Five years ago, social media was just about sharing moments of life. But there is no mystery now that social media has moved beyond it. Social media is now also an important part of business – it is another marketing channel for all types of businesses, both online and brick-and-mortar.
Car workshops, online clothing stores, fitness coaches, music bands, interior designing firms, and any business you can think of are now on social media. The list also includes restaurants, cafes, and bakeries. There are a lot of tips available online to boost online business, but what do we do in the food industry? Restaurants or any other food joint are some places where people will rely on mouth-to-mouth advertising more than other ads. So, how do we leverage this fact to create social media marketing strategies for restaurants?
In the below paragraphs, we will discuss the Social Media Marketing Strategy for Restaurants that will help build a proper online reputation and grow your business.
Before straightaway jumping to any conclusions, let’s understand why having effective social media marketing is important for restaurants.
The impact of Social Media Marketing on businesses is massive.
Thus, we can say that social media and reviews are the social proof that restaurants need to thrive in their business.
Social media marketing for restaurants (and for any other business) takes time, effort and money. The key here is to be consistent, and if done right, the returns are high!
Your goals are simple: let the world know you exist and make them believe that if one doesn’t try food from your restaurant, they are missing something great.
So, let’s see how to do it.
A restaurant’s social media marketing starts with the basic task of creating a social media profile with relevant information.
Having a social media page means having relevant information along with it. For example, the below picture (the highlighted section) shares the links to make an order if needed.
So the perfect social media page of a restaurant contains all the essential details mentioned, like address and link to place any orders.
If it is still not clear by now, let us say that the idea behind creating social media is your tool for branding. People judge the book by its cover, so to attract the attention of your potentialcustomers; you need to have a well-maintained social media page.
Branding isn’t just about having a social media page; the important task starts after this.
Amazing and beautiful photos are an inevitable part of the restaurant’s social media marketing. It’s simple: great photos help you sell stuff.
Doesn’t the page look so appetizing? That is the power of great visual content; it is always superior compared to any other form of content. Visual content is easier to absorb, and it stays in the minds of people for a longer period of time, and in case of food, it creates an instant urge to eat.
But we know what you are thinking: how can normal photos look this good? Well, for starters, a lot of phones today have cameras of superior quality with which you can click beautiful photos. Additionally, we now have various tools that help us create social media posts (stories, reels, etc.), such as CANVA, Fiverr, Visme, etc. Always remember that the food your restaurant serves is a commodity, and it needs to be shown off!
A major reason why social media marketing is such a big hit is because it allows you to interact with your customers directly. An easy way to do that is by making your audience realize that they are part of your journey, getting involved in their celebrations, and being a part of it.
A good example of this is how Lays leveraged the cricket season. During the ongoing cricket tournaments, Lays created an advertisement where they featured Dhoni and had him visit a few of his fans’ homes and watch the cricket match along with them only if they could find the Lays packet hidden in their house. Now, though this was a marketing strategy, the Lays team used the cricket season to establish a strong presence of their brand.
Similarly, to be a part of the crowd, understand the preferences of your audience (to do that, you should know your audience) and create social events or participate in any event.
To know your customers first, you should find them on social media and invite them in. Inviting means you should curate content and post things that these customers are interested in.
This is again interlinked with the above mentioned point where we create events and invite people to your restaurant, like how clubs have ‘ladies’ night’, Bollywood specials, etc. This is a great way to gather like-minded people. Similarly, restaurants can create events like brunch, buffets, Mother’s Day lunch, etc., and invite people to your restaurant. Once that is done, you can ask them to follow your social media pages and share experiences (which is yet another social media marketing strategy for restaurants).
Starbucks does it well. To keep its followers engaged at all times, Starbucks runs contests on their social media now and then. This builds a closer relationship with the followers, and any sort of contest attracts the audience; it helps them either save money or they are rewarded.
Some examples of contests that can be run on your social media are:
Facebook ads are a blessing in social media marketing strategy for restaurant’s. Facebook ads help you to target and re-target your audience. Another great thing about this marketing strategy is that it allows you to target your ads to a specific geographic location, age group and gender, making it more convenient to find your desired audience and target your ads to them.
People do not resonate with stories or content that are fabricated or scripted. Instead, if we focus on the original and raw stories of your restaurant and post them on social media, chances are that you will get more followers and potential customers. One way to do that is by sharing behind-the-scenes of the reels you shot, a day in your restaurant’s kitchen, going live, etc.
This humanizes your restaurant and fosters the relationship between you and your followers and customers, and they are more likely to recommend your restaurant to their peers.
Getting customer feedback from customers doesn’t mean that you have to personally ask them for reviews every time people come to your restaurant. Instead, you can closely monitor your social media account and check those who have tagged your restaurant in their stories, reels or even posts reviewed online. You can then leverage these posts to market your restaurant. An additional tip: it is always good to reply to comments, either positive or negative. This entrusts people that you are concerned about their satisfaction and ready to make amends if needed.
A big part of a restaurant’s social media marketing involves monitoring your social media performance and mentions. This step is very crucial for newly opened restaurants to gain initial traction.
Monitoring social media mentions includes checking unread messages and mentions in stories or posts. This should be done from time to time, and such posts should be re-engaged by replying or re-sharing the stories on your story.
This is one tip that social media influencers don’t talk about. To ensure that your posts, reels or stories are trending, it is important to understand the Instagram algorithm and know what is trending. The trending audio, the hashtag, the emoji that are being used frequently, the time of posting on social media, everything plays a pivotal role in ensuring that your social media content is trending.
Note that there is no such thing as ‘too much’ social media, and hence, before creating content, study your audience and create content that is relatable to them. Additionally, the above mentioned tips are just a few of the points to get you started with your restaurant’s social media page. Remember that social media strategies can be revised and tailored as per the requirements of your business and as it is being consumed by your audience.
In the dynamic world of digital marketing, Digital Tokri stands out as your ultimate ally, offering diverse services to cater to all your digital needs. From Social Media Marketing to Web Development, Lead Generation to SEO, our comprehensive solutions will help you to elevate your brand’s online presence. We go beyond the conventional, embracing Branding, Content Writing, and Email/SMS Marketing to ensure a holistic approach to your digital success. At Digital Tokri, we are not just service providers; we are partners committed to turning your digital aspirations into reality. Join us in this transformative journey, where innovation meets tangible results, and your brand takes center stage in the digital arena.
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