People’s love for food and social media is no secret. Just on Instagram alone, there are 148 million tags for #instafood and 343 million tags for #food. These days, due to a wide array of choices, diners do their research before visiting a restaurant. Just by the click of a button, they can collect all information such as your restaurant’s service, menu, food reviews, and ambiance.
There is no replacement for the word of mouth marketing. What would a diner trust more? An advertisement tagline or someone’s opinion? We are pretty sure that it’s the latter. Any content, whether it is videos, photos, or testimonials which is created and shared by diners across social media is called user-generated content.
Let’s see how you can build your restaurant’s brand by leveraging user content in detail:
1. Blogs: Repurpose Food Reviews
Many bloggers love to share food reviews of restaurants. Chances are, they have taken great pictures of a specific cuisine at your restaurant. Such blog posts can prove to be remarkable for your branding efforts. However, before repurposing their content, make sure that you ask for their permission. Just reach out to the concerned blogger via email.
Besides, you can also opt for inresto’s photoshoot solutions which will help you enhance the aesthetic appeal of your restaurant and attract more visitors by posting high-quality pictures of your signature dishes and ambience.
2. Retweet Tweets of Diners
Retweets are so easy! Find tweets of users who have mentioned your restaurant’s name and signature dishes. Use user content to build your restaurant’s brand! All you need to do is just retweet them without asking for their permission. Repurposing user-generated content on Twitter is the easiest method so far so you must be aware of it.
3. Add Instagram Stories
Remember how we talked about Instagram in the beginning? Whenever diners share a new picture or a video in their Instagram stories and tag your restaurant, you receive a notification. Once the story is published, you can add that content to your Instagram story! Remember, you have only 24 hours before it expires.
There is a way of keeping user-generated Instagram stories on your profile for as long as you desire. Just add them to your highlights and you are good to go! You can also explore inresto’s cost-effective marketing solutions for your restaurant that covers everything from Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Social Media Ads, Newspaper Ads, Visual Stories, Social Media Posts, and collaborations with Publishers and Influencers.
Also Read: How to boost your restaurant business via Instagram.
4. Scour the Review Sites
Hundreds of customers flock to popular review sites such as Google, Yelp, Facebook, TripAdvisor, and Foursquare daily. They are keen on sharing their reviews with the world and other people visiting these sites take these reviews very seriously. So, these review sites are an incredible source of user-generated content you can leverage.
Make a Google or Word document and gather the best reviews at a single place. Share these reviews across social media and your website. If you own a new restaurant business and still don’t have a mobile app and a website, inresto can help you with that. These are crucial for your marketing efforts. Besides, you can create a separate section for blogs on this website. This strategy will surely help with your branding undertakings.
5. Humanize Your Brand
As a restaurant owner, you should use user content to humanize your brand. By observing the user-generated content of fellow diners, people will relate to your restaurant even more. This relatability will in turn lead to more positive user-generated content. Take note of how you engage with diners on social media posts and by that we mean the conversational tone as well as how they are greeted at your restaurant.
Besides, one of the greatest advantages of user content is that you can improve your tactics by using it as feedback. For that purpose, inresto’s feedback management solutions will be a perfect tool for you. Your diners will get instant alerts (SMS and Email) whenever they leave a review for your restaurant. Additionally, they will be sent reference details that they can share with their friends and family.
6. Create Photo Op
Encourage your diners to take more pictures of food & drinks served at your restaurant. You can do that by offering them giveaways for the best pictures selected. The photos don’t have to be of just food and beverages. It could be a selfie with the restaurant staff as well. You can then create a fun photo op and help build your restaurant’s reputation online.
Furthermore, you can also repost some of that user-generated content on social media and offer prizes such as gift cards or appetizers from time to time. Such photo opportunities and incentives help promote your business, create awareness, and acquire more customers. Moreover, inresto’s campaign will allow you to re-target, interact, and engage your diners quite conveniently!
7. Run Polls and Organize Contests
If your diners haven’t been engaging well on your social media posts, running polls and contests can encourage them to do so. For instance, customers feel valued when you ask about their opinions through polls. Besides, holding contests on social media will get them to interact more. There are numerous advantages of user content; one of them being greater diner satisfaction and engagement. You can create polls on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Final Remarks
We have highlighted the methods of leveraging user-generated content to enhance your brand’s awareness, reputation, and authenticity online. Additionally, these strategies will be valuable add-ons to your existing marketing efforts as well. Note that these are not universal techniques and may work differently for different restaurants.
Never underestimate the power of user content when it comes to branding even if you can create valuable content yourself. It’s your diners’ opinions that matter the most.
Also Read: Instances of stunning restaurant social media marketing.
