Social distancing measures may keep people apart, but that doesn't mean you can't reach them. People are searching for solutions to too much home-cooking, and their go-to place is the internet. Here are ways you can enhance your restaurant's social media presence, along with free and low-cost tools to get you there.
USE GOOGLE "MY BUSINESS"
Millions of people search for restaurants every day. Stand out in a Google search, and give customers more ways to reach you with a free businesss profile. You can build and publish it in just minutes. Add photos of your most delicious menus items - and even post videos! You're in control of how your business looks. The benefits:
- YOU own your page.
- It doesn’t require any IT knowledge or skills to create.
- Managing your profile is easy! You can make changes whenever you want, to keep your customers informed.
- Interesting and beautiful pictures will generate traffic.
Click here to start creating your Google My Business page.
CREATE YOUR OWN WEBSITE
While it may seem intimidating, even people with no IT background or experience can create their own websites quickly, and inexpensively. A positive, informative online presence is an incredibly important component in the growth of every business. Use these free tools to get started on your own custom website:
Wix enables you to create a free custom website that's social media and SEO compatible. It offers users more than 500 designer templates that encompass most every type of business. Designs are optimized to look amazing on phones, and 1000s of free images let you create your site in your own personal style. Custom domain names are available to match your business and brand.
Jimdo is a modular system designed for users with no technical experience. With designs tailored to your industry, you can impress your customers with your beautiful website. Just upload your product images, add your info, and your professional online shop is ready for service! Jimdo even offers a “Logo Creator” to help you easily create your own custom logo in seconds.
Both these services let you quickly and easily create and set up sites that customers can use to order and pay for their food. And the best part: No contact is required. Check out these companies today!
SET UP YOUR OWN WEB STORE
For those with a bit more website knowledge, Shopify is a great tool for online sales and marketing. Organize and manage an unlimited number of menu offerings that can change with daily specials. Shopify lets you use tags and categories.
Diners can make reservations, read other customer reviews, and browse your menus. Then they can add food selections to their cart and check out simply and efficiently. There’s even a Shopify app that lets you publish social media ads and send e-mails directly from your restaurant.
For foodservice businesses with less time to manage a web presence, Wix or Jimdo may be a simpler and easier option for maintaining a website. Here’s a recap:
All of these platforms are similar:
1. If you need a more complex site than the “free” version, decide on a cost structure that fits your budget.
2. Choose a designer template and customize it for your business.
3. Upload photos, descriptions, prices, etc.
4. Set up your payment options (i.e., credit cards, debit card, invoice, PayPal, etc.).
5. Advertise your store on social media platforms, Google Ads, etc.
6. Sell lots of takeout!
CREATE YOUR OWN SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS
Keep your customers hungry for more of your takeout with stories about customer-favorite menu items, not-so-secret recipes you can share, and mouth-watering pictures of your specials and desserts. Share your story if you’re donating meals to good causes, or using this time to remodel for a more enticing atmosphere. Show them the good stuff you’re doing during this pause in onsite dining. Give your customers all your best appetizers so they’ll want more:
Find out how to set up a Facebook account with this link and see what kinds of stories will help you maintain regular contact with your customers. Using the Instagram link, learn best-practices to display and photograph your food that will maximize its mouth-watering potential. Both platforms are easy to establish. But you can’t stop there - the most important part of social media is active maintenance and management of your accounts. Like children and pets, they live and thrive based on the attention they receive. You must interact with your social media accounts on a daily basis in order to ensure your best return.
