10 Restaurant Collaboration Ideas Made to Energize Your Promotion Strategy

Are you looking for new and exciting ways to promote your restaurant locally? Look no further than collaborations with other businesses in the area. We’ve prepared ten restaurant collaboration ideas bound to help you attract new and returning customers.

The Benefits of Collaborating with Other Local Businesses

Collaborating with businesses or influencers in your area can increase your restaurant’s exposure and open it to an entirely new audience. This will bring in new clients and give your revenue a boost.

Mutually beneficial partnerships can also help you do community outreach, which will turn your restaurant into a fixture of the local community.

If you get stuck when thinking of how to promote your restaurant, a collaboration can provide a fresh new perspective that will take you out of your creative rut.

It will also draw customers’ attention by being something out of the ordinary and not something they regularly see their favorite restaurant do.

10 Unique Restaurant Collaboration Ideas

Partner with a local winery or brewery

Whether you’re a local or a tourist visiting a restaurant, local beverages will always have a special appeal because you’re sampling something from that area.

Most customers also appreciate restaurants that support other small local businesses, so proudly displaying that you’re selling local beverages can go a long way. Not to mention buying your beverages locally can also help you cut costs.

Ask the brewery or winery you’re partnering with if they can provide you with branded merch such as glasses, coasters, or signs that you can display in your restaurant.

Add third-party desserts to the menu

If your restaurant is not focused specifically on desserts but you want to give your customers the option to order a sweet treat at the end of a meal, you can engage in food collaborations with ice cream shops, cake shops, or bakeries.

Whether that is adding a small ice cream display with their branding in front of the restaurant or a couple of cakes “by [local bakery name]” to the menu, this is a win-win situation in which you provide customers with more variety, and they get to sell more of their sweet treats.

Participate in music and food festivals

If your town or other neighboring towns are organizing any sort of festival where there’ll be food, throw your hat in the ring as a supplier.

You will need a food cart (if the festival isn’t supplying stands), and a bunch of promotional materials to distribute to people so they know how to find you after the festival if they’ve enjoyed the food.

From business cards with your logo, website, and location to flyers featuring discount codes for a first order online, this is one of the best ways to attract customers to a restaurant.

Use our coupon code generator to prepare yourself for a busy festival where you’ll distribute lots and lots of flyers:

Join local platforms and forums

Not all restaurant collaboration ideas take place offline. Sometimes, you have to dig deep for Facebook groups, forums, and other platforms where local businesses gather.

These are a great way to make introductions, keep your finger on the pulse of the local business climate, and discover potential collaboration opportunities.

Not to mention local businesses need a place where they can support each other, exchange ideas, and foster change in the community.

Deliver a treat box to other local business owners

What better way to kickstart cross-promotion ideas for restaurants than with a gift basket featuring your delicious food? If you’ve just opened your restaurant, deliver a treat box to other local businesses you hope to partner with to show your eagerness to be part of the community.

You can include a written note that mentions you’d be open to cross-promotion or follow-up in person after they’ve received the basket and they (hopefully) reply.

Partner with hotels and Airbnbs

Businesses like hotels and Airbnbs are probably also wondering how to collaborate with restaurants since part of your audience overlaps. Luckily, the answer is simple: you can just exchange promotional materials.

Hotels can leave flyers featuring your menu, address, and website for food deliveries at the reception. In turn, you can add a poster advertising the hotel on your store window or leave some flyers at the hostess stand.

Throw joint events with complementary businesses

Now and then, it’s good to break the monotony by treating your restaurant customers to something special like a fun event or themed evening. If you can’t afford to organize it all by yourself, seek help from complementary businesses.

Here are some ideas for restaurant events you can throw together with other businesses:

• Taco and craft beer night;
• All-day happy hour with cocktails and tapas half off;
• Vampire movie marathon with red wine and limited-time cocktails;
• Learn to bake 101 with a guest baker;
• Speed dating night featuring unique desserts;

Capitalize on holidays and seasonal events

The great thing about seasonal specials is they are only available for a limited time, which motivates customers to try them before they’re gone.

For example, take Halloween. You can organize a costume contest at your restaurant and ask a local bar to create some signature spooky cocktails for that evening only.

There are many food-centered holidays you can take advantage of as an owner looking for restaurant collaboration ideas.

If you can’t think of any, download our handy Food Holiday Calendar and you’ll be covered with promotion ideas for the entire year.

You can also choose to focus on entire seasons, such as fall, where pumpkin spice is the flavor of choice. Ask a local bakery if they would be interested in creating a combo featuring their pumpkin spice croissant and your specialty pumpkin spice latte recipe to sell in both locations.

Support local charities and causes

What’s better than two local businesses working together? Two local businesses working together for a good cause. Participate in fundraising events for causes that are dear to your customers and you will make a difference (while getting good PR in the process as well).

You can also become a sponsor for a local sports team to maximize exposure and help a group of kids achieve their dreams. When it comes to giving back, no gesture is too small. Do you have leftover food at the end of the day? Donate it to a soup kitchen to avoid waste and help the less fortunate.

Create a collaborative limited-time menu item

Do you want to attract customers with restaurant promotion ideas that combine two of their favorite things? Consider joining forces with another food business and come up with a menu item that highlights what you’re both good at.

For instance, let’s say you’re well known for the best pizza dough in town and their pasta sauce is unparalleled. Come up with a dish that uses both such as a meaty Bolognese calzone.

Sell it in both locations and promote it on your social media accounts as a unique combination of two talented chefs.

Summing It up

Collaborations can skyrocket your restaurant’s popularity and recognition by exposing you to a new audience and attracting customers with fun, unique ideas. Try the restaurant collaboration ideas above whenever you want to shake up your marketing strategy.