Social Savvy Eats: Mastering Social Media for Restaurant Promotion

Your potential customers are familiar with social media platforms, and so should you be. Facebook and similar sites are key tools for making your business more profitable and increasing the number of your clients from occasional guests to regular customers.

A social media strategy—whether it’s as simple as consistently sharing photos of your deals and menu items across all channels or going the extra mile and boosting your posts on the channels that work best for you—should be considered an important aspect of restaurant marketing.

It is easy to create a presence for your restaurant on social media, and we will show you how. How can you effectively promote your restaurant on different social media sites?

Read on to find out more and see the thoughts of some restaurants with successful social strategies.

 

Why Social Media Marketing Is Effective for Restaurants?

Social Media has transformed society as a whole, especially businesses and how they are running them in order for their customers to benefit from them. Social media presence is no longer considered an option, as it has become a necessity in the ever-competitive world, and the same holds for restaurants as well.

Since the market of restaurant customers has become increasingly digitalized, it is important to consider the question of branding and creating an online persona for the restaurant that will make it recognizable and interesting to customers. Here’s what it should achieve:

• Share relevant data and keep communication channels with customers transparent
• Provide your restaurant with an Online Discovery event.
• Let you share images of your food and even recipes on a social networking platform.
• Improve the permeability and credibility of your restaurant.

In the modern world, it is absolutely necessary for your restaurant to consider social media as another means of communication between you and your guests in addition to widely used marketing opportunities.

Suppose you are a halal restaurant Toronto. How would people know you serve halal food through promotion ofcourse and social media marketing is the cheapest way you can do it. And, what if with engaging content you can build credibility that the food you make can be trusted by showing some behind-the-scenes videos etc.

 

Social media and restaurants – how it works

Social media websites play a number of positive, entertaining, and inventive methods available to restaurants for communicating with patrons. Listed below are a few ways restaurants can make good use of social media platforms and showcase what they are offering differently.

• Offer high-quality foods with items posted after them.
• Menus can also be posted with the seasonal, day, or week of the week.
• Showcase customer content
• Communicate with customers
• Share recipes

Include production stills and videos. This should be done to capture production stills and videos to include in the film’s official Web site.

 

Understanding the best ways to use Instagram?

As per Social Media Today, 30% of millennial dining audiences deliberately want to stay away from restaurants that lack an impressive presence on Instagram. The influence Instagram has on consumers’ purchasing behaviour is always on the rise. This implies that there is no difference between your website and your business’s Instagram account. There are some important elements to your Instagram presence, such as your bio, account settings, and visual content.

 

Your restaurant's Instagram bio is your LinkedIn bio. If you have ever thought that a LinkedIn bio can be associated with a restaurant’s marketing channels, then think again. And you want it to be noticeable and striking – yet with appropriate restraint and originality. Since the account will be mostly full of pictures, you don’t have to be too wordy in your bio – people should be able to see for themselves. An example of a powerful Instagram bio is The Meatball Shop’s (@meatballers) – “Produce comfort food with a healthful spin from local & responsibly sourced ingredients. New York City 2010. It is simple, yet by looking at it, the user has an idea of what the creator is all about.

 

When creating an account for your restaurant on Instagram, you need to create one for business. Do not select the creator or personal accounts buttons. When you opt for a business account, the analytical overview is general, and you get access to more information. It also allows you to generate Instagram Ad campaigns and designate contact choices.

 

Furthermore, you should add the option to order online, add announcements about promotions/special offers, and change the cover photo to a professional one. All of these are factors that will lend Facebook legitimacy, and make it easier for users to uncover content. You should try to update your Facebook once a week. There are many groups on Facebook that may talk about restaurants in your community and future trends, so you should join these groups.

 

So, what should I actually do with Facebook?

You might even want to give Facebook pages a shot; they’re not as utterly time-consuming as Instagram. If you have an older generation as your target audience, you can promote your restaurant on Facebook. As for the Facebook side, it also should become easier to handle, as one does not necessarily have to post too frequently, and a beautiful feed is not a must. The same as Instagram: Pay attention to the fact that the account should be created as” Local Business or Place”  rather than personal. Put in your address, phone number, and website address on your Facebook, for most will be looking there for information, not great photos.

 

TikTok for Teens – Understanding what it is and how to use it

TikTok is a content-hosting platform that focuses on short video content and has proliferated in popularity for the past 3 years. It is an ideal space for your business since more than seven out of ten users have commented that TikTok made them interested in learning more about a product or brand on the internet. There is a need for TikTok to be used for other purposes besides promoting your menu to the whole world as your business image. Video is a great medium because you can actually speak to your customers and introduce yourselves! Some TikTok best practices for your business are:

Debuting new menu items

• Showcasing your dining experience
• Participating in TikTok trends
• Creating and sharing TikToks from the Instagram Reels function (repurposing content!)
• Engaging with customers is one of the best ways you can stay active

Figuring out how to record long TikToks can be time-consuming, but that’s totally fine! Even the slightest improvement is a success, and the best part is inspiration is practically unlimited on the app! See some of their journeys and follow other restaurants and businesses that have gone viral. TikTok is cluttered with various contents, and you would be the next TikTok trend if you treat TikTok seriously – being a restaurant, that is.

 

Lastly, you require a personal theme that has to be well-maintained throughout the account. It is a fact that when a user clicks on your profile, numerous pictures of yours appear before his eyes, and if they look pretty and nice, he or she is bound to remain on your profile for a longer time. To begin, one must select their theme, which can be achieved by searching Instagram for ideas. Once you have settled on the kind of aesthetic you want to build, decide on your editing process and stick to it for all your posts. Once you have settled on the kind of aesthetic you want to build, decide on your editing process and stick to it for all your posts. Finally, think of installing a ‘fake’ Instagram grid application, like Planoly, Later, or PREVIEW, to see if your posts work visually together.

 

At what intervals should restaurants make social media posts?

As a basic guideline, you should attempt to post to your business social media accounts a minimum of three times each week or risk having fans disregard your pages. Strive to post at least several times per week and refer to the given tips and restaurant social media content ideas that will fit and resonate with the target audience.

 

Whether you’re doing the work in house, you’ve handled the task to a qualified employee, or you have someone who is solely given the role of being a marketing manager, it helps to learn from other restaurants that are successfully promoting their business online and consistently building traffic on social media.

 

Below are 14 social post ideas to help you get your restaurant’s social media ideas in the right track. We will look at a real example for each one – who did it, what they did, why it’s great, and in the case of longer-form types of posts, how to do it.

 

How the Restaurants Partner with Influencers.

We can boldly say that food influencers should be kept in mind as an indispensable part of social media marketing in 2023. an influencer is a person for whom social networks are the main channel of self-expression and influencing audiences. For instance, foodie influencers provide restaurant ratings on their respective social media accounts, and their audience then goes on to patronize the same places.

 

Influencer marketing is a tool that ensures your restaurant business also comes to an agreement with both small and big influencers to market your restaurant. Here’s how to make a deal with a food influencer.

Contact a local influencer via social media direct message or their business email.

Suggest collaborating by offering posts in return for a complimentary meal.

Upon their acceptance, draft a contract outlining specifics:

- Date and time of collaboration

- Type of post (platform, story/post, or both)

- Tagging details for your restaurant's social media handles

- Offerings from the restaurant

- Clarification on whether gratuity is included

- Scheduled post-publication

- Details on any monetary compensation, if applicable (typically rare).

Make sure to check the contract thoroughly before signing a contract. Before selecting an influencer, several factors should be taken into account.

You not only need to check the content the influencer creates but also need to check the demographics of his/her audience. Ensure that their brand voice is compatible with your restaurant's image.

Examine the influencer's past brand deals. You can also check the earlier brands or companies they worked with to understand their credibility.  It's essential to partner with influencers who provide genuine reviews for reputable businesses.

Pro tip: Make sure to use hashtags and you can also ask your influencers to utilize your brand and post related hashtags in their posts.

Note: The price for brand deals can change based on the follower count and engagement on the influencer's account.

For additional restaurant marketing resources, consider exploring ideas for bar, brewery, coffee shop, bakery, and nightclub marketing.

 

6 Strategies to Promote Your Restaurant Through Social Media.

Below are some inspiring social media post examples from various restaurants (each post with a specific tip about why it is effective). Please note: These are all from restaurants found in the US of A.

 

1. Reveal the Scenes that are Behind.

Who they are: Wave Asian Bistro Sushi.

What they’re doing: But other than just posting high-quality photos of the food that they have tastefully prepared, Wave also often posts videos and photos of what happens in the kitchen.

Why it's awesome: Nowadays, clients like to observe the process of meal preparation in restaurant kitchens – there are numerous massively popular YouTube channels where viewers can learn what a particular restaurant uses to create its most popular dish. It is not a problem at all to interest new visitors by participating in social media with pictures or even videos on how the food is prepared in your restaurant. You can also shoot a behind-the-scenes video when your kitchen staff is working, and share the same with your audience.

How to pull it off: Assure the viewers that you clean the kitchen well and prepare your most appetizing dishes. Again, you can opt to show the entire preparation of a meal and upload to YouTube as Wave does, but even a 10-second clip of filleting a piece of fish into can be really effective. For this reason you want to prove the competence of your employees and attract new visitors offering high-quality dishes I have a try.

 

2. Outline and maintain a style.

Who they are: Sweetgreen: The Better Burger Chain.

What they’re doing: Sweetgreen has become one of the iconic brands in the restaurant industry that is dedicated to serving fresh and sustainable food. The design is clean and unique with the use of their colours on all platforms, such as mobile apps, stores and social media pages. All their adverts use a common form of photography that is lively, and they all utilize humour as their tone. It is worth noting that the logo of Sweetgreen is easily recognizable even without it being in front of the screen.

Why it's awesome: It is possible to tell with certainty that Sweetgreen learning how to do social media marketing was a well-thought process and probably the company had hired a marketing agency for help. Now, to create a consistent message and images through the use of the Internet requires no formal training concept, though being formally trained and experienced in the field is advantageous. It expands its reach beyond the restaurant beyond the restaurant’s premises.

It’s still early to show the full potential, but global tracking is a nice start.  

 

3. Use Online Reviews carefully.

Who they are: Chop Shop Colorad0o three retail outlets.

What they’re doing: The managers are regularly monitoring their Yelp business page to see what customers are saying about them. One reviewer is mentioned in almost all reviews to whom the reviewer has a personal response.

Why it's awesome: Chop Shop has been able to establish an honest and welcoming presence on the web using responses to and referencing negative reviews while appreciating customers who give positive feedback. They are not ashamed of their imperfections and choose to change them openly before the eyes of everyone. The managers pay special attention to negative reviews and it is a good opportunity to understand better the business they run and improve relations with unsatisfied customers. It is better to respond to individual complaints posted on your review page even if you do not handle all the posts for the sake of all the customers you might have caused some problems to.

 

4. Converters: How to Turn Social Followers into Email Subscribers.

Who they are: Steak n Shake, a fast-food franchise.

What they’re doing: To describe an especially successful Instagram bio, consider the example of Steak ‘n Shake and their elegantly simple call-to-action: email signup with a free Double ‘n Cheese ‘n Fries offer to the first 500 who accept.

Why it's awesome: Email newsletters are one of the most effective strategies that can be used to Identify patterns of guests and to encourage guests to return to the Resort. When you obtain the email address from a customer or multiple customers, you can boost sales, thanks to the power of email marketing. You can use email marketing to share coupons, news about special events, and more. The reader can find ten great examples of email marketing in the restaurant industry in 10 Great Examples of Restaurant Email Marketing.

 

5. User-Generated Content 

Who they are: Condado Tacos is a fast-casual restaurant that offers customers a mix of fresh, authentic Mexican food and traditional American dishes.

What they’re doing: UGC also implies that restaurant managers should embrace its use. UGC is content created by your guests about your hotel or accommodation in a manner that is commendable. Firms can use any of the material they see the consumers post on any social media platforms concerning their restaurants as long as they give credit to the author.

Condado has made good use of any and all UGC. It is also worth noting that sharing posts only works for the restaurant to the extent that people are making yummy pictures of the food and maybe sharing with their friends or relatives about the food at Condado and ensure that the posts solicit the desire to want to go and eat at the restaurant or getting take out; “our guests already share amazing pics of our food and post about Condado with their friends – so sharing UGC is a big piece of that puzzle

Why it's awesome: In short, most of the work has been done for you as your raving fans are convincing your target audience about your business by taking a photo of it and posting it on social media or just simply talking about it. It communicates to them and other guests that you are in touch with your community, and it becomes their customer, not the company, who is vouching for the business. Most young restaurant-goers are already eager to spread the word about their restaurant experiences on social media: 85% of restaurant-goers surveyed say they would share photos or videos of a positive experience with their restaurant on social media.

How to pull it off: At the same time, take care when sharing strong positive content like amazing pictures of food and other good stuff about your restaurant, and make sure it fits with your brand. Its tone should not be boring, should be full of excitement, and show thanks to positive feedback.

 

How to Boost Social Media Presence to Make Restaurant’s Menu Items Reach the Masses

You don’t just go to a restaurant to eat but to meet others. That should not be the case because the moment the customers leave your premises, they should leave knowledge wit? Being able to socially approach a situation and know how to use it as a way of marketing is to be able to get your customers online and allow for use because they are with you.

Social media can appear quite overwhelming to establish and preserve a vast social media presence, but the overall concept is based on people. Social platforms also enable one to get closer to customers and attempt to win new ones. 

By embracing this approach, you can transform your restaurant from a place to eat into a thriving online community, drawing in new customers and keeping your existing ones coming back for more.

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