customers love affordable restaurants?

customers love affordable restaurants? Beware of falling into the price trap!

don't be careless in reducing the price of restaurants. The ultimate goal is to increase the unit price of customers. Chinese people advocate thrift, and most people's consumption concepts tend to be good and cheap. When looking for a friend to recommend a restaurant, I believe that the most frequently asked sentence is: "Is there any restaurant delicious and affordable?"

However, what puzzles many restaurant owners is that the price is closely related to the competitiveness and profitability of restaurants. Not long ago, I heard from the catering boss that I wanted to raise the unit price of some customers, but I was afraid to mention it casually, for fear that customers would find it expensive.

1. Other people's "cheapness" just looks cheap

There are more and more competitive pressures in the catering market, and there are many ways to compete, and price is one of the ways to enhance competitiveness. Consumers all know the principle of "shopping around", and whoever has a low price for the same thing naturally has an advantage.

So those "affordable" restaurants are often crowded, but did they really just lower the price? Let's analyze several common practices first.

combination package

that is, the price of purchasing one combination package is cheaper than the price of purchasing each product separately.

such preferential consumers can see and be willing to cooperate. For the catering boss, a little discount leads to an increase in the overall consumption of customers in a shorter choice time, which ensures the unit price of customers, reduces the pressure on the kitchen and improves the efficiency of ordering, but it does not suffer.

mantissa pricing

mantissa pricing is to avoid integer pricing such as 11 yuan and 21 yuan, and change it to 9/9.9 yuan, 19/19.9 yuan and 29/29.9 yuan, or to raise the price a little, for example, to sell it from 31 yuan to 32 yuan.

if the price is less than an integer, there is still room for growth, which also gives customers room for imagination. In the previous example, the original message from 31 yuan to customers was: this dish is more than 31 yuan, which is not cheap; 32 yuan's message to the guests is: The price of this dish is moderate, and it is not as high as 35 yuan.

selling in small portions and half portions

selling the products in small portions and half portions is cheaper than the overall price. Even if the unit price is slightly increased, it looks very "affordable".

For example, if Tiramisu is sold in small pieces, we can still accept the price of tens of dollars, and even buy more pieces, but if the whole Tiramisu is sold for several hundred dollars, the chances of buying it will be reduced.

Just because restaurants are branded as affordable doesn't mean that prices will be cut without a bottom line. This slight price adjustment actually makes customers feel "earned" psychologically.

Brother Ze once said, "Consumers don't like to buy cheap goods, but like to take advantage of them. "That is to say, when pleasing customers, you don't have to blindly pursue cheap, and cost performance is an important indicator to consider.

What the second customers want is not price but value

1. Consumption upgrade, and low-price competition is becoming more and more meaningless

With the post-91s generation becoming the main force of catering consumption, the catering market is becoming younger.

under the consumption upgrade, the younger generation has relatively stronger consumption power and desire, and is more willing to pay a premium for good products, good services and good brands.

on the contrary, too much price reduction will lose the tonality of the brand and be abandoned by customers, who are more interested in quality, individuality and experience.

2. Price is one of the expressions of value

Consumers like "material benefits", but sometimes they think that "cheap goods are not good". For customers, price is actually a reflection of value, and customers' understanding of product value is not expensive, but worth it.

if we find the highest price among peers and competitors, and then find the lowest price, and choose the middle price, the intuitive feeling for customers is that it is cheaper than the expensive products, better than the cheap products, and easier to get recognition.

What restaurants want to sell is not the price, but the value that they can bring to consumers. Pricing based on the value of products will make customers feel that they are worth the money, even beyond the value, and they will be chosen.

Third, how to satisfy the "value for money" in consumers' minds

To put it bluntly, consumers are not short of money, and no matter how cheap the pricing is, it is difficult to be recognized if they can't give consumers the "ultimate interests". On the contrary, improving self-worth and satisfying consumers' "sense of value" will not only benefit the brand itself.

how to balance the interests of restaurants with the needs of consumers, we should find a clear purpose and way.

1. Clarify the purpose of price reduction: increase the unit price of customers

When pricing products, the core purpose of restaurants is to increase the unit price of customers and increase profit income, no matter how the unit price of products changes. For example, in the practice of a hot pot restaurant, the prices of dishes are generally in the tens, twenties and thirties, and half of them are introduced to induce customers to "eat less and eat more", and the bulk of the profits are mainly placed on the bottom of the pot. The price of hot-boiled vegetables is affordable, which not only gives customers a sense of value, but also allows customers to buy more copies without pressure, thus increasing the unit price of customers. The so-called small profits but quick turnover is the truth.

Let's change it. The "hot-boiled vegetables" here are products that are homogenized with competitors, and the "bottom of the pot" is its own characteristics or main dishes. While adopting the price reduction strategy, restaurants need products with quality and attractiveness to support the unit price of customers and avoid the feeling of cheapness.

2. Additional appreciation means: enhancing brand value

Generally speaking, lowering the price will attract consumers to come for preferential treatment, but conversely, supporting the premium through brand appreciation can also make consumers feel value for money.

the value here includes not only the food itself, but also the environment and service. In other words, it is to find a selling point.

For example, the service culture of Haidilao is a selling point, and the space value of Starbucks is also a selling point. These selling points support their differentiation from competitors, and consumers are rushing for these added values.

Although there is investment in the early stage of brand appreciation, it brings consumers' recognition of products and stickiness to brands.

3. Pricing considerations: consumption channels and crowds

Grandma's 3 yuan Mapo tofu has a very low price, which brings a cost-effective label to Grandma's house while draining, and is more suitable for popular low-end consumer places. Moreover, once the price of Mapo tofu in 3 yuan is raised, it will intuitively give consumers the impression of "restaurant price increase".

For another example, Xibei takes the "little expensive" route, using high-quality ingredients and services to highlight the sense of exquisiteness, which is more suitable for the middle class who accept high-quality and high-priced products, and it is not an exaggeration to enter the middle-end shopping malls.

Making good use of price can not only input different memory labels for brands, but also effectively locate consumers and channels. Therefore, the restaurant's pricing should be consistent with its own positioning, and it is not necessary to blindly go cheap.

Zege often sees that some people sell the same product for 15, while others sell it for 31.

It doesn't mean that selling 15 yuan is definitely better than selling 31 yuan. For example, compared with pancakes on street stalls, single-product stores with elegant and comfortable environment sell pancakes a little more expensive, which is acceptable to consumers.

the so-called "taking advantage" of consumers is actually to gain a sense of value from products. No matter from the pricing or the product itself, as long as it can satisfy this sense of value in the eyes of consumers, it is an "affordable" restaurant that they are willing to pay for again.