Tag : Branding

Ignite Opens New Business Development Office In Dubai

Following recent successes with our wonderful clients in Dubai - WAFI Restaurants, Agha and Niche, we've opened a new business development office in the Business District.

What TYPE of Hotel or Restaurant are you?

It has become an ongoing joke between myself and my husband that I choose not to stay at a hotel or eat at a restaurant because I don't like their logo typeface. Whilst this is just a bit of banter between us it is actually a serious unconscious influence that your customer/lost customer will have knowingly or unknowingly registered.

Double Bookings Through Your Website: Restaurant Show Presentation

Our Managing Director Paul West will be presenting with myself at The Restaurant Show next Tuesday 11th October.

Strategic Branding - Branded Chains Vs Chains of Brands

As a hospitality consultant that develops restaurant concepts you'd be amused to hear the number of times I've met a new client who assures me that it won't be long before they 'have one of these on every high street'. Whether it's the next big thing in Indian takeaways, Chinese restaurants, cafes or kebab concepts, these entrepreneurs frequently have one clear objective: multi-unit branded roll-out.

The Mobile Revolution

It's official. We are now in the era of the mobile phone. Smartphones, iPhones, Androids, Blackberries and the like. We all treasure our gadgets and love what we can do with them. They are just so handy aren't they? Information on travel, news, cinemas, weather and anything else you can think of is right at our fingertips. It's even there for you when all you want to do is relax a game or funny video.

Online Reputation Management For Hotels And Restaurants: Getting It Right!

Online reputation management is the new buzzword in hospitality. But what exactly is reputation management and what does it entail?

Pop Up Power

Pop-Up restaurants are quite literally springing up all over the place at the moment and as Christmas approaches this phenomena is no doubt going to become more intense. These temporary restaurants are usually found in unusual or vacant public spaces and recent examples have included the open top floor of a Westfield shopping centre building site in Stratford and the London Eye Pop-Up Restaurant, part of the recent London Restaurant Festival that turned each Eye capsule into a dining room with the best views in town.

QR Codes: Entering The Mainstream

After having recently seen an old episode on CSI: NY the other day I have finally discovered the QR Code (short of Quick Response Code). I would never have thought that anything would come from my addiction but since watching that episode (it was series five, episode seven entitled 'Dead Inside', in case you were wondering) I have uncovered what seems like a whole new world of communication.

Social Branding - Friends, Tweets & Check Ins

The world of social media has not long been with us but already it is a powerful marketing force. Word of Mouse cannot be ignored and clever hospitality operators know that this relatively new technology must be harnessed and nurtured. Social media channels can become highly useful marketing tools if you know how to use them. As with all marketing communications there are techniques you can employ to ensure they benefit your business rather than hinder it and it pays to understand how each of them work and how they interact.

Don't Dilute Your Brand

Sam's recent blog 'Marketing on a Shoestring' has some great ideas for getting your brand out to people. It is really important however to make sure that you take good care of your brand and don't dilute it. Having brand guidelines and sticking to them is important especially when designing in-house.

Spending a penny

Your exterior is welcoming, your light features amazing and your furniture stylish yet comfortable. You have ticked all the boxes and thought of every last detail, or have you? Too many restaurants spend a fortune on their interiors and then forget a place that you are pretty much guaranteed all of your customers will visit and interact with... your toilets.

Logo vs brand

Confused as to whether you need a new logo, identity or brand? The three are all part of the same animal and therefore easily confused with one another. Many talk about a good logo - when actually what they mean is a 'good brand' with a memorable logo.