Restaurant Decor Can Influence Your Customers

Article contributed by Ann Brown

Have you ever thought that decorations aren’t just simple tools for adorning your restaurant, but are really instruments for having an impact on your customers? The properly chosen restaurant decor can help you to attract more customers to your business, influence their appetite and, as a result, increase your profits.

Let’s see how restaurant decor can influence your customers in more detail:

Layout

Everything starts with the proper architecture and design. The way you design the interior and place all the elements plays a crucial role in creating the restaurant atmosphere. While planning the restaurant floor plan, take into account the spaciousness. Your restaurant must not get claustrophobic during the rush hours and each person needs to walk around the restaurant freely without bumping into other customers or furniture.

Also, it’s important that your servers and customers can see one another at all times. Accept that no person will feel comfortable if there is no possibility to call a server without leaving their seating.

Decorations

The right decorations are vital for the restaurant design theme. They help to create the atmosphere, which will be help your restaurant become unique. Undoubtedly, the choice of decorations depends on your restaurant style and theme. All the accessories must be carefully planned, including wall décor, centerpieces, silverware and dishware, napkins etc.

If we’re talking about the most frequently used adornments, it’s various kinds of pictures, photos and posters. Art prints are also a good idea. The images of landscapes and cityscapes can be used for various types of restaurants. Simultaneously, while flowers are often used for table centerpieces, don’t use them if your place is dedicated to a certain theme. Follow the rules you set for your restaurant strictly.

Also, a great idea is to create photo-friendly décor. Interesting details and accessories may provoke your guests to take photos at your restaurant and share them via social media, which are a very powerful marketing tool in getting new customers.

Lighting

In order to create a pleasant atmosphere, the lighting must be conducive to your theme. Too bright lighting can make your guests feel uncomfortable and induce them to eat fast and go away. The best option is dim ambient lighting, which creates a relaxing mood and helps your customers to feel like they are at home.

Besides ambient light, you are free to use lights for certain tasks like highlighting pathways or bars. Also, lights can be used for decorative purposes. For instance, they may be designed within your restaurant theme.

Colors

Colors influence people very much, often subconsciously. While choosing the colors for your restaurant decor, you need to pick up the ones that will attract the clientele and make them feel comfortable. Each color has its effect and sets a certain mood. For instance:

• Red, yellow and orange are considered to be strong stimulants, which increase appetite. Many fast food restaurants use these colors in their décor because bright shades of these colors provoke clients to eat and leave fast. At the same time, warmer shades are more welcoming and make people spend more time at a restaurant.
• Blue and purple colors suppress the appetite. They calm down the customers and make them order less. However, if your aim is to create a relaxing atmosphere at your restaurant, where the clients will want to linger, blue and purple can be used. These colors are great for coffee houses and lounge bars.
• Green color is always associated with nature and so, it contributes to a relaxing atmosphere and makes people spend much time at a restaurant. Green also induces people to eat healthy and well-balanced food. That’s why, it’s the most suitable for health-based restaurants.
• Brown is recommended to be used in minimal ways. It may help to create cute accents. But, if you use too much brown, a restaurant may look too gloomy.
• White, beige and light grey are considered to be neutral colors. However, it’s not recommended to use them at their own as these colors may serve as diet suppressants. It’s better to combine them with other colors.

Seating

Seats may also influence your clients’ mood and experience. If you have a fast food restaurant and aim to feed your customers fast, you need to have comfortable seats. But not so comfortable that it will induce your visitors to spend too much time at your restaurant if you want to seat more customers.

But if you want to sell more drinks and appetizers, then comfortable chairs, armchairs, recliners and sofas create a homey atmosphere and prompt the customers to spend more time at your restaurant and order some more food or drinks.

So, now you know a little better how your restaurant decor can influence your customers. Although food and service tend to be the most important elements of restaurant business, don’t underestimate the restaurant decor as it is just as important. Moreover, the properly chosen decor can increase your profits considerably.