You might have tried every trick in the book, but if you’re still not gaining new followers on Facebook, you’ve really got to rethink your current strategy. Showcasing your dishes, restaurant interiors and broadcasting events are some of the most common tactics, but you really need to go beyond these basic practices to stand out.
Share 360 Degree Photos & Videos
Showcasing your restaurant through interior shots is now passé. The new trend is to put up short videos of your restaurant as the cover image or to have a 360 degree image of the restaurant. All you need to do is; use a 360-degree camera to capture a panorama photo and then upload it as a regular image. Facebook’s algorithm would automatically convert your image into an interactive one.
Get Table Reservations Straight From Your Page!
It’s time to upgrade your “Call Now” button on your Facebook page to a “Book Now” one! Some reservation management systems, like inResto, can now put a Booking widget on your Facebook page, through which your followers can reserve their tables. All those reservations can then be tracked and managed through the inResto app. If the bookings reflecting on inResto are unattended, we’ve have our concierge team to take care of them too. As of now, we’ve powered Facebook booking widgets for over 400 restaurants.
Go Live!
Whether you’re sharing a sneak peak of your kitchen or your chef talking about your signature dish, live videos on Facebook get a much larger viewership as compared to normal photos and videos. In case of live videos you can add tailor-made filters, get live reactions from viewers, share it in a group or event besides much more. It’s a really good medium to share your brand’s personality. You can also make a very professional live video using Facebook API.
Ride the Trend
Recently, the liquid nitrogen fiasco in Sector 29, Gurgaon, India, was all over the news, and anybody who talked about the matter would get noticed. So, major news in the F&B industry or even simple topics like National Egg Day or National Whiskey Day could get you eyeballs if you tried a small engaging activity around it. It could be something as simple as a post, sharing a recipe or promoting a special dish available at your restaurant.
Share A Recipe
Offering an interesting cooking tip or an easy recipe could also hook your followers to your page. You needn’t spill the beans on your signature dish, but even if your chef gives a recipe of “How to make pancakes in 5 minutes” or DIY tacos, it would keep the ball rolling. All you need to do is give them something distinct, delightful and useful. Pro tip: The more decadent the food, the better.
Go Behind The Scenes
Flaunt your staff and chef to your audience through Facebook in different ways. You can shoot a short video of your signature dish being prepared or give a snippet of your daily kitchen regime. It portrays that you’re transparent and have a dedicated team behind your restaurant’s success.
Target & Retarget Diners Through Ads
Running facebook ads won’t be any good until you’re targeting the right audience. Facebook allows you to create your very own custom audience based on locations, age groups, interests, etc. You can also run special campaigns to retarget users who’ve visited your page. This is a great way of creating recall and if your offer or creative is catchy enough, users who’ve shown interest before would definitely pay you a visit!
If you’re apprehensive about what will work, let us tell you how Dineout achieved 6X increase in bookings, 80% lower cost per conversion, 3X increase in return on ad spend and 5X growth in overall diner base. The secret behind our growth was personalization and more importantly understanding at what point customers were turning away. After closely looking at the roadblock and segregating the audience, it was just a matter of conveying a different message to custom audiences as per their needs.
Since Facebook included Dineout’s growth through ads as one of its success stories, we’re proud to say we know what worked for us and how!
Apart from these hacks, if you post interesting content, engage your followers via quizzes and giveaways, and respond to all comments, you’re already on top of the basic tactics!
