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Use of Live Videos in Marketing for the Restaurant Industry
Marketing of the restaurant industry is continuously facilitated with the help of technology. If you have a smartphone, a story/message to tell, and of course an account on Facebook or Instagram, you can attract and get loyal customers to your business easier than ever. It’s about tools on the platforms for making live videos, which is changing the way restaurants communicate with their guests.
Today, on both Facebook and Instagram, you can publish content that makes it possible to create a close and emotional direct contact with the guests, in a much more powerful way to attract them to your restaurant and create loyalty.
Would you like to get more bookings with the help of live videos?
Facebook Live
Facebook Live is a tool that allows you to upload live videos from the Facebook app, where guest followers can comment in real-time. It’s perfect for interacting with them immediately, welcoming them, communicating with them, etc.
Unlike videos shared on other social networks, these remain published on the restaurant’s profile and can be shared again at any time. Another advantage is that you can choose which customers you want to target your videos for, as effective as possible.
With Facebook live you can market everything new that happens at your restaurant, events, decoration, and of course the changes in your gastronomic offer.
Another way to utilize Facebook live is to have weekly meetings with your customers, as the chef at your restaurant gives culinary tips and advice and in this way keeps them interested in your posts.
Facebook live is also the perfect way to present your staff. You can film your staff as they share anecdotes and introduce themselves. If your guests know your staff, they can identify with them and the nature of your business.
You can also get your guests involved by asking them to tell you about their experience at your venue and publishing the videos in real-time. If you tag them, they will share them with their followers and thus attract new customers.
Remember to always alert the followers who watch your videos that they can book a table at your restaurant by using the booking button on your Facebook profile. If you do not have one yet, you should get it.
Instagram Stories
Instagram Stories is a feature on Instagram that lets you publish videos and photos live along with text and graphics. The publications are displayed in the upper part of the screen so it is impossible not to notice them! Perfect for making an immediate impression on your guest followers. In this case, the posts disappear after 24 hours, therefore the content is more direct and more informal.
When marketing for the restaurant industry, Instagram Stories is used to tell you what happens day by day. With image or video sequences you can show how the staff works, what products have just come in, new dishes … etc. With creativity and will, the possibilities are unlimited.
Think about the impact of several live videos from the preparation in the kitchen just before opening, where you show appetizing and smoky food … The opportunities to fill your table that day would certainly increase.
You can also add a text to your videos inviting your followers to visit your profile on Instagram and click on a link to, for example, your website.
Another great idea is cross-advertising between your Instagram and Facebook accounts, where you make a short video on Instagram Stories that invites you to watch one of your events on Facebook Live. This way you will get loyal customers from both channels at the same time.
The keys to success in marketing for the restaurant industry:
Do it regularly. You need to publish videos regularly for customers to get used to seeing them and missing them. Even more so when it comes to food! So you can post your videos daily on Instagram Stories and weekly on Facebook Live or depending on your event program.
Do it with a clear purpose. At first, you can do test videos, but once you have a look at how things are going, make sure you have an intention with your posts, either to advertise something new, get table bookings, get new followers…
Do it in a natural way. Today, customers are attracted more by real publications, with as natural stories as possible that create an emotional connection. Think about the difference between making a planned slow and boring video when cooking a dish after a recipe and a live video straight from the kitchen during a session when the same dish is cooked.
Do it with art. Today, customers’ eyes are very used to this type of audiovisual content, so you should think about your language, your messages, the lighting, the creation of a certain mood, for it to be both natural and attractive. With practice and creativity, you certainly succeed in your marketing for the restaurant industry.
With these tools you can approach your customers more, get into their lives, be a part of their routines, their consumption habits, in order to always have fully booked tables.
