Coffee is an all-time favorite of people from any age group, career, or race. It’s just a simply lovable beverage. Probably the reason for this is because it’s versatile. People who like sweet drinks can have lattes, and those who want extra alertness can have two espresso shots in their cups.
Entertaining and educating coffee shop customers extends beyond conversations about coffee origins and brewing techniques. Demonstrating the art of espresso making, including the cleanup process, can be both informative and engaging. A vital tool in this process is the box, an essential for any barista, allowing for quick and efficient disposal of espresso pucks. By incorporating demonstrations on how to use such tools effectively, coffee shops can offer a more immersive experience, showing patrons the behind-the-scenes action of their favorite beverages being crafted, and emphasizing the skill and care that goes into every cup.
The whole coffee business has evolved from a simple offering of versatile beverages. It has become a whole industry that banks on coffee as an entire experience on its own, even counting as a lifestyle.
The industry has become competitive. Not only do you need to maximize your presence online. You also have to employ various technologies to ensure you optimize your website’s core vitals to stay ahead of the game. But of course, you have to strike a balance between digital marketing efforts and enriching your customers’ experience on-site.
If you own a small coffee shop business or just planning to, here are some ideas you can use to make the whole experience better for your customers.
Hold Coffee-brewing Workshops
Some coffee enthusiasts have been introduced to the game through coffee shops. And if they are neck-deep in their love for the beverage, you can offer to teach them how they can brew their coffee. You don’t have to fear losing customers once they start brewing their coffee at home.
If anything, you are expanding your customer base. You are giving a solution to a need. Most of your dine-in customers live nearby or work nearby. When they get home, and they crave coffee, they can’t get the same level of experience with deliveries. Sometimes, the iced coffee is already watered down, or the hot coffee has cooled down.
You can hold mini-workshops they can attend on weekends, and they can purchase the coffee beans and the equipment directly from you. Teach them the best home-friendly ways to brew coffee. Teach them what methods are best for which kinds of beans. The main idea is that they don’t have to worry about being too far from your coffee shop because you can send the experience to their homes.
This move can also attract people who are not yet your customers. Maybe their go-to coffee shop doesn’t have a unique event like yours.
Make Educational Display Ads
Nothing feels better than learning cool stuff about the things you love. Be generous enough to extend the good feeling to your customers. Since you are a master of the coffee craft, share what you know about their favorite drinks or the coffee industry in general.
You can use a screen in one corner of your shop to flash infographics or trivia facts. Aside from learning, your customers will also find them entertaining. Animated slides with no audio are preferable. Also, put it strategically so it won’t annoy customers. Sometimes they come in for a cup of coffee to relax or concentrate on work. They don’t need distractions.
You can put it near the counter where people order their drinks. You can also put one outside for passers-by. Also, make sure that your ads’ overall theme matches the ambiance of your shop.
Focus on the Interior
There are three things that a coffee shop must accomplish so customers can add them to their favorites list. One is the taste of the coffee and other food items you offer; this is a given. Another is the kind of customer service you provide. And lastly, the place itself.
Sometimes, what draws the customers to a place is the aesthetics. This is especially true now, with perfectly curated Instagram feeds being a thing. You have to focus your research on what makes a place Instagram-worthy and apply the rules.
And then you can always insert something of value for your customers to pick up. For example, you can follow a theme like “coffee around the world.” For this, your interior design would consist of walls lined with different containers of coffee from other countries.
You can also offer them a peek at the coffee brewing history. You can display different coffee equipment used from centuries ago, if there are any. It’s like a coffee museum. Visiting your coffee shop will be more than just an aesthetic experience.
Go all out with your interior. With proper research and execution, you will be blessed with more visitors in return.
You are likely a coffee lover yourself, and that’s why you are in the business. If that is the case, it’s much easier for you to develop strategies that will appeal to customers who feel the same way about coffee as you do.