How to Create Social Media Content Consistently
Content marketing is one of the most effective methods available for restaurants to connect, engage, and build trust with their customers. But, if you haven’t done a lot of it before, it can also be somewhat scary.
Of course, there is no substitute for getting the basics of your business right: food, service, price, atmosphere, and a cozy and clean environment need to be on point! But once those are in order, content marketing is the holy grail to greater retention, revenue, and recognition. On the other hand, new brands that don’t produce solid, engaging content, often wind up lost in a sea of lookalikes.
Going on this journey requires embracing a new approach to how we interact with our customers online and offline.
A new approach to customer interaction
Why is this important? 70% of people prefer to learn about businesses through content rather than traditional advertising. In other words, today’s customers don’t want to be talked to, they want to find things out by themselves and be engaged in conversation.
The 3 content marketing rules to follow
So, how do I approach content marketing? The trick is producing valuable, relevant, and consistent content, tailored to your specific audience. Then, there are 3 further rules to follow:
The first rule is the 30:30:30 Rule:
- 30% of your content should be about your food, drinks, or new menu.
- 30% should be about the team, the kitchen, and your concept.
- 30% should be about user-generated content, i.e. images, videos, or reviews, that have been posted by users on your online platforms.
- 10% is anything else you want.
As you learn more about what your customers react to the most, you can adjust the ratio.
The second rule is to post 3-4 times a week on Instagram (and maybe Twitter), and at least once a week on Facebook. What’s the difference between Instagram/Twitter and Facebook? Instagram is like the “behind the scenes” look into your company. Everything is allowed. It doesn’t always have to be perfect, but just consistent with your branding and concept. On the other hand, Facebook is your “business card.”
It’s a bit more formal. Remember baby steps. Build up slowly until posting out becomes a habit. For more advanced users, we’ll come back with more in-depth advice very soon!
The third rule is to “keep it real.” Don’t stress over social media. The best approach is to listen, be respectful, and be solutions-oriented. Don’t say or do anything that you wouldn’t say in public or to someone you care about.
Okay, what do I do now?
Here are the 6 steps you can follow, so you can spend more time on your core business and be more efficient with your posting!
- Gather all your photos. Create a folder on your computer where you can upload, store, and manage all your photos and videos.
- Pick the foodie days that you want to post about.
- Select photos – your own, or from your users.
- Write a one or two-line message.
- For Instagram and Twitter, select some hashtags
- Use a tool to schedule your posts… then forget about it.
- At the end of the week or month, circle back and look at which posts and times worked best.
This whole process is called BATCHING. Batching is simply a form of time management that allows a person to maximize concentration and decrease distraction. As a result, it increases your productivity, creativity, and mental sharpness, while decreasing fatigue, procrastination, and stress.
Alright, so where does the calendar fit in?
Your free Q3 Foodie Days Calendar gives you an overview of all the fun hospitality holidays in this quarter. Use it as a base and then add and delete content as you wish!
Side note: There’s no need to go overboard and squeeze all of the days in. Keep it relevant and pick the foodie days that match your concept and tone of voice. Then, get creative and upload them to a planning tool, which posts them out automatically, for a stress-free online year.
What tools can I use to schedule my posts?
For Facebook and Twitter, you can use AreTheyHappy’s Publisher feature. Super easy to plan, manage, and schedule Facebook and Twitter posts.
For Instagram, we like to use Later. They have a free account that you can try. You can schedule out your content by dragging and dropping photos from your media library into your “scheduler”, and it doesn’t end there… You can also preview the look of your feed and drag and drop media around according to what looks best, so you always know what your feed is going to look like.
Get ready, set, plan!
Download your Foodie Days Calendar and start posting beautiful social media content! Download my calendar