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3 Ideas For Restaurants To Add To Their Influencer Marketing Strategy

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Omar Hasan
influencer marketing for restaurants

The benefits of using local restaurant influencers such as micro bloggers or food bloggers, whose followers count ranges from about 5,000-40,000, can dramatically increase a restaurant’s presence and enhance its branding online. Micro-influencers are not hard to find and can help you significantly influence customers' buying decisions and get more customers to try your restaurant.

Micro-influencers can influence customers' buying decisions. For example, you probably have that friend on TikTok or Instagram that consistently posts great content and receives authentic comments and likes on their posts. 

Collaboration with influencers to engage consumers is an art form in and of itself. A blend of strategy, inventiveness, creativity, and social media surveillance of these digital characters' lives is essential when creating an influencer marketing strategy.

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Over 71% of consumers are more inclined to buy an item after hearing about it on social media. 74% of customers, on the other hand, regard word-of-mouth marketing as a significant factor influencing their purchase decision. They feel it aids them in making the best buying selection possible.

influencer marketing

The combination of influencer marketing and restaurant marketing opens up a new world of possibilities for your restaurant. As a result, go through the restaurant influencer marketing guide to secure your company's survival and prosperity in today's highly competitive market.

Who should represent your brand and help achieve your campaign objectives? Read on to find out more.

What is Influencer Marketing?

It's also called influence marketing, among the most powerful social media marketing strategies. Influencer marketing entails ad campaigns and recommendations from community and social influencers with a high level of expertise. Influencer material is typically portrayed as testimonial marketing and plays a critical function in assisting businesses to engage more prospective customers.

Did you know that 63% of marketers now collaborate with ten or more influencers on each campaign? Why do you believe businesses and marketers place great value on influencer marketing?

It's because shoppers trust social proof and personal suggestions more than business ads. 

In 2020, nearly 19 percent of businesses preferred to spend $1,000 to $10,000 yearly on influencer marketing. But interestingly, almost 18 percent love spending $100,000 to $500,000 on influencer marketing each year. 

Before starting cooperation, one could wonder why food blogger is used in restaurant marketing. We do so for a variety of reasons:

First, make a pleasant and immediate impression on potential customers and regularly lure people to the restaurant.

  • To use the restaurant's marketing strategy to advertise one-time activities.
  • Third, to boost the restaurant's brand reputation, give it more importance, and stay current.
  • In a short time, grow revenues with a creative and successful approach.

A suggestion from a food influencer can have a significant impact. For example, an influencer's actions can significantly increase followers on a restaurant's Instagram account. If the account quality content is successful, these followers will most likely convert to consumers in a short amount of time.

  • The first step is to establish the target demographic for the business and look for food influencers that speak to that audience.
  • The next step is to look at the sort of material this influencer sends out to their followers and see how it relates to the restaurant's marketing message.
  • The next stage would be to draft offers for partnership with each influencer.

1. Find the Right Influencer for Your Influencer Campaigns

influencer following

Start by identifying the objectives of your campaign. After you have identified the goals you want to achieve through influencer marketing, the next step is to find the ideal match or influencers. Again, it is essential to know your brand's voice before you start looking.

Constantly evaluate your ideal consumers' preferences before determining whether or not the influencer's character and approach match your target audience’s personality. For example, search for ready meals or nutritious food influencers depending on your restaurant's menu. Remember that not everyone is a good fit for a restaurant influencer marketing strategy; you must identify the most exemplary person for an influencer campaign.

Make an enticing offer to influential people. If you want honest and sincere reviews and content, paying influencers is one way, but there are better methods than paying influencers. Instead, consider how you might provide influencers with a memorable experience they will be eager to tell their friends and supporters. You may, for instance, invite them to a complimentary meal, send them restaurant gift vouchers, ask them to unique sampling events, limited-time offers related to a particular dish or food, and so on. It will aid in the creation of authentic buzz for your company.

2. Offer Exclusive Deals to your Influencer’s Followers

Once you have partnered with an influencer or influencers, invite them to the eatery and tell them stories about how a meal is prepared from beginning to end. If the food influencer enjoys sharing recipes, suggest cooperation in which they post a series of tales showing the production of the main meal.

Influencers can create exciting content by walking inside and through the kitchen, demonstrating the cooking process, and sampling the cuisine. It's a partnership in which the influencer reaps the benefits of generating dynamic material for their following, and the restaurant reaps the benefits of directly advertising its items to potential customers.

Influencers may want to give free stuff to their fans. For example, you may ask the influencer to share a post or story, including an image or video of the place and a "secret" phrase so that people can go there and get a free drink or dessert by telling staff a unique promo code. It's a fantastic approach to drawing in new customers and achieving recognition. But, of course, you don’t want to offer the main entree; you should provide a free item where the customer will still be required to spend money to get satiated. 

You may do a joint giveaway with the influencer as well. For example, if the influencer has a large following, you could require users to follow the influencer’s page and your page to enter the giveaway; this would enable you to grow your social media with more followers. 

3. Create a Relevant Event for Culinary or Food Influencers

You can research influencers appropriate to your targeted consumers and host events at the restaurant created specifically for them, like tastings, discussions, workshops, book conferences, media nights, and live cooking demonstrations by renowned chefs, among other ideas. You may then ask them to perform live streaming of their favorite moments via their Instagram and Facebook profiles. In addition, you may get articles featured on blogger websites if you invite bloggers. 

For local restaurants in certain cities, it is essential to invite local influencers or micro-influencers to meet your budget and create an impact. Local influencers can help you reach your target audience with potential customers who can dine with you. If you are a bigger restaurant chain with outlets across the U.S., then macro-influencers can be chosen.

Measure the Outcomes

Begin tracking your campaign's performance after it has gone live. Find out the answers to topics like:

  • What are folks talking about at the restaurant? 
  • Are you seeing increased followers, mentions, and engagement on your social media pages?
  • Are restaurant influencer campaigns assisting you in attracting new patrons?
  • Do you track the number of people that visit your company's website?
  • Do you see customers redeeming offers based on coupons or promo codes you offered your influencers?

Monitor the link in the appropriate place if you have an influencer post about the restaurant on the website's summary or bio. It will assist you in determining the campaign's reaction. If you've offered a discount code to your influencer, ensure you track its users to keep track of the results.

marketing analytics

Discover Why Restaurant Influencer Marketing Is So Important!

Restaurant influencer marketing significantly impacts how your restaurant is viewed, brings in walk-ins, and helps restaurants grow. The tactics outlined above are some of the most successful influencer marketing strategies for driving sales and customers to your business. However, there are many factors to consider to maximize the benefits of restaurant influencer marketing for the restaurant in a highly competitive market.

Restaurant influencer marketing done correctly may help you reap long-term benefits. Influencers are great for grand openings. If you are opening a new restaurant, invite local influencers to your opening. You may invite local influencers who might spread the word about your food. Allow customers to sample your delicacies; if your menu has changed, invite local food influencers or bloggers to test it. Take a look at some things you should consider for your restaurant's growth.

  • Discounts and special offers
  • Give out a free lunch
  • Demonstrate what happens behind the scenes.
  • Paid collaboration

Points to keep in mind: 

When working with influencers or bloggers, pick someone who shares your brand's beliefs and style.

  • Make sure the cooperation you're proposing is appropriate to the influencer. For example, collaboration with a fashion blogger will not sound right if you are a fast-food business.
  • Identify the influencer or blogger’s target audience and see if they are a good fit.
  • Make a substantial offer.
  • Publishing a blog post takes a lot of time, don't anticipate a quick response.
  • Send them high-resolution photographs of your items or services that they may use to promote your restaurant.
  • You may even give them a unique discount code to put in their blog or social media, which will help them sell more.

If you would like to start an influencer marketing campaign and don’t know where to start, let the Best POS marketing agency help you plan and execute the movement.

Contact Best POS, online restaurant marketing agency to grow your restaurant through digital marketing services!


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