There are 5 Features your Restaurant Website Needs, but most important is amazing food photography to get those tastebuds racing. Let’s take a look at what makes a great restaurant website.
1. Enticing Photography
Every restaurant website needs to showcase their food in the most pleasing and appetizing way to indulge the user to look further into your website, book a reservation or place an online order.
Instagram and “foodies” love to take photos of their food and share on Instagram. Every restaurant needs an Instagram account for your customers to share too.
The quality of photography is also very important. Poor lighting and colour can make your food look drab and unpleasant, ultimately resulting in customers seeking out other options. A great strategy to get professional photos of your dishes and restaurants atmosphere is to host an appreciation event. Invite your best customers to an evening of free food and drinks with the knowledge that photographers will be present. This provides you dedicated time and people needed to take these professional photos.
Now that I have made the importance of photography very clear, let’s focus on the other areas to better your restaurant’s website.
2. Clear Menu Items & Pricing
There is nothing more frustrating than visiting a restaurants website and not seeing menu items and pricing. If it wasn’t important, you wouldn’t have a menu on presentation outside your front entrance. So make sure you clearly categorize and showcase your menu items with all pricing.
3. Features & Specials
Another important area is presenting specials and features on your website. This will entice people to participate in these events and tell others. Also, make sure this info is out prior to an event, allowing users to share and boost its presence online.
4. Reservations
A reservation section is a must. It helps organize scheduling, inventory and provides customers with a table upon their arrival.
We suggest OpenTable, a real-time online reservation network. Their service provides online reservations, restaurant reviews from diners, and a point system towards free meals. This service helps restaurants grow and run their businesses, enabling diners to discover and book the perfect table every time they dine.
5. Online Ordering
Finally, for those customers that want to enjoy your cuisine at their home or on the run, provide the option of ordering online. This convenient option keeps your kitchen busy and your customers happy.
We love the integration with ChowNow, an ordering platform that allows visitors to place food orders directly from your site or Facebook page — all for a flat rate.
Restaurant Website Summary
So to conclude, the 5 Features your Restaurant Website Needs are great photos, clear menu items, and pricing, promoting specials and features, having a reservation section and an online ordering option.
All these great features are available through our Squarespace platform that our designers here at nvision would be happy to explore with restaurant owners that are ready to step up their online game.
Any Thoughts or Questions?
If you’re a restaurant owner or looking to open a restaurant, it would be great to hear your thoughts. Please feel free to post your comments or questions below.
Hope you enjoyed this article, thanks for reading and good eating!
