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10 mars 2023

16 digital communication tips to attract customers to your restaurant

It’s essential for a restaurant to be visible online on all platforms that can bring in customers. To improve its e-reputation, attract new customers and become a destination, an optimal digital communication strategy must be adopted!

communication digitale restaurant conseils malou

The restaurant selection process is now done through digital means, with 90% of French people choosing their restaurant online. We have listed our 16 very concrete tips to help restaurateurs improve their digital communication:

1. Optimize your Google My Business page for better SEO

Too many restaurateurs neglect it, mainly due to lack of time or interest. However, having an optimized Google My Business page is crucial to appear at the top of search results. An optimized page means: complete information, accurate restaurant name spelling, up-to-date opening hours, exceptional closures and specific events specified, with numerous photos and regular posts.

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Why? Because the Google algorithm wants to offer the best results to users. It has certain criteria that allow it to consider whether an establishment is reliable or not. Among them, the accuracy of the information provided on the page, as well as the quantity of information. The more the restaurateur provides information on their attributes/specificities, the more the user will find what they are looking for. So, if Google considers the establishment reliable, it will rank it higher in search results for its keywords.

With correct and accessible information at the top of search results, your restaurant’s Google My Business page allows you to acquire and convert customers.

2. Ensure the consistency and updating of opening hours everywhere your establishment exists

Google’s algorithm penalizes establishments whose hours have inconsistencies between different online platforms. Therefore, it’s important in your digital communication strategy to ensure their uniformity and to update them regularly, especially on public holidays!

An establishment whose hours differ down to the minute between Google, La Fourchette, Tripadvisor, Pages Jaunes, etc., won’t appear in search results for its keywords.

annuaires plateformes horaires incoherent restaurant

Why? Because Google compares the restaurant’s hours on all platforms where it exists. If the hours don’t match, the establishment is seen as unreliable, and users may doubt it, leading to them not coming or finding a closed establishment.

3. List your establishment in all relevant directories to maximize your digital communication

You should list your restaurant in as many directories, platforms, blogs, or guides as possible. This allows you to multiply your reservation and visibility channels to attract more customers. But also to send incoming links to the establishment’s website. The more a site receives links from other sites that Google trusts (Tripadvisor, Guide Michelin…), the better its natural referencing becomes. The restaurant then gains positions in search results.

Annuaires malou communication digitale

Here are our 14 favorite sites on which to list your establishment, rated according to their degree of importance on natural SEO and reputation.

4. Exist on directories used by tourists

To make yourself known to foreign customers, you must start by ensuring the presence of your restaurant where tourists do their research. In France, Tripadvisor and TheFork are mostly used, but directories differ from country to country. Americans search on Yelp and Foursquare, the Chinese on Dianping, and Kekanto in Brazil.

carte annuaire touriste attirer restaurant communication digitale malou

These are 10 tips to attract tourists to your restaurant:

5. For optimal digital communication, respond to ALL customer reviews

It is essential to respond to all reviews on every platform where customers leave a review, whether positive or negative. This helps to build customer loyalty, show appreciation, gather feedback, improve the restaurant’s service, reflect a positive image to potential customers who do not yet know the restaurant, and improve the restaurant’s natural search engine ranking.

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Why? Platform algorithms reduce the weight of negative reviews when the restaurant has taken the time to respond!

Want to get 10X more positive customer reviews? Check out our tips here!

6. Post high-quality photos

“People eat with their eyes first”: this is more relevant than ever! Sharing photos of dishes, the restaurant space, and the team on social media helps to entice customers, make them crave the food, pique their curiosity, and project themselves into the restaurant.

photo instagram restaurant malou

But what if you’re not a photography expert? Don’t worry! Check out our article on how to produce quality content for your social media.

7. Create an Instagram account and share engaging content

Instagram is one of the most effective social media platforms for building awareness. The popular Parisian brunch spots Kafkaf, BonBouquet CafĂŠ, and Santa Lyna have all gained nearly 60,000 followers on their respective Instagram pages in a short time, drawing customers from all over the city. To succeed on Instagram, you need to share high-quality, aesthetically pleasing, engaging content regularly, use the many features offered by the platform, and interact with your audience.

Check out our 15 tips for optimizing your restaurant’s Instagram account, and here are our ideas for posts that will generate buzz!

How did the brunch group succeed in skyrocketing their visibility on social media? Check out all the steps that Kafkaf, BonBouquet CafĂŠ, and Santa Lyna took to succeed in their digital communication here.

8. Host contests to gain recognition and engage your followers

Contests are a great way to increase your social media following and generate traffic to your restaurant, provided they are executed correctly. Before launching a contest, you need to identify your target audience and what you want them to remember about your restaurant.

taux d'engagement instagram jeu concours malou

Learn more about the contest mechanics that allowed us to multiply O’Tacos Vavin’s audience by 10.

9. Create and maintain a Facebook page with restaurant news

Despite the arrival of social media platforms like Instagram, don’t neglect Facebook. The platform remains important for daily communication with your customers, sharing restaurant news, the daily menu, a new menu, etc. Authentic content primarily. And now, Facebook allows you to launch paid campaigns to increase your restaurant’s visibility! Learn more below.

10. Collaborate with food influencers for a real boost to your digital communication

Food influencers are now a major marketing tool and should not be overlooked by restaurant owners. Four out of five internet users consume a product recommended by a content creator. Influencer marketing now has a significant, even viral, traffic potential.

Such is the viral nature of influencer marketing that the increased attendance at a restaurant after working with @leguideultime and his 155k followers led to its administrative closure in March 2020. The influencer had shared the good deal of free kebabs from the restaurant Chich with his community, which created a gathering and required police intervention during a health crisis. The reach of these actors on social media is thus very strong, instantaneous, and reaches a wide audience.

influenceur food malou

But why is influencer marketing becoming so significant? Who are these content creators that everyone follows? Which ones should you contact, and how should you approach them? Check out our answers and our selection of the 20 best food influencers in the capital in this article

11. Encouraging customers to share content from your establishment

Customers are a restaurant’s first ambassadors, and it is from them that buzz can come, so you need to prepare them with the tools to create it. At Paris New York, thousands of selfies taken from the toilets have already been shared on social media. Why? Rudy Guénaire, the founder, explains: “One day, a customer posted a selfie of himself in our toilets, there was a cool effect with the pink and green neon lights. I regrammed it and it caught on, more and more customers came to take pictures in our toilets. We even had people who came just to take their selfie! Since then, we have installed a photo wall with the best selfies.” If the operation was not premeditated, it successfully broadcasted branded content for Paris New York and confirms that the originality and quality of the decoration or a detail incite customers to take photos and post them on their social networks.

12. Launching paid campaigns on Instagram and Facebook

Sponsored campaigns on Instagram and Facebook allow for fairly precise targeting of prospects, particularly based on age, interests, and location. It is essential to launch campaigns with high-quality photos and highlight a relevant call to action such as “get delivery,” “order now,” or offer promotions.

13. Create a responsive website adapted to all screens, the foundation of good digital communication

A website is the best way to showcase your restaurant, entice users to visit, and encourage them to make reservations or order online. Since late 2016, mobile searches have surpassed those on computers, so the website design must adapt to the screen on which it is viewed. In addition, 70% of people who own a smartphone will look at the menu on their phone screen.

14. Regularly update your website for maximized digital communication

Having a responsive website with beautiful photos is not enough. It is also important to update it regularly and publish upcoming events and special menus. A website that showcases the special New Year’s Eve menu in January loses its relevance. We also recommend delegating maintenance so that technical issues are promptly resolved.

15. Install an online reservation system on your website

It is inevitable to install a reservation module on your website to generate reservations without going through third parties such as La Fourchette, which charge commissions. There are reservation software that allows your customers to book directly on your website, Facebook page, Google My Business, etc. without commission and in just a few clicks!

If you want to increase your revenue from takeout orders, we also recommend offering an online ordering service on your website or even a Click & Collect system to allow your customers to make their selections in advance and save time!

16. Add a proposed route to the restaurant on your website

Adding a “how to get there” or “route” button within the website itself allows users – who mainly connect from their mobile phones – to easily navigate to the establishment. The Citymapper plugin is particularly suitable for Parisian restaurants.

Want to go further? Find our 30 very specific tips for promoting your restaurant online here!

Most restaurateurs already have a lot to do in their establishment: managing suppliers, cooking, inventory, the team, customers… If you do not find the time to apply all of our tips for successful digital communication, leave us a message, and we can help!

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