. Humans are visual creatures so showing your audience this in video form makes it seem like we are experiencing it for ourselves. 



Compare this to simply writing a post on Facebook saying you make the best roast dinners in town versus actually showing people it. Steam rising from the plate and all. Or, cutting into a delicious dessert and showing people layers of sponge with custard cascading down it. All of that would be simply impossible to communicate with text alone, and even photography doesn’t do it the same justice.



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Make It Worth Their Watch</h4>



Nobody is going to stay around for a whole four minutes just to watch a floating head talk about a really boring topic. Plus, the majority of users will watch your video with the sound off (aka browsing the internet when you should be working). 



The first <a href="https://visme.co/blog/video-tips/">10 seconds are make or break</a>, so keep things interesting! Create an enthusiastic start to your videos with an upbeat, positive tone. Experiment with camera angles and shots, and make sure anyone talking can clearly be heard over music if you use it. 



With shooting food you have a huge advantage because you can instantly hit your goal (to make people hungry) within a few seconds by showing the exact right shot. Use your most popular dishes in the shots. After all, great food speaks for itself! 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">It’s Versatile</h4>



These days, video marketing doesn’t have to be static videos you post on your website or YouTube channel. Why not do a Facebook live showing your new seasonal dishes? You could even take viewers behind the scenes in the kitchen promoting your fresh ingredients and cooking methods. 



Instagram <a href="http://rockfishmarketing.com/2018/03/31/9-ways-use-instagram-restaurant-marketing/">stories and videos can also generate a large reach</a>. With Instagram in particular, you can tag your location and heavily tag to reach as many people as possible. Always include a hashtag of your city and county to reach passing trade including tourists who might be in the area.



If you haven’t already, set your Instagram profile to a business one which will give you more options and insights. Also ensure your Facebook is a page and not simply a profile, as some businesses are still yet to make the switch. Encourage those likes with great video marketing to really get the ball rolling! 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">It Will Boost Your Reach</h4>



Video marketing isn’t just about getting lots of people to watch your video alone. The aim is also to encourage tagging and sharing, especially on<a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/rock-your-restaurant-with-wifi-and-instagram/"> social media</a>. 



One of the best examples of a company getting this right is <a href="https://www.facebook.com/foodinsider/">Food Insider.</a> They post video content every single day showing restaurants in action. Despite the page only being a subsidiary of ‘Business Insider’, the page has 9 million followers. Better still, millions of people watch, like, comment and tag on every single video they post. 



When it comes to analysing your social media stats, you will really notice a huge spike once you get to grips with video marketing. You could even create a paid campaign using a video of your restaurant. Show people exactly what they are missing out on, and include a call to action encouraging them to book with you. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">It’s Cheaper Than TV</h4>



If you’re still not convinced, did you know <a href="https://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/02/22/how-much-does-it-cost-advertise-uk-tv-heres-what-channel-4-itv-and-more-charge-slots">it can cost up to £30,000</a> to book an advertising slot on British TV? That doesn’t even include the production costs! Very few restaurants can feasibly afford TV advertising, meaning they are missing out on reaching customers through traditional video means. 



Video marketing created specifically for your website and social media, however, can virtually be done for free. All you need is a smartphone, and even if you create a professional production it will never cost as much as a TV ad would. 



Another advantage is that with social media, it can be viewed 24/7, whereas with TV you are relying on someone viewing a channel at a particular time. Unless it’s a huge event, the audience figures are never going to compare. Social media can be targeted to reach a specific demographic, meaning you stay in control. Plus, you can see real-time analytics of how many people have viewed or interacted with your video. 



<h4 class="wp-block-heading">Conclusion</h4>



Nothing makes a human hungrier than showing them a delicious piece of food straight out of the oven. This is exactly the same effect you trigger with video marketing, so it really is a valuable marketing tool if you are yet to explore it. 



Whether you get a professional in to create a slick production, or even if you do an Instagram live on your smartphone &#8211; the results are there for the taking. 



If you are looking to connect with your customers, Stampede can give you <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/the-marketing-power-of-wifi-analytics-for-your-business/">real-time analytics</a> to understand your business like never before. Track your quiet spots and create <a href="https://stampede.ai/blog/engaging-customers-through-wi-fi-marketing/">personalised marketing</a> to keep business booming. 



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