Professional Documents
Culture Documents
for Restaurants:
How to Manage Your Brand Online
Introduction
Anyone will admit that social media has changed the world over the past decade. It has gone on to affect human interactions and has
even impacted the way companies in every industry conduct business and connect with their customers. This is why managing your
online restaurant brand is no longer an option - it’s a necessity.
In this guide, we’ll give you a brief overview of the websites your business should be registered on and using. We’ll also highlight the
goal of each channel, who you’ll be reaching, the best device to manage from, the ideal posting frequency, and much more.
By the end of this guide, you will have a better understanding of:
• The importance of managing your brand online.
• The diversity of sites you should be managing, and how to maintain each.
• What your guests expect from you, want from you, and need from your restaurant online.
As you read, you’ll discover that the world of online branding and social media is fast-paced, immediate, and at times hectic. With
that said, there’s no time to lose!
Let’s jump right into The Restaurant Online Branding Guide for tips on social media and increasing your presence on the web.
Your Instagram is more than just a way to push out #FoodPorn. Use it as an opportunity to highlight a new menu item, your weekly
special, a limited time promotion, and your team! Try one or more of these ideas:
If you’re offering a happy hour deal for the week - post a photo of one of your best bartenders pouring the perfect pint, and mention
the available deal in the caption.
Take a shot of your employee of the month to boost worker morale and put a personality spin on your content.
Designate a day to post a shot of your weekly menu special. Write that anyone who comes in and shows they follow you on
Instagram will get a discount on that special.
The possibilities are endless, but try to keep these posts to about twice a week.
Something that is imperative to your posts is the hashtag you include. Hashtags allow you to reach users and grow your follower
base. Popular tags include #FoodPorn or a location-based hashtag like #BostonEats. Do some brainstorming and searching to see
what hashtags near you have a good search volume like #BostonRestaurants or #BostonFoodPorn. This will help you notice the
other hashtags being commonly used in your area, which you can include in your posts as well. Be generous with your hashtag use -
the more you include, the more likely you’ll get noticed!
Finally, always put a location to your photo, which is another way to engage other customers who search based on location. Always
make the location the name of your restaurant, and encourage your customers to do the same when they post pictures of their
meals. If you are tagged or mentioned, take it upon yourself to comment on or repost the photo as a way of saying thanks!
Instagram All-Star -
Upper Crust Pizzeria
With 8 locations, Upper Crust certainly appeals
to a lot of people. Their Instagram account does
the same! Notice the variety of shots and their
use of captions to boost discovery.
Facebook:
The Goal: Build a community for your customers by encouraging page visits and comments.
Best Device to Manage From: Whatever you’re comfortable with, though smartphones are better for quick posting and responding.
Who You’ll Reach: 1.7 billion monthly active users.
Ideal Posting Frequency: 1-3 times a day.
I’m going to go out on a limb and assume you’re familiar with how Facebook operates, so let’s just skip right to the best practices.
Photos:
Just like on Instagram, the importance of imagery cannot be overstated. Adding a photo at least once a day on Facebook is a smart
tactic. You can use the same ones from your Instagram, or you could post original shots optimized for Facebook.
While shots of food still do well on Facebook, this is a better place to post some pictures of your team, operations, and customers
enjoying food. Whether you’re a bar showcasing the fun times your nightly patrons have or a family restaurant showing a young
child devour an ice cream sundae for dessert, you can definitely find ways to feature customers in an interesting way.
But let’s talk about something more established on your page - your profile picture and cover photo. Both of these should be chosen
carefully, as they’re often the first thing visitors notice when coming to your page.
Your profile picture is simple enough - your restaurant logo or an exterior shot is perfect. Cover photos can be rotated out every
week or so - try experimenting with your business’ logo, a photo of your entire staff, or your most delicious looking menu item. See
what gets the best engagement! Changing on a weekly basis puts this activity on your fans’ timelines, so you’ll keep popping up
every time they log in.
Other Posts:
Video + Facebook = Awesome. Consider the videos of amazing cooking tutorials that flood your Facebook timeline. If you (or
someone on your staff) have the production skills, a how-to video would be awesome to share. Share the process of making your
signature dish (Don’t worry - you don’t have to give away your full recipe!). Exclusive content like this is a great way to connect with
your customers and show them that they are appreciated.
The rest of your posts should also be fun and interactive, like announcing specials and new menu items. End all of your posts with
a question or a fill-in-the-blank challenge (i.e. My favorite topping to get on a pizza from Ellie’s Pizzeria is _______!) so you can push
interaction from your fans.
One last thing about Facebook: not all of your posts will be seen by all of your fans. This means you can republish great posts - like
specials or coupon codes - to reach more people.
Getting Found:
Twitter users can search for your restaurant. If you want them to know it’s your account and not a fake one (Twitter account
verification isn’t easy to obtain), make your account as official as possible. Use your restaurant’s logo as your profile picture. Share
a photo of your restaurant interior or exterior as your header image. Also, be sure to add your own website and location, because
there may be another restaurant with the same or a similar name. If you have multiple locations, specify that in your bio (“Serving
mouthwatering burgers and brews across the Midwest!”).
Posting:
Every message you send should have a photo! In a user’s infinite timeline, posting images is one of the most wise ways to catch their
attention as they’re scrolling through.
Like Instagram, Twitter posts benefit from using the right hashtags. If you’re an independent restaurant owner running one location,
how can you find the right hashtags that are applicable to your area?
Head over to a desktop and log into Twitter. On your Twitter homepage, notice the “trends”
bar on the left of the screen. You’ll see a “change” button. Once you click that, you’ll have the
option to cater the hashtags and trending topics on Twitter to your location. After that, you’ll
see a list of the trending topics in your region, and tweeting about these topics is a great way
to connect with your local audience.
For example, maybe #MondayMotivation is trending in your city. If you’re a café, you could post a tweet saying “There’s no better
#MondayMotivation than one of our famous mochas! Come visit us in Boston on Park Drive!” Make the hashtags work for you! If
you’re creative enough, a new customer just might notice you.
Interacting With Users:
The beauty of Twitter lies in transparency.
If somebody who has visited your restaurant has a great (or not so great) experience,
they may tweet about it. These tweets could come either from a direct mention (@
YourRestaurant) or an indirect mention, where they’ll tweet about “Your Restaurant”
without calling out your username. It’s up to you to monitor these direct mentions by
checking your notifications center and by regularly searching your restaurant name (or
any variation) in the search bar.
Making an attempt to interact with every mention you receive does wonders for your
brand. If you receive a neutral comment, liking the tweet will usually suffice. Mentions
that are particularly positive - or negative - will usually require a response. For positive
comments, match the user’s tone and come up with a fun response, like this one below.
You can even sign it with your initials to show the “human” behind your brand.
For negative responses, take a more serious tone - they’re usually not joking around.
Always offer some sort of solution, which may require starting a private direct message
or scheduling an in person meet-up. It’s times like these that will determine the way your
brand is perceived online. If you respond with a standard “cookie-cutter” message to all
comments, don’t offer any sympathy, or don’t respond at all, your customers will take note,
effectively damaging your brand. Instead, tackle each comment or mention as an individual
issue. Personalizing each message and genuinely appearing interested to alleviate any
problem builds goodwill for your brand and its perception online, like this:
Getting Started:
Get Snapchat on your phone or tablet if you don’t already have it. It’s free! Note that this app only works on these devices - posting
from a computer isn’t a possibility. For your username, use your restaurant’s name if it hasn’t already been taken. If it has, try tacking
a number or your location on it. “LaurasCafe” could also be “LaurasCafeMiami.”
The nature of Snapchat is fast, new, and now. It’s a fantastic tool for creating immediate and temporary hype about your restaurant.
Once you create a snap, you can send it to either individual followers or post it on “My Story” for all of your followers to see on their
own time (within 24 hours of your original post). Restaurants will best benefit from Snapchat by posting on their story as opposed to
sending snaps individually.
Here’s the catch: unlike the other social networking sites, customers won’t be able to search for you. When you have started a
Snapchat account, post your username and a picture of your Snapcode in your restaurant and on your official social media accounts.
This way, everyone who comes into your restaurant will know how to add you.
Snapchat also works great for generating buzz around that night’s special or a live event. Post a tempting photo of the evening’s
special with a description, explaining it’s a limited time offer. Bars and nightclubs can promote their act for the evening with a video
of the band’s setup, or entice some visitors with a shot of a new drink. Keep things fresh and exciting!
Finally, this is a fantastic tool to build your brand’s personality. Show a behind-the-scenes photo of your kitchen or operations. Snap
a photo of your chef tossing pizza dough in the air, or get a happy customer to pose with their meal. Create content that will let your
followers identify with your business and make them want to keep checking your story. You can also take the initiative to create a
Snapchat Geofilter, which users can use as an “overlay” to their snaps. Snapchat has made it easy to create and purchase a Geofilter -
learn about it here!
Do you see the difference? How about that big card to the right? That’s called a “Knowledge Panel,” and it’s
one of the many benefits of Google My Business.
Google My Business enters your restaurant into the Google “yellow pages.” By keeping your profile
updated with your menu, website, photos, reviews, and social pages, you can increase the amount of
visitors to your website - and, of course, to your restaurant.
On a mobile phone, this information is even more prominent, as the example from the right illustrates. A
potential guest can get all the information they need from one search, rather than having to tap around on
your website.
When 81% of consumers search for restaurants on their mobile device, Google My Business is essential -
unless you want guests to click away to one of your competitors.
How to Set Up Google My Business in 10 Minutes
Step 1:
Claim or set up your Google My Business page here. Google will need to send you an automated text message or a voice call at your
restaurant number to verify the account.
Step 2:
Fill out your profile as much as you can. Don’t forget to include:
• Address, Phone number, and Hours of Operation
• Categories <- make sure to include all categories that match your offering. For example, if you’re an Italian restaurant, select both the
“italian restaurant” category and the “restaurant” category.
• Description
• Website
• Logo
• Profile photo (featuring your food!)
• Photos of your Interior, Exterior, Food and Drink, and Team
Google may input some of this information based on what it already knows, especially if you’re already listed in Google Maps.
When you have a Google My Business page, you can also collect reviews from people searching for your website, just like on
Facebook or Yelp. You’ll receive an email whenever someone leaves a review, and you can click on the “reviews” section to see the
entire list. Best practice when receiving reviews - whether on Yelp or Facebook or Google - is to respond in a timely manner, thank
the customer for their review, and address any issues. You can view and reply to reviews from within your Google My Business
account.
Want help with setting up your Google My Business account? Check out The Restaurant Guide to Google My Business and Local
Search.
Things to remember:
• This is not SEO (search engine optimization). Learn more about local SEO for restaurants here.
• The more pictures you include in your profile, the better, as Google will prioritize profiles that are filled out 100%. Use this as an
opportunity to showcase your food!
• Google says 50% of mobile consumers that search for a local business visit it within a day of the search.
• To see how many people are searching for your brand name, just type your restaurant name into SEMRush and look at organic
search volume.
• BONUS: You can have an authorized Google representative come to your restaurant and film a “virtual tour” that guests can click
on to view the interior (or exterior) of your restaurant.
Conclusion
Social media has definitely impacted restaurants interact with their customers, and vice versa. There’s no longer a barrier between
management and diners. As a restaurateur, it’s your job to understand that your brand stretches far beyond the walls of your
establishment; it’s often in the hands of your customers. That is, unless you take control of your online branding.
Each of the channels we covered have specific goals, audiences, and impacts on your business.
• Google My Business allows your customers to find everything they need to know about you from the most searched website in
the world.
• Snapchat reaches a younger audience by appealing to their preference for fast-paced, new, and visual content.
• Instagram does the same, but appeals to a wider audience who can share this information easily with others.
• Facebook helps you build a community of your guests and fans, and allows you to list all of your information in one place.
• Finally, Twitter becomes a place for your customers to interact with you on a more personal basis, helping you make a stronger
individualized connection with them.
Ultimately, the goal of social media is to create, maintain, and fix relationships with your guests. It’s a modern and effective way
to interact with your fans. But your restaurant marketing shouldn’t stop with the pictures you post and the tweets you send. The
Restaurant Coach Donald Burns puts it best:
“You have to have a solid marketing plan and calendar if you want to be effective with social media.
Just how you need to be consistent with your food and service, your marketing efforts need to be the same.”
If you found this information helpful, we strongly recommend exploring your restaurant’s entire marketing plan and reading
Restaurant Marketing 101: Ideas, Tips, and Strategies to Get More Customers. It’s filled with even more details for an all-
encompassing restaurant marketing strategy After all, email campaigns, business branding, and search engine optimization are also
integral parts of a successful and modern restaurant marketing campaign.