5 ways to promote your restaurant for free

Until a few years ago, people discovered new restaurants through word of mouth, flyers, tourist guides or simply stumbling across new places to eat and drink. Today, around 80% of consumers head to social media (Facebook, Instagram, TripAdvisor etc.) to find info on restaurant businesses.

For you, the restaurant owner, this is a great opportunity to promote your offer to a much wider clientele, and to create an online showcase for your business using free communication channels.

In addition to being free, having an online presence means that your future guests can access information about your brand at any time. With online menus, photos of dishes and opening hours, your customers can even make a reservation without leaving their smartphone. 

So if you’re looking for new ideas to promote your restaurant and target the right customers, using these new online tools is a must.

In this article, discover the 5 platforms you need to be present on to promote your restaurant for free.

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Promote your restaurant - online - for free

Facebook, Instagram, TripAdvisor: find out all the tips you need to promote your restaurant for free on online platforms.

By submitting this form, you agree to receive marketing communications from SumUp.

1. Facebook

Huge community of users

Facebook has around 2.9 billion users worldwide, so many people are potentially looking for a restaurant to try. It’s therefore highly recommended to have an account dedicated to your establishment when considering restaurant promotion ideas, so you can stand out online and attract new customers. 

Promote your restaurant for free

In addition to having access to a very large target audience, this account will allow you to promote your restaurant for free, through the creation of events and the sharing of photos and customer testimonials. Facebook also offers the possibility to add "action buttons" to your restaurant page, such as "Order"or "Book"

These buttons will facilitate the customer journey, and allow you to develop your customer base both online and in person. 

2. Instagram

Reach a new target audience with a business account

Instagram has around 1.5 billion users worldwide, and this social network allows these users to access content in a multitude of formats (photos, videos, reels)—all of which can be used to promote your offer.

With a huge majority of people choosing their restaurant online or thanks to information found on Instagram, creating a business account is an opportunity not to be missed.

Taming the Instagram algorithm

To promote your restaurant for free on Instagram, you’ll face stiff competition. Many restaurant owners have had an account for a long time, and have accumulated likes and followers. No need to worry, as the platform's rules change regularly, and the publications with the most likes are no longer the ones that get the most visibility online.  Now, other elements come into play, such as comments, views, shares, and follows. 

So there is always room to promote your restaurant on these platforms.

3. Google My Business

To appear in the top Google search results

One of the most effective ways to advertise your restaurant for free is to have a well-optimised Google My Business listing. Local search on Google is more important than on social networks. You can therefore attract new customers who have searched for "Italian restaurant", for example, on a search engine and found your establishment. 

Optimising your profile 

To do this, it’s not enough to just have an online site, but also to optimise your Google My Business page. This includes all the important information about your restaurant, the reviews of other internet users and photos of your dishes. The more complete and well-optimised (keywords) your listing is, the better your chances of being listed online.

4. TripAdvisor

Stand out from the competition

TripAdvisor is known for helping restaurant owners promote their business online. We advise you to dedicate a page to your restaurant as it’s free and a large majority of users trust TripAdvisor reviews when choosing their next restaurant.

On TripAdvisor, an algorithm reviews all the pages and gives them visibility according to 3 criteria: the quality of ratings, the number of customer reviews, and the date of publication of said reviews. 

5. Website 

Create your online shop window

Having a website dedicated to your restaurant is essential, but your business details should be consistent everywhere. Your address, opening hours, and booking options should be identical on all platforms.

Your website can serve as a showcase, allowing you to have your own space to present the image of your brand and promote it, without the limitations of social media regulations.

Give visibility to your site for free

With a website, you are faced with the rules of natural referencing. By feeding your pages with quality content, but also by selecting relevant keywords, you’ll manage to position yourself well among the results of search engines (Google). All this, without spending a single cent.

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Step 1 of 1

Promote your restaurant - online - for free

Facebook, Instagram, TripAdvisor: find out all the tips you need to promote your restaurant for free on online platforms.

By submitting this form, you agree to receive marketing communications from SumUp.

Liza Giraud