Social Media should be part of any serous online marketing effort for a restaurant/bar. In today’s content rich world, effective social is more than just posting a text blurb with the restaurant’s happy hour. In this guide, we’ll talk about the restaurant’s page, leveraging customer visits for word of mouth, influencers, and where and what makes for the most effective post.
This guide is focused on Facebook and Instagram. Other social media platforms like X, Snapchat, and Pinterest are generally not part of a customer’s dining discovery experience.
Your Restaurant/Bar Page
First, the bad news.
The restaurant’s Facebook / Instagram page is unlikely to bring in new customers. New diners are unlikely to like a restaurant’s Page they have never heard of before; they have no reason to add it to their likes.
Potential repeat customers are also unlikely to be prompted for a return visit by a content post on the restaurant’s Facebook/Instagram page. With Meta’s algorithm, 3% or less of followers see a post from the restaurant in their feed. Assuming that restaurant had 3,000 followers, that would translate to about 90 customers. Assuming 1% decided to take action, that would yield 9 visits or less. Not very rewarding :(
So what works and why post?
At the bare minimum, you should have a Facebook and Instagram Page, as they serve like a modern listing in the phone book. Be as thorough as possible with the listing; include the website, phone number, address, hours of operation, photos, and links to other social media profiles.
In terms of posting, the goal is shareable content. Fact based / flyers won’t be shared in meaningful numbers. A fact based post listing a Brunch Special may trigger a personal text to a friend asking about getting together, but lacks the entertainment value that would result in a share.
You should post special events like a New Year’s Eve Party or a special monthly dish. But these should be rare.
Instead, aim for potentially viral content. We’ll talk more about that in the “How to Put Out Good Content” section below.
Instagrammable Moments and Virtual Word of Mouth
One of the most effective uses of social media is to tap into virtual word of mouth and let your diners do the posting. Create special moments, have unique features, or some other gimmick that diners in your restaurant will want to share with their friends on social media. Delight your customers and deliver so much value that they feel compelled to tell others about it.
The basics – great food and service – must be there. Then, go over the top on one or more things. Tap into all the senses – taste (great food), sight (lighting, colors, plating, decor), hearing (music, table layout, fountains), smell (open kitchen, cleanliness) and touch (decor, tables, cups, utensils).
Some ideas
- Unique plating styles
- Colorful dishes
- Flaming cocktails or signature cocktails that have a“fog effect”
- Over the top deserts or milkshakes
- Wall art – an eye catching mural or funny neon sign
- Statues
- Collaborate with local artists to have a rotating display of their art pieces
- Seasonal Decor
- An open kitchen
- Unusual dinnerware
- Unusual to-go bags
- A Mirror with the words “You Look Good!” stenciled into it
- Heated toilet seats
The possibilities are endless.
Check out Blue Nami in Orangevale for a great example. The interior decor is amazing with a running stream, chunks of wood hanging overhead, a private section with decorative doors, great wooden tables, and bathrooms that have heated toilet seats.
A few tips to keep in mind.
- It must fit with the restaurant’s vibe, it can’t feel “off”
- Multiply the chances of social share by adding multiple features.
- Keep it fresh, don’t rely on a unique wall piece catching customers’ eyes 2 years after installation. Add a reminder on your calendar to check-in with front house staff on what they see being shared
Influencer Marketing
Influencers are another virtual word of mouth tactic. The influencer will visit the restaurant and share it with their audience.
Hire local influencers from Sacramento and ask how many followers they have in the area. Make sure their following is a good fit for your audience. Review their recent posts, is that content something your audience would enjoy?
Don’t hire nationwide influencers, as their audience has virtually no chance of visiting your restaurant.
To measure success, create a special off-menu item that their audience can order on request.
Paid Ads
The Conversion Objective in Facebook is a fantastic way to generate restaurant traffic, in the short term and grow the newsletter for long term repeat visits.
The basic process is:
- add what Meta calls a tracking pixel to the restaurant website
- Run an ad campaign for a discount offer or off-menu item
- Configure the campaign to only be shown to users within a limited geographic area located around your restaurant.
- Users click the ad, provide their email, and get a thank you message. Then they are given a coupon code or the secret code word for the off-menu item.
This usually produces amazing results for relatively low ad spend. And, it has two other benefits.
- In Facebook/Instagram, you can retarget users who clicked the ad in future ad campaigns
- You can collect their email and directly speak to the customer via a newsletter
Ad campaigns are most effective for a special event (see our Special Event Guide), menu change, or limited time offer.
Your Personal Profile
Be your Brand.
Rather than posting content on the restaurant’s Page, share content updates on the personal profile page of the Owner, GM, and/or Chef.
Starting a small business, any business, is gutsy. All the more so for restaurants where failures are all too common. Running a restaurant is filled with hard work, long hours, moments of jubilation, and emotional lows. That is the human story that people will connect with. Tell your story.
Be a show, not a commercial. Attention is the new currency, and people have learned to tune out infomercials. Social media posts are a channel to transmit ideas, not ads.
People want to be entertained. They want stories to connect with. Focus on what resonates with you, and others will follow.
The approach to successful social media is to deposit goodwill by making content. Then, on occasion, make a withdrawal with a mention of a special event or special dish.
To make this work, post as much valuable and entertaining content as possible. If the content resonates with your followers, they will share it. If those people like it, they will also share. The sharing can go on and on, leading to a snowball effect of new followers who will connect with you, and by extension, the restaurant, on a deeper level.
How to Put Out Good Content
A good prompt for content is to pull ideas and stories from:
- Food and Cooking Tips – As a restauranteur this is a must
- Technology and Gadgets – Kitchen gadgets and other tools not typically found in a home are interesting to the public at large
- Local Events or Places – Connect with our Sacramento neighbors by talking about a recent trip to the Crocker, Golden One, or Tahoe
- Outdoor Activity – local hikes, a recent trip to the golf course, a recent trip to a ski resort, or a bike ride along the American River
- Funny Memes – Everyone loves a laugh; Always great and often shareable
- Life Hacks and Productivity Tips – Quick tips will often be shared
- Polls and Quizzes – Great for interacting with followers and sparking a conversation. Think pineapple or no-pineapple on a pizza, or vodka vs gin martini
- Trending Social Topics – what is in the news, whats happening in pop culture, what is everyone talking about
- Lessons Learned – a story from the past that taught you something valuable
- Throwbacks to the Past – Nostalgic memories or a past achievement
- Hobbies – Board games, woodworking, quilting, etc.
- Classes or Topics of Interest – think podcasts, dance classes, or YouTube channels that you watch
- Books, Movies, or TV Shows – What have you been binge watching or reading in your spare time
- Fitness – What has you motivated, how do you mentally prepare for the day
- Travel – Everyone loves a good travel story / pic
Turn the topic of your choice into a post. The post can be delivered via a single image, short video, a short text blurb, or a long multi-paragraph article.
To make a post as entertaining and shareable as possible, it should have 3 pieces
- Headline – something that people will notice
- Retention – something that keeps the user engaged
- Reward – a payoff that rewards their attention
Headline
This is a competition for attention. A good headline is how you capture user attention. A good headline should include at least 2 of the following:
- Proximity (a local neighborhood)
- Relevancy (something personally meaningful to people)
- Unusual (something rare or bizarre)
- Celebrity (a prominent name that everyone knows)
- Opposing Ideas (vodka vs gin martini)
- Recency (think personal news you would share with a friend)
Some examples
“OMG, Draymond Green came into our restaurant after the game!”
“Highway 50 road construction and picking up a friend from the airport”
Retention
Tap into our natural curiosity. Think a TV show that leaves the audience wondering “whats next?”. This can be done three ways
- Lists – a theme of related ideas that can appear in any order (e.g. 5 ways to cut a bell pepper)
- Steps – a set of actions that must be done in a specific order (e.g., a good recipe)
- Stories – real or imaginary, that has a takeaway for the listener. Picture yourself sitting around with your friends and talking about something.
Feel free to interweave lists, steps, and stories. Be creative.
Reward
After consuming the content, does it fulfill the promise delivered in the headline? Ask yourself, has it delivered something the user might want to share with others or might think about later.
Give, Give, Give and Give Some More, Then Ask
Growing platforms dramatically over give and under ask.
In TV, a typical show has about 13 minutes of ads per hour of content.
On Facebook, the feed shows about 1 ad per 4 posts.
On Netflix, they display 4 minutes of ads per hour.
On Prime, they show 3 minutes of ads per hour.
While growing your audience, you want to avoid the temptation to throw in an advert every few posts. Instead, aim for a ratio of at least 12 content posts to every post advertising the restaurant. Confine asks to special events, limited time dishes, community engagement, and an occasional special discounted offer. Don’t spam “Happy Hour, 3 – 5pm” every few posts.
Make sure the ask has one clear call to action. Only include one call to action. Don’t offer multiple actions at once such as “join our newsletter or make a reservation”. Instead of doing either, users will do none.
To measure the value of this marketing effort, mention a special off-menu dish (as with an influencer campaign). Or, create a special “fan of the owner” discount with a unique coupon or QR code.