Website for a coffee shop

[Olivia K]

Hi everyone can I ask what does everyone think about a coffee shop needing a web presence? Do you think it will do well enough without a website and just using social media and depending more on location or do you think that nowadays it is essential to have a top quality website? Thanks, Olivia xx

 

[Mark T Jones]

For the tiny cost of a hosted Wordpress site, I'd take the view that a basic site with some visuals (and location details) can only help

 

[fisicx]

Doesn't have to be top quality, it just needs your location, opening times and a bit of blurb about you. It gives google something to index and the opportunity to add reviews and other stuff people want to read.

 

[TotalWebSolutions]

Agree that a basic but clear presence would be an advantage for assisting in your search rankings and brand building.

 

[Nochexman]

No its not essential. The bigger question is how well is the coffee shop doing and how could it do better? Would having a website move the needle or is there something else that might have more impact on your success? Identify the problems then find the solutions

 

[Alan]

As above, work out your problems / opportunities and build a plan based on that

That said, the minimum requirement for a local business is to have a web presence that
1. tells users where you are located
2. tells people if you are open
3. in the case of coffee shops, if you have free wifi

All this can be achieved without a quality website, but I would say it is essential, if you haven't got one, to have ( and maintain) a Google my Business ( map ) listing https://www.google.com/business/

 

[FutureM]

Its easy enough / cheap enough to have a nice website for your purpose. So you may as well. Especially if you are going for the independent quality coffee shop thing. My favorite coffee shop is yorks in birmingham, they have a pretty basic website, but they have hundreds of reviews attached to it in google so makes them look great...which they are.

 

[Alan]

Its easy enough / cheap enough to have a nice website for your purpose. So you may as well.

I disagree with 'you may as well'. Only create a website if you are prepared to maintain the content, e.g. update the xmas opening hours, update special offers / pricing or deals. I have seen this with local businesses ( and I have built hundreds of local business websites - like many of us here ) they won't invest the time to keep things up to date, and then they get customers turning up when they are closed and getting annoyed, or customers turning up expecting a special price that is no longer available.

A website isn't just a casual 'you may as well', it isn't a big upfront costs, but it does need to be a an ongoing commitment as part of your ongoing marketing / customer relationship strategy.

 

[FutureM]

I disagree with 'you may as well'. Only create a website if you are prepared to maintain the content, e.g. update the xmas opening hours, update special offers / pricing or deals. I have seen this with local businesses ( and I have built hundreds of local business websites - like many of us here ) they won't invest the time to keep things up to date, and then they get customers turning up when they are closed and getting annoyed, or customers turning up expecting a special price that is no longer available.

A website isn't just a casual 'you may as well', it isn't a big upfront costs, but it does need to be a an ongoing commitment as part of your ongoing marketing / customer relationship strategy.

You're focusing on the "may as well" too much. I wasn't referring to the attitude they should take in regards to how they should upkeep or use their website. I used that turn of phrase to put across how there are few barriers to having a website.

 

[Alan]

Fair enough. I was just twisting your words to make my point

 

[Olivia K]

Hi guys your advice means a lot to me so thanks for taking the time to respond to me! xx

 

[Ashley_Price]

Website? No.
Facebook? Possibly.

I have to admit I would never think of looking for a coffee shop online.

I think if friends are saying "We've just been to Olivia's coffee shop" on Facebook, then I'd be more likely to try it next time.

But really, don't bother with a website, not every business has to have one.

Mind you, all the above in pretty academic... I don't drink coffee.

 

[Alan]

I have to admit I would never think of looking for a coffee shop online.

Really? That is the only way I look for a coffee shop. I say to my phone 'OK Google - take me to my nearest coffee shop". Is there any other way than online if lets say I want to arrange a mutual business meeting in a town I don't really know ... Google = Coffee shop near [place / post code] with free Wifi ... etc

What do you do? Dig out a copy of the yellow pages I suppose

 

[Scott@KarmaContent]

It's definitely useful for a coffee shop or a cafe to have a website. I don't think it needs to be anything complex though, and it probably doesn't need to be more than one page. Name, address, opening hours, menu etc.

Possibly something Google Sites would be perfect for?

 

[Ashley_Price]

What do you do? Dig out a copy of the yellow pages I suppose

No, I go to the tea rooms I always go to.

At the end of the day, food shops, etc., will survive on their reputation - not because of a flashy website.

My favourite Chinese restaurant doesn't even have a web presence, yet they are very popular in the town.

 

[Ashley_Price]

'OK Google - take me to my nearest coffee shop".

I have just done this on my phone and the tea rooms that I go to comes third in the list - despite it being the closest to my office (where I am sitting at this moment). Of course, the first two are chains.

 

[Olivia K]

Website? No.
Facebook? Possibly.

I have to admit I would never think of looking for a coffee shop online.

I think if friends are saying "We've just been to Olivia's coffee shop" on Facebook, then I'd be more likely to try it next time.

But really, don't bother with a website, not every business has to have one.

Mind you, all the above in pretty academic... I don't drink coffee.

Omg you don't drink coffee Ashley!? That is game on now then lol I have to try and convince you to try when its set up. xx

 

[admmrry]

I agree with the Facebook presence to begin with as setting up a website takes more work and cost.

With Facebook you can set up a page, all your contact information, opening times etc can be operated from there. You can even enable a chatbot to speak to anyone potentially engaging in your brand.

You can also target local groups and build a following through Instagram too. It would seem your core focus should be about building a buzz, get the name out and test some product ideas.

It's more work trying to build that through basic themed website with little engagement opportunities.

 

[Flaviu]

The web site doesn't help you to sell more when coffee shop is about.
Social media pages are more useful and also I recommend you to subscribe your coffee shop on Google Maps.

Now for a lowest cost of hosting is no bad to have a coffee shop web site, just for presentation and location.

 

[Gecko001]

I would have thought that it was totally unnecessary to have a website for a coffee shop. A website will only distract you from providing a good service and trying to get passing custom and repeat customers. It will attract time wasters such as cold callers, scammers and junk email and junk postal mail.

 

[Mike_Cartwright]

Yes, at this time and age, people spread and share information through the web. It's a nice addition to your marketing efforts to have an online presence. It doesn't have to be expensive and over the top, the basics would do.

 

[tony84]

You can buy a domain for £2-3 a year and hosting for about £20 for the year. You can put something basic up yourself - even if it is just a redirect to a facebook page for peanuts. For the sake of £50 it is worth having something.

 

[Ashley_Price]

Omg you don't drink coffee Ashley!? That is game on now then lol I have to try and convince you to try when its set up. xx

I USED to drink coffee, but haven't done for about five years.

I like being all snooty and sneery: "I don't drink coffee!" when I'm offered a cup.

 

[Olivia K]

Thanks for all your help guys I have decided that I will be setting up a website! xx

 

[Web Hosting UK]

Having an online presence is always good to start building up your local citations.

One example could be having a website and linking it to google business, this could also put you on Google maps and you can then link it to your website so people can find out more about you and the services you provide.

Add social media and link them to your website? A good idea to tell your customers about discounts, general news etc. I also thought instagram would be a good idea show images of your coffee shop and the products

Good luck, a lot of potential !

 

[Ashley_Price]

One small heads-up, as well as the website, if you decide to have any social media accounts plus email as a way for customers to contact you, no matter what you say on the accounts, expect people to want to book tables, etc. through those methods.

 

[Orla_marketing]

Just to add to previous commenters, a basic one is expected these days. I guess the amount of time, money and effort invested online may depend on the coffee shop.

I specifically went to a local independent coffee shop after checking out their web presence (including Instagram, which Web Hosting UK has already recommended). They have a nice interior and take nice pictures of their cakes and dish of the day etc for Instagram. They also advertise their BYOB late opening once a month.

It's always busy, but I notice they don't just depend on their website for business. However, like me, people may go online after hearing or seeing it to see what it looks like inside and to see what's on the menu.

 

[Olivia K]

Thanks guys it will definitely have an Instagram account don't worry I think that and Facebook are essential these days. xx

 

[ethical PR]

Hi @Olivia K

I know you mentioned you have recently completed a marketing qualification so will have a good idea of how to do your market research and develop a marketing plan once you have developed your concept.

I would suggest rather than getting distracted by what sort of online marketing you need to do, focus on developing a concept for your coffee shop, understanding what target market you want to attract and using that to help you identify locations and premises.

You can then develop a business plan and budget to see if the figures stack up and including a marketing plan and budget as part of that, that will help you identify which channels you should use and marketing costs.

 

[makeyourbusinessbetter]

Hi Olivia

Please have a look at the website for a great coffee shop, Leo's Beanery, in Edinburgh. It is a very simple, basic layout with great photos. It looks welcoming and the food looks great. As soon as you click onto the site, you have already decided that you want to go there. That's what you are aiming for.

http://www.leosbeanery.co.uk/

This coffee shop used to be very ordinary, selling bought in goods and never busy. Then it changed hands, started making it's own soup, bread, baking and put it's prices up. Now it is so popular and successful you can struggle to get a table at busy times. There is no reason why you can't do the same.

Also, other things to think about regarding your website,

• Links - make sure all the links to Google, Facebook, TripAdvisor, Instagram work properly and take the user quickly to your site, check them regularly.
• Works across all devices - make sure the site works well across all devices, especially smartphones, some basic sites work fine on a laptop but not great on mobiles, make sure your site works well on all.

Good luck. I'm sure you will do very well.

Gordon

 

[ddrys]

My opinion, as a new business you need all the help you can get. The type of audience you are aiming for with an independent coffee shop will likely be frequent social media/internet users. If I were in your position, I'd be looking at setting up the full works with social media - Twitter, Instagram, TripAdvisor and Facebook.

Create a website, domain names and hosting are very cheap and a fraction of your costs. Run a blog through your website (as well as the obvious - opening times, address/contact details, menu/pricing). This will help with SEO and to boost your ranking on Google for when people search for you.

Again, I would really focus on Twitter, Instagram, TripAdvisor and Facebook for your marketing. Things like launch/opening day competitions ("one free coffee every day for a month to one random person who retweets/likes our page"), get involved with local blogs in your area promoting your opening.

Find the Twitter accounts of other independent coffee shops in your town/city, see who is following them and follow those accounts so they become aware of you. Make sure you reply to every review on TripAdvisor, positive or negative.

Good luck.

 

[AccountOnThis]

I really recommend squarespace. It literally took me a day to create a new website with it and I'm no expert!

 

[daleepc]

Hi there. These days every business should have a website.

Think about your customers. What do they expect from your site?

Some pics, basic info (hours, ect.), some info about what you serve (perhaps menus), and some background info (maybe there's a great story about how you got started).

So think if your site as a nice one, two or three-page simple brochure.

Link the site to your social profiles, where you should be more active. Gradually build up connections with your patrons. This will help build relationships, which builds loyalty, which grows the business.

And the best tool or local marketing, which you cannot ignore, especially to capture the mobile audience: Google My Business. If you do nothing else, do this.

Hope this helps.

 

[Nochexman]

Thanks guys it will definitely have an Instagram account don't worry I think that and Facebook are essential these days. xx

Why not turn it into a bit of PR?

Start by asking your regular customers what they think.

 

[Olivia K]

Thanks soo much everyone I have some amazing advice here and I really appreciate it! xx

 

[WebStartupSolutions]

A basic website will be good enough and then advertise for free using Google business listings. Whenever someone searches for coffee in your area on Google your website will be one of the first to show up on Google business listings.

 

[Alan]

I'm happy to help or give advice

@WebStartupSolutions did you know your website in your footer is extremely brokem it is 41MB in size and 11 second load time!

You should sort your own house out before offering advice, or smart alecs like me will point out the obvious.

Fully Loaded Time
11.3s
Total Page Size
41.0MB

 

[Mohamed IBrahim]

can be useful yes, but definitely not essential given the nature of the business

 

[Violinni]

Hi everyone can I ask what does everyone think about a coffee shop needing a web presence? Do you think it will do well enough without a website and just using social media and depending more on location or do you think that nowadays it is essential to have a top quality website? Thanks, Olivia xx

A coffee shop should mainly depend on Google Maps and the reviews on it. People, mainly foreigners will stop by to have a drink. Don’t underestimate the power of the Google Maps.

 

[alex3215]

Just as guys said. Some simple wp theme with few photos, working time, events etc.
Also social medias