Whether you have a single-location restaurant or run a popular chain, social media will help you connect with the people who love your food. Special promotions will also help you reach their friends and family members and generate a lot of new business. Here are four types of social media promotions that can work for your restaurant.
Facebook “Like” Coupons
Offering a coupon is one of the most effective types of promotions for any business. Restaurants can encourage business by offering coupons for a free item with a meal (appetizer, entree, dessert, drinks, etc.). People love to try new food, and it will help promote your brand. Offering coupons for a percentage or dollar-off discount on a meal also works, but this won’t promote your specific brand and products quite as much. Get the most out of a coupon offer by releasing it via Facebook and requiring people to “like” your page before they can access it.
Foursquare Check-in Coupons
Foursquare allows you to offer many different types of coupons to people who check in at your restaurant. This is perhaps the best niche network for restaurants because people often browse Foursquare to find deals nearby their current location. You can offer promotions for new customers, loyal customers, and more, all based on the number of times an individual checks in for a visit. If you reward loyalty with great promotions, people will be encouraged to visit your restaurant again and again to earn more – and perhaps in pursuit of the coveted title of Mayor. The Mayor is the person who checks in at your establishment more than anyone else, and you can consider offering special perks to whoever is the current Mayor.
Contests and Sweepstakes
Everyone loves a chance to win, and a restaurant can hold a contest or sweepstakes just as successfully as any other type of business. There are many different types of contests and sweepstakes you can hold to promote your restaurant, and you’ll get the most participation by marketing it through social media, especially Facebook and Twitter. Ask entrants to tweet a themed picture to you with a #hashtag of your restaurant’s name. Encourage voting to make the contest even more interactive. The winner can get any prize, but a free meal is always a popular type of contest for a restaurant.
Creating Hype
When you have a new menu item, a new location, a new type of special, or just about anything new at all, use social media to create as much hype about it as possible. Before it’s launched, post teasers, release information, and remind people when the “big day” is. You could offer a special discount or free item to celebrate. Post frequently as you lead up to the release, and on the special day itself. Ask people to share and retweet the news, and make it as exciting as possible. If you can generate a lot of hype and get people talking about it, they’ll want to check it out no matter what it is that you’re promoting.
This and many other educational articles helping web professionals understand the challenges of the web have been prepared for you by Travis Lee thanks to SEOMap – the keyword strategy experts.
Four Social Media Promos For Restaurants That Work
