THERE is no time like the present and there is no present like time, which in the case of restaurants there’ll be lots of come January.

Customers are at their most price-sensitive, many are battling against New Year resolutions and getting gym memberships and I won’t mention the r-word.

But there are lots businesses can do throughout December and early January to minimise the potential of losing around 25% of an average month’s takings.

Fixed-price menus that run from December, with customers made aware that they will continue in January, are a good way to cultivate custom immediately and for the coming months.

A number of restaurant businesses employ good quality casual staff but arrange contracts that don’t include January – keeping a tight control on variable costs.

Ultimately, businesses have got to plan ahead to ensure the venue is busy because densely populated restaurants can damage reputations quickly through word of mouth.

Having a buzzing eaterie through the year is fine, so long as you know who your customers are, have their details on your database and are able to work that database in terms of events and promotions in time for January when you really need everyone to be aware of your offer.

Taking the positives out of a quiet January, the time can be used to address, eg, either infrastructure changes or staff and branding initiatives.

However, with the downturn for some restaurants having hit several months ago, it’s far better to get attracting customers in December for January, regardless of your strategy.

Included in this plan might be vouchers offering added value or discounts for January only, promoting comedy nights, tasting events, forge a link with calendar events to provide a promotion, promote affinity partnerships with retail businesses, introduce a January specials menu and finally – look at your PR and marketing plan.

Does this take into account inclusion of a customer incentive-based newsletter? A website with a lead generation system built in to attract hits to your site to give you their personal details?

A PR campaign that employs traditional methods of raising visibility of your business and, crucially e-PR that drives the right audience to your website through carefully targeted articles published in relevant online media?

Just a few tips to get those much-needed bums on seats in January.

JOEL JELEN is managing director of Ubiquity PR