Facebook is one of the most renowned social media giants out there. Today, it has a whopping 2.8 billion active users every month. More than 70% of global users are between 18 and 44 years old. As for the USA, 73% of Facebook users log in to their accounts every single day.

These impressive numbers show just how widespread the reach of Facebook is. Be it millennial or Gen Z, Facebook is a platform to tap into if you want to have an effective marketing strategy. It’s no secret that Facebook ads are a huge source of income for the company’s profits. Their ads simply have the highest click-through rates, even better than Instagram. The average Facebook user clicks on 12 ads every month.  But how can restaurants use Facebook ads to their advantage?

If you’ve just entered the world of online ordering and are still figuring out how to set a Facebook marketing strategy in place, we’ve got you covered.

Steps in Facebook Marketing

• To begin with, create a Facebook company page for your restaurant. This is fairly easy and all you have to do is enter information about your business, its location, your cuisine, and so on.
• Once your page is up and running, you can put up posts on your Facebook wall. This could be a picture of your best-selling dish, seasonal beverages and so on.
• Let your post get some views over the span of the next 24 hours. After this, go to your Facebook Ads Manager and create a “Reach” Campaign. When you’re just starting out, it is a good idea to set your lifetime budget at $100. This way, you don’t end up losing out a lot of money when you’re still in the trial-and-error process. Select the “Create New Audience” tab, and in “Locations”, make sure to select “people living in this area” so that it’s the population of your particular town or city who receives these ads, and not someone who is miles away.
• A small radius of up to 3 miles from your restaurant location is sufficient to start out with for ads. Target people with a higher disposable income, such as between 30 to 55-year olds. Teenagers might not be your best bet in this case, simply due to their lower disposable income.
• Once you reach the end of the ad set, you should see the part for “optimization and delivery”. Over here, we suggest that you limit the frequency cap and focus on showing ads to everyone within a 1-mile radius.
• Click on “Use existing post” to promote the wall post that you started this whole process with. Under the “call to action”, you can simply include your online ordering option, so that customers can place an order directly. Then, click “publish” and you’re good to go!
  

What to Do

• Target the right audience‍

Location targeting is important for Facebook ads but it’s also equally important to target the right kind of audience. Under “detailed targeting”, you can find different categories such as demographics, interests, and behaviors. Each of these has mini categories too. Pick the right kind of option that your restaurant fits into- this could be “Korean food” and “Asian Cuisine” and so on, depending on your business. You can add a layer of demographics to this, selecting the age group you’d like to advertise to.

• Widen your reach with lookalike audience

‍Once you’ve received a positive response to an ad, you can take your reach up a notch with Facebook’s feature of “Lookalike Audience”. It’s quite neat-lets say you have a current list of 500 customers that have ordered food from your restaurant. All you have to do is upload this base of customer email ids on Facebook and let it do its magic. Facebook will find more people who “look like” your customers, which is to say they have similar profiles and interests. This simplifies customer acquisition to a large extent.

• Promote the dining experience‍

A restaurant can create a lasting impression with scrumptious food and beverages, but there’s more to the dining experience than just having a quick bite. For many, the occasion of going out for dinner is one they cherish because of the change of scene and relaxing ambiance and all in all, having a good time. So, remember to post images and videos of your tempting menu items but make sure you promote the dining experience too. Well-shot pictures of the dining space, snippets of live music are great at showcasing your restaurant’s best aspects to customers.

• Make the most of ad scheduling‍

One of the perks that Facebook offers is that you can schedule your posts way ahead of time. You can set aside time every week to decide all the posts you’re going to make, and they’ll be uploaded regularly without you having to put in daily effort. Do some research about what time you receive the highest engagement on Facebook, and schedule your posts in that duration.

What Not to Do

• Don’t stick to the same ads

When it comes to marketing, it’s important to mix things up now and then. Get creative with your ads and experiment with video posts too. Keep testing what works for your restaurant, by checking the insights on Facebook itself. Measuring your results can help you make better decisions to increase your profits in the long run.

• Ignoring Instagram

Your Facebook ads can be promoted on Instagram too. This is a godsend when it comes to marketing to younger audiences such as Gen Z and you don’t even need a designated Instagram account to do so.

• Buying followers

While it might be tempting to want to increase your engagement in a short amount of time, never make the mistake of buying followers. It’s a waste of your marketing budget and will only lead to spam accounts or robots that remain inactive. You’re not going to be rewarded with any real engagement.

How Restolabs Integrates with Facebook Ordering

Restolabs can help you introduce online ordering on Facebook. Our platform allows customers to place an order on your restaurant’s Facebook page instantly, instead of having to visit your website or application. And the best part? You don’t need any extra tech know-how for this. The setup process is quick and seamless, and you can accept your first order on Facebook in just a few minutes.

Facebook can be a goldmine of information for effective marketing and we can help you leverage it. Sign up for a demo today!