Over the last couple of weeks Vectron/Bepoz has attended two hospitality summits. In Sydney at the PubLeaders Summit over 400 publicans and corporates got together to engage in what makes a venue successful, and then as part of Melbourne Coffee Week the inaugural Australian Speciality Coffee Association Symposium, where Café owners, roasters and suppliers gathered to talk and learn on how to build a winning cafe.
Similar topics, similar themes – design, menu relevance, supply channels, staffing and what’s the latest and greatest food or coffee trend were constant.
One topic however that many peaked much interest was….social media. How to embrace it, how to use it, what mediums to use, how to build a following and how to maintain it.
So here’s a brief take and a few tips to help get you on your way.
First up – Before we start to talk social if you are planning on driving punters to your website for bookings, events etc you need to make sure it’s brushed up, current and user friendly. Welcome customers to your venue.
Next Social media – some say it’s like going to a great party and engaging with like-minded people. Let’s go. Before any good party, we need to be ready, we need to know why we are going and do we have a goal? Our goal might be to meet new people but we don’t go into the party and announce our goal. We dress appropriately, have conversations and people get the idea of our why. Translated simply to goals if your B2B or customer engagement B2C.
Now we know why, what platforms are going to work best – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, SnapChat, LinkedIn, and Pinterest. Do know if you are marketing to the age group of 25-44 social media is one of the first three things they do on waking and the overwhelming majority 90% engage via their smartphone.
To get started look at Facebook and Instagram they are great for the hospitality industry and very simple to use.
Facebook with 95% of social media users on this platform in Australia it’s probably the best place to start. You’ve got lots of space for promoting your events – both visual and written, it’s great for building relationships with customers and provides a two way street for reviews.
Instagram 31% of social media users are actively engaging via this platform and it’s the fastest growing platform in Australia. Totally made for the hospitality industry a picture is worth a thousand words, again builds trust and customer relationships, ability to promote events and build your personality.
So don’t be scared it’s not rocket science and done correctly over time can be fun and have a great ROI.
Tip – if it really is too daunting or time consuming for you engage a millennial they live and breathe social, they have grown up with it. Empower them to build your brand under your branding brief, but that’s for another blog.
*Senses social media report 2016