5 Restaurant marketing tips: how to build brand awareness in the food and beverage industry

In the competitive food, beverage, and restaurant industry, it’s more important than ever to build brand awareness. After all, how can people become customers if they don’t know you exist? Here are our top 5 restaurant marketing tips to help build awareness for your food or beverage brand.

Restaurant marketing tip #1: Share your story.

One easy way to build your brand and connection with your audience is to promote your company’s story. Maybe your brand has decades of history and sepia-toned photographs of the founders. Maybe your brand was founded two years ago, but you’ve got an engaging story sparked by something unique. No matter how old your brand is, you have a story to tell – and that story can create a connection with your audience. Whatever your story is, lean into it. One quick tip: if your current page is called a generic “About Us,” consider how that could resonate more by being called “Our Story.”

Restaurant marketing tip #2: Consider content marketing.

Content marketing is a tried-and-true way to promote your brand. By creating content that helps your site rank for more keywords, you can build your authority with Google and drive visits to your site. If the content you create is especially fun to share, even better!

Restaurants may not benefit quite as much from an active blog – you probably want to guard your recipes, which is understandable. But if you’re selling a food or beverage product online, there’s plenty of content you could share that would benefit your customers. If you’re selling a protein powder, you could write posts sharing the importance of getting enough protein in your diet, or an awesome shake recipe. With some careful thought and planning, you can begin reaping the rewards of a strong content strategy.

Restaurant marketing tip #3: Invest in high-quality photography.

Unfortunately, technology hasn’t quite evolved to the point where people can smell or taste your food over the internet. If you can’t have people actually taste it, what’s the next best thing? High-quality imagery! Good photos don’t come cheap, but it’s well worth the investment. Of course, you’ll need to use words to describe your product or location (it’s essential in building up SEO), but if you’re trying to sell someone on your food from afar, nothing beats the immediacy of a quality photo.

If you’re selling food, use close-up shots that show all the texture and color it has to offer. If you’re selling a fruity sangria, incorporate enticing pictures of the fruits in it. Even if your audience can’t literally taste your food or drink, you can still make their mouths water. This goes hand-in-hand with our next tip:

Restaurant marketing tip #4: Don’t underestimate the power of a strong brand identity.

With the internet at everyone’s fingertips, and the advertising that comes with it, people are bombarded by brands on the daily. You could have the most awesome food, beverage, or restaurant, but if your branding is lackluster, your sales likely will be too. Brands can only really stick with people if they’re consistent.

So take the time to think through what makes your brand special. Are you a traditional Italian restaurant serving up classic pasta dishes in an upscale atmosphere? Are you an edgy fusion restaurant plastered in large comic-style murals? Whatever your brand’s voice, it needs to be heard loud and clear in everything from your menu designs to the way you interact with customers on social media. Figure out what both feels authentic to you and resonates with your audience, and lean into it.

Restaurant marketing tip #5: Think local.

If you’re a restaurant or brewery and have a physical location that customers can visit, it pays to think local with your marketing. There are many ways to go about this, but one important one is to invest in search engine marketing. (Curious about the difference between SEM and SEO? Check out our article here.) Why SEM? 93% of online journeys start with search, and people who are actively searching typically have high intent. In other words, they’re warm or even hot leads – so you’ll definitely want to get in front of them!

Other ways to boost your local presence are to make sure your Google Business Profile is up to date (you want anyone searching to get accurate information) and to get involved in your local community. Attend local events, sponsor local organizations, and get involved in your community in other ways. This will help you build relationships with potential customers and create a positive reputation for your restaurant.