It seems today that Twitter is being used by just about every corner of the economy and the restaurant industry is no exception. Twitter has become a fantastic tool for restaurants to not only promote their business but to also engage their clientele and monitor feedback and chatter. I’m going to look at a handful of restaurants, most local Fredericton based and non-chained, that are using Twitter as a means to grow.
The Garrison District Ale House // Fredericton, NB
@garrisonale
The Garrison District Ale House, a great restaurant in Fredericton, NB, has been taking advantage of Twitter for the past few months as a promotional tool. They’ve been announcing specials, new drinks, different events and celebrity appearances. They’ve also introduced Twitter Beer Tasting as a way to gain more followers and get more people into the restaurant. People can only attend and participate in the beer tasting if they register via Twitter. All in all these guys are doing a great job of promoting themselves – the only this that’s missing is a fancy looking Twitter page. **cough cough**
The Blue Door // Fredericton, NB
@theblue_door
Another Fredericton based restaurant, The Blue Door has been using Twitter to announce their daily specials. As someone that can never decide where to eat when we go out, being able to see the daily specials at a local restaurant really comes in handy when making decisions. They promote themselves as one of the most progressive and forward thinking restaurants in Fredericton, using Twitter definitely helps solidify that claim.
Marked5 // Los Angeles, CA
@Marked5
The Los Angeles based Marked5 uses Twitter to announce its location as it travels around Los Angeles. It serves little Japanese “burgers” on a bun composed of pressed rice. They also serve teriyaki salmon, katsu pork, you know, fancy Japanese stuff that they don’t serve in Fredericton. Now if only there were cool lunch trucks like this that traveled around Fredericton and Tweeted their locations. There’s dozens in LA that travel around and Tweet to their followers. They get hundreds of people waiting at their future locations just to get a bite to eat.
Racine’s // Fredericton, NB
@racineschef
Though not for the restaurant itself but for the Head Chef Thomas Gimblett, the Racine’s Twitter account has been great for posting lunch and dinner specials. More recently he’s been posting looking for a prep cook/chef. Like The Garrison and The Blue Door, Thomas has been promoting Racine’s and taking advantage of the massive number of people using Twitter. Also like The Garrison, he sure could use a fancy Twitter page **cough cough**.
Even with just a few examples it’s clear to see that Twitter is helping restaurants help engage their customers and promote their restaurants with upcoming events and specials. Remember though, it’s not enough to simply post about yourself. It’s all about engaging. For every one Tweet that you make about yourself you should have 4 or 5 engaging, re-Tweeting and promoting conversation.
About Robb
Hi, I'm Robb Clarke - a Fredericton, New Brunswick based Web Designer and Developer. I'm currently working with OrangeSprocket as one of their Front End Developers. Please take a look around my site and give the Blog a read (or the Shorts if you're looking for a shorter read about none industry related stuff) or stop by my Portfolio to see what I've been up to lately. Most importantly - don't be a stranger.