Recipe For Success: How to Utilize Digital Marketing in the Food Industry
Every industry is different. While some digital marketing objectives may be applicable over a wide variety of products and services, there are some areas in which a specialty is needed.
One of our successful clients, Theory, is an upscale sports lounge in downtown Chicago. Theory goes above and beyond in order to stay ahead in the highly competitive food industry. Offering excellent food, style, service, and all around comfort, this is definitely not your average sports bar.
You may be wondering, how does this company stay ahead of the curve? The answer my be hiding in their digital marketing tactics.
SEO
Keyword Lists: Experimenting and tweaking different groups of keywords and search terms is essential to figuring out what will work best for your business. But first, you have to start with a wide range of options.
Be sure to include several different types of keywords throughout your website and advertisements. Broad match, niche-specific, and individual brand terms can all help drive traffic to your restaurant.
Keep it Local: Try to keep many of your marketing strategies centered around local consumers. After all, these are the people who are going to be the lifeblood of your business.
Gain as much ground as possible on local directories. Google My Business is an incredible resource. Listing your company through Google will immediately boost its awareness. You definitely want your business to pop up when someone does a local search for “food near me.”
Social Media
Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are all hugely influential to customers in the food industry. Impactbnd.com compiled 49 statistics on social media. The following stats highlight the incredible affect social media can have on your brand:
- In 2015 Facebook influenced 52 percent of consumers’ online and offline purchases, up from 36 percent in 2014.
- 68 percent of Instagram users engage with brands regularly, and Instagram has 58 times more engagement per follower than Facebook.
- 67% of Twitter users are far more likely to buy from the brands they follow on Twitter.
Website Optimization
Every real business needs an equally real website. A “real” a site can direct users and help to answer their most common questions.
More basic questions consist of “what is your address, phone number, and business hours?” Slightly more complicated questions may include, “are you available to cater special events or reserve a room for a private event?” All of these questions should have an answer that is clearly stated on your website.
The user experience should also be clear and efficient. A customer should be able to navigate your website with ease, both on a desktop or mobile device.
The overall visual appeal of a site is also incredibly important. If a potential customer is not pleased with photographs of your business and the food it offers, then they are very unlikely to order anything off of your menu.
No one gets a second first impression. Make sure that your restaurant gathers all the right kinds of attention with a spectacular website.
Case Study
Onimod Global was able to work with Theory of Chicago on each of these aspects. We used our expertise to build a new website, pack it full of SEO content, and spread the word about their incredible services across all major social media platforms. Take a deeper look into this project by viewing the Theory case study HERE.