Facebook can easily be considered one of the most reliable websites on the internet. Most of the time, you can count on Facebook loading for you at any point throughout the day…until it doesn’t.
This is what happened on Monday October 4, 2021. The day Facebook went down.
While this wasn’t the first time Facebook had an outage, it’s key that your restaurant is prepared because it more than likely won’t be the last time.
When Facebook is down, it is important to have your own customer database. Why? If you are one of the millions of people who depend on Facebook for their restaurant’s online presence, then you might be in a bit of trouble when this happens. There are many reasons to own your data and not rely on third-party sites like Facebook or Google to store it for you. Here are 5 reasons why owning your customer database is so important.
You can’t rely on Facebook to always stay up forever
The next time that Facebook goes down, would you rather spend your day scrambling around trying to find contact information for all of your customers or spend it calmly updating them through email? Whether its an emergency or not, you should own your customer database and always be prepared to reach out to them even if Facebook is down.
You need a way to contact everyone in your email list during an emergency like this one. If something happens with Facebook or another social media platform where you can’t get in touch with all of your customers immediately, having their emails or phone numbers will be a lifesaver.
During an emergency or if you need to contact them about something urgent, it will be easy for you to get in touch with everyone on your email & text list quickly because they are all just one click away!
Get deeper insight into your customers
When you own your own database you get access to more than the surface level data that Facebook and other social media platforms limit you to. This allows you to create more comprehensive profiles on your customers so that you can better understand them and provide a more personalized experience. You will also be able to use this data for targeted marketing campaigns, which is what every business owner wants!
You will never have access to the type of customer information if someone else owns it like Facebook. If they own it, they can control what you see and how much information is available. You will have access to basic contact info like name, phone number & email address which are valuable but it won’t allow you to create a profile on each customer or send them highly personalized messages based on their interests or preferences.
Keep your marketing machine rolling even during social media outages
Many owners use Facebook as their sole source of new customer generation for their restaurant, but if you rely solely on Facebook, what will happen to your marketing machine when it goes down?
It’s important not to place too much importance on one platform like this because every social media site has the potential for downtime.
Owning your customer database vs renting other platforms access to your audience is like putting an insurance policy in place for when a situation like this happens. It gives you peace of mind knowing that all of your customers contact information is in one place.
The next time that Facebook goes down, you will be happy that you already have your customer’s contact information and can reach out to them easily and more efficiently.
Expand your ability to communicate with your customers
If something like this were to happen, what would you rather do? Sit around waiting for Facebook to come back up so you can get back to business as usual or leverage the platforms that ARE working to keep your customers up to date?
Owning your own contact list gives you the flexibility to communicate with customers when platforms like Facebook go down or they aren’t working.
While Facebook may be down, if you have their email or phone number, it will be easy for you reach out to them and keep them updated with personalized contact information. You can send an email that is highly targeted based on their interests and preferences or send them a text message that is personalized as well.
You can even set up your email & text lists to automatically send out messages for you without having to lift a finger after the crisis has passed!
Owning your customer database gives you peace of mind knowing that regardless of what happens, you will be able to communicate with your customers and keep them up to date on what’s happening.
Your customer database is too valuable NOT to own it
Your restaurant customer database is an asset that you want to keep growing.
The reason for this is simple: if you don’t own your database, someone else does. This limits the information that you have access to and makes it harder for you to connect on a deeper level with customers or get insights into their preferences & interests so that you can better cater towards them in all of your marketing efforts.
Each time a customer is added to your database, you’re increasing potential revenue for your restaurant exponentially because now you have someone who is interested in your restaurant and wants to hear from you.
It’s important not to give up this asset since it has such value for your business.
You’ve worked hard over the years building a loyal customer base, don’t let all of that work go down the drain because Facebook goes down or decides they want to change the rules of the game on you.
If you’re a restaurant owner and your sole source of new customer generation is Facebook, what will happen to your marketing machine when it goes down? It’s important not to place too much importance on one platform like this because every social media site has the potential for downtime.
Owning your customer database is like putting an insurance policy in place for when a situation like this happens. The next time that Facebook goes down, you will be happy that you already have all their contact information and can reach out to them easily.
