Reigniting your social media: hospitality special
Pubs, restaurants, hotels, cafés — whether or not you’ve reopened, you’re likely wondering what to say next on your social media channels. Here’s our advice on managing your lockdown-era content, without sacrificing the time you need to be spending on managing your hospitality business.
Pick your platforms
Whether it’s the ‘social trinity’ of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, or a more niche hospitality-oriented site like TripAdvisor, decide on which platforms you want to focus on and stick to those. Don’t let others’ strategies sway you; invest your resources in building your presence and authority on the social ecosystems that work best for your brand.
Write up a load of content (in one go)
Scheduling is your best friend. You could schedule a whole month’s worth of content in one sitting if you have the assets, copy, and photos ready to go. Use one of these platforms to schedule in advance:
Later for Instagram: great for keeping your Insta looking neat and on-brand, as they have a preview option that shows how posts will look on your feed
Hootsuite or TweetDeck: brilliant for tracking hashtags, and filtering tag searches by location (a gold mine for restaurants with a primarily local audience)
With scheduling all sorted, you need only worry about two things: engaging with your followers in real-time, and being aware of how changes in the cultural zeitgeist (or even the weather!) might make some of your pre-planned posts look a little out-of-touch. A vibrant photo of a cocktail glistening in the sun going out on a rainy day could come across a little strange and robotic.
Don’t panic!
Stop worrying — just post. Let people know you’re open and thriving. If you can’t think of the perfect words, break out the emoji. You know the old adage: ‘the pen is mightier than the sword, but emoji are mightier than both’.
Let your staff get creative with Stories
With some ground rules in place (visual branding, tone of voice, etc.), you can give select members of staff the power to share the more ‘everyday’ stuff via Instagram Stories. You’ll soon strike an engaging balance between the tidy, scheduled curation of the main feed, and the personality-rich excitement of daily Stories.
Fortune and frame
Sometimes, photos just look kinda bad. Lighting isn’t always ideal; compositions can be a bit messy; the original photo’s been lost in transit, and you’ve only got a low-resolution copy to hand. No matter what‘s gone wrong, a branded frame or interesting graphic layout can bring refreshed energy and life to otherwise unusable snaps. Give the app Canva a whirl to see what creative picture-reviving ideas you can come up with.
Engage with your fans on the daily
Just ten minutes of follower interaction every day can make a big difference. Like all the posts you get tagged in, and follow relevant accounts. Comment on posts you find via the hashtags you’re tracking. Try to relate your comments to what’s happening in the photos, or if the words aren’t coming to you, fall back onto our trusty old friends: emoji.
Spark genuine conversations whenever you can, by asking open-ended questions, and react to Instagram Stories you get tagged in or discover.
Social partnerships
Team up with other venues or local influencers to run competitions and promotions. The added exposure will get you seen by a wider audience. Be sure to engage with content posted by partners to maximize the impact of these opportunities.
On a role
If all the above still makes you want to flush your phone down the toilet, empower your staff to take the reins. Social media — like it or not! — is a vital element in today’s marketing toolkit, but much of the content side is easy to learn. With the right direction, your staff can do amazing things for your venue. Watch the movie Chef for inspiration.
Here are three essential roles:
The Planner
In charge of writing and scheduling posts.
Aware of upcoming events and holidays.
Sensitive to the cultural zeitgeist.
The Image Collector
Head of snapping photos.
Saves all images to a shared cloud folder.
Responsible for saving team photos in group WhatsApp to shared folders for planner to use in schedules/posts.
The Engager
Talks to existing customers and comments on their posts.
Searches hashtags/locations to engage new visitors.
Responds to reviews and sends to planner to post.
Want personalized feedback on how you can do better on social media? Take our Reset Menu audit for free, and get your socials scored.