13 tips to improve the natural referencing of your establishment on Google

The website is a central and indispensable element for any bar, restaurant and event venue. Some websites are updated every week while others have never changed since their creation in 1995!

Most establishments are not really comfortable with creating websites and will delegate the work to agencies that will bill several thousand euros or even tens of thousands of euros.

In addition to that, establishments have only a vague idea of the essential parts to have on their website.

Our positioning is very simple: you can do everything by yourself at a lower cost. In this article, we will explain to you what are your possibilities for creating a website and also what are the important parts that your site must contain in order to have the best possible SEO as well as the best conversion rate into reservations.

Do it yourself make your website

A few centuries ago, to build a house, you had to start by making your own bricks and then assembling them. Today everything has changed: all you have to do is buy bricks directly.

It's the same with websites. Today, in 2019, there are a slew of tools that allow you to create your own website without writing a single line of code! As a restaurant owner, it is a luxury that cannot be denied.

Here is our selection for bars, restaurants and event venues:

• Wix : This tool allows you to build a website in a very simple and intuitive way. Many templates are available, including some are specialized in catering. The prices are also very accessible: they range from €4/month to €24 for the most premium version. Wix is our number 1 recommendation!
• Squarespace : alternative to Wix. The interface is a bit different but the general idea is the same. You have templates that you can choose then you can add elements (ex: form, images, texts).
  Prices range from €11 to €17/month.
• WordPress : If you are more comfortable with technology, WordPress represents a good compromise between customization and ease of use. 33% of sites on the internet are made on this tool. Unfortunately, you need to have some knowledge and, above all, have time to get used to how it works. On the other hand, it is the tool with the best SEO and also the only one that has a free version. For the paid version, it ranges from 4 to 25 €/month.

We have just seen all the possibilities you had to choose the tool for creating your website.

Now let's get to the different parts that your site should contain. There are quite a few specificities to bars, restaurants and event venues that we will detail in the rest of this article.

Bars, restaurants, event venues, the essential parts for your website

1. The concept, the atmosphere and the ambiance

The first question that visitors to your site will ask themselves will be: What is the concept of your establishment?

Faced with the abundance of establishment openings, yours must be able to stand out with its concept. Here we are not talking about very complicated things but simply about highlighting the personality of your establishment.

The worst thing you want is to create indifference among visitors. You must be divisive: either you agree or you don't.

This will allow you several things:

• have an excellent reservation conversion rate (because the people who book will know what sauce they are going to eat)
• Have a good word of mouth (the concept will get people talking)
• attract people you are interested in (if your target is the student population you don't want to attract a reservation from a bridge club)

The key word is empathy: the visitor to your website must identify himself with your establishment. It will create a powerful bond that will last over time.

2. Photos and videos

Most bar, restaurant and event sites contain photos but please stop putting photos of your EMPTY place!

Visitors to your site need to project themselves into your establishment, in its atmosphere and atmosphere.

Put photos of your evenings, photos of groups, photos of your staff in action!

tip : if you have a well-maintained Instagram account, you can connect your Instagram account to your site and thus automatically show all the photos.

Moreover, despite the fact that video is considered to be the holy grail in terms of its effect on your visitors and conversion into reservations, too few establishments promote a video on their site.

The main obstacle is that the managers think it is expensive to make a video because they imagine that Martin Scorsese came to shoot. In 2019, all you have to do is take your smartphone and film... That's more than enough!

Don't forget to use this video also on your Facebook page either as a cover or in a “pin to top” post.

3. Booking form

Whether it is a form visible on your site or simply a “Book” button that redirects to the form, it does not matter.

On the other hand, it is essential to put a call to action at the highest level on your site and highlight it enormously.

Remember that the sole purpose of your website is to convert visitors into bookings. All the different parts that make up your website are only there to convince the visitor to make a reservation.

If your site has a header (the horizontal band at the top of your site that usually contains a menu) put a reserve button in it.

Also, emphasize that the reservation is free. This may seem obvious to you but it is not the case for all visitors.

4. Who are we?

It is in this part that you will introduce the manager, the bartenders, the staff etc.

Put photos of each person with a nice description that reflects your state of mind.

Explain what drives you, the experience you are trying to offer in your establishment and how these people are best able to deliver it.

Remember that you will succeed in retaining customers by creating a human relationship with all the staff. In the end, each establishment is a family

5. Groups and businesses

Whether you are a bar, a restaurant or an event venue, group bookings represent a significant financial windfall.

Having a section on your website that deals with this subject is fundamental.

Important: address individuals as well as businesses

• Highlight that you offer FREE group bookings!
• Add a list of possible occasions (party, party, afterwork, birthday, etc.).
• Offer great promotions for groups of more than x people.
• Add the experiences you can add (magician, games,...)
• Highlight the equipment available (video projector, microphone, flipchart,...)

In this same section, you can add the presentation of the various spaces in your establishment. For each space, specify:

• a detailed description
• photos (not empty!) or video
• the minimum and maximum capacity in terms of number of people
• The equipment available
• booking conditions (deposit, deposit,...)

6. Menus and cards

This part is a great classic but still few establishments offer a menu or a menu on their website.

Your visitors need to project themselves into your tapas, cocktails, etc... and especially your prices!

Attention: try as much as possible to insert the menu or the map in text.

Unfortunately Google is still not smart enough to read images. Texts are still the most digestible thing for him today. As a result, this can affect your referencing.

One last point: it may seem obvious but make the effort to have an UP TO DATE card!

We still see too many establishments that never update their menus. This creates an immediate disappointing effect on the customer. In fact, this can be seen directly in the reviews.

If you want inspiration click here => restaurant and bar card templates

7. Promotional offers

If you have promotions such as happy hours, formulas, packs, highlight them. Again, avoid images, focus on texts.

Also, if you offer take-away sales, highlight this service!

8. Events, evenings

For many of you, you already have regular events (every week).

Indicate the program for the week on your website. This will make your visitors want to participate in one of your events.
If you are launching an event in an exceptional way, promote it on your site to attract participants!

tip : you can connect your Facebook account to your website and thus automatically show all your Facebook events on your site.

9. Facebook and Google reviews

Social media reviews have become essential.

Before booking in your establishment, potential customers will first go to find out about the various opinions you have on the networks.

Avoid extra work for them and offer a section on your site with all the reviews (the main ones are Google and Facebook).

tip : you can connect your Facebook account and your Google page to your site and thus display all the reviews on your site. Of course, you can filter only those that interest you.

10. General information

Most websites contain this information but here are a few remarks to further improve this often neglected part.

• The Google Maps map: this allows you to locate the establishment very quickly.
• Telephone: avoid putting your 06... indicate the FIXED number of your bar, restaurant or event location.
• Opening and closing times: be sure to update this information. If this information is not the same as that found in your Google page, it can affect your SEO.
• Links to social media pages: feel free to be generous with links. The more you have, the better Google will reference you.

11. Messenger chat

You can insert a small chat at the bottom right of your site that is directly connected to the Messenger on your Facebook Page.

This allows you to answer all the questions of your prospects and centralize all the conversations in Messenger.

12. For establishments that belong to a group

Dedicate a different page from the home page to present the other establishments in the group.

Try to add a blurb with photos for each other establishment.

Also, do not forget to put a link to the site of each establishment. This will considerably increase the referencing of all the group's websites.

13. Last but not least

Facebook pixel:
It's a small piece of code that Facebook provides you with. It allows you to make the link between your visitors and the Facebook database. Once set up, you will be able to make much more accurate and powerful ads! It is MANDATORY to put in place, even if you don't see the point today.

Google analytics:
It's a small piece of code that Google gives you. It allows you to have statistics on your visitors (number of visitors, percentage of people who come back, the most visited pages etc.). It is MANDATORY to put in place, even if you don't see the point of it today.

Search console:
It is Google's free tool that allows you to officially register yourself with Google. This makes it possible to trigger referencing in an official way. But the most interesting part of this tool is that it will give you a list of all the keywords that people type on Google and for which your site appears. This list is accompanied by other statistics such as the number of searches, the position of your website in Google results, etc.

HTTPS: Since 2018, Google has no longer given gifts to sites that are not in HTTPS. If you haven't made a change yet, it's time to do it today. The transition to HTTPS is automatic with sites under Wix and Squarespace. For WordPress sites, you can install a free security certificate but this requires the help of a developer...

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