​Help guests beat the winter blahs

If you typically do a bustling business around the holidays with corporate events and private parties, many of the organizations and people you serve may have leftover budget dollars – and more certainly, some pent-up demand – for fun and festivity. Even if you can’t host parties in the same way you could last year, can you find ways to help people connect with each other? Consider creating a series of virtual events that companies can offer their employees to keep them engaged with their work and colleagues. Double down on your social media presence with behind-the-scenes videos of your chef giving winter menu planning tips, contests to generate more engagement with your brand, or winter-themed promotions designed to increase your pick-up business. (The Rail offers some tips on driving engagement through Instagram Stories at https://bit.ly/3o5FCx1 ) Create a pop-up wintertime-only concept to bring people out and test new menu ideas. Offer limited-time-only offers of meal or appetizer bundles for families watching movies or games at home on the weekend. Or, help pave the way back to some kind of normalcy in 2021: Restaurant Business reports that the Brazilian steakhouse brand Fogo de Chao launched a “Journey Back to Joy” winter wonderland event to help engage and energize employees. Rethinking this concept as a weekend celebration for guests could work too, if outdoor events are happening where you are.