If you’ve read my “About” page, you might remember that I’m planning on pursuing a career in public relations with a focus on the restaurant industry after I graduate. As an aspiring PR professional, it has become more and more important for me to be aware of major social media tools and how they can be leveraged to help businesses reach their goals. Given my interest in the food and beverage world, I’ve spent a good amount of time thinking about ways that restaurants could use these tools.

In fact, I’ve recently thought a lot about writing up a post with my ideas. Turns out, however, someone who shares many of my ideas has saved me some time by writing a really great post for the RestaurantJobBoard.com blog. The post is by Scott Schnaars, a sales executive at SocialText.

All those included in the article are good tips (though Scott was writing from more of a marketing than public relations angle), but here are a few others that I would add:

Blogging: Knowing what I do about chefs, I can understand why a blog may seem like something you just might not have the time for. The truth is that you don’t have to spend two hours a day and write 500 word posts to have a successful chef’s blog. One of the best examples is right in our own back yard. McCrady’s Chef Sean Brock’s blog (http://seanbrock.wordpress.com) is currently ranked in the top 0.25% of all blogs tracked by Technorati and his posts are rarely more than a sentence or two with a picture.

What makes Sean’s blog so successful is not just that he’s become somewhat of a celebrity over the past year, it’s also the type of content he uses. His posts regularly include pictures of unique ingredients that he’s using, interesting tidbits about the people who produce those ingredients, and pictures and brief explanations of new additions to the menu. This is great because it gives interested customers a way to feel like they are getting “secret” or behind the scenes information about the food that comes out of the kitchen. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gone to Sean’s blog, seen a picture of some great produce that McCrady’s was growing on their farm, and thought “Wow. I have got to go in once they have that on the menu!”

YouTube: This could be used in conjunction with a blog, but I think video offers a great way to grow the viral element of your Web site. How about, in addition to posting recipes, you record your chef offering 1-2 minute cooking tips at least once or twice a month. I’d avoid anything too intensive, but perhaps something simple, like how to make your trademark salad dressing. Not only could this bring some traffic to your Web site as customers forward the video to their friends, but if your chef has a decent personality it could also position him to make guest appearances on local TV. In addition, I would recommend doing a video tour of your main and private dining rooms. Video offers a much more complete vision of your space. There is only so much that can be gathered from still photos.

Chowhound: This is along the same line as Scott’s comment about Yelp, but I wish he would have included it as well. According to its homepage, Chowhound.com is a place where “Food-lovers worldwide gather to swap expert tips about restaurants, foods, stores, and bars.” Chowhound includes regionally focused forums where community members discuss the merits of local restaurants, recount horror stories and great meals, and recommend weekend itineraries to out of town visitors.

I’d argue that these are the people whose opinions you want to know about, even more than Yelp. This is a better group to listen to because these are people who make posts about restaurants on a regular basis, not just after they have a great or terrible experience. People who join a community like this are people who their friends go to for recommendations. In political terms, they are essentially the “super delegates.” One quick word of advice, Chowhound doesn’t allow customer service on their message boards, and they will not hesitate to ban you from the site if you try to respond to a complaint. This is a site for monitoring your reputation among key influencers.

Google Alerts/Other Blogs: Similar to the people who post on Chowhound, food bloggers (like myself) are people who take even more time to elaborate their opinions about local restaurants. You better believe that anyone who takes the time to write a blog post about your restaurant is likely to convey those same opinions to their friends/colleagues when your restaurant’s name comes up in conversation. In fact, in addition to the people who read their Web site, these are also almost certainly people who are sought out by their friends for recommendations.

A quick, easy Google Alert for your restaurant’s name can keep you abreast of every new post made about your establishment. Unlike Chowhound, most bloggers are okay with you posting a comment right below their review. If you want to take the more private route, almost every blog offers a way to contact the writer directly. Respond to complaints courteously and professionally. Make sure that the writer knows what you’re doing to address their concerns. If their experience was bad enough, it might be worth it to offer them a comped meal to prove to that you’re taking their complaints seriously. You’ll be surprised how much good customer service can improve your reputation within the community.

Twitter: While I certainly agree with Scott’s statement that Twitter is a great opportunity to have a conversation with customers, I don’t know if daily tweets before lunch and dinner is the way to go. I’d recommend tweeting when you have a really unique and interesting special, when you’re adding a new item to the menu, or when you get a particularly rare wine/beer in stock. You want your “marketing tweets” to present a value or opportunity to your customers. You need to give them a reason to follow your tweets.

Like any other social media platform, it’s important to remember to join the conversation. Talk to people, not at them. Respond to tweets about your community, about food in general, and try to make sure that you pay a little extra attention to those who you perceive to be community influencers.
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So, if you’re in the restaurant business, consider putting one or two of these tips into action. With a little effort, you may see improved community perception of your restaurant become its own self-sustaining marketing tool.

(David’s Note: Yes, that is the most stereotypical “social media” graphic that I could find on Google Images)

(David’s Note: In retrospect, that post I found didn’t really save me much time, because I probably wrote more than he did. Oh well)

Related posts:

1. Chef Sean Brock of McCrady’s to Appear on Food Network Challenge

2. City Paper Reveals Other Contestants on Sean Brock’s Food Network Challenge Episode