Is Your Coffee Offering Is The Right Choice For Your Customer Base?

KEY INSIGHTS

• Start by understanding your local area and customer base by visiting neighbourhood cafes
• Once you’ve chosen a consistent house blend you may want to supplement it with other options such as single origin coffee
• Some coffee suppliers offer free coffeemaking training for your staff 

For many people, coffee is an essential part of their daily routine. As a restaurant owner, it's essential to understand your customer base and what type of coffee will be the right fit for them. 

With so many coffee blends available from a multitude of suppliers, how do you make the right choice for your business? Here are some helpful tips:

Understand your customer base

The first step is to recognise that your coffee needs to appeal to your customer base – so start by gauging what’s popular in the local area, which you can do by visiting neighbourhood cafes. See which ones are attracting the most customers and what type of coffee they’re serving. Don’t make the mistake of choosing a trendy coffee that isn’t necessarily what your customers are wanting.

Consider local preferences

Coffee tastes vary according to a region’s demographic and can often be different from one suburb to the next or even one neighbourhood to the next. Areas with a strong Italian or Greek heritage will favour a particular flavour profile, whereas those with elderly Australians who grew up drinking instant coffee may prefer a lighter, smoother roast.

Australia is regarded as a ‘mature’ coffee market, and specialty coffee is on the rise as our tastes continue to evolve. Even members of our older generations may find their tastes changing as they’re introduced to new coffee flavour profiles by their grandkids while dining out or ordering in.

Offer a variety of options

Some coffee blends are more suited to mixing with milk while others work better as espresso. Single origin coffees tend to have specific flavour profiles. Once you’ve chosen a consistent ‘house blend’ you may want to supplement it with other options such as a single origin coffee – depending on much business your coffee sales generate. It’s also good business to offer a decaffeinated coffee choice – but bear in mind decaf has a shorter shelf life than regular coffee. Also make sure you have a range of milk options that work with your blends.

Train your staff

In the current environment of staff and skills shortage, good baristas can charge a premium for their services. However, a number of major coffee suppliers offer free coffeemaking training – which is helpful if you don’t want to go to the expense of hiring someone just to make coffee, but still want to ensure consistency from one cup to the next. By investing in your staff's training, you'll ensure that they can provide excellent customer service and make recommendations that suit your customers' tastes.

Coffee’s popularity can be a great drawcard to bring customers through your doors, and you can capitalise upon this further by offering different styles of coffee for different dayparts – from mid-morning cappuccino to iced coffee at lunchtime and the afternoon, liqueur coffees at the conclusion of a meal, and even coffee-based desserts like traditional Italian affogato (consisting of a scoop of vanilla ice cream or gelato with a shot of espresso poured over the top).

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