Why Should A Restaurant Have A Website

As a restauranteur or Food & Beverage (F&B) business owner, you might wonder "should my restaurant have a website?" There is no doubt that more and more F&B businesses are doing away with an official website and are still doing very well.

Imagine walking along a dainty street with a cup of warm macchiato in-hand and you see 2 new French restaurants that have opened up right across one another. As a foodie, new F&B establishments peak your interest and of course, you have to give them a try. But since both are French restaurants and in the same area, you wonder which restaurant to patronise first. How would you decide?

You might walk over to both restaurants, browse their menus, and take a quick peek at the restaurants' interior. What happens if they are similar in cuisine, price point, and ambience? In this case, their digital presence will be the deciding factor.

If you're like me (and majority of the world), you would turn to our good old pal, Google. Some search results you can expect include food reviews, social pages like Instagram or Facebook, F&B platforms like Oddle or Chope, as well as the official website.

Better Start to Food Reviews

Food blogs are consistently uploading new blog content, so they are usually the first few results on the search engine result pages. Don't be surprised if you search your restaurant's name on Google and your restaurant's links are not the first few results! So, it is important to make sure that the dining experience at your restaurant is consistently amazing to avoid bad reviews.

Even though the review itself is something that your digital presence will have no impact on, food critics and bloggers often do their research on your restaurant before tasting your food. They want to know what to expect and also what the restaurant's story is. Sometimes, they even include a paragraph at the start of their food review to introduce your restaurant to their readers.

So, having a good official website for your restaurant will definitely start the food review off on the right foot.

Social Pages Are Risky

Instagram and Facebook are some of the most popular social media platforms used by people all around the world. For that reason, F&B establishments are jumping on to the social media bandwagon and keeping their followers updated and engaged through their content.

For a more in-depth breakdown on social media and what content to post for your restaurant, read this.

Facebook

Some establishments use their Facebook page as their website, which is understandable as there is an About Us section, a Reach Us section, Menus, Ratings & Reviews, etc. It has everything that you would add on to a website, right?

The major downside of this is that every other Facebook page looks the same with Facebook's UI, so you are unable to control what your page looks like and how the content is presented. Site visitors can only differentiate you from your competitors through your (very small) profile picture and name.

Not to mention, Facebook is constantly redesigning their UI/UX, meaning that you do not have a say on your page's design, no matter it is in your favour or not. And what happens if Facebook crashes? Well, so does your page.

Last but not least, if Facebook starts to monetise and charge businesses for using their platform, you will be left with the choice to pay up or build an official website of your own.

My recommendation is to take advantage and leverage on Facebook for the exposure since they have tons of users. But as the saying goes, "do not place all your eggs in one basket". Always make sure that your Facebook page has a link to an external site that you do have complete control over.

Instagram

What better way to get attention than displaying drool-worthy food? Many restaurants, cafés, and bars understand that pictures (and videos) speak a thousand words, so they are posting aesthetically pleasing content on their Instagram accounts.

Can Instagram eliminate the need for a website? I think it's extremely unlikely as an Instagram account usually acts as a lead magnet - to generate trust, show off your personality, and build familiarity. It will take an extremely strategic planner to build an Instagram account that can check all the boxes of a website.

The Instagram algorithm is also extremely volatile, meaning that you might have tens of thousands of views on one of your posts but you have no idea why. So, again, take advantage and leverage on Instagram for the exposure, but "do not place all your eggs in one basket". Make sure that your Instagram account has a link to an external site that you have complete control over.

F&B Platforms Are Insufficient

If you are not living in Southeast Asia or specifically Singapore, you might not know what Oddle or Chope is. Both are online food directories for users to search, purchase vouchers, make reservations, or even order delivery/takeaway from.

Some F&B establishments use such platforms as their main website, especially Oddle, since they allow basic UI editing of the respective establishment's page. In my opinion, this is the best alternative to an official website. Here's why:

• Such platforms are designed specifically for F&B establishments
• All platform users already have the intention to patronise or purchase from F&B establishments
• The UI/UX designs are done with the previous point in mind

The downside to such platforms is the competition, since they are food directories after all. They serve to provide information and for customers to make reservations or order delivery/takeaway easily using their infrastructure. Your page will struggle to get exposure unless platform users specifically search for or filter results relating to you.

Since these F&B platforms cater to those who already have an intention to purchase from you, what about those who are just browsing? Unfortunately, these platforms do not cater to them, even though they make up over 90% of site visitors. To tackle this, you need other ways to communicate with them. A well designed website can help to convert some of those "just browsing" into "let's give this place a try!"

My Recommendation

Remember that your site visitors will consist of 2 groups:

1. Those ready to purchase, make reservations, and walk-in
2. Those who are just looking.

You need to make sure you are prepared for both. That's why my recommendation is to make sure that all your digital presences are linked to your official website. What this means is that all your digital presences will serve as a lead magnet and your website will be the salesman who converts the leads. This way, you are prepared for those who are just looking.

But of course, your website has to be designed in a way that works as a conversion machine. Checkout this article on my website design process for F&B websites.

For those ready to purchase, make reservations, and walk-in, just make sure your restaurant details can be found everywhere and easily. Details include:

• The link to order delivery/takeaway (your website/F&B platforms)
• The link to make reservations (your website/F&B platforms)
• Restaurant address (+ directions if it's less accessible)

Conclusion

A website that is well-designed can help your restaurant business differentiate itself and reach out to customers. So, the main question isn't whether you should have a website for your restaurant. It's actually how can you make sure that a website can contribute to your restaurant.

I have been practicing my craft for years, so I have certain ways of thinking and insights from constant learning. So, if you'd like to save time and have a well-designed website, I would suggest you invest in a website designer and reap the benefits in the long run.

_{Disclaimer: The analysis and recommendations in this article are written based on my personal opinion and research, and are accurate as at the time of publishing this article.}