Here at Devour by Dot, we like to share food trends to provide inspiration for restaurant menus and limited-time offers (LTO). But this time, we’re zooming out from specific trends to discuss broader LTO strategies.
Putting in place the right menu research and development (R&D) strategies has never been more critical. Smaller menus and a strong focus on LTOs have been the go-to solutions during the pandemic for driving restaurant traffic while cutting costs.
The question is, will these strategies stick post-COVID? We talked to our Corporate Chef Tim Gump to get his thoughts.
A: The biggest benefit is to drive traffic. The hope is that consumers flock to a restaurant or chain to grab the item before it’s gone. It can also be a great way to test an offering before adding it to their core menu.
A: Before COVID-19, LTOs were expanding rapidly. The number of limited-time menu offers increased 64 percent at top 500 chain restaurants and retailers in the past five years.
If you had asked me in March, I would have predicted that we’d see LTOs go down during the pandemic. Instead, the LTO surge continued. Restaurants pared down their core menus, but they also introduced specials.
It makes sense when you consider another benefit of LTOs—SKU cross-utilization. Chefs can just add one or two ingredients to something from their core menu to create an LTO. Or maybe a trendy ingredient being used for a special can be sprinkled across other offerings. It’s a cost-effective way to create innovative meals that attract customers.
A: Operators often plan out their LTOs six months in advance—and six months from now, restaurants probably won’t look the same as they do now.
I predict that LTOs will be more focused on getting people into restaurant seats. Dine-in business does a better job at driving up check averages than off-premises. Delivery mostly generates center-of-plate orders. When people come in, they end up ordering entrees, sides, drinks, appetizers, and desserts.
But don’t be mistaken: Off-premises is here to stay. Ghost kitchens, delivery, curbside pickup—I think we’ll still see plenty of that even as more people get vaccinated.
A: The most important thing for restaurants to do for menu R&D and LTO planning is to focus on their core business. Don’t try to be everything to everybody. Look at trend data to see what independent operators are doing and which trends are expected to emerge or stick around, but these trends have to fit within the scope of a restaurant’s business.
A: To drive dine-in traffic in the future, thaw-and-serve desserts will be useful. A DoorDash survey found that 23 percent of respondents named desserts as the food they missed the most from restaurants during the pandemic. Restaurants have made strides in gaining back staff, but they must still rely on speed-scratch and ready-to-eat products, like pre-made desserts.
Sauces and seasonings are also great for capitalizing on trends and flavors to put a spin on dishes. Fish sauce, habanero sauce, and creative takes on BBQ sauce, mayonnaise, and ketchup are all ripe for flavorful LTO ideas.
A: LTOs come with risk. Operators often run into issues with sourcing, obsolete product, inventory management, volume forecasting, and replenishment. They also have to figure out how to get products across their entire operation and distribution network.
National account operators need a reliable supply chain partner and must communicate with their supplier and distribution network. Without everyone on the same page, LTOs can become a disaster.
A: Dot works closely with operators and their distribution networks to minimize LTO risk. I have the fun job of working with chefs on sourcing and showing them what products Dot has to bring their ideas to life.
From there, we can forecast how much product is needed and have it shipped throughout the country in two to four days. With no individual product line minimums, Dot lets distributors order as much or as little product as necessary. That allows operators to avoid obsolete, excess, or sub-minimum product. Dot helps put together a solid plan for LTO sourcing, but we also have the agility to act fast.
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Many restaurants are expected to continue offering small core menus and minimize SKUs after the pandemic. That means LTOs will remain a critical part of restaurant revenue strategies.
Dot helps operators from beginning to end of their LTO planning. Stay up on food trends by reading our Devour articles, and work with our national account team on rolling out new menu specials.
Get LTO inspiration by checking out our website.