As a restaurateur, you need to focus on attracting millennial customers. Understanding what they want and how they behave will help to bring them to your eatery.
Millennial spending patterns in restaurants.
Millennials, the generation born roughly between 1981 and 1996, represent a core group of the customers you need to woo and keep in your restaurant.
For this generation, it is experiences that count the most. Over three-quarters of the people surveyed demonstrated this tendency by expressing a strong preference for putting their discretionary dollars toward events such as dining out, as opposed to material items.
Therefore, it is your job to focus on creating the total experiential package; delicious food, friendly and knowledgeable service, unique presentation and an ambiance unlike any that patrons can find elsewhere. Do these things, and you will be rewarded with long-term loyal customers.
Millennial habits were manifested strongly during the 2023 holiday season. As compared to their younger Gen Z counterparts, the generation born between 1997 and 2012, millennials spent almost three times as much on restaurant meals during that busy time of the year.
It’s acknowledged that this statistic may stem, at least in part, from Gen Zers having fewer dollars to spend.But it’s also likely that millennial parents are treating their Gen Z kids to some of these lunches and dinners.
It turns out this demographic goes to restaurants more often than their peers without kids.
Whatever the reasons, millennials definitely win the grand prize for dining out at both restaurants and bars. One of the first generations that ate out frequently as children, they have taken their love of restaurant food and beverages well into the adult years.
The love of meals cooked by others is not limited to the dining-in experience. Millennials also rely on takeout items at high rates. Clearly, the convenience and ever-increasing diversity of food types has made takeout a permanent part of life.
Millennial restaurant purchasing preferences.
It seems that millennials also enjoy revisiting their dining experience by consuming leftovers, or even ordering additional meals that they can savor over the next day or two. For almost half of the time that they eat at home, they are still not doing their own cooking.
This underscores the importance of providing a variety of tasty choices that customers can re-heat and sample for a midnight snack, for the next day’s dinner, or even at work.
A little less than one of every three meals for the millennials surveyed were eaten in some sort of restaurant, including fine dining, casual sit-down establishments and fast food eateries. This trend is in line with the on-the-go, frenetic lifestyle that many men and women in this generation experience .
Because life can often be unpredictable due to changing commitments, obligations and responsibilities, many millennials prefer to be more flexible with their eating behaviors. That may explain why seven out of 10 of those surveyed expressed a preference for having the option of dining in at restaurants during less crowded times of the day.
This might also be due to the fact that busy millennials want a positive meal experience that can be completed more quickly, but without compromising on menu choice or food quality.
Restaurants can benefit from offering this generation additional creative choices. For instance, since many would prefer to have smaller portions at a reduced price, you might consider providing a light menu.
Pair it with a petite, reduced-guilt dessert option, and you may find that you bring in a similar amount of money at the end of the day, while simultaneously giving your customers what they want.
A smaller but still significant one-quarter of the millennials surveyed enjoyed the presence of technology as part of their dining journey. Tableside ordering, games and checkout may feel impersonal to some, but these innovations provide a percentage of busy customers with the flexibility and modern flair that they love.
The influence of reviews and social media on millennial restaurant spending.
Today’s millennial customers are both too occupied and too connected to the internet to eat out randomly. They take full advantage of the social media testimonials and food photos that have been posted by previous customers in order to make their next meal decision.
Many also reciprocate by providing feedback of their own when their experience is complete. As a restaurant owner, you should always be aware that your establishment will most likely be the star of someone’s next TikTok or Instagram post.
Video content can help to cement your restaurant in the minds of customers. When they see images of your dining-room as well as enticing shots of your featured food items, they will be able to picture themselves sitting at one of your tables.
Next thing you know, they will walk through your door. Moreover, today’s mobile phone advances make creating, editing and posting videos a snap for even the most technology-averse.
While over four out of 10 diners find out about their next dining venue through social media, even more - 54 percent – gain insights from their friends, family and other social contacts from direct word-of-mouth.
This underscores the importance of appealing to all demographics with your food offerings and marketing campaigns in order to capitalize on every customer type’s preferences.
One excellent way to attract and maintain your customer base is to offer a fun and engaging loyalty program. Rewarding patrons for frequent visits encourages them to return. Additionally, it helps to foster a rich relationship with your brand that often leads to referrals and still more loyal fans.
Launching and maintaining a social media presence on the platforms your millennial customers prefer to visit actually doesn’t take too much time. In the end, the investment in resources that you expend actually pays off in very real ways.
After all, a full 35 percent of the people surveyed indicated their preference for social media as the best way to generate spending on dining out at restaurants.
Economic challenges facing restaurants can affect the millennial customer experience.
Today’s commercial landscape for restaurant owners is challenging, to say the least. Six out of 10 restaurants have experienced significant increases in food prices, often forcing them to make the difficult choice of passing on the cost to their customers.
In an era when inflation is rising faster than income, it is even more important than ever to make not only the quality of your meals but also the other intangibles of your restaurant as appealing as possible.
This will help to encourage millennials who are watching their pennies to spend them in your establishment as opposed to the one across the street.
In addition, over a quarter of restaurateurs are continuing to have difficulty recruiting and retaining staff in 2024. And that can have an impact on millennial customer satisfaction. If you fall into this category, focus on ways to go the extra mile for your team members.
When your operations are well-organized, workers will not experience confusion about shifts. Streamlined ordering and customer payments lead to greater accuracy, happier customers and increased morale that will lead to higher worker retention rates.
You can take comprehensive advantage of millennial dining trends at your restaurant by utilizing a modern POS system to offer mobile ordering, contactless payments, and personalized loyalty programs.
A restaurant POS allows you to track millennial purchasing behavior, providing data-driven insights to tailor promotions, menu options, and digital experiences to their preferences. This not only enhances convenience and personalization but also boosts customer engagement and loyalty among this tech-savvy generation.
Embed This Infographic
Copy and paste the code below to get this infographic onto your website or blog.
