How to promote the café on social media?
Who are your customers?
Before you start any social network, you need to define who your customers are and who should follow you on the networks.
This way, you can then prepare relevant content, not waste time and attract your true potential customers to you. Having hundreds of hearts on a post is nice, but if they don't bring you customers, it's pretty pointless.
Don't expect change after the first few posts, it' s all aboutbuilding a community. It's also possible that you won't immediately hit your followers' tastes, so there's nothing easier than asking them what content they enjoy.
Do they prefer posts or stories? What content do they like best? Are they interested in your daily deals or info about events at your cafe?
The language of communication
Once you have a clear idea of who your customers are, the next step is to determine the "tone of voice", i.e. the language of communication. This is one of the pillars of community building.
Are you going to shout at your customers? How do you want to appear on social media. Do you want to appear as an expert in your field or as a friend of your customers?
This overview of brand archetypescan help you define your personality type and the language of communication .
Although you may be intimidated at first by the fact that big global brands are listed as examples, there's nothing to worry about. This model is used by both large and small brands. And this little tick box will help you head in the right direction.
Important information about the café in biu
Nowadays, more and more people are looking on social media for information about the businesses they plan to visit. Therefore, you should include important information there as well.
Without a doubt , youraddress shouldn't be missing from your Instagram bio . In case you have multiple branches (so 2-4) list all the addresses anyway. If you have even more affiliates, it is worth considering setting up separate accounts.
As another you should not forget about the opening hours. Once a customer is on your profile they won't want to go looking for your opening hours on another platform.
You can also inform about the exceptional change of opening hours on Instagram stories, but you shouldn't forget to promote the regular one either. Eg: Today we have Rwanda and chocodort and we are here again 9 - 19.
Create a clear content plan
"Hmm, I haven't posted anything in a while, so I'll take a picture of this and put it up." No! It really wouldn't work that way. To avoid throwing away everything before, you should make a clear plan of when you want to publish what posts, on what platforms and what the post should be focused on.
That way, with a plan, you can better tailor your posts to the platform. There's no need to get complicated and you just need a simple excel for this. Create a template to start with, then you can just copy this onto a new sheet every month.
For example, you can use Planoly or Preview to schedule posts directly in the feed.
Is your cafe specifically targeted? Do you offer lots of plant-based milks or gluten-free baked goods? Posts like these also have a place in your content plan.
Duplicate content
With this also comes the issue of duplicate content. Is it wise to post the same content on Facebook and Instagram? In my opinion, no.
Writing a slightly different caption and using, at least, a photo from a different angle doesn't take you much extra time and grows your potential to engage more customers. In fact , it is often the case thatthe structure of followers on Instagram and Facebook is different, so it is advisable to adapt the content to that. Moreover, the same content can bore followers.
You'll also be putting different content directly as a post in your feed and on stories.
A post with a call to action
This point is closely related to the previous one. Most posts should lead the customer to take action. In the case of a coffee shop, it doesn't have to be just coming to you for coffee. But also that the customer starts following you, thus building a long-term relationship.
Pushing a call to action into every post on the force is also not always the way to go. That's why it's a good idea to rotate your content. For example, you can use a poll on which cupcake or preparation method your customers prefer.
Ideas for Instagram photos
I probably don't even need to mention thefact that you shouldposton social media about your current offerings. You can share daily specials like current soups, sandwiches or desserts on stories. That way people can see that this is what you're offering at the cafe that day.
If your café is a smaller espresso bar and you don't offer many goodies, information about what'son your grinder is also important to those watching. Maybe because everyone wants to taste this natural Ethiopia with its notes of strawberries and raspberries.
Posts about coffee preparation methods, the origin of the coffee or its flavour profile and tips on who the coffee is suitable forcan also have a place in the content .
You can also inform customers about whatnew beans you have for sale.
You can alsointroduce your employees. Posts like this help to build the relationship with your customer even more. On their next visit, the customer then knows that if they are served by Eliska they won't make the mistake of ordering afilter coffee from V60, and conversely, Karel is a master oflatte art and he can even draw a unicorn in their cappuccino.
Shared content
You can also use content directly from your customers. There are several reasons to use such content:
- Content from customers feels more authentic.
- Customers will know that you value them
- You save time by creating your own content
Theeasiest form is to reshare directly to Stories. If your customers include skilled photographers, you can partner with them and use their photos in your feed.
However, be aware that instastories cluttered with overshares from customers probably won't interest everyone else. So do everything in moderation.
Handling social media posts
With posts, the processing also matters. I'll give you photo tips first. Instagram is a visual platform and the quality of your photos is a reflection of your business. Rather than posting a throwaway photo on your profile, don't post anything.
It is true that natural light is best, so take your photos preferably in broad daylight. Lightroom, VSCO or Snapseed can help you with minor editing .
Next, there's Instagram stories, where it's a good idea to set up a link with the Facebook extension Myday stories. Then you have less to worry about.
Stories have been gated since their inception as something where editing isn't very important. But a little embellishment never hurts the photos. Youcan use theOverapp or Canvafor example . You can also use these simple graphic programs for classic posts.
The advantage of stories is mainly in their timeliness and also the use of various stickers such as the possibility to ask a question, mark a location, add a link or set a countdown to the date of the event in your café.
Last I have Reels. This new tool is very popular on Instagram. It has its roots in the TikTok app. Its magic is in creating short, dynamic and visually interesting videos. Overall, video formats are now the most supported among all other networks.
In Reels, you can show, for example, the preparation of filter coffee, espresso, or sandwiches. For video editing, use either Instagram itself or the VideoLeap app.
Influencer marketing
Speaking of social media, it's worth mentioning influencer marketing. An influencer is someone who has influence and doesn't even have to have thousands of followers on Instagram to do so.
For businesses, it's best to choose from local influencers who come to your coffee shop and have before you started working with them. Then the collaboration is more authentic.
For example, you can use an influencer totake over your Instagram accountfor a day and show your followers the nooks and crannies of your café or roastery, or perhaps to invite customers to an interesting event at your café.
Influencer marketing tips from our Domi
Wondering how to choose the right influencer? There are no specific instructions for this. The main thing is that the influencer likes your product. Preferably they already know and use your product.
Be careful that they don't already work with your competitors. In the first phase, you should do an influencer analysis. Find out which influencer you are looking for. Go through their social networks. Find out if he has bought followers and if he has a profile just for profit - every other post marked collaboration.
The best option is a mix of micro and macro influencers - so influencers with up to 10,000 followers and those with numbers above 10,000. This is because larger creators bring with them more engagement with collaborations and thus less credibility, whereas smaller creators are far more credible. Therefore, it pays to link the two groups to achieve the best results.
Once the collaboration is established, create a spreadsheet and keep a record of everything that happens during the collaboration. When a post, story, contest, how many followers, etc. came out. Evaluate.
Beautiful environment as a basis
In my opinion, a good cafe must have good coffee and nice servicefirst of all , but if you add a nice interior, it's a perfect combo.
Maybe this point is partly superficial, but looks matter too. In fact, the cafe itself and its atmosphere is often the main reason for visiting. To put it bluntly, people can make coffee at home.
You don't want dirty and scratched cups or sticky tables in your café. When your customer gets their coffee in an unconventional mug, or their food is served nicely, they're more likely to take a picture and share it withtheir friends on social media. You can make a gif out of the photo or video to liven it up.