When Should Restaurants Consider Paid Media Opportunities

INTRODUCTION

While getting an unpaid feature on a local morning show, a story in the newspaper or a mention from a respected food reporter can provide important exposure for your restaurant, earned media isn’t always predictable.

Shrinking newsrooms and lack of beat writers are among several reasons why garnering media coverage is harder and harder these days. This is where paid media opportunities can make sense.

Here are some situations when restaurants should consider paying for media.

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How Restaurants Can Use Geofencing to Attract Customers

INTRODUCTION

Geofencing is a location-based advertising technology that creates a virtual boundary around physical areas and prompts an action when a device enters, leaves or travels through the specified area. Many platforms on the market offer geofencing services. Typically, they operate on a pay-per-click or cost-per-mille pricing model, much like Google or Meta ads.

Geofencing is a particularly functional form of advertising for restaurants for a few reasons. First, restaurants have an extremely local customer base. Second, dining decisions can be highly situational, such as leaving work, staying at a hotel, attending an event, shopping or visiting an entertainment venue.  Geofencing lets restaurants build campaigns around those situations.

Location can also signal potential intent or interest. Someone visiting a competing restaurant, entertainment district or nearby attraction may be part of a particularly relevant audience for a restaurant.

Geofencing can help reduce wasted ad spend, too. Rather than advertising across an entire metro area, restaurants can concentrate spending on geographic areas where their desired customers are likely to be.

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Experience Your Hotel as a Guest

hotel roomOne of the marketing services we offer to hotels is managing online reviews, primarily on Google and Facebook. As a result of all the comments I’ve seen over the years, I now have more of a critical eye when I stay at hotels.

Whatever I experience or see–good or bad–I think to myself: will this be mentioned in another guest’s review? Part of the challenge for hoteliers is that guests don’t always report issues in person. Often, they prefer to vent about it online, and it can make you look negligent or ignorant.

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