The one-word answer is YES!

But before we get down to the business of explaining why you should have a blog for your restaurant website, let's first understand what exactly blogging is. In simple words, it is a kind of content you write and publish on your website with a purpose to attract visitors on the website through search engines. Another most relevant purpose of blogging is to educate your visitors about your products, specialties or to simply talk about experiences that would lay the foundation of trust and credibility.

How does it work?

More content = Happy search engines = Increased visitors.

Think of it this way: Every time you publish new content on your website, you increase the likelihood of getting discovered online. Would you rather have 5 pages indexed on Google or hundreds? Blogging ensures that your restaurant shows up in search results of those hungry people looking for suggestions online.

Imagine a group of friends in Denver wanting to order authentic Chinese on a Friday evening. This time they want to explore a new restaurant and in that quest, they turn to Google. Google or any other search engine gives more importance (better ranking) to those businesses that frequently update content on their website.

The secret sauce to effective blogging is to publish relevant, unique and informative blogs with a lot of images and relevant Meta Tags. Meta tags help search engine crawlers to discover your website and index it under relevant categories. So when, in this case, someone searches for an Authentic Chinese Order Online in Denver, your business is likely to get featured on the first page. Of course, the ranking is based on how relevant your website content is for the search query.

Now the question is,

Why should a restaurateur invest in creating regular content, like a blog?

Not sure whether restaurant blogging would benefit your business? The below-given benefits will have you jump on the blogging bandwagon.

Boost Search Engine Ranking

If you thought that having a couple of pages with a robust food online ordering system would be enough to increase sales from the website, you might want to reconsider your strategy.

Google doesn't like static websites. In a world that’s constantly evolving, Google wants to present its users with the most updated content possible. Perhaps it gives importance to only those businesses that genuinely want to connect with their audience and we all know that creating quality content is the only way to keep Google happy.

As mentioned earlier, updating your website once a week with unique, fresh and relevant content with SEO driven keywords can make a big difference in search engine ranking. The more pages you have on the website, the more Google will index, the more chance you have to get discovered by people who are looking for the stuff you have to offer.

Moreover, with social media integration on the blog site, you can multiply the possibility of your blog posts traveling even further, which means you’re creating more opportunities for your business to get new customers.

Improve your Social Presence

The restaurant industry is very social, so creating shareable content works just perfectly to stay connected with existing customers and introduce yourself to new ones. You can use this dynamic platform to connect with your customers on a deeper level through intriguing stories and pictures. A quality blog provides fodder for social media, where the content can be easily liked and shared.

For example, by writing stories about chefs and their experiences or covering the journey of delivery boys at your restaurant can really appeal to your customers. These types of posts also make for very shareable content, as the others involved will likely promote the article with their networks.

Apart from this, sharing the blog content on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, also helps you demonstrate industry knowledge and goals. This positions you as an authority in your industry that will ultimately boost your restaurant’s exposure—and your revenue generation.

Collect Customer Data

The main goal of writing creative, quality articles is to drive sales by educating guests about your establishment even before they visit. If your blog posts are intriguing, interesting and thought-provoking, chances are that your customers would willingly share their email addresses with you. You can use the data to send newsletters, as well as personalized deals and offers that would tempt them to order from your website.

This is also a great way to notify your customers of upcoming events and weekly food specials or menu changes. You can also add a link to a customer feedback form on the email and find out what your customers really think about your food and services. The data collected from blogging and online food ordering system can be used to make improvements as well as create personalised recommendations for upselling.

While it does take some effort to create a restaurant blog, the good news is it’s an opportunity to connect with customers online and increase sales. Make sure you spend some time in creating an effective content creation and marketing strategy before starting a blog.  It’s important to make sure that all of your articles reflect your brand vision and integrity. Content should focus on areas that are relevant to your community.  

Original, updated, and well-written blog posts will return results and we’ve got the proof that restaurant blogging can turn your business around.

Do you use a blog with your website? Or do you simply use your website for online ordering without a blog? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.