In these days, as a business goes viral, it is easily for it to fizzle out when it is not maintained. But if a business seizes this opportunity to expand, it can be a lasting business, even if it is initially small.
Why should they be prepared?
When an F&B business goes viral, the sudden high in demand can be both an opportunity and a challenge. Here are the key reasons why you should be prepared:
- Gain potential of returning customers
- Satisfying customer experience
- Maintaining quality of service
- Business growth
What should they do?
1) Be active online
It’s crucial to communicate transparently, honestly, and frequently with customers as the business is going viral. When a business suddenly experiencing a shortage on menu and they could not be able to deliver it, they could put up on a notice to notify the audience. This helps manage expectations and maintains trust with your audience.
Other than that, Whether it is through making promotions on social media or on the website, building momentum online can increase existing attention. For instance, businesses could give a live update on the current situation of the business on that day. This could spark interest and boost their desire going there. This way could also encourage them to bookmark the social media post or website for future visits.
2) Meeting customer expectations
One of the biggest struggles is giving them exactly what they need. When a business goes viral, it usually comes from reviews made by other customers. For example, an audience on TikTok saw a video review. From the video, they observed a pleasant ambiance, beautifully presented dishes, and appetizing food that aligns with their preferences. For that reason, they are expecting the same thing that they saw in the video.
To meet expectations, consistency is crucial. A business must ensure that every aspect meets the expected standards. This includes having skilled staff, maintaining high-quality food, and delivering excellent service consistently. This commitment to consistency builds trust with customers and enhances their overall experience, ensuring satisfaction and loyalty over time.
3) Prepare for unexpected changes
In the restaurant or cafe itself, a sudden increase in customers can strain resources such as seating and staff availability. Meanwhile, on the online front, there can be a surge in inquiries through channels such as phone calls, social media messages, and website queries. To effectively manage this, the use of tools such as AI-powered chatbot, businesses can efficiently manage the surge of incoming customer inquiries during sudden spikes in visitor traffic to restaurants or cafes. Also, businesses can hire temporary part timers to provide customers with exceptional services. These part timers should also be well equipped with necessary knowledge so that it would not bring confusion to the customers. Staff cross training could also help to help maintaining service during absence of staffs.
Other than that, keeping a closer contact with suppliers will aid in food shortages so that the shelves are not always empty. As a result, business will keep on increasing their profit from the surging customer demand. A perfect example for this is a Glossier You perfume, reported by Bloomberg. They make their customers keep coming back because they maintain a consistent supply and delivering customer expectation during viral surge. While it is hard to maintain a supply, they made a strategy by gifting another product of their own to the customers while stocking up their perfume.
4) Have flexible working schedules
The surging of customers which keeps coming can come as exhausting to the staffs. Flexible working schedules allow businesses to adjust staffing levels dynamically, ensuring sufficient manpower during peak hours without overburdening employees. This strategy will help employees to re-adjust their energy levels and also maintain customer satisfaction from meeting customer expectations from quality service.
Word-of-mouth combined with online platforms is very powerful, and you don’t want to miss out on it.
Contents on social medias, especially video contents, on widely popular platform like TikTok, can spread much easier. This is especially true when the content went viral, since it will be boosted by TikTok even more. No matter what kind of experience a customer gain, be it satisfying or not during their visit, particularly influencers, they will make a content out of it.
When an F&B business provides great service, it is normal for customers who have visited to spread the word through word of mouth. As the business goes viral, it is likely that people will talk about it. This is especially true in this modern online world where information is relayed quickly.
Conclusions
F&B businesses must prepare for viral success by staying active on online platforms, meeting customer expectations, preparing for sudden changes, and offering flexible schedules. Effective online and word-of-mouth strategies help businesses become more visible and reach their potential customers. It is important to note that balancing immediate response with strategic planning is key to long-term success in a competitive market.
