A customer who visited yesterday receives “We miss you”. A weekly regular gets an introduction to a menu they already know. A guest who came once is offered a reward they cannot understand.
Before increasing how often you send, improve who receives what. A practical restaurant email marketing plan can start with three groups and one clear purpose for each message.
Start with a reason to write
Square's 2026 Australian consumer research found that 41% preferred email for communication from local businesses. That is a channel preference across local businesses, not a guarantee that any particular message will generate a booking.
The suggestions below are campaign ideas to test. Their timing should follow your guests' actual visit patterns, not a universal rule that everyone becomes “lapsed” after a fixed number of days.
First-time guests: make the second visit easier
The first message can help someone understand the next useful thing about your business. That might be the lunch menu, collection instructions or a different service they have not tried.
Example subject: Your next lunch break, sorted
Thanks for visiting. Our weekday lunch menu is available on our website, along with opening hours and collection details. Take a look when you are planning your next stop.
Use that wording only when the information is genuinely available. The sample is message copy, not a full compliant email: the real message also needs the appropriate sender, consent and unsubscribe elements.
The purpose is a second completed visit. Do not send a discount automatically if a useful introduction may be enough to test first.
Regular guests: recognise the relationship
Give regulars something relevant rather than repeatedly explaining who you are. Consider an actual menu addition, a member benefit they qualify for or early information about a service they use.
Example subject: Something new for your next visit
There is a new seasonal option on the menu. The ingredients, price and serving times are available online, so you can decide whether to try it alongside your usual.
Avoid invented exclusivity. If everyone receives the offer, do not call it access reserved only for a small group.
Review whether regulars visit more often or simply receive cheaper versions of the purchases they already make.
Lapsed guests: make the invitation low-pressure
Define a lapse relative to the relationship you can observe. Someone who previously ordered weekly needs a different window from a person who visits for anniversaries.
Example subject: A reason to visit again
Our current menu is ready to browse, and we would be glad to welcome you back. Check the latest dishes and opening hours whenever a visit fits your plans.
A lapsed-customer message does not need to expose how closely you have tracked someone. Keep it friendly. Test a relevant update before assuming a large discount is necessary.
Before sending, remove people who have already returned, have an unresolved complaint or should no longer receive marketing. If that requires a manual review in your current system, build time for it into the process.
Respect permission and avoid overlapping sends
For Australian recipients, follow ACMA's consent, identification and unsubscribe guidance. Keep purely transactional information separate from promotion where appropriate, and honour opt-outs rather than re-adding people from a different list.
Check the audience across campaigns so one customer does not receive several overlapping offers. Start with a frequency your team can maintain and your subscribers were led to expect. This workflow can be manual; it does not require you to buy complex automation before testing the idea.
Look beyond open rates
Apple's Mail Privacy Protection can prevent senders from knowing whether an email was opened. Opens therefore need cautious interpretation, not treatment as the final measure of success.
Use completed clicks, attributable bookings or orders, contribution and unsubscribes. Where feasible, compare a campaign group with a similar, appropriately selected group that did not receive it. Small samples and customer self-selection still limit what you can conclude.
Try this next: choose one group, one truthful message and one completed action to measure. Send the next campaign only after checking the audience and learning from the first.
A send-day checklist
- The message matches the selected customer group.
- The offer and destination are live and accurate.
- Consent and opt-outs have been checked.
- Sender details and unsubscribe work.
- Other campaigns will not duplicate the same invitation.
- The result will be measured as a completed action, not an open alone.
Connect the message to a useful destination
Email campaigns need a suitable sending platform and permission records; BizAppMaker does not send marketing emails. If your customers use your branded app, the same thinking applies to push messages and coupons: send them to a chosen group of customers who have opted in, with one clear purpose for each message. Discuss your customer journey with BizAppMaker.
Take a look at how BizAppMaker works for restaurants, or try the live app demo.