Buzz
As of early 2020, there were over 540,000 restaurants, bars, and eateries operating nationwide, according to information from the Vietnam Restaurant Association. Among them, more than 400,000 small eateries, 80,000 independent restaurants, along with well-invested dining establishments within hotels and others. What does this mean?
It means that if your restaurant doesn't create a distinctive impression on diners, you'll be just like the hundreds of thousands of other establishments – customers come and go, quickly forgetting about you.
Why choose Lã Vọng for fish cakes or Giảng for egg coffee? Even though they serve the same dishes, it's about creating a unique identity.
Many latecomer restaurants tend to adopt existing business models. This is akin to turning yourself into a copy of someone else. The problem is, their successful business model may have already captured a large market share, leaving little room for you. Therefore, without finding that point of differentiation or a niche market, attracting customers can be incredibly challenging. Recognizing this will help you escape the sea of generic duplicate restaurants prevalent today.
Are you someone brave enough to go against the crowd?
The individuals who dare to be different are often in the minority, seemingly at a disadvantage compared to the majority. However, the power of what is called the majority is not necessarily as significant as its quantity. That's why the minority can become the 'strong ones.' In the restaurant business, this philosophy holds especially true. Being in the minority means you possess the power of 'distinctiveness,' capable of attracting every customer.
Copyright is a way to affirm the uniqueness of a product. You should do the same for your restaurant. What you need to do is mark your unique position in the hearts of customers. It's the distinctiveness that will help you create those special brand impressions.
Building a distinctive brand for a restaurant
There are five most crucial elements that can help you leverage to create a distinctive brand for your restaurant: Cuisine, Ambiance, Pricing, Staff, and Service Quality. Let's explore how you can differentiate yourself through these elements!
1. Unique Cuisine
In reality, building a brand from the distinctiveness of dishes is not a simple task. The reason is that creating entirely new dishes among hundreds of existing recipes is quite challenging. This demands chefs to have a high level of expertise, which is quite rare in most restaurants in Vietnam. Therefore, creativity here is mostly considered in terms of changing ingredients, spices, and cooking methods.
Another objective reason comes from the customers' perception. They are not as discerning as culinary experts to distinguish all the spices that chefs use. Hence, the concept of uniqueness in the product is somewhat relative.
So, when aiming to build a brand through distinctiveness in food products, you don't need to painstakingly search for skilled chefs with entirely new, different recipes compared to other restaurants. Instead, consider changing ingredients, presentation styles, cooking methods, and ways of enjoyment to create a new experience for customers – that's enough.
For instance, instead of directly dipping hotpot into water conventionally, restaurants create a steam hotpot method. Rather than grilling on a regular charcoal stove, they initiate trends like tile grilling or volcanic stone grilling. All these innovations are quickly embraced by diners, sparking a new dining trend today.
2. Unique Ambiance
If building a brand from the distinctiveness of dishes seems challenging, differentiation in ambiance might be an easier approach.
In today's world, customers visit your establishment not just to fill their stomachs but to 'savor the cuisine,' and the restaurant ambiance is a crucial factor in this experience. A restaurant with a beautiful space completes the diner's emotions while enjoying the food.
Sometimes, the restaurant space becomes a standout feature, more attractive than other elements. Especially for the tech-savvy younger generation where 'checking in' has become an essential activity. Customers may complain about quality, prices, and service, but they can still generously award points if the restaurant's interior design is impressively beautiful.
However, I'd advise you that the food is still the core product of the restaurant. If you focus too much on the space and neglect the food quality, even if it looks stunning, customers may find it challenging to return for a second visit.
A restaurant designed like a wine cellar in Saigon
3. Differentiated Pricing
Experienced restaurant business experts always advise aiming for highly competitive pricing. However, what is the competitive price you should consider?
Many restaurant owners believe that competitive pricing means lowering prices to attract customers, but the result often fails to generate enough profit to cover costs. Remember, pricing should encompass costs such as raw materials, utilities, staff, rent, etc. So, the minimum price you set must at least ensure break-even.
Furthermore, offering discounts should only be done briefly, as if maintained for too long, customers may not perceive the value of the promotion, reducing the effectiveness of demand stimulation. Some restaurant owners persist with below-average prices, accepting minimal profits, but it can have a 'counterproductive' effect. Customers might think your product lacks quality because of the low price.
So, it can be seen that a low price is not always a competitive price. Sometimes, setting a high price attracts much more attention.
A prime example of this strategy is Apple. You can observe how each product launch is eagerly awaited by the public, even with sky-high prices. Of course, to set these prices, you must ensure that the restaurant's service and food are impeccable.
Building a brand through differentiated pricing is not an easy task; sometimes, it's a double-edged sword. Therefore, before deciding on the pricing, careful consideration and thorough calculation are essential.
4. Differentiated Staff
Professionalism and a neat appearance are the first factors to consider in creating a difference in the restaurant staff.
It's challenging to decide whether to choose employees with a quick and professional demeanor or opt for those with an attractive appearance but slightly lacking in skills, isn't it?
The answer for you is 'the best of both worlds.' For positions directly interacting with customers, such as receptionists and waitstaff, prioritize arranging employees who are pleasant to look at to enhance customer impressions,...
Furthermore, you can also create a unique brand imprint through the human resources department by selectively hiring staff with distinct but uniform characteristics. For example, only hiring serving staff as twins, or exclusively recruiting employees who are orphaned siblings with diverse talents...
5. Unique Service
It's challenging to determine 'What makes a restaurant have good service quality,' isn't it? Because each customer's criteria and standards are different – what satisfies you may not satisfy me. However, the most common denominator is prompt service and accurate fulfillment of customer requests. Pretty simple compared to the evaluation forms you've come across, right? However, the effectiveness of customer service adds another element – the rate of customer return.
In Vietnam, customers are still considered the top priority, receiving meticulous service. However, there are still demanding requests from customers. If you're tired of this, try the experiential dining business model.
Of course, you still have to serve customers as usual, but add experiential services that surprise and engage them in the experience, making them forget about their demands.
For instance: Lucky draw, birthday cake gifts, or letting families with small children experience baking together,...
Organizing and gifting birthday presents is a memorable experience for customers
Are you sure you understand your restaurant the best? If the answer is 'YES,' quickly identify (or reconfirm) the point of differentiation in your brand based on the 5 factors above. Hope this article is helpful for you. Please like or comment with your feedback to motivate us to share more.
Thank you and wish you all success in your restaurant business!
Kind regards,
