Your web site is your storefront for the whole world. Whereas many companies have chosen to stay to social media to advertise their companies, they might be doing a lot extra with their very own web site.
This sequence will present how straightforward it’s to create your individual web site tailor-made to your small business, whether or not you’re a hairdresser, a restaurant, a consulting agency, a photographer, or something. With our suggestions, you’ll be able to have your individual web site up and operating shortly, simply, and able to get prospects in.
In the present day, we’re specializing in making a web site for eating places and pubs — locations the place good images and nice menus can get you seen all over the world.
Getting Began
Earlier than you begin making your restaurant web site, work out what you wish to placed on it. Would you like individuals to have the ability to make reservations on-line? Do prospects order on-line via you or via a third-party equivalent to Deliveroo or Uber Eats? Do you’ve particular occasions or common nights? How usually do you make adjustments to your menu?
With this stuff in thoughts, you’re prepared to decide on your internet hosting package deal and get began.
As a result of that is for a single web site, we suggest shopping for an excellent fundamental package deal, both our Important internet hosting package deal or our Primary Managed WordPress package deal. Each of which offers you the house and efficiency you want with out costing an excessive amount of. In case you select Important, you’ll want to put in WordPress in your package deal, and when you select Primary, WordPress will probably be put in routinely.
Placing Menus On-line
Many eating places merely add the most recent PDF model of their menu to their web site, however by doing this, they’re lacking out on numerous potential prospects. PDFs are reviewed by search engines like google and yahoo, however require very totally different search engine optimisation strategies, and should rank a lot decrease within the outcomes than an online web page. By placing your menu onto an online web page, you not solely give your prospects extra alternatives to seek out you through search, however you additionally make it simpler for cellular customers to see your great meals.
You are able to do this by simply creating a brand new web page in WordPress, however there are additionally some nice plugins that’ll enable you to make your menu shine.
5 Star Restaurant Menu
With this plugin, you’ll be able to construct particular person menu sections with a sidebar, making it straightforward on your prospects to go straight to specials, themed occasions, or simply the dessert part. There’s additionally the power so as to add in a footer for any disclaimers or allergy info. The fundamental plugin is free and obtainable on the WordPress plugins web site, however when you improve to the Premium model, you additionally get iconography (nice for declaring vegetarian/vegan/gluten-free choices), custom-field choices, and the power for purchasers to depart critiques on explicit dishes. The Premium model is $87 for a lifetime subscription.
Restaurant Menu
Best for takeaways and smaller eating places, this handy menu plugin not solely permits you to listing your dishes, but additionally permits prospects to pick out objects, add them to a procuring cart, after which try utilizing money on supply/pick-up or PayPal. It additionally features a nice “toppings” function, which is a incredible function for pizza locations or any merchandise that you could load up with extras.
Finest Restaurant Menu
This stripped-down restaurant menu plugin isn’t simply nice for eating places, it’s nice for any enterprise that has a listing of things to select from. Constructed to be responsive on any system, and nice for itemizing out particular person objects, it’ll provide the ease of constructing a menu with out burying your prospects in too many choices, so all they’ll have to consider is what meals they need.
Making The Website Look Good
Your web site must be as useful as doable. Together with ensuring your opening hours, telephone quantity, and handle are prominently displayed, it’s best to be sure there are clear instructions and any essential info you want your prospects to know earlier than they arrive in. Your web site additionally must work on each cellular and desktop browsers. Listed here are a couple of themes that’ll make your web site seems nearly as good as your meals.
Restaurant Meals Supply
This theme undoubtedly attracts consideration to specials, with eye-catching blocks for menu images. With a variety of carousels and galleries obtainable, you’ll be able to simply showcase your menu, your restaurant, and your critiques with only a few clicks. The premium model is $49 and comes with much more customisation and WooCommerce integration.
Restaurant and Cafe
Huge and daring, this theme provides you a stunning header excellent on your signature dish and loads of blocks to drop in to make a incredible web site. Optimised for velocity and mobile-friendly, this free theme provides you the choices you want whereas additionally making it straightforward to construct. The professional model is $59 and offers you much more customisation choices in addition to help.
Traditional Espresso Store
This pleasant theme not solely provides you a big header picture to indicate off your café but additionally features a left sidebar to essentially catch your prospects’ consideration. Nice on each cellular and desktop, the theme is ideal for small cafés and low retailers, with lovable design touches that actually make it stand out. The professional model is $39 and contains much more customisation and icons.
Reserving Reservations
In case you’re a bigger restaurant, you may need intricate software program that allows you to schedule bookings and seat prospects based mostly in your staffing ranges and kitchen exercise. However when you’re a smaller enterprise, a web-based reserving system would possibly make a distinction to your prospects. Together with placing your phone quantity in a transparent and easy-to-see place on the web site, you’ll be able to embrace a reserving plugin to make gentle work of reservations.
5 Star Restaurant Reservations
To match their Menu plugin, this reservation plugin provides you loads of choices in a single package deal. Arrange reservation reserving throughout your complete web site, or simply on one web page, and customise your availability to suit your wants, whether or not you wish to routinely settle for reserving for small events or block common no-shows. The fundamental model provides you all these options, and the premium model additionally contains {custom} fields, CSV exporting (nice for printing out a schedule!), Mailchimp integration, and much more styling choices. The premium model is $157 for a lifetime subscription, or you’ll be able to even herald SMS messaging and the power to pay a deposit with the last word model, obtainable for $397.
Fast Restaurant Reservations
With this handy plugin, not solely can prospects guide tables at your restaurant, you can too create month-to-month or day by day schedules and create affirmation and cancellation emails with ease. There’s additionally a premium model for $59, which supplies you the power to arrange most capability ranges for automated reserving, making it straightforward to refill your tables.
BookingPress
Constructed for any enterprise that’s constructed on appointments, BookingPress is nice for customising your reservations. Set particular deadlines for bookings, settle for deposits via PayPal and have limitless reserving choices via one straightforward administrative interface. Whereas it’s extra designed for locations like spas, gyms, and wonder salons, in case your restaurant is small, it would work a deal with.
Displaying Off Your Evaluations
As soon as your restaurant’s off and operating, you wish to present everybody how nice it’s, proper? And buyer critiques are a good way to get new prospects in. Many evaluation websites have their very own scripts to place into your web site, however by utilizing a plugin, you’ll be able to minimize down on obtain occasions and extra scripts in your web site.
WP Tripadvisor Evaluate Widget
Tripadvisor is a good supply of critiques for eating places and different journey locations. With this widget, you’ll be able to easily add as much as 10 Tripadvisor critiques for your small business and show them in over 25 pre-designed widget kinds with over 40 layouts. The widget can be designed to be search engine marketing pleasant and has a darkish mode model to match your design.
Social Evaluations & Suggestions
Fb can be nice for buyer critiques, particularly when you’re specializing in extra native clientele. With this widget, you’ll be able to pull critiques out of your Fb web page into your web site, making it not solely straightforward on your prospects to see how individuals really feel about your small business, but additionally getting extra prospects to your Fb web page.
WP Social Ninja
Combine your critiques along with your social media feeds with this all-in-one plugin. Within the free model, you’ll be able to embrace Google Place critiques in your web site in addition to your Twitter, Instagram, and Fb feeds. Upgrading to the professional model, which is $79 for one yr or $198 for a lifetime license, provides you much more evaluation feeds, equivalent to Yelp, Trustpilot, Tripadvisor, and Fb, and the power on your prospects to message you on WhatsApp and Telegram.
So there are some choices on your web site. Whether or not you’re a gastropub, small café, bakery, or meals truck, having a well-built and detailed web site is a good way to get your identify on the market, introduce individuals to your restaurant, and showcase your scrumptious meals.