With the advent of social media marketing and internet ads, many restaurant owners and food services operators are using the internet to help publicize their business and build their brand. The big question, however, is are those ads affective?
Dineline, a new app, has answered that question with its’ internet ad tracking and integration software. Now restaurant owners and foodservice operators can now see how effective their investment into advertising is.
“We started investing in developing this software right before COVID hit,” said Dineline CEO and co-founder, Brett Linkletter. “With our background in restaurant marketing with Misfit Media, we always knew that the best way for us to share the expertise long term would be with software and an app. COVID made us speed up that process because of the growth in in the demand for effective online marketing.
Linkletter knew that an essential element for Dineline needed to be it’s all-in-one CRM (customer relation management system). “It’s all about the ability for a restaurant to capture the names and email addresses of its customer base,” said Linkletter. With that in mind, Dineline allows the vendor to utilize that database to easily communicate with customers and generate more demand via email and text marketing. The company also built an autonomous customer support rep for restaurants called “Dani”, which integrates into all the communication channels for the restaurant.
“When people message the restaurant this tool can reply to each individual on behalf of the restaurant, allowing restaurants to provide better customer service online and monetize more guests on regular basis.” Linkletter continued. “For instance, if someone messages a restaurant on our platform and asks, “Can I make an order”, Dani can respond by sending the link to order online. Or if something has a question about store hours, party size, etc., Dani can respond accordingly.”
To achieve their goal of helping restaurants succeed, Dineline has developed a special methodology that is used in combination with their technology.
“We as an agency came up with a methodology called the ACE method, which is our methodology when it comes to proper ad placement,” Linkletter explained. “Step one is activate, which is driving traffic to a restaurant through what we call the Dineline ad network. The network is focused on using a variety of search-based platforms. We have found that if an individual is searching for something that your brand has, they have a higher intent for purchasing that item. We start by getting in front of the right people, at the right time, the people who are interested in what we are selling.
The second step is capture. We have systems set up that integrate with ads we run, the restaurant’s Google my business listing, phone number, and much. These integrations allow Dineline to do a number of things including tracking an exact ROI from ads and tracking a customer’s phone number in addition to if their call was answered, missed or if they were a first-time caller. We have found that the average restaurant misses about half of their income in phone calls.”
“Our software helps to make sure that your ad dollars aren’t going to waste,” Linkletter continued. “Even if you miss a phone call our system sends an automated text that directs the customer to where they can place an order, make a reservation, and tracks when those links are clicked. The final step is to engage. Which we help to achieve using our integrated technology and messaging systems.”
Dineline is so certain of the platform’s reliability that it is offering a pair of guarantees. “The first is a client satisfaction guarantee that states that if within the first 60 days if you are not blown away by our service and love working with our team, you will receive a full refund. The second guarantee is, that within 6 months we have given your business at least a ten to twenty percent lift in revenue, or we will refund one hundred percent of the advertising spent from our budget.”
For those who are looking to expand their marketing platform beyond social media posts, Dineline provides a direct, monitored marketing approach that connects your business with customers already interested in your product. More information can be found at their website.
