Summer is a great time to embrace national and global beverage trends.

Think mocktails, hard seltzer, canned cocktails, aperitifs, over-the-top milkshakes, and to-go cocktails. And following the trends can be a useful tool for driving traffic to your restaurant and increasing sales at each table. Here are a few ideas for how to do it.

Creative Happy Hours

Happy Hour is the obvious place to put on-trend beverages front and center, but think beyond the typical 5:00-6:00 timeframe and experiment with different times of day for different beverages. Maybe it’s a Can Can Happy Hour, with canned cocktails on special, plus recommended snack pairings available at a discount. Or perhaps a late-night milkshake happy hour with half price ‘munchie’ apps could drive traffic in the evening.

Whatever beverage you choose to highlight, make sure you have a fun but limited menu of both food and drinks, and communicate clearly to guests what is being offered and when to avoid any confusion. If your local ABC laws permit, advertise your happy hour specials using targeted social media posts as well as well-timed, non-sponsored posts to attract the most attention possible.

Embrace Local Brands

Often you can find local companies that are following the same trends you are. Maybe it’s a local cider company that’s branched out into hard seltzer. Or maybe there’s a local producer making non-alcoholic mixers that would work well for your mocktail menu. Pair up with these brands, and you’ll be tapped into their existing audience (and vice versa!). Special tastings with optional food specials can be a great way to get guests in the door and looking at your menu in a new way.

Highlight Seasonality

Creating a seasonal beverage menu is an excellent way to create a sense of urgency in customers — if they don’t get the current hot new drink right now, they might miss out, and no one wants to miss out. Share your seasonal drink specials with recommendations for seasonally-inspired dishes that pair well with them, and be sure to emphasize that they’re available for a limited time only.

Create Online Promos

Your social media following wants to get in on the trend-chasing action. Set up some teaser posts asking for recommendations for new drinks or new flavors of existing offerings to get guests involved (and to get some great ideas), and offer rewards and incentives for guests to share their experiences on social media. Reach out to a few local influencers and offer them a first taste at new products in exchange for sharing them with their audience. Create an exclusive offer just for newsletter subscribers, and then track its usage to see how effective it is. If it’s a hit, try running a similar campaign in your next email.

Train Staff

Whichever beverage trends you follow this season, make sure your staff is well-versed in your offerings. Hold tastings at staff meetings so that servers have the chance to sample items for themselves. That will go a long way in their ability to sell them on the floor. Likewise, offer tastings for kitchen staff as well so that they can brainstorm creative dishes and pairings.