Investing In Better Foods For My Family

In the summer, when the days are longer and people are busier, you'll probably have plenty of traffic coming into your coffee shop. But when winter comes, the days grow shorter, and people spend more time at home. You might find your business slowing down a little. You don't just have to brace yourself and wait for summer to come back again. Here are some ways to help bring more traffic into your coffee shop during the winter.

Make sure your drive-through service is top-notch

Some people will avoid getting coffee in the winter purely because they don't want to get out of their cars in the snowy, cold weather. If you offer top-notch drive-through service, though, they won't have to. Assign extra employees to the drive-though to speed things up. Make sure you plow the drive-through area well each morning so it's easy to navigate. And consider offering special discounts for your drive-through guests when the weather falls below a certain temperature. For example, you could give 50 cents off every coffee ordered from the drive-through whenever the temperature is below 20 degrees.

Offer winter-themed coffee beverages

If you offer some unique, winter-themed coffee beverages, you will likely attract more customers who are specifically interested in trying those beverages. Some good ones to try include:

• Peppermint Mocha
• Gingerbread Coffee
• White Chocolate Lattes

Think of your favorite holiday cookies, and then try to design drinks that reflect the flavors of each one. Advertise these on your social media pages. You'll probably reach some customers who have not been in for a while but want to try something new.

Offer some basic breakfast items

Even if you don't generally serve food, you might want to add some basic breakfast items to your menu for the winter. You can even just offer a few different types of muffins or one type of breakfast sandwich. This will bring in customers who left their house in a hurry and did not have time to eat. This becomes more common in the winter when the sun rises later and it becomes hard to get out of bed! They'll be more tempted to swing by for coffee and a small breakfast on their way to work. 

When the seasons change, it's a good time to re-evaluate your coffee shop's approach and make a few changes. There are still plenty of customers you can cater to, you just have to know how to find them! For more tips, contact a local coffee shop to learn more.