The power of social media is not hidden from the world. Brands use various social media channels to build a strong online presence with the aim of attracting potential customers and building brand loyalty with existing ones. While all of this sounds easy, executing a successful social media marketing strategy is a task that requires a tremendous amount of hard work.
As a restaurant owner, one has to take care of many things including orders, recruiting, cleaning, maintenance and all the small day to day operations. However, in the digital age, all the hard work that someone puts into making a restaurant a success can be wasted if the business doesn’t have a social media presence.
Let’s be honest, people don’t use local directories to find information anymore – they just Google it. The number of internet users is growing every day, and there will come a time when the internet will become a way of life, and there will be few or no non-internet users.
Social media is an influential platform that can offer some of the highest ROI. And there is no doubt that the two most influential social networks for restaurants are Facebook and Instagram while Twitter is catching up fast.
So, here are 5 social media marketing strategies to reach a large customer base.
It’s time to be socially visible!
Know Your Audience
The first step is to have a clear idea of who the restaurant wants to reach. Different platforms help to reach different audiences. Therefore, it becomes important to know exactly who the restaurant is trying to woo. Is it family? The business lunch crowd? The after work crowd?
Knowing the audience well will help in channeling marketing efforts in the right direction and targeting the right audience.
Pick a Theme and Stick with It
A restaurant, when it has its own personality, attracts more and more customers. Trendy and hip restaurants should create social media posts that match personality and speak well to the same audience. Any contrast in the theme of a restaurant and social media pages can negatively impact a business.
Hiring a professional graphic designer is a great idea to make posts look professional, eye-catching and engaging.
Enter Visual Advertising
Decisions made on social media depend largely on images. Nothing can create the same impact as an image. Millions of active users make Instagram one of the most influential platforms that can make or break anyone’s decision to visit or return to a restaurant. Plus, the power of hashtags shouldn’t be underestimated.
They are one of the best ways to direct people not only to Instagram pages but also to restaurants. Popular hashtags on Instagram include #foodporn with 178,588,419 posts, #foodie with 105,911, 161, and #food with 304,867,988 posts.
Shots of the mouth-watering food, employees having fun, and any special decorations are sure to stand out. Also, images can’t just be part of an Instagram profile or website. Supported Facebook posts with viewing images 2x more engagementso integrating images is a great way to enhance a visual advertising strategy.
Avoid Too Many Promotions
Viewers these days are smart enough to understand when a brand engages with them and when a pitch. While promotion is an integral part of any social media marketing strategy, going overboard can backfire. A healthy balance between engagement and promoted posts is sure to pay off.
Too many promotion on social media channels is like being a guest at a party who only prides himself on. Instead, restaurant owners should listen to other guests, try and build connections and then brag about their products and offerings.
Target Specific Geographic Areas
Location-based marketing allows controlling when people see a post or ad, often within a specific geographic area. Specific business locations can be easily targeted via Facebook. Facebook also allows for customizing business marketing with an extraordinary degree of customisation. Geo-targeting ads is a great feature that allows you to easily reach your target market in an instant.
Customizable, restaurant owners can select specific geographic areas they want, or don’t want to target. In addition, they can also decide whether people who see the ad live in the same area, are traveling in the area, or have been in the area recently.
How to Budget a Social Media Marketing Strategy?
The answer is simple and direct – a business loans. Starting a restaurant is an expensive affair. From the interior to the staff and even branding, everything will cost a significant amount that can break the bank.
The wise decision here is to apply for a business loan from a financial institution to give wings to your dream of making it big in the culinary business. Financial institutions like ABFL Direct also offer instant online approval for business loans without any paperwork.
Final Words!
Social media and its tactics aren’t difficult, but they do require a certain level of dedication, planning, and organization. Once the plan is ready, creating a post and getting it to reach the right audience will only take a few minutes.
