Strategy A La Carte: The Dish on Digital Marketing Trends for Restaurant Brands – Modern Restaurant Management
June 11, 2024
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6 Min Read By Melisha Oakleaf-Wilson
Restaurant brands around the world are finding that their audience is craving something more than pretty pictures of delectable dishes, but rather a need for community and discussion. They want engaging content that keeps them entertained. Effective full-funnel marketing strategies are vital for the success of any business, but are definitely the garnish on top for those in the food and beverage industry.
The landscape of digital marketing is constantly evolving, presenting both challenges and opportunities for restaurant operators. But there are a few things to consider that can make a difference in driving impact for your business. And there are a few reasons that having a thorough, structured digital marketing strategy is imperative to the overall success of your restaurant or franchise.
If it isn’t already, digital marketing needs to be the foundation in which you build your overall marketing strategy. More than half (57 percent) of Americans prefer ordering takeout to physically going to a restaurant. If you’re not marketing yourself online or devising a powerful local search engine optimization (SEO) strategy, how are they going to find you?
Social media platforms provide an unparalleled opportunity to get in front of the right audience at the right time. It allows businesses to engage with current customers and help build organic brand ambassadors while also serving up content in front of new customers. By creating a strong online presence through Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and more, restaurants can leverage entertaining content that resonates with the people they want to patron their establishments. It also allows businesses to humanize their brand, leverage creativity and create a sense of community among their supporters. All of these tactics boost brand awareness and allow restaurants to thrive in the highly competitive food and beverage industry.
There’s a new trend where restaurants are opening locations without creating a website. In many cases, trends are a good thing. This isn’t one of those cases. Having a social media page is important, and claiming your property across all social platforms is recommended. But solely relying on social media won’t bring you the sales results you’re looking for. It’s great for brand awareness, but when we’re focused on sales and getting foot traffic in the door, Google Search matters most.
Restaurant owners should strongly consider developing a website and linking that website to an optimized Google My Business listing to improve the chances of being found in local search. Paired with a strong local SEO strategy, developed menu, events calendar (as applicable), and online ordering options, restaurants who invest in their website are going to see more traffic in-store and online.
Now that you have a digital map of where to be, who is your brand going to be? Your brand voice is how people are going to resonate with your business. It shapes how your audience will perceive you and gives your brand a personality. A well-crafted brand and consistent brand voice can set your restaurant apart, making it instantly recognizable and relatable to your target audience. The way you speak and engage with your followers, and your overall brand messaging helps establish an emotional connection. Everyone wants to engage with brands they deeply care for. The next hurdle is determining where to share that message.
It’s easy to develop a voice that is based on your brand’s values, but how do you speak to each audience? Social media is a collection of various platforms, all of which have attracted different types of users looking for a different experience. To find your audience and keep your messaging in front of them is much easier when you understand each platform.
However, the inherent volatility and rapidly changing nature of social media platforms can make it challenging for restaurant operators to maintain a consistent and effective messaging strategy. The introduction of features like Threads or X (Twitter) underscores the need for a well-crafted and adaptable messaging approach. Restaurant operators should focus on real-time engagement, staying informed about platform updates, and leveraging these tools to enhance their brand messaging and customer engagement.
Here’s a list of platforms and how audiences use them to help inform the type of content you may want to consider on each:
What a great segue into this next section, where we touch on how restaurant business leaders can position themselves as thought leaders in the industry. LinkedIn is a great platform to do this. By sharing content that showcases expertise in the culinary world, the franchise world and beyond, executives can become trusted leaders for others in the industry. Whether sharing content from their own personal LinkedIn page or elsewhere (think blogs, podcast appearances, collaborative PR efforts, etc.), that content can then be shared across the company’s page and beyond.
By consistently offering valuable content that is relevant to the industry and starting thought-provoking, engaging conversations with your target audience, you can position yourself a restaurant thought leader and establish credibility for yourself and your brand. Thought leadership not only sets a restaurant apart, but also attracts a dedicated following, which lends to brand awareness and at the end of the day, patronage. And that’s what we’re all here for – to drive ROI and foot traffic to continue to grow the business at large.
As a business owner, you’ve already got your hands full – so how are you going to run the operations of your restaurant and be able to manage creating and executing a powerful marketing strategy on top of it? There are a ton of solutions for you, from hiring support staff who lend to creative ideas, to leaning on a third-party agency who cares deeply for your brand and does the heavy lifting for you.
At the end of the day, the important piece to consider is that using multiple channels to drive brand awareness is always impactful and marketing online is one of the easiest ways to reach the most amount of people. Taking the time to learn basic digital marketing techniques and implement subtle changes can drive a huge ROI and catapult the success of your business.
Bolt PR Associate Vice President Melisha Oakleaf-Wilson, known for her unparalleled expertise in digital marketing and fervent advocacy for those who are ‘different,’ has been an emblem of resilience and success in her diverse career journey. Graduating from Wichita State University with a unique blend of degrees in journalism, psychology, social work, and a minor in American Sign Language, Oakleaf-Wilson embodies a multifaceted skill set that has propelled her across multiple industries, landing her with several awards and successes. A proud (and loud) neurodivergent, Melisha's journey has been enriched by her late-diagnosed ADHD and autism. This profound self-awareness has fueled her determination to break barriers and shatter stereotypes in the professional realm.
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© 2024 Modern Restaurant Management
This article was autogenerated from a news feed from CDO TIMES selected high quality news and research sources. There was no editorial review conducted beyond that by CDO TIMES staff. Need help with any of the topics in our articles? Schedule your free CDO TIMES Tech Navigator call today to stay ahead of the curve and gain insider advantages to propel your business!
Advertisement
6 Min Read By Melisha Oakleaf-Wilson
Restaurant brands around the world are finding that their audience is craving something more than pretty pictures of delectable dishes, but rather a need for community and discussion. They want engaging content that keeps them entertained. Effective full-funnel marketing strategies are vital for the success of any business, but are definitely the garnish on top for those in the food and beverage industry.
The landscape of digital marketing is constantly evolving, presenting both challenges and opportunities for restaurant operators. But there are a few things to consider that can make a difference in driving impact for your business. And there are a few reasons that having a thorough, structured digital marketing strategy is imperative to the overall success of your restaurant or franchise.
If it isn’t already, digital marketing needs to be the foundation in which you build your overall marketing strategy. More than half (57 percent) of Americans prefer ordering takeout to physically going to a restaurant. If you’re not marketing yourself online or devising a powerful local search engine optimization (SEO) strategy, how are they going to find you?
Social media platforms provide an unparalleled opportunity to get in front of the right audience at the right time. It allows businesses to engage with current customers and help build organic brand ambassadors while also serving up content in front of new customers. By creating a strong online presence through Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and more, restaurants can leverage entertaining content that resonates with the people they want to patron their establishments. It also allows businesses to humanize their brand, leverage creativity and create a sense of community among their supporters. All of these tactics boost brand awareness and allow restaurants to thrive in the highly competitive food and beverage industry.
There’s a new trend where restaurants are opening locations without creating a website. In many cases, trends are a good thing. This isn’t one of those cases. Having a social media page is important, and claiming your property across all social platforms is recommended. But solely relying on social media won’t bring you the sales results you’re looking for. It’s great for brand awareness, but when we’re focused on sales and getting foot traffic in the door, Google Search matters most.
Restaurant owners should strongly consider developing a website and linking that website to an optimized Google My Business listing to improve the chances of being found in local search. Paired with a strong local SEO strategy, developed menu, events calendar (as applicable), and online ordering options, restaurants who invest in their website are going to see more traffic in-store and online.
Now that you have a digital map of where to be, who is your brand going to be? Your brand voice is how people are going to resonate with your business. It shapes how your audience will perceive you and gives your brand a personality. A well-crafted brand and consistent brand voice can set your restaurant apart, making it instantly recognizable and relatable to your target audience. The way you speak and engage with your followers, and your overall brand messaging helps establish an emotional connection. Everyone wants to engage with brands they deeply care for. The next hurdle is determining where to share that message.
It’s easy to develop a voice that is based on your brand’s values, but how do you speak to each audience? Social media is a collection of various platforms, all of which have attracted different types of users looking for a different experience. To find your audience and keep your messaging in front of them is much easier when you understand each platform.
However, the inherent volatility and rapidly changing nature of social media platforms can make it challenging for restaurant operators to maintain a consistent and effective messaging strategy. The introduction of features like Threads or X (Twitter) underscores the need for a well-crafted and adaptable messaging approach. Restaurant operators should focus on real-time engagement, staying informed about platform updates, and leveraging these tools to enhance their brand messaging and customer engagement.
Here’s a list of platforms and how audiences use them to help inform the type of content you may want to consider on each:
What a great segue into this next section, where we touch on how restaurant business leaders can position themselves as thought leaders in the industry. LinkedIn is a great platform to do this. By sharing content that showcases expertise in the culinary world, the franchise world and beyond, executives can become trusted leaders for others in the industry. Whether sharing content from their own personal LinkedIn page or elsewhere (think blogs, podcast appearances, collaborative PR efforts, etc.), that content can then be shared across the company’s page and beyond.
By consistently offering valuable content that is relevant to the industry and starting thought-provoking, engaging conversations with your target audience, you can position yourself a restaurant thought leader and establish credibility for yourself and your brand. Thought leadership not only sets a restaurant apart, but also attracts a dedicated following, which lends to brand awareness and at the end of the day, patronage. And that’s what we’re all here for – to drive ROI and foot traffic to continue to grow the business at large.
As a business owner, you’ve already got your hands full – so how are you going to run the operations of your restaurant and be able to manage creating and executing a powerful marketing strategy on top of it? There are a ton of solutions for you, from hiring support staff who lend to creative ideas, to leaning on a third-party agency who cares deeply for your brand and does the heavy lifting for you.
At the end of the day, the important piece to consider is that using multiple channels to drive brand awareness is always impactful and marketing online is one of the easiest ways to reach the most amount of people. Taking the time to learn basic digital marketing techniques and implement subtle changes can drive a huge ROI and catapult the success of your business.
Bolt PR Associate Vice President Melisha Oakleaf-Wilson, known for her unparalleled expertise in digital marketing and fervent advocacy for those who are ‘different,’ has been an emblem of resilience and success in her diverse career journey. Graduating from Wichita State University with a unique blend of degrees in journalism, psychology, social work, and a minor in American Sign Language, Oakleaf-Wilson embodies a multifaceted skill set that has propelled her across multiple industries, landing her with several awards and successes. A proud (and loud) neurodivergent, Melisha's journey has been enriched by her late-diagnosed ADHD and autism. This profound self-awareness has fueled her determination to break barriers and shatter stereotypes in the professional realm.
Bolt PR Associate Vice President Melisha Oakleaf-Wilson, known for her unparalleled expertise in digital marketing and fervent advocacy for those who are ‘different,’ has been an emblem of resilience and success in her diverse career journey. Graduating from Wichita State University with a unique blend of degrees in journalism, psychology, social work, and a minor in American Sign Language, Oakleaf-Wilson embodies a multifaceted skill set that has propelled her across multiple industries, landing her with several awards and successes. A proud (and loud) neurodivergent, Melisha's journey has been enriched by her late-diagnosed ADHD and autism. This profound self-awareness has fueled her determination to break barriers and shatter stereotypes in the professional realm.
Want more than five articles a month? Sign-up for a free account. If you're curious as to what we do with your information, please check out our Privacy Policy & Options page.
Modern Restaurant Management would like to store your above information when you create an account. We will not share this information with third parties and you can delete your information from our system at any time.
© 2024 Modern Restaurant Management
This article was autogenerated from a news feed from CDO TIMES selected high quality news and research sources. There was no editorial review conducted beyond that by CDO TIMES staff. Need help with any of the topics in our articles? Schedule your free CDO TIMES Tech Navigator call today to stay ahead of the curve and gain insider advantages to propel your business!
