Should Restaurants bother with twitter

This question came about while I was talking to one of our clients last week. We were meeting to discuss the realtimeseating late availability texting service we provide to them and during the course of the conversation I happened to mention twitter, at which point my client said he could not be bothered with it?

 

When I asked him why he thought this, he simply said that twitter was just a fad and of no value to any business. I then tried to explain to him that twitter is about engaging and building up relationships with your customers and potential customers, other restaurants and restaurateurs, foodies, local people and local area “advocates”, raising your profile and building a network of people interested in what you do and monitoring what is being said about your restaurant. (a perfect example below)

“@realtimeseating: White Brasserie (Kings Arms) in #Teddington . Last night good food and ambience but deplorable service.

His argument was that twitter was a waste of time and time cost money.

Having worked with this particular client for two months and knowing that to him the proof is in the pudding, I simply said that I was going to tweet that afternoon asking local people and local area “advocates” what their favourite restaurant was in the area (in this case Teddington) and would let him know what the result was.

He could not believe when I called him within 24 hours with the following results:

13 replies –all local people

12 different restaurants (his restaurant was named twice)

A total of 3,067 followers between the people that replied (a potential 3,000 fold exposure of his restaurant and 11 other restaurants mentioned)

 

So his setting up his twitter account as I write this …..

 

[Just this morning we received a reply suggesting a restaurant and the person has 100 followers so the exposure for that restaurant has just increased potentially 100 fold]

 

For those that are interested, below is the list tweeted to us of people's (peeps) local favourite restaurant in Teddington:

 

1.    Retro

2.    Scarpetta

3.    Prem

4.    Simply Thai

5.    Red Peppers

6.    Bloated Mallard

7.    The Wharf

8.    Tide End Cottage Pub

9.    Al Borgo

10.    White Brasserie

11.    Shambles

12.    Diners Delight

 

14/12/2010 permalink | 0 Comments »

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29/10/2010 permalink | 0 Comments »

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06/10/2010 permalink | 0 Comments »

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