Little House Restaurant
A1. Viability of Product
New Orleans always needs restaurants that serve authentic New Orleans food in a casual and family friendly environment. The residents of New Orleans are food lovers by nature, and a neighborhood restaurant is a viable commodity to have. The Little House Restaurant is that establishment.

The restaurant offers homemade style food as well as many New Orleans favorites such as Po Boy sandwiches, muffalettas (a New Orleans sandwich with ham, salami, and olive dressing on a sesame bun), jambalaya, gumbo, and turtle soup. We will offer daily specials of different types of food, including but not limited to seafood, sandwiches, and New Orleans staples (red beans and rice on Mondays). It also offers a wide selection of dishes not indicative of New Orleans cuisine: Italian food, gluten free dishes, vegetarian and vegan dishes, and breakfast at any time. In addition to gluten free dishes, we offer many other healthy food items, such as salads, low sodium, low carb, and low fat items, as well as whole grain options as a substitute for all of our sandwiches and other dishes that serve bread. All food is prepared by locally trained chefs who follow strict sanitary and culinary rules and procedures.

The atmosphere of the Little House is very casual. The minimal dress code requires all patrons to where shirts and shoes (and of course pants). Shirts with collars and jackets are not required, nor are dresses for ladies. Our courteous staff is trained to encourage all patrons to feel as if they are welcome and valued for the duration of their dining experience. A full bar will also be available for all patrons of legal drinking age. Along with the Little House being a casual dining experience, the meals are all reasonable priced. The majority of all dishes are under twenty dollars, many of which cost less than ten dollars.

In today’s internet age, it is important for all businesses to have a firm online presence. The Little House is no exception. We will have an interactive website, a page on Facebook, and a Twitter account. All of these aspects will allow customers to remain updated with the entire goings on of the restaurant, as well as specials, coupons, and weekly deals offered for customers.

Patrons will be able to visit our website before or after their dining experience. Our website will be stated on menus, receipts, and outside of the restaurant (the doors and windows). Business cards will be placed on the bar for patrons to pick up. These business cards will have our website, hours of operation, phone and fax numbers, Facebook page, Twitter account name, and physical address.

We will create a user-friendly website so that all patrons can explore the online presence of our restaurant with ease. The website will have the restaurant hours, menus, a shopping cart with payment options, interactive tabs, professionally shot pictures, contact information with email addresses, phone and fax numbers, and our physical address, and a place for patrons to leave comments and concerns.

Those who visit the website will be able to see the menus. The patrons will be able to see each of our menus for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. When they look at the menus they will be able to click on each item, and they will be directed to a brief description of the item as well as a picture of the item.

Customers will be able to place orders online. When they place their order, they will be able to adjust their order to have their food prepared any way that they want (no mayonnaise, extra tomatoes, choosing specific sides, etc.). As they place their order, they will be able to click on a button to be able to make these adjustments, as well as type in special requests. Once they place their order, the order will be placed in a shopping cart for them to review and alter prior to paying for the order. Once they are ready to check out, the customer will have the options of paying by credit card or by PayPal. There will be no fee for choosing to pay via either of these methods.

As mentioned earlier, the items of food will be available for all of the patrons to view online. These will not be the only pictures online. The website will open with a picture of the logo of the restaurant at the top of the site. There will then be scrolling pictures of our staff, our clientele, and many pictures of the restaurant itself. These pictures of the restaurant will include pictures of the kitchen, the dining area, the bar, and all locations throughout the restaurant. Some of them will be candid, and some will be staged. However, we will hire a professional photographer to take all of the pictures.

Our Facebook page will show many different aspects of our restaurant. There will be candid photos of our customers in the restaurant and our staff working, as well as professionally shot photos of the food, staff, and stills of inside and outside of the building. The Facebook page will also be frequently updated so that all customers will be able to read about daily specials and special offers going on in the restaurant, including but not limited to coupons, happy hour deals, and specials on take-out orders.

Twitter is also a great way to get in contact with a great amount of loyal customers. These customers can keep in touch with us by following us on Twitter. When they do this, they will be able to be updated with anything new that is happening at the restaurant. Also, those customers who follow us on Twitter will be given access to special coupons and promotions that we will have at various random occasions. These customers can also use Twitter as a medium to express their own opinions and viewpoints about or restaurant. This will allow for word to spread about us, which will attract more customers.

One of the bonuses about Facebook and Twitter is that it allows real time comments from all people involved. This holds true for our restaurant as well. Customers are allowed and encouraged to discuss their experience in our restaurant in real time on an online setting. This is beneficial to any business because it allows people to learn about us online, and it also allows the negative comments to be addressed when certain patrons express some sort of disinterest in any aspect of their dining experience.

An issue with a website for a restaurant is that the customers will not be able to have a true dining experience when they place to go orders online. They are not able to dine in the restaurant, nor will they be able to experience the ambiance of the restaurant experience.

Also, they will not be able to have a complete online shopping experience. They must go to the restaurant at some point, either to pick up food or to dine in the restaurant. They will not be able to have food shipped or delivered. This can deter many people away from the restaurant because they may not want to or be able to leave their homes or offices for various reasons. This could make the potential customers want to order their food from restaurants that deliver, and because of this, we would be losing customers.

It is not easy for a restaurant to go global, especially if it is a local restaurant. Most local restaurants serve no purpose in the global market. The only people who may find use for them are tourists who want to eat authentic New Orleans cuisine in a casual, affordable environment. Another way to go global is to buy oils, wines, and spices from other countries. The problem with doing that is that the shipping costs would be too high to make any sort of return on our investment.

A2. Competition
The Little House will have many competitors who will offer the same type of food at moderately competitive prices. Two of the major competitors are Mandina’s Restaurant in Mid-City New Orleans and Mena’s Palace in the French Quarter in Downtown New Orleans. Both restaurants have a reputation of being a great place to eat in a casual environment. It is essential to our business to offer things that these restaurants do not.

Mandina’s has had a reputation in New Orleans as having great food that is indicative of the culture of New Orleans. Mandina’s has two locations near New Orleans. This allows customers who do not have easy access to one location to be able to enjoy the restaurant closer to them.
They are famous for their gumbo and turtle soup. They have a full bar, which allows patrons to purchase some libations while they are waiting for a table to become available. They also have daily specials. Each day Mandina’s offers multiple specials that patrons do not have access to any other day. They are usually seafood specials made from fresh seafood delivered daily. The prices for food at Mandina’s are more expensive than what patrons would find at the Little House. Anyone dining at Mandina’s usually spends over twenty dollars for their meal, while the same food would cost fewer than twenty dollars at the Little House. Although this is not a very expensive restaurant, many customers might be deterred if they know that the same food and casual environment are offered for less money. Mandina’s also is readily prepared for parties of fifteen or more patrons, and they are able to cater large events.

Although their website is very accessible and user-friendly, there are many aspects about the website that might deter customers from dining there. The tabs on the website are not interactive. They merely bring the customer to whatever item they have searched. Patrons can view the menus and pictures of the restaurant, but the pictures of food that are on the website do not look as if they have been taken by a professional photographer. Also, a prospective customer is able to find directions to Mandina’s by the link that they can find on the website.

Mandina’s was destroyed in 2005 by Hurricane Katrina. Many of the pictures on the website show the damage caused by the hurricane as well as what the restaurant looked like during remodeling. None of these pictures are up to date and could deter one from eating there because the pictures do not show a working restaurant.

Mandina’s does not seem to offer placing to-go orders online. Prospective customers have to call into the restaurant to place to go orders. Though this is not something that would prevent everyone from ordering from them, many customers prefer to order online so that that can view their order for accuracy, and they may feel more secure about payment processes that come from buying anything online as opposed to stating credit card information over the phone.

Another competitor is Mena’s Palace in the heart of the French Quarter in New Orleans. This location allows many tourists of New Orleans to have easy access to this restaurant. Their prices are very competitive. The food options are typical New Orleans faire. The restaurant has a good reputation for providing a homelike dining experience while serving good, local style food. The menu offers breakfast, lunch, daily specials, and Po-Boys. Many of Mena’s dressings and sauces are house made. These are mentioned on their website. This shows that there is some authenticity to their Mena’s is not open for dinner, which allows many of the competitors to create business for themselves while Mena’s is closed. Mena’s is also not open on Sundays. This also allows competitors to benefit from the time that customers are not going to be spending time and money at Mena’s.

Mena’s offers multiple specials every day. These specials are typical New Orleans food, which allows customers to sample the taste of New Orleans without paying an exorbitant of money. However, each day there seems to be a special of some kind of beans and rice. This is not very extensive and leaves the customers wanting more than mere beans.

Mena’s website is a very interactive and aesthetically appealing website. The website allows you to search each of the major aspects of the kitchen: breakfast, lunch, Po-Boys, and specials. The menus are all on the website with a brief description of the food, prices, and pictures that look as if they were professionally shot. The food looks very appetizing and aesthetically pleasing. There is also a tab for you to be able to email the company with any questions or concerns. The email address is very easy to remember and uses a common host (Gmail). The website also allows visitors to click on the physical address of the restaurant, where they are brought to Google Maps, showing a map of the location of the restaurant.

However, it does not seem as if Mena’s offers the ability to order anything from their menu online. All patrons must come to the restaurant or call the restaurant to place an order or eat any of the food there. This seems to be where the Little House prospers. We allow the customers to order and pay for their meals online.

Both competitors have made names for themselves in the city of New Orleans. The Little House is an up-and-coming restaurant that will have to rely on their website, reviews, and good word of mouth to be able to compete to stay open in a city that loves their food and are loyal to their local restaurants.

A3. Marketing Suggestions

We will market ourselves as a great New Orleans restaurant with good food indicative of the city. We will use only fresh ingredients. We will serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Most, if not all of our sauces and dressings will be made in house, and our recipes will mirror many of the classic recipes of New Orleans cuisine. We will have daily specials that can only be found on our menu on specific days of the week, as well as many pasta dishes.

As mentioned earlier, we will be serving classic New Orleans cuisine. We will have many dishes that are found in many restaurants throughout the city, including, but not limited to gumbo, jambalaya, etoufee (New Orleans sauce, served over shellfish and rice), and many seafood dishes. We would also be serving many pasta dishes, as well as classic appetizers that many people love and somewhat expect when they go out to any restaurant (mozzarella cheese sticks, onion rings).

The Little House is open to the public. The restaurant would be serving to anyone in New Orleans, as well as any tourist who came into town. Since the food is prepared fresh and can fit any budget, the restaurant will mostly be targeting the middle class of New Orleans who are looking for a great meal at a reasonable price. Being a local restaurant with great food will attract more people than merely the middle class, who would, of course, be welcomed, but our primary target will be the working class citizens of New Orleans. The restaurant would also target out of town visitors who are looking to have an authentic New Orleans meal, but do not want to spend a large amount of money. This would provide those tourists with a great and unique dining experience, and would possibly encourage them to suggest the restaurant to their friends and family back in their home towns.

Our menus would not differ from lunch and dinner. The only difference is at lunch. During this time (typically eleven o’clock a.m. until four o’clock p.m.), customers would be allowed to order a smaller portion at a lower price, but this is not a limitation. All menu items would be available at any time that the restaurant is open. Patrons are allowed to order breakfast, lunch, or dinner items whenever they please. They only items that may not be ordered at all times would be the daily specials, for example, since red beans and rice would be a special on Mondays, this item may only be ordered, and will only be prepared, on Mondays.

What would set us apart is the casual atmosphere and competitive prices. Also, we would be one of the only restaurants in town that serves the type of food that we would serve as well as food types from all three meals. Many restaurants only serve lunch and dinner. Many are closed for dinner.

Most of our dishes, including entrees, will cost fewer than fifteen dollars. However, many of them will cost fewer than ten dollars. This will give our prices a competitive edge. Many restaurants in the New Orleans area would serve the same dishes at a higher price, but the Little House.

It is important for all companies to have an online presence. As technology becomes more and more a part of everyday life, our restaurant would need to keep up with the times. It may be difficult for a restaurant to have this online presence at first, therefore, once a customer eats at the Little House, the wait staff could encourage them to write a review of their experience on Google Places, Yelp!, Urbanspoon, or any other restaurant review site. If the customers do give a review, positive or negative, then they would be able to enter a code to receive a discount of some sort (percentage or specific dollar amount decrease on the total bill, a free appetizer or drink, etc.). This would allow them to be honest about the restaurant, and we would be able to make any sort of changes that we would need to make in order to satisfy all negative remarks. And once these changes are made, the Little House would have more return business and more satisfied customers.

We would advertise in local newspapers like the Gambit or Where Y’At Magazine. These are free publications that are available at many locations around the city. We would also advertise on the local New Orleans news websites, such as nola.com. We would also support the local sports teams, both at the professional and college levels, such as the New Orleans Saints (NFL), New Orleans Hornets (NBA), Tulane Green Wave (College), and Louisiana State University Tigers (College). We would have special offers for those customers who attend games of these teams. For example, if they bring in a ticket stub or program from the game that they attended, then they would be able to receive a discount on appetizers or entrees. We would also be emailing our loyal customers with coupons and deals. Those customers who join our mailing list, would receive notification of certain deals that we are having specifically for those customers.

In many of the places that we would advertise (Gambit, Where Y’at, etc.), we would have basic advertisements, but within the advertisement, we would have our QR code. (Aisbett, Q. (2012, January). 7 Restaurant Marketing Ideas. Retrieved from Marketing Ideas OnQ: http://www.onqmarketing.com.au/restaurant-marketing-ideas/). This code would take the potential customer to the Little House app on their smartphone or tablet. This app would give the customer a lot of the basic information about the restaurant that they would find on our website. They would be able to find the restaurant hours, contact information, pictures, and menus. They would be able to also go to our Facebook page and like us immediately. This would allow customers to keep up to date with the restaurant anywhere, and this might encourage more business from those who have our app installed on their phone.
In New Orleans, location of a restaurant is everything. We will be located on a somewhat busy street, so that patrons to get in and out of our location with little to no difficulty. Also, if the street is a busy street, it usually ensures more safety than if it is on a remote street. We are also online, so that customers can place to go orders and come to the restaurant to pick up their food. Because we offer this (something that not many restaurants in the city offer), it is important that our customers can easily get to our location. A difficult to get to location could deter patrons from wanting to eat here.

It is also important that those who we employ are the most professional that they can be. Therefore, we are obligated to hire the right people. This means that our wait staff as well as the cooking staff must be friendly, knowledgeable, and courteous to all of the customers. Our chefs need to be renowned and talented in the kitchen. And everyone must be hard workers and willing to go farther than what their job description entails.

By doing all of these things, we will be creating a wonderful dining experience. We will also have to update our website with specials, coupons, new menu items, and new pictures of the food or restaurant. If a customer has a concern or complaint, it is incumbent upon us to rectify the situation in a quick and appropriate manner. We will also have to keep up to date with our competition. If their prices start to drop, we must be willing to do the same. We can do this by buying from local markets and wholesale clubs. We would also be creating a rapport with distributers. This rapport would allow us to continue to do business with the same people and gain a reputation as an honest and great business. Doing all of these things would allow us to gain a rapport with customers who would know us a great restaurant with great, local food in a friendly and inviting atmosphere.

A4. Search Engine Optimization

There are two main ways to get your name out there in major search engines: organic and pay per click. I will focus on both in the beginning. I believe that it is important to be able to pay for recognition early, so that your name can be in the public eye. Using Pay per Click allows us to be able to be close to the top of search engines, and therefore be noticed. After a while, once our name is more recognizable and our restaurant is more popular, we would not need to pay for our restaurant to be as high on the list as we would want.

The option to pay per click has many advantages as well as disadvantages. This method allows potential customers to have access to a link to our site. They would only need to type in specific keywords or key phrases, such as “Restaurant,” New Orleans,” “Local Food,” or even “Little house. Pay per click allows us to have space on certain content networks. One of the more beneficial ones for us to be on is nola.com. This site is a local New Orleans news site. It has everything New Orleans on this site. For example, someone can find news, sports, entertainment, and weather all on nola.com. It is logical to be able to advertise on this site as well. In order to be noticed, we would have to be able to have a large enough advertisement on this page. Opting to pay per click would ensure that our advertisement would be seen. We can do the same on Facebook. With the amount of people that visit Facebook on a daily basis, we would be able to have our ads seen by countless amounts of people.

In order to draw people in and click on our restaurant, we would need to have a very short and attractive content on a search page. Ours would look something like:
Little House Restaurant
Local New Orleans food in a casual and affordable atmosphere. Located in the heart of New Orleans. Open 7 days a week. 7:00 am-10:00pm.

This would ensure that our Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is very succinct with who we are and what we do.

The disadvantage to paying per click is that we may be wasting money on something that many of the more popular restaurants do organically. Being a small and up-and-coming business, we may have a tight budget, especially when it comes to advertising. However, paying per click is relatively inexpensive, and the more you pay, the higher your link is to the top of the page. This is why I would propose that we could go as high as three dollars per click.

After we have worked into the budget, we would have to decide which medium to use. The two that are the most prominent are Google and Yahoo! Google is the most popular, and more people visit Google than any other search site. This gives us the highest potential for the most amount of times people would click on our site. Google also has the highest click through rate than any other search engine. (eMarketing: The Essential Guide to Online Marketing, v. 1.0by Rob Stokes and the Minds of Quirk chapter 7) Also, with Google, we would be able to use their tools such as Google AdWords in order to optimize the way that we phrase or site name. Google AdWords targets the geographic location and allows those who are in the location of our restaurant see the site link. It also helps to ensure that our link is phrased properly and attractively.

Yahoo! has a high potential for people seeing the link as well. They have a loyal customer base. They are also more business oriented than Google. This allows us to utilize this search engine to target our audience and to attract customers. If we are able to do this properly, then the word of the restaurant will spread, and we would be able to organically have a high locale on search engines.

When a company is able to obtain this spot organically, it shows that they are popular. This popularity will allow many people who do not already know about us see our site listed high and hopefully they will be intrigued enough to learn more about us, and therefore click on our link. Also, we would prove that we are search engine friendly. This removes technical barriers. (eMarketing: The Essential Guide to Online Marketing, v. 1.0 by Rob Stokes and the Minds of Quirk chapter 6.2) The removal of these barriers would help ensure that we are a safe website and that we are able to be open as a website twenty-four hours a day.

In order to optimize our search engine link, we would be able to utilize many of the tools that Google has to offer:
· Google AdWords o This tool allows sponsored links on the top of webpages. It sets the links apart from the rest of the links.
· Google AdSense o Helps earn revenue by displaying ads in various locations around the internet. Shows ads throughout the internet while optimizing search results and helping to create apps for mobile devices.
· Google Analytics o Shows the results and money earned or lost, return on investment, in a variety of formats.
· Google Web Site Optimizer o Allows you to create the best website possible with regards to your customer base. This function also allows you to see the results of the webpage in real time.
· Google Toolbar o A search engine on the top of the webpage which allows customers to type the keywords directly into the toolbar and be directed to the right location.
· Google Webmaster o Gives you a detailed report about the visibility of your site. This will allow us to know if we need to change anything on our site to make it more accessible and more popular.
· Google PageRank o Used along with Search Status (a Firefox tool), this shows us how popular our website is. We can therefore, make specific changes to the SEO, when and where they are needed.

By using all of these, we can ensure that we can change our webpage as we need to, but we will also be able to show our customers that we stand out in New Orleans as a great restaurant who is willing to keep ourselves up to date with any changes in society and technology.

A5. Social Media Integration

Social media allows all customers to be reached in great numbers. The customers can discuss with each other and with the restaurant itself. It is also a good way for the Little House to be able to send updates to those customers who are following us on these mediums. We are able to send daily specials, coupons, and other deals that we are having to the customers.

There are many different ways that a restaurant can be part of the growing social media on the internet. We do not have to merely rely on commercials. We can be present on the internet and not have to rely on pop ups, but can be advertising when needed. We can be on several social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, or Yelp!. Each of these would allow us to show who we are to a vast population.

Facebook would allow us to keep up to date with all of the customers who “Like” us. Those customers would be able to see any news that we present on our Facebook page. This would include daily specials, Facebook specific coupons, as well as change of menu, new pictures, and any other major changes that occur in the restaurant. Customers would also be able to communicate with each other regarding their experience in the restaurant. This would be in real time and would allow us to read how customers react to our restaurant at that specific time. It would allow the managers of the restaurant to address any issues that the customers have mentioned. We would also be able to communicate with specific customers and be able to utilize them to improve ourselves.

Twitter allows us to send a short message to a large group of people. We would be able to state any changes to the restaurant as well as specials and coupons for those who are “Following” us. Twitter also allows customers to comment about us. These comments would allow us to see how people are reacting to us. We would be able to see how we are received in the community through this service. Twitter also provides more anonymity than Facebook. Facebook requires some personal information, while Twitter does not. This might prompt more of the customers to be more truthful.

Yelp! is a blogging site specifically focusing on restaurants, bars, and any other place where people buy and consume food or drinks. This is a great site for customers to comment, in detail about their experience. This would allow all of the employees to see where they could improve. It would also allow all other prospective customers know what type of place they might be going to for their meal. We would be given a star rating based on the customers’ experiences in the restaurant. Yelp! also allows us to put a full menu on the internet; it states price range, environment, and maps to the restaurant. Customers are also able to compare to other restaurants. Many of the competitors are listed, with their own Yelp! site, on the side of the screen.

All of these allow great word of mouth. These sites are very popular, and our reputation would spread very quickly when all customers and potential customers start blogging or commenting about us. This would allow us to keep up with our customer base and constantly improve. We would also have to constantly change our social sites in order to be up to date with anything new going on. By doing all of these, the customers might want to bookmark our pages or any web page that involves us. They would not have to search for us, and they would easily see what changes we have made as time goes on.

Overall, there are four things that social media allows us to do: Listen, Join, Participate, and Create. (Chapter 5 - Social Media Online Marketing Inside Out by Brandon Eley and Shayne Tilley SitePoint © 2009) We listen to what is being said about us. We want to know how we can benefit from what is being said, and what we can do to ensure customer satisfaction. We join these social media sites by creating pages, giving our address and phone numbers on the site. This allows customers to see us in a more familiar environment. We would post topics to discuss and participate in other forums. We would also be adding new information and pictures. This would allow us to tag ourselves. We would be able to send out emails to our customers with updates and anything else going on in the restaurant. This would not be SPAM, which we would never do; it would be more like a newsletter to our loyal customers. We would then be able to create our own forums and topics.

A6. Online Customer Relationship Management

All business should be customer focused. We need to know what the customers want, what they need, and what we can do to provide it. One way that we can do this is to allow the customers to provide comments on our website. We would then be able to address the issues that they have promptly and in a professional manner. All of our employees would be able to read these comments and make the proper adjustments, be it in the wait staff, food preparation, or just overall dining experience.

Changing what we would do and making proper adjustments would gain a rapport with the customers. We would not have to alter our entire image, environment, menu, or recipes. We would merely be adjusting small issues that the customers have in order to create a more perfect dining experience. This ensures that the customers would come back to the restaurant and continue to give us revenue. It is worth any extra money that we would have to spend to keep customers satisfied in order to keep them coming back. A satisfied customer is worth more than the cost of acquiring the customer and the money that they bring in.

This works best with Collaborative CRM. We would be working directly with the customer in order to improve their dining experience whenever they come to the restaurant. (Food via Web. (2009, March 31). Customer Relationship Management. Retrieved July 4, 2012, from Food via Web: www.foodviaweb.com/resources/?p=83[->0]) Their comments on any or all of the ways that they can comment (Facebook, Twitter, or even the restaurant’s website comment page) allows us to make appropriate changes for their next dining experience. We would also be able to use their stored data to send them information about these changes, as well as updates regarding specials and deals specifically pertaining to their comments and concerns.

Collaborative CRM works best in a restaurant setting because most restuarants, especially the Little House, rely on a symbiotic relationship between company and customer. The more successful restaurants are those that make the customers feel as if they are entering a welcoming and friendly environment. This is specifically what Collaborative CRM does. It shows the customer that the restaurant is listening to their concerns and attempting to rectify any and all problems that may occur. When a restaurant manager or owner reads comments on a website and contacts the customer to resolve any issues, then the patron and restaurant are working in a collaborative setting to create a more improved dining experience for the next time that the customer eats at the restaurant.

We would also keep them informed with newsletters. They would know the entire goings on in the restaurant in this newsletter. Our loyal customers would be receiving this email, and they would have access to news, coupons, deals, and any other specials that are happening at the restaurant. They would also have a way of getting in contact with us through our consistent, but not SPAM, emails. This newsletter would allow them to respond via email, and they would be able to be in contact with us whenever they choose.

We would then begin to know what they want by what they say to us. We would understand our customer base, and we would be focusing on their desires to make their dining experience the best that we can make it. This would create the necessary rapport with the customers. And we would be able to reach out to the customers whenever they would need us to make any necessary changes.

Emails that the customers would send to us would go directly to the managers and owners. Customers would be able to discuss any and all of their concerns with managers via phone or email. It is important for customers to know that they are being heard. If they are not able to discuss their issues with a manager, then the proper changes might not occur in a manner that they would need to. Customers would feel more comfortable if they know that someone with authority is addressing their issue. Customers merely want to know that what they have to say is being heard. We would do all that we can in order to maintain customer rapport recognition.

A7. E-Commerce Solutions

In order to maintain our ability to function as an online store, it is imperative that we use a shopping cart for all of our online customers. This shopping cart gives the customers the ability to review their order for mistakes and to make any corrections prior to placing the order. They are also able to adjust the quantity of their order. We would allow them to store their email address along with credit card information, home address, and phone number. This would prevent them from being required to do this during future visits. They will be able to input coupon numbers and any other discounts that they may have prior to checking out. They will be able to see their pretax and post-tax totals of their order. This would also enable to them to make any changes prior to placing their order. Upon checking out, our customers would be able to click on an icon to be able to subscribe to our newsletter, which would keep them informed of any news, specials, and deals that are going on in the restaurant. They would also have the option to refer a friend via email to our restaurant. If they are willing to do this, then the customers and the friends that they refer would receive a discount of some sort (free appetizer or drink, five dollars off of the total order, etc.). We would also allow multiple methods of payment. We would accept most major credit cards as well as PayPal. This would give the customers the option to pay in a method that is most comfortable for them, and if the customer knows that we accept more than one method of payment, then they may be more prone to coming back to our website and eating our food on multiple occasions.

We would also have pictures of all of our food our website. They would be professionally shot and enhance the richness of the presentation of the food. These pictures would be unaltered menu items. They would be shown exactly how they would look in the restaurant. We would also upsell many items. We would ask the customers for more items, such as side salads, soups, or appetizers for a small discount if they add them to their meal.

In order to do this, we would need to have the proper software in order to run it. We would probably use GoEcarts. They have the best options for the type of ways that we would be using this software. For example, we only would have up to fifty items to choose from. The fact that we are a restaurant means that we would not have a large catalog and therefore not need to sell many items. Also, GoEcarts allows us to utilize these with the best customer and technical support that would allow us to function properly early on and continue to work for us as we grow. They are very flexible and would allow us to make changes as needed.

We would also use software to help us run all of our business aspects of the restaurant. We would keep track of how much we would have to pay in taxes and how much upkeep on all aspects of the restaurant would cost, including, but not limited to payroll, all internet costs such as the storefront, the shopping cart, the search engine, cost of food and drink, etc. This would allow us to see what our cost of the business versus our return on investment. After we are able to compare the cost versus return, we would be able to adjust our spending in order to keep making a profit.

A8. International Considerations

The fact that we are a local restaurant does not allow us much room for globalization. We do not deliver, and therefore we are not able to ship a product to other nations. We would be able to accept traveler’s checks as well as international credit cards. We would be able to expand our business by selling our house made dressings and sauces to international restaurants. We would also buy many French and Italian wines. But most importantly, we would be able to use our SEO to attract international tourists. We would have our website set up to translate into many languages as well as mentioning on our website that we have bilingual staff members to help us communicate with our foreign customers. Unfortunately, the local aspect of our restaurant would not allow us to reach too far beyond that globally.

A9. Web Development and Maintenance Cost

We would be hiring George Long Photography to take professional photographs of our restaurant. This would include the food, the restaurant itself, including the kitchen, the dining room, the façade of the building, the bar, and the staff. He charges one-hundred dollars per hour and we would need him for about two hours. So he would cost two-hundred dollars.

Our shopping cart would be purchased through GoECart.com. This would cost us three-hundred dollars to set up the shopping cart, and two-thousand five-hundred dollars per year; however, we may choose, at first, to pay monthly. That would cost us two-hundred fifty dollars per month. Our host would be websitepalace.com. This would cost us ninety dollars per month.

This brings our total, initial setup to three-thousand ninety dollars. This includes photography, a full year of shopping cart use, and online support from our html provider. I decided to spend the initial cost upfront because it would help us create a more professional looking website, which is more attractive to potential customers, as well as help us to alter our website when needed.

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