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Bruce Irving is a restaurant industry expert with decades of experience and is the founder of smartpizzamarketing.com and host of the Smart Pizza Marketing podcast. On this episode of “Give an Ovation” he shared 5 insights with CEO Zack Oates on marketing strategies for restaurants (and some podcasting advice too!) Check them out:
1. Be Consistent and Authentic on Social Media
More than ever, the rising generation values authenticity. We live in a time of transparency, meaning people want to see the same thing online and in person. One way to accomplish this is by sharing some behind the scenes of your restaurant. Make an Instagram story of you and your team washing dishes, cleaning after hours, or anything else that will help people realize that there are real people behind the brand.
2. Go Where the People Are
You don’t have to be on every social media platform, but make sure you’re on the most popular ones in your area. If you’re in a college town, you probably want to be on Tik-Tok, but in other areas Facebook might be the best choice. You can find out what’s best for you by polling your customers as they come in, or by simply noticing what they’re using while they eat.
3. Speak to the one
Sometimes when we look at the overall number of people interacting with our online content, we forget that it is individuals who are watching and reading. But restaurants need to remember this because people respond best to posts that they feel are directed right at them. When someone feels individual connection, they are more likely to pay attention.
4. Take notes from those who are succeeding
Bruce recommends following Frank Prisinzano (@frankprisinzano) on Instagram, a restaurant owner with almost 100 thousand followers. Frank goes live on IGTV every day, interacts with customers, and posts behind the scenes regularly. Fred’s consistency has helped him grow immensely and you can follow suit!
5. Wait until #70
Many people feel inspired to finally get on social media, post a few times, get no likes, get discouraged and give up. It can be discouraging if you feel that your content isn’t very good. Bruce points out that yeah — your first few posts, podcasts, videos, etc., won’t be very good. It might not be until post #70 that you see the results you want. But it’s worth pushing through.
Make sure to watch the entire podcast for more advice and stories from Bruce and Zack, and check out all the other episodes of “Give an Ovation” on Youtube, podcast.ovationup.com, or your favorite podcast platform.
