Are you harnessing the power of social media for your restaurant? If not, why not? Social media can be a very powerful Online Marketing Strategy to build your reputation and spread the word about your restaurant brand.
When you are designing a social media campaign to promote your restaurant, what important dos and don’ts should you keep in mind? Here are some things you should do and some other things you should avoid.
Do Use Multiple Social Media Channels
Take advantage of social media and use a range of different channels, including Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and others. If you are not using these social media networks, you are missing out on golden opportunities to spread the word about your restaurant. Make sure that you take advantage of these marketing channels and engaging with others to start a conversation. It doesn’t take too long to set up profiles on all of these social media networks, but the buzz that they can generate is absolutely worth it.
Don’t Neglect Your Website
All of your social media marketing work will lead people back to your website, so make sure that it is up to date and that it showcases your restaurant in the best possible way. It should have big beautiful photos that make your food look as appetizing as possible, as well as information about special offers, menus, events and signature recipes.
Do Include Important Info on Your Facebook Site
Put all of your relevant business information on your Facebook website, including your hours, an address, a link to your website and even a menu. This allows customers to find you through Facebook and gain all of the information that they need to know. Also, your Facebook page should display large and attractive photos of the food at your restaurant so that your fans will be drooling by the time they are finished scrolling through the album.
Don’t Spam Your Facebook Fans
If you send out too much promotional content on your Facebook page, it will become incredibly annoying for your fans and you will run the risk of them deleting or blocking you. Instead, you should try to create a balance of 20% promotional material and 80% other material, such as informative blogs, interesting stories and other content. Make sure that the information that you are providing for your fans is valuable, interesting and engaging.
Do Find the Right Tone for Your Audience
Think about the type of people who dine at your restaurant and what kind of tone appeals to them the most. For example, if you have a hip late night taco joint and your customers are mostly young students then you can adapt a more casual tone with your social media communications. If your restaurant is a luxury high end establishment, you should avoid slang and use more polite language.
Don’t Respond Angrily to Negative Guest Comments
If a customer has left a negative review of your restaurant on your Facebook page or on a review website such as Yelp or TripAdvisor, it is tempting to be angry, snarky and defensive right back at them. However, this doesn’t help and it will always make your restaurant look bad. Instead, you should respond politely, tell them that you are sorry they had a bad experience and let them know that you are dedicated to fixing any issues that might have occurred. This type of response will make you look much better in the eyes of your customers.
Do Respond to As Many Guest Comments as Possible
Even if the comments are a bit inane, make sure that you respond and thank people for commenting. You want to encourage people to engage with your social media site and when you do this, other guests will see that you are responsive and you care about the opinions of your guests. You can also encourage guests to comment on your page by asking questions and looking for feedback. Your social media channels should be a dialogue between you and your fans, never a one-way monologue.
These are just a few dos and don’ts to keep in mind when you are developing a social media promotion strategy for your restaurant. A poorly thought out social media marketing campaign can damage your reputation, but a good quality one can bolster it and increase your customers.