As a delivery-only operation, creating excitement and urgency around your ghost kitchen offerings is crucial to success. Adjusting menus, dishes, and promotions to match the seasons is an impactful strategy to drive orders and boost revenue year-round.
Here are tips for incorporating seasonal offerings into your virtual restaurant:
Limited-Time Seasonal Specials
Create delivery-friendly seasonal special beverages, desserts, or dishes that are only available for a limited window. Offer apple cider donuts and pumpkin spiced lattes only in fall. Debut fruit berry tarts in summer. Promote specials on your ordering app and use in-app notifications to create urgency during availability.
Feature Peak Seasonal Produce
Design new seasonal dishes and substitute ingredients in existing recipes to highlight fruits, vegetables and herbs at their peak freshness and flavor. Ramp up corn, tomato, and stone fruit recipes in summer. Turn to root vegetables, winter squashes, and hearty greens when temperatures drop.
Adapt Dishes to the Season Where Possible
Look for preparation method changes to suit the season. Would a chilled gazpacho-style soup or fresh spring roll kit resonate more in hot summer months? Can you offer heartier braised dishes or warming stews come winter?
Package Seasonal Meal Kits
Offer pre-portioned meal kits for customers to finish cooking at home, tailored to seasonal ingredients and dishes. Feature summer grilling kits with seasonal veggies and proteins to throw on the barbecue. Develop one-pan winter braise kits with seasonal root vegetables.
Run Themed Campaigns
Build promotional campaigns around seasonal food moments and holidays. Release indulgent mac and cheese recipes when comfort food cravings hit in winter. If you offer kids’ meals, promote back-to-school lunch kits in the fall.
Leverage Seasonal Marketing Assets
Take advantage of seasonal themes, colors, and food imagery in your marketing materials. Create autumnal brown, orange, and green color schemes in fall. Highlight fresh berries and stone fruits in summer food photography. Write promotional copy and social media posts focused on timely seasonal eating moments.
Train Staff on Seasonal Offerings
Educate your staff on menu changes and key seasonal ingredients so they can respond to customer questions and provide recommendations. Ensure they are skilled at upselling limited seasonal specials.
Monitor Seasonal Performance
Pay close attention to sales patterns and customer feedback on seasonal dishes. This data can guide future menu development and seasonal planning. Immediately replace poor performers with a new special.
Adjust Pricing Strategy
Consider raising prices moderately on special seasonal dishes to reflect increased ingredient costs and desirability. Promotions like happy hour can help offset higher prices.
Plan Seasonal Menus in Advance
Map out your seasonal menus, dishes, specials and promotions well in advance. Account for ingredient lead times, marketing production, and staff training in your planning.
Refreshing your ghost kitchen menu to align with the seasons takes strategic planning and execution. But it provides the exciting variety customers crave while optimizing your offerings to what is freshest and most craveable. Match your virtual restaurant’s menu to the natural seasonal bounty, flavors, and food moments to drive orders and revenue all year long.
