Marketing

New Moves... Six Steps to Incorporating TikTok Into Your Restaurant Social Media Strategy
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New Moves... Six Steps to Incorporating TikTok Into Your Restaurant Social Media Strategy

by Shawn P. Walchef

If you are reading this article with a skeptical lens about promoting your restaurant on TikTok, I don't blame you. You are not alone; however, you can no longer ignore the statistics about the app's popularity and place in popular culture. (See "Mind Blowing Stats About TikTok" below.)

Every restaurant owner knows they need to have an active social media presence. Until 2021, that presence probably included a Facebook Business Page and an Instagram account. Very few restaurants have ventured into claiming accounts on Twitter, YouTube, Snapchat, LinkedIn, and for good reason. Who even has the time?

TikTok is not a "dance app." It's an important tool to help your restaurant grow its digital presence, engage with new customers, and may give you a necessary push to develop a short-form video strategy.

If you are among the intrepid digitally savvy smartphone storytellers who have embraced these platforms, then we not only applaud you but look forward to supporting the content you are probably already creating on TikTok.

If your restaurant is not yet on TikTok, we are here to help with this brief guide to TikTok for restaurant owners.

Get in Step with a Social Media Mindset

I invite you to begin thinking of TikTok as one more arrow in your quiver to drive engagement and interest from prospective and exiting guests via short-form video content. If you spend time on social media, you probably understand the term.

That said, to be absolutely clear, I define short-form video to be one-minute or shorter (preferably under 15 seconds) vertical format recording on a smartphone presenting one concise idea per clip. Keep it simple. Think in terms of one recipe, one cocktail, or one short presentation about your restaurant. It could be a quick guest testimonial, a short profile on a staff member stoy, a new menu item you want to test market.

New Moves... Six Steps to Incorporating TikTok Into Your Restaurant Social Media Strategy

Your hesitance to include TikTok among your social media marketing arsenal might be based on your misperception that the platform is only about creating trending dance videos. I'm a restaurant owner (Cali Comfort BBQ), own a media company (Calibbq Media), and I'm relatively young. And, while TikTok dance videos are entertaining, they are definitely not my thing.

If performing dances and skits are among your skills, please lean into it. Otherwise, don't worry. There is way more to TikTok than that – particularly for business owners.

The easiest way to start simplifying your social media is to make a commitment right now that you will not miss the opportunity to use this powerful and free social media app, TikTok, to build more business for your restaurant. If I have been successful in whetting your appetite for TikTok, you might make a public promise to your management team and staff that TikTok and short-form video has become a priority for your brand.

The more you talk about it, and even record and post short videos talking about your new commitment for your team's viewing, the more you will find staff members, managers, guests, and key stakeholders for your brand who are willing to help you with your mission.

Follow these steps to set up your TikTok Business Account:

Step 1 – Get on TikTok.
Download the TikTok app from the Apple App Store or Google Play store. Once the app is installed on your phone, open it by tapping "Me" in the bottom menu bar. And then click "Sign Up" to register with your phone number, email address, or a registered social media account.

Step 2 – Set up a free business account.
Within the app, click the ellipses "..." on the top right of the "Me" page, then click "Manage account" and select "Switch to Business Account." Choose the category that best fits your business to receive customized content, events and solutions.

Step 3 – Create and get discovered.
You're all set! You can start posting content using TikTok's suite of creative tools, and share information about your products and services.

Step 4 – Search for your brand and hashtags.
Use the search function to find out if guests or influencers in your area have already created content of your restaurant on the platform. Thank them publicly on their videos and start to establish a relationship with any of the creators that you notice make great videos. You might even hire them to assist with your own storytelling.

Step 5 – Get into the regular habit of creating content.
Schedule 15 to 30 minutes before or after your weekly management meetings to start creating less than 15 second videos for TikTok. (These videos can also be used for Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, Facebook Reels, LinkedIn Posts and Twitter as well.) Involve your managers and staff.

Step 6 – The best video is the one you post.
We believe the key to winning on social media is to simplify the posting process so that it becomes part of the daily business habits of running your restaurant. Don't let the search for excellence stymie your progress. Your first published video will not be perfect. Your first 100 published videos most likely will not be perfect either. Once you accept imperfection, you can start to learn and grow by publishing more videos more often.


New Moves... Six Steps to Incorporating TikTok Into Your Restaurant Social Media Strategy

Mind Blowing Stats About TikTok

  • Most popular website in 2021, surpassing even Google, according to Cloudflare.
  • US TikTok users spent an average 858 minutes per month on the app, according to Statista.
  • As of January 2022, TikTok had 1 billion Monthly Active users worldwide.