Marketing & Promotions
11 Mother’s Day Marketing Ideas to Drive More Restaurant Profits This Spring
Molly Weinberg
5 min read
Apr 7, 2024
Molly Weinberg
5 min read
Apr 7, 2024
Mother’s Day is approaching, meaning families will be dining out and spending more to celebrate Mom.
This annual tribute to Moms is a $31.7 billion industry that’s celebrated by 84% of the population. Last year, 40% of diners planned to use a restaurant as part of their celebrations. Get your piece of the pie by marketing yourself as the Mother’s Day restaurant of the season.
Here are eleven Mother’s Day restaurant marketing ideas to help you maximize revenue this year.
Customers are more likely to choose restaurants that offer specials and discounts, according to a National Restaurant Association survey. Allow guests to add services, gifts and special menu items to their reservation during booking to customize their dining experience and make Mom feel loved.
By offering this upgrade during the booking process, guests feel reassured that they’ve done all they can to celebrate Mom ahead of time.
Examples of special upgrades you can implement for Mother’s Day include:
Here’s what the upgrade process can look like in real life when using a reservation system that has upgrade offerings pre-built into the platform:
Stand out from every other Mother’s Day restaurant promotion by offering up something more than just a normal dining experience.
Keep food the focal point of the Mother’s Day meal, but today’s guests want more from their special outings, especially Millennials. According to a recent SevenRooms study, nearly three out of four millennials prefer to spend money on experiences rather than material goods.
To transform your meal into a unique experience, here are a few ideas to consider:
Encourage reservations by advertising these experiences to guests on your regular booking channels. Highlight specific time slots for your Mother’s Day experience and showcase the details of your offering by adding a description, pricing and photos.
Your 3rd Spot in Atlanta, Georgia, is hosting a memory-making experience for Mom that includes special enhancements such as a MOMosa bar, family photo book and a card-making station. For an elevated experience, guests can also add a delectable six-course brunch tasting menu or bowling at booking, ensuring a fun-filled celebration.
Prioritizing reservations over walk-ins is important any day of the week, especially during holidays. Allow your guests to pre-book your planned experiences or a seat at your table, so you can order and staff appropriately and ensure Mom’s special day isn’t plagued by long wait times.
As families use your restaurant to treat Mom to a Mother’s Day meal, go the extra mile by surprising them with little somethings. Thoughtful gift ideas to add to your Mother’s Day menu include
Incorporating these Mother’s Day gift ideas and other delightful surprises into your Mother’s Day meal help show that you care.
Mother's Day brunch is a tried-and-true go-to for curated “special occasion” menu ideas, but consider building a special prix fixe menu for breakfast or dinner as well. According to the survey, 45% of families planned to celebrate over dinner, while 30% planned for brunch and 21% opted for breakfast.
There are many ways to build an affordable two- or three-course prix fixe Mother’s Day menu for any time of day. But remember that your special menu doesn’t have to follow the traditional order. If you’re looking to spice up your Mother’s Day brunch or dinner offerings, get creative with non-traditional prix fixe menus, such as a chocolate-tasting menu paired with champagne or berries.
Mother’s Day Brunch at Amada in Atlantic City, New Jersey, is offering a twist on the classics, with dishes like sangria pancakes or pork roll benedict. Bottomless cocktails are also available as an upgrade.
Don’t forget to accommodate all types of guests if you’re serving a prix-fixe menu. At booking, Amada allows guests to note any dietary restrictions or custom requests, which helps your staff plan and serve accordingly.
It’s important to share your Mother’s Day specials with the world, but it’s even more important to engage your most loyal guests during your busiest periods. Let them in on the news first, by broadcasting your Mother’s Day marketing ideas and Mother’s Day menu to your loyalty members via email or SMS messages. Repeat customers are also more likely to engage with your marketing campaigns, too.
Loyalty program or not, a personalized message goes a long way for increasing engagement rates! SevenRooms’ Email Marketing solution built for restaurants gives you the option to send tailored holiday marketing messages at scale.
Implement your Mother’s Day restaurant promotions all weekend long. Rather than limiting your celebrations — and your profits — to just Sunday, run your specials from Friday to Sunday. Whether you offer discounts or special entrees, you’ll attract more customers whose schedules aren’t as flexible on the big day.
No matter how you decide to honor Mother’s Day, remember to advertise your Mother’s Day restaurant promotions and special offers on social media. Here are a few tips for sharing your messages far and wide:
Day or night, give Mom the chance to let loose and have fun. Host a fun bash where Mom and her adult friends can enjoy free drinks and small bites before her family spoils her with breakfast in bed the next morning.
Hearth Restaurant is inviting moms to an artisan afternoon tea all weekend long, but if you’re feeling extra ambitious, consider hosting a happy hour or late-night soiree on Saturday followed by Mother’s Day brunch in the morning — satisfying all types of Mother’s Day wishes in one weekend.
Mimosas, fruit juice and charcuterie are among the fastest-rising ingredients and flavors for Mother’s Day. To bring more Moms through the door, offer mimosa drink specials (or make them bottomless) that pair perfectly with breakfast and brunch items.
Some Moms might prefer to stay at home and relax on their big day. Make it easy for loved ones to spoil them with scrumptious delivery and pickup options.
Offer online packages that provide a three- or four-course meal families can execute at home, complete with flowers, champagne and dessert. To upgrade your traditional takeout process for the holiday, print out special cards with a QR code linking to a celebratory playlist or directions for making your simple but stunning bellini recipe.
Before doubling down on your takeout offerings, ensure your online ordering platform is equipped to seamlessly accept and execute to-go meals. With SevenRooms, you can offer à la carte menu or unlock large-format online ordering. You can even add a promo code integration, ensuring your marketing efforts translate to both on- and off-premise orders.
While you’ve got your customers’ attention, why not cement your place in their minds as the “go-to” celebration spot? Offer your guests who dined with you on Mother’s Day complimentary gift cards to score a discount on their second visit — say, for Father’s Day, graduation day or future birthdays. This is one of the easiest strategies to capitalize on the holiday traffic and keep customers coming back to your restaurant.
Take a page from the Golden Peony's marketing playbook and advertise this two-fer deal on your booking pages for Mother’s Day. Guests who celebrate Mother’s Day with them get 20% off their upcoming Father’s Day events.
The above ideas are just a few ways you can maximize your reservation book this Mother’s Day — and every other holiday when people think about dining out. Plus, by using direct technology to facilitate these reservations, you’ll have access to all the data you need to welcome guests back for other special occasions, like Father’s Day in June.
Your ability to deliver curated experiences on high-traffic holidays helps you build a loyal customer base and solid industry reputation. To learn how SevenRooms can help you shape the customer experience, schedule a demo today.
