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	<title>Valiant Workforce Management Solutions &#187; John McHugh</title>
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		<title>Facebook Strategies for Restaurants</title>
		<link>http://www.valiant.com/restaurant-services-blog/facebook-strategies-for-restaurants/</link>
		<comments>http://www.valiant.com/restaurant-services-blog/facebook-strategies-for-restaurants/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 22 Dec 2011 15:31:52 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>John McHugh</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[Restaurant Services Blog]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.valiant.com/?p=4197</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In the past you’ve probably marketed your restaurant with newspaper ads, postcard mailings, maybe even a birthday program. But restaurant marketing has drastically changed in recent years, and like most businesses with a big shift toward the Internet – and social media is the center of the conversation. It’s one thing to have a Facebook [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In the past you’ve probably marketed your restaurant with newspaper ads,<br />
postcard mailings, maybe even a birthday program. But <a href="http://www.brainstormstudio.com">restaurant marketing</a><br />
 has drastically changed in recent years, and like most businesses with a big shift<br />
toward the Internet – and social media is the center of the conversation. It’s one<br />
thing to have a Facebook page &#8211; it’s another to have a social media strategy<br />
that yields measurable results. Restaurants that are doing social media right are<br />
acquiring new customers and increasing guest frequency at a fraction of the cost<br />
of traditional advertising.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.brainstormstudio.com"><img src="http://www.valiant.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/restaurant-blog-image.jpg" alt="" title="restaurant-blog-image" width="501" height="300" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-4191" /></a></p>
<h3>Here’s a list of tips to improve your Facebook page <br/>to get better results:</h3>
<p><strong>Build a Custom Landing Page</strong></p>
<p>Facebook was always known for its uniformity. You could post all sorts of<br />
content, but your page design will essentially look just like everyone else’s.<br />
However, now Facebook lets you develop custom branded landing pages, which<br />
let you personalize your restaurant’s page with photos, videos, contest forms and<br />
much more. Landing pages are often used to promote deals, special events or<br />
simply welcome visitors in a creative way. A good example would be promoting<br />
a contest with a sign-up form, or a big call-out to like the page with an arrow<br />
pointing to the Like button. Try using some of these ideas to personalize your<br />
page, and before you know it you’ll have a have a lot more likes!</p>
<p><strong>Contests are a Winner</strong></p>
<p>Giving away a little something is a surefire way to generate buzz, get people<br />
engaged, and increase your likes. And since your fans are already hanging<br />
out on Facebook doing something else, filling out the online contest form really<br />
isn’t a big deal. Best of all, Facebook contests are a great way to capture data,<br />
including email and physical addresses for re-marketing. Make sure to mention<br />
your contest in your ad. An example would be: “Like us for a chance to win a<br />
$100 Gift Card”</p>
<p><strong>Use Applications</strong></p>
<p>Polls, quizzes and other types of applications are available in the Admin section<br />
for page owners, and they take just a few clicks to install. Facebook offers<br />
some generic ones, like a discussion board, but you can also add other apps<br />
from Facebook’s app directory. A great example would be – the Open Table<br />
app – If you use this popular reservation system in your restaurant, you can<br />
also offer online reservations right from your Facebook page! Plus, if you know<br />
how to develop in HTML, or know a web programmer then the sky is the limit.<br />
Programmers can create customized tabs using Facebook’s HTML-style FBML<br />
markup language, which can do virtually anything a website can do.</p>
<p><strong>Facebook ads are Smart</strong></p>
<p>Facebook ads are the epitome of targeted marketing, and if handled correctly,<br />
can bring you a great return on your investment. Ads can be targeted by city,<br />
age, gender, interests, and other demographic criteria. You can even target your<br />
audience by the pages they like. So for example, if your restaurant is hosting a<br />
wine dinner, run a targeted ad to Facebook users located within 10 miles of your<br />
restaurant, who are fans of Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast magazines. You<br />
can’t get any more targeted than that! Facebook ads are one of the fastest ways<br />
to build likes and to locate a prime audience for your restaurant.</p>
<p>The goal of any restaurant is to build customer loyalty, and get your patrons<br />
to recommend your restaurant to their friends. A simple thing like designing a<br />
custom Facebook page and interacting with your guests can work wonders for<br />
your brand. Post regularly and let your fans feel like they are involved in the<br />
experience. All of these practices will engage your fans in what you have to offer,<br />
lengthen the experience, and keep customers coming back for more.</p>
<p>For more information on <a href="http://www.brainstormstudio.com">social media for restaurants</a> contact, Brainstorm Studio today.</p>
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