Coming up with unique restaurant Facebook post ideas can be a daunting task. Getting your restaurant’s Facebook followers to engage on those posts can be even more difficult these days. However, it’s more important now than ever before.
News feeds are becoming overwhelmed with new content every second.
So how can you get your restaurant’s Facebook posts seen by your customers? Two simple ways. Either you can buy ads or you can create content that your customers actually like and engage with.
The more engagement on your posts means it will be seen by more people. Getting your Facebook posts seen more often means more customers in your restaurant.
Here are 15 restaurant Facebook post ideas that you can use to increase engagement on your posts.
RESTAURANT FACEBOOK POSTS THAT INCREASE ENGAGEMENT
1. TIME YOUR POSTS
Posting at the right time of day can make a big difference in how many people see and click what you are sharing.
According to this infographic, posts between 1pm – 4pm result in the highest average click through. The best day of the week to post is Wednesday, specifically at 3pm, while the worst time is on weekends before 8am and after 8pm.
On weekdays people are often busy with work in the mornings but more likely to be getting bored and checking their Facebook in the afternoon. This is why 1pm – 4pm makes sense to post, sometime between lunch and their commute home.
2. TELL PERSONAL STORIES
Telling stories works so well because people can often relate to them and it connects with them on a more personal level.
Keep an eye out for whenever something funny or quirky happens at the restaurant and make sure to take a picture. Sharing these stories might be your most engaged posts ever.
3. SHARE YOUR RECIPES
People love recipes. They also love to share them with their friends.
Chances are when scrolling through Facebook you’ve come across quite a few, most likely from Tasty. After all, they have over 85 million likes on their page.
Restaurant Facebook post ideas are hard to get engagement on, but videos almost always work. Create a video, or even just a blog post, with one of your recipes and share it on Facebook and other social media channels. Take a look at what Tasty does well in their posts and try to use them as inspiration for your own.
4. SHARE REVIEWS
Every restaurant says that they serve the greatest food that you will ever try. But how many people are going to believe that when it’s coming from the owner or head chef? They would be much more interested in seeing what other customers or food critics had to say.
Look for positive reviews of your restaurant on Facebook, Yelp, TripAdvisor and anywhere else that your restaurant is listed online. Share the best ones of Facebook with a screenshot and direct link to the review. Thank the customer who posted the review and offer them a free dessert next time they dine at your restaurant.
Also, make sure you create a post any time your restaurant is reviewed by a food critic in your local newspaper or online.
5. EXCLUSIVE OFFERS
Facebook is a great place to post about an exclusive offer. Offer your customers a deal if they like your page and share the offer with their friends.
Use a Facebook coupons app to easily create coupons and keep track of your offers success. It may be on of your most successful restaurant Facebook post ideas of all time.
6. GO BEHIND-THE-SCENES
Let your customers see what’s going on behind the scenes of your restaurant. Give them a peak into how their food is prepared back in the kitchen, how you connect with local farmers to source your ingredients, and any other interesting things that go on in your restaurant that customers otherwise would not experience.
Similar to sharing personal stories, customers will appreciate how open you are and be able to relate to you more personally.
7. POST ACCORDING TO THE WEATHER
Being current is important, and that includes the weather outside. If it’s hot outside, why not advertise cold beer. If it’s cold, invite people inside for a warm bowl of soup or cup of coffee. Remember to use photos as much as possible. Let the cold beer or warm coffee do all the talking for you.
8. ASK FOR INPUT FROM CUSTOMERS
What better way to get customers to interact and engage with your on Facebook than to ask them questions to get their input.
Ask questions about your menu, specifically what they would like to see on it, as well as what upcoming events they may want to watch or celebrate at your restaurant.
9. POST VIDEOS
Over 100 million hours of video are watched each day on Facebook. It’s one of the most popular forms on content today. And even better, people love engaging with videos and sharing them with their friends.
Create videos in your restaurant to show off your menu, live music events, how to make certain recipes, a behind the scenes look or just something funny to share with your customers.
Be creative and have fun with it!
10. RUN A PHOTO CONTEST
We’ve talked about how sharing customer content can be beneficial. However, what if not enough people are posting about your restaurant?
Try running a photo contest in order to persuade people to share photos of your restaurant with their friends.
Ask people to share a photo of their meal at your restaurant on Facebook. The most liked photo will award the winner a free appetizer, dessert or meal the next time they visit your restaurant.
You can also post your own photo and give people a chance to win a prize by liking, sharing and commenting on it. Each engagement gets them a ticket into a draw for a prize of your choice.
11. STAFF BIOS
Every once in a while create a post to let customers get to know your staff. Provide an image of them in your restaurant and share their favorite dish, how they got started at your restaurant, where they went to school, their hobbies and anything else unique that people would find interesting.
Not only does this let customers connect with your restaurant on a personal level, but it’s also a post that can get a good amount of engagement. Your staff are likely to comment on the post and share it with their friends.
12. SHARE CUSTOMER CONTENT
Word of mouth is still one of the best forms of advertising. Today, word of mouth can come in many different forms. People often post about their experience at their favorite restaurant on Facebook to share it with their friends.
Use these positive experiences that people are posting to your advantage. Share some of the best content people are posting about your restaurant. It gives other customers a different perspective of your restaurant and it could be better at convincing them to dine there than you are.
13. POST ABOUT CURRENT TOPICS AND TRENDS
Your posts are more likely to be seen and engaged with on Facebook if they’re about trending topics. Looks for what is already trending on Facebook in or in the local news.
Try to base your post around a current event happening that day, for example a sporting event, and encourage your Facebook fans to interact with you.
14. PROMOTE YOUR EVENTS
If you’re investing a lot of time and money into hosting events at your restaurant, you should be promoting them on Facebook.
Don’t just use a regular post to promote your event. Use the Events tab on your Facebook page to create an event. One of the best parts about creating events on Facebook is that you can invite guests. Your Facebook fans will be notified and they can select whether they are attending the event or not. If they select that they are attending your event the post will get more reach as their friends may see this as well and be more inclined to go.
While you may not usually want to spend money on Facebook ads, boosting an event post might be worth your while. Advertising your restaurant Facebook post ideas will help them get more reach, more engagement, and put more customers in your restaurant.
15. FACEBOOK TAKEOVER
If people aren’t engaging with your posts it could be that your content is becoming stale. Having someone new takeover your account for the day to freshen things up.
Ask someone in your staff, a food blogger, a local farmer or a even local celebrity to takeover your Facebook account and post from their perspective. Give them freedom, with a few rules, to post whatever they find interesting. Your customers will enjoy the new take on your social media style.
These are just a few restaurant Facebook post ideas that you can try out on your restaurant’s page. Keep trying new things and see what works with your audience.
If you’re having trouble thinking of new restaurant Facebook post ideas to get people engaged, see what your competitor’s are doing that works well and try to replicate it. Remember to keep your own style and most importantly don’t take it too seriously. Have some fun with your Facebook posting and your customers will as well.
