6 Reasons Why Restaurants Should Be Using Instagram ????????????
Gone are the days when people would share grainy photos of their dinner online, publicly renounce a hangover in the form of a #dirtyburger or declare to the world via a stale kale smoothie that they intended to #eatclean. Today there is a thriving hub of online activity based around fine dining and inventive eateries and hosting this very welcoming dinner party is the photo sharing giant Instagram. Here’s why:
1) Pop ups
Instagram ads are an immensely effective way to target your clientele as they are directed to specific users whose online habits suggest they could be a potential customer. This means that more often than not, when such ads pop up in a user’s feed they aren’t met with the same frustration as the unsolicited presence of the new U2 album in your iTunes, but instead tap into an already formed interest in the subject matter.
2) Dish of the day
Engagement with brands and businesses is 10 times higher on Instagram than on Facebook, and 54 times higher than Pinterest. While there are intricate laws and regulations preventing brands from advertising via standard Instagram posts, it is not uncommon for restauranteurs to upload a photo of a particular dish at lunchtime and have followers specifically request it at dinner. This is a platform just waiting to celebrate daily specials and meal deals.
3) Indulge in the popularity of Instagram
In 2014 the number of customers contacting Waitrose via social media overtook email for the first time. In May 2016 advertising agency Telegraph Hill listed Instagram star Joe Wicks, aka The Body Coach, as the second most influential ‘foodie’ in the UK after household name Jamie Oliver. At the time of writing there were 185, 438, 602 public posts containing #food on Instagram, a number that will certainly have risen by the time you’ve finished this sentence. By all accounts Instagram is the forum of choice for your customer’s culinary concerns.
4) Hotting-up in the kitchen
If the saying is true that sex sells, then #foodporn would make pimps of us all. No other social media platform comes close to being as equipped as Instagram for the publishing of #foodporn. There are also a plethora of food photography apps available which are targeted not only at professionals but also at keen amateurs wanting to rack up as many likes as possible. For the restauranteur, this hashtag is essentially an open invitation to shamelessly self-promote your most indulgent, mouth-watering creations, and no one can even raise an eyebrow.
5) Community spirit
While it may seem as though Instagram is a platform for the pre-existing names in the dining industry or that it is perhaps overpopulated with chains, best-selling cookery writers and bloggers for the smaller businesses to find a space, this isn’t necessarily true. The great thing about Instagram is that it has managed to maintain its sense of community which is at the heart of social media. It really is a hub of activity and due to its very visual nature, users can take inspiration from chefs across the globe at the flick of a thumb without even having to even speak the same language.
6) Put yourself on the map
Research has shown that Instagram posts with a tagged location can lead to 79% more user engagement than posts without. For the local restauranteur this information could go a long way to helping market custom from the local area. Similarly, users can search for their favourite flavour, dish or cuisine which means that Instagram could quite literally put your business on the map.
By Aisling Lewis
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