Stop Trying to Appeal to Everyone

If you try to appeal to everyone, you appeal to no one.

We get it. When you're running a restaurant or hospitality business, the idea of turning away potential customers feels crazy. Why would you limit yourself when you need every table filled and every room booked?

Here’s the thing: being another “great food, great service” place doesn't pay the bills. Being forgettable doesn't build a loyal following. And being “pretty good at everything” is the fastest way to become irrelevant.

We’ve all heard the term Unique Selling Point (USP), but what does it actually mean and more importantly, how do you figure out what yours is?

Especially in hospitality, where so many places claim the same things, your real USP isn’t always obvious. But once you find it, everything about your marketing gets easier (and way more effective).

Your USP Isn't What's On Your Website

We often see businesses with websites that read something like "fresh ingredients and friendly service" or "authentic cuisine in a welcoming atmosphere."

So does literally every other restaurant in your area. Even that place with the sticky menus and questionable health grades claims fresh ingredients.

Your unique selling point isn't just what you serve - it's how you serve it. It's the weird little thing that makes people say "Oh, you HAVE to try that place on Main Street. They're the ones who..."

Ask Yourself These Three Questions

Let's get practical about figuring out what makes your place different and who actually cares about it.

1. What do you do that makes other restaurant owners scratch their heads?

This isn't about being "better" - better is boring and impossible to prove. This is about being so distinctly you that other places in your area think you're doing things differently.

Maybe you're the only pizza place that lets customers watch the dough being made. The coffee shop that knows every regular's order by heart. The fine dining restaurant that actually explains what's in each dish without making people feel stupid. The bar that texts customers when their favourite seasonal beer comes back.

Your competitors might think your approach is unnecessary. Your customers will think it's exactly what they needed.

2. What do your regulars actually say about you?

Not the generic "great food" reviews. The detailed ones. The Google reviews where people get weirdly specific about why they keep coming back, or why they don't. The social media posts where customers tag their friends.

Dig through your reviews, your comments, your casual conversations with regulars. What keeps coming up? What experience do they say you provide that they can't get anywhere else?

3. Who's your absolute favourite customer to serve?

Forget the big spenders or the food bloggers. Who makes your staff excited to come to work? Who do you do your best work for? Who brings their friends and family without being asked? Who do you love to see walk through your door?

That customer isn't just great to see, they're a blueprint. They're showing you exactly who you should be marketing to and what they value.

Maybe it's the young families who appreciate your kids-eat-free Tuesday. The business crowd who needs reliable, quick lunches. The date night couples who want intimate booths and shared plates. The friend groups who come for your trivia nights and stay for the atmosphere.

Figure out what makes them choose you over everywhere else, then find more people exactly like them.

Here's What Happens When You Stop Playing It Safe

Once you stop trying to be everything to everyone, that's when you'll find your sweet spot. A real, revenue-generating, reservation-booking sweet spot.

Your social media stops being generic food photos and starts showcasing the experience only you provide. Your marketing conversations stop feeling like "we have good food too" and start feeling like "finally, someone who gets what we want."

You stop competing on A-board deals because you're not competing at all, you're the only place that does what you do the way you do it.

Your marketing becomes less work and more fun because you know what you're talking about and you're talking to people who already want to visit you.

The Truth Nobody Wants to Tell Restaurant Owners

Most restaurants fail not because their food is bad, but because nobody knows why they should choose you over the dozen other places within five minutes.

You can have incredible recipes, amazing service, and genuinely care about every guest. But if you sound like everyone else, you get treated like everyone else.

The restaurants that thrive aren't necessarily the ones with the best food; they're the most memorable. They're the ones that make people say "Oh, you need to try..."

Stop trying to appeal to everyone. Start being irresistible to someone. That's always the goal right? ;)