Feast or famine for your food and drink marketing?

It’s no secret that we Brits love using social media to chat about what we eat and drink, so you’d be forgiven for thinking that building a following for your bar or restaurant might be a piece of cake. But, with such saturation around the topic of food and drink, it has become increasingly difficult for companies in the industry to get their voices heard above the hubbub. It is undoubtedly one of the most creative sectors to market, where fun is encouraged and personality is expected to shine. But how can you stop your brand from famishing in the feast of food and drink advertising?

Build Reviews

Trip Advisor, Facebook, Google reviews – these are often the first port of call when customers  make a decision about where to eat and drink. But how do you persuade customers to leave you a review? Offering incentives, such as a prize for the best review within a certain timeframe can build your following quickly, and discounts on future purchases can help to create engagement, whilst inviting repeat business. Make sure that it as easy as possible for people to review and like your brand, with clear calls to action in your promotional materials in-house and on your website. Don’t forget to look beyond the regular opportunities too – are there other review forums that your key market engage with?

Know Your Customers

We live in a time where social media allows businesses to engage with its customers in a way that has never been possible before. There’s a golden opportunity to identify who your customers are, what they like, and what turns them off, thus giving you the chance to engage them in communities that they move in. It also allows you to move away from just talking about yourself – nobody likes a feed that is just a sales pitch, so find other fun and interesting topics to engage your customers. Keep an eye on insights to see where customers have been most keenly engaged, and build on your interactions in this area.

Engage with the good, the bad and the ugly…

It’s always nice to share a positive review of your brand, and encouraging advocacy is a great way to build your brand. But do you feel a mild sense of panic when someone leaves you a bad review, or makes a complaint online? Well, there’s no need, and here’s why: in the olden days, if people had a bad experience with a brand, they just didn’t come back. The fact that social media is often the go-to option for airing complaints gives you an opportunity to win that customer back, and impress others with how you’ve handled a difficult situation.

Remember what it’s all about

As important as it is to market your brand well, you can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear, as the old saying goes. Put simply, the best way to engage your customers and ensure brand advocacy is to make sure that your offering is the best it can be. Don’t lose sight of focussing on your customer service or excellent product range, or fall into the trap of thinking that clever marketing can make up for shaky foundations. Keep your big picture in mind!

Let us look after your day-to-day marketing so that you can focus on the big picture – get in touch here