Restaurants
Social media management
Feb 26, 2025
To succeed in today’s restaurant industry, it’s not enough to just have great food and provide great experiences. In our hyperconnected, digital-first world, the American Psychological Association reports our attention spans are shrinking. That means your plates could be artful masterpieces, but, if you’re not making waves on Instagram or other social media platforms, you might as well be serving them in a cave.
The hard truth of the restaurant industry is, if your social media game is weak, you’re doomed to be another forgettable spot in a sea of local Yelp listings. Social media has evolved from a marketing “add-on” to a lifeline for restaurants—so let’s talk about what that means for you.
Social media drives measurable value for restaurants
If you think a mouthwatering menu is all it takes to attract diners, think again. From mesmerizing food pics on Instagram to viral chef videos on TikTok, social channels can help you capture attention, drive curiosity, and fill tables faster than ever before.
Drive new customer acquisition
Social media directly drives people to try new eateries. In one survey, 45% of U.S. diners said they’ve tried a restaurant for the first time because of a social media post or social media recommendation. In other words, nearly half of consumers have been won over by a restaurant’s Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or similar presence at least once.
These platforms function as modern-day word-of-mouth engines: a compelling post or a friend’s share can put a restaurant on the map for scores of potential patrons. You’ve heard the saying “you eat with your eyes first,” and social media proves that. For example, 57% of people say that enticing food photos on a restaurant’s social media influence their decision to visit.
Expand discovery beyond search engines
When diners are hungry but unsure of where to eat, they go to Google, right? Well, times change. Google, particularly Google Maps, is still a high-impact driver of restaurant discovery, but, nowadays, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and even Snapchat are up there with it. According to trip Advisor, 49% of consumers use some form of social media to find or research restaurants before visiting.
Amplify brand reach through virality
Fame can come at a cost, but that cost can pale in comparison to the cost of missing out on the hundreds or thousands of customers it can bring your way every month. A famous case is Wendy’s 2017 viral Twitter exchange (where a fan’s tweet for free nuggets earned 3.4 million retweets)—the buzz boosted Wendy’s follower count by 300,000 and helped the chain surpass its $10 billion sales target that year.
Even smaller restaurants are finding similar success with social media. It doesn’t take much time, effort, or money to post videos on TikTok. And, according to a study from several years ago, when TikTok had only a fraction of the userbase it now boasts, roughly 36% of users visited or ordered from a restaurant after seeing a TikTok video about it.
Serve up success with these best practices for restaurant social media
Likes and shares can make or break a restaurant, so harnessing social media effectively is critical to staying competitive. By customizing your approach, knowing what to post, and meeting your audience where they’re at, you can maximize the impact of your social media investments.
Throw out the “one size fits all” mentality
Social media isn’t about doing what everybody else does. It’s about finding what’s best for your business; and that means taking a strategic approach and selecting only the most relevant social media platforms. Those are, in order from mission-critical to somewhat important, as follows:
Instagram is the visual playground where high-res food photography propels brands to stardom and blurry or unappealing images sends franchisees packing.
Facebook is the place to nurture your local fanbase (especially older demographics) with event invites, promotions, and customer feedback highlights.
TikTok is where you win your 15 seconds of fame with behind-the-scenes kitchen antics, plating, and other “real-world” videos (like Instagram's Reels feature).
Google My Business is the key to attracting local customers looking for local places to get good food recommendations from other locals.
X, formerly known as Twitter, is great for offering quick hits, real-time specials, brand banter, and public Q&As.
Yelp and other review sites your customers trust provide you an opportunity to spin bad press and elevate positive reviews.
Every platform has its own style and etiquette. Not adapting to each platform’s culture is like serving vegan customers steak and wondering why they leave bad reviews.
Curate mouthwatering visual content or post none at all
Sometimes, the perfect is the enemy of the good. Other times, posting bad content is worse than posting nothing at all. Both statements are true for social media, especially Instagram. It’s better to have people not like what they see than to have them dislike what they see, and best to have them love it.
That means investing in professional photography or learning how to do it well yourself, showing diners what they’re missing with behind-the-scenes plating and cooking videos, and more—all in a consistent style.
It’s also crucial to take a holistic look at your feed and ask yourself whether it looks visually cohesive or like a random hodgepodge of distinct posts.
Don’t hide behind your posts, engage like you mean it
Social media isn’t a billboard; it’s a conversation. If customers feel like you’re ghosting them by not responding to their comments or ignoring their messages, they’ll do the same to you.
Instead, respond to every comment or DM like you would your favorite customer if they were right in front of you. Encourage users to generate content (photos, reviews, etc.) and tag you so you can share the love by reposting or featuring those posts. Run polls, host Q&A sessions, and propose challenges to spark excitement—or maybe a little healthy controversy.
But always remember: silence from a restaurant on social media tells diners that nobody’s talking about the restaurant. And, if nobody’s talking about it, it must not be that good.
Claim your slice of social media—or watch your seats stay empty
Social media for restaurants isn’t just about posting pretty pictures. It’s about defining a future-proof engagement strategy that aligns with your brand’s personality, resonates with your customers, and relentlessly pushes your narrative in an ever-crowded market.
Yes, social media for restaurants involves risk-taking and vulnerability. But, in a space where new restaurants open and old ones close every day, the restaurant that wins heats and nourishes Instagram feeds is the one that endures.