7 Restaurant Holiday Marketing Tips

1.  Make the guest experience personal and memorable

How can restaurants use guest data to make holiday dining more personal?

Looking to help your restaurant stand out this season? Use guest insights to personalize your holiday outreach and enhance the diner experience. It can take a lot of time to do the important task of learning about your guests and remembering their names and preferences. But these days, there are plenty of tools to help you out, like the ResyOS Guestbook—which uses a guest’s phone number as the unique identifier to avoid duplicative profiles, resulting in more reliable data to fuel outreach.

Tap into that digital guestbook, segment by VIP and regular tags, and reach out to those groups for exclusive early access to your holiday events (we’ve got suggestions for those later!) through Resy’s Exclusive Groups feature. This will help make these guests feel in-the-know, solidifying customer loyalty and creating a sense of urgency to make a reservation now.

2.  Drive reservations through email marketing

How can you use email to help fill more tables this holiday season?

Making genuine, in-person connections with your diners when they’re in your restaurant is important. But how you stay in touch with them outside your restaurant—and attract new ones—is crucial, too.

Once you have your holiday plans in order, reach out to your subscribers via email and let them know what’s happening. Encourage them to make reservations and share the news with friends. If you’ve always used the same email template, be sure to add a few festive elements to make the design extra celebratory. Need a little help with email marketing? Right this way.

3.  Engage diners directly through SMS campaigns

How can restaurants use text messages to help fill last-minute openings?

Reach out to your guests via SMS (texting) for special offers, reminders, and updates to their reservations (e.g., “Your table is ready!” or “We just launched our new holiday menu!”). According to Constant Contact, “As of 2024, the average SMS campaign ha[d] an open rate of around 98%. That means in a standard campaign, almost every customer you send SMS messages to will open those messages.”

Texting can also help fill dining rooms and avoid late cancellations or no-shows. Use the Quick Replies feature on Resy to quickly message guests on your Notify list and Waitlist, and to send reminders to booked guests. Plus, Resy Platform 360 allows you to send customized texts to guests and let your brand shine through your communications.

Pro Tip: Be sure you have consent to send, and don’t send too many texts too often (this will encourage unsubscribes).

4. Use social media for festive restaurant promotions

How can restaurants use social media to turn holiday excitement into reservations?

Social media is an excellent way to amplify your reach and tell your story. If you’re not sure where to get started, we have a complete guide to promoting your restaurant on social media. But here are some quick tips:

• Create a reel or TikTok showcasing how you’re prepping your new holiday dessert
• Post an Instagram carousel with enticing photos of your new holiday menu
• Launch an email-exclusive holiday promotion for subscribers: A sparkling toast when you mention that you’re a subscriber at your next meal
• Create an Instagram story about a long-time staff member as part of a staff-appreciation moment. Interview them about their favorite dish and a secret talent that’ll make the post extra shareable!

All of these touchpoints will help you engage with your audience, show them what you have going on in the restaurant, and get them in the door.

Looking to help increase the discoverability of your restaurant? If you’re not yet on Resy, book a demo today →

5. Turn your restaurant into a holiday destination

Why does offering unique experiences matter for restaurants during the holidays?

Want to be top-of-mind for your diners this holiday season? Guests love experiences and specials that go beyond a typical meal. In fact, many guests are willing to splurge on experiences that feel “premium and exclusive,” even if they are tightening their financial belts in other ways, according to Nation’s Restaurant News.

Here are some ideas to help increase holiday guest engagement:

• An in-restaurant pop-up with a rotating roster of guest chefs
• Caviar-laden dinners with wine pairings
• Holiday brunches with live caroling
• Supper clubs with make-your-own holiday cocktails (think fig, rosemary, peppermint, cranberry, etc.)
• Dinner and a holiday movie with a festive themed menu
• A wall of mistletoe or a window covered in twinkle lights for Instagram-worthy opportunities

Once you have your menus and events planned, make them bookable through Resy and share their availability on social media and through email to help boost discoverability.

6. Secure bookings by offering prepaid experiences

How can prepaid experiences help restaurants lock in revenue and reduce no-shows?

To help ensure full tables, consider offering a special prepaid meal, like office party buy-outs, live music and dancing, interactive cooking classes, and more. While these festive and exclusive offerings provide celebratory experiences for your diners, they also allow you to collect deposits or full payments upfront, helping cover costs and prevent unexpected openings.

7. Keep your profiles current

How can keeping your business information up to date help with holiday bookings?

Part of being a good marketer is avoiding confusion: managing expectations and being clear about your offerings. Avoid potential pitfalls and disappointments by making sure all of your business profiles are current. That includes your Google Business Profile, your website, and your Resy listing with seasonal hours and menus.

Help make this your most successful holiday season yet. Book a demo to discover how Resy helps boost revenue and delight guests this season and beyond. →

Quick Takeaways for Restaurant Owners

• Personalize guest outreach with digital tools
• Use email and SMS for festive promotions
• Turn your restaurant into a holiday destination
• Offer prepaid experiences to help lock in bookings
• Keep your profiles updated for better discoverability

Frequently asked questions about restaurant holiday marketing

Q: Why is holiday marketing important for restaurants?

A: The holiday season is one of the busiest times for restaurants, with guests dining out often. Strong holiday marketing helps you capture this demand, boost revenue, build long-term loyalty with VIPs and new guests, and spread festive cheer.

Q: What are the best holiday marketing tips for restaurants?

A: The most effective holiday marketing tips include creating festive menus, offering dining packages, promoting gift cards, and using multi-channel outreach (email, SMS, and social media) to engage diners. Plus, personal touches—like inviting VIPs for early access to your holiday menu—build loyalty while helping drive seasonal revenue.

Q: How can restaurants personalize the holiday dining experience?

A: Use guest insights from tools like the ResyOS Guestbook to segment your audience. Reach out to VIPs and regulars through Resy’s Exclusive Groups feature, offer seasonal desserts or cocktails, and share behind-the-scenes stories on social media to make the season feel extra special for your guests. If you’re not yet on Resy, book a demo today.

Q: What holiday events or promotions work best for restaurants?

A: Prix-fixe menus, wine dinners, family-style meals, and office-party packages are popular holiday promotions. You can also host holiday brunches and promote gift cards or curated dining packages, giving guests more ways to celebrate while helping drive extra revenue.

Q: How can restaurants use social media for holiday marketing?

A: Share behind-the-scenes content, create reels or TikToks of festive menu prep, post Instagram carousels of holiday dishes, or post staff member spotlights. These touchpoints can engage your audience and drive reservations during the season.

Q: What’s the best way to keep diners informed about holiday hours and menus?

A: Always update your Google Business Profile, website, and Resy listing with seasonal hours, menus, and events. Accurate online information reduces guest confusion, builds trust, and helps ensure diners arrive excited for their holiday experience.