Public Relations(PR) for restaurants is essential since it helps create awareness about your restaurant on a mass scale, and also builds goodwill among people. Restaurant publicity creates brand awareness and adds to their profits. However, hiring a PR agency can be an expensive affair if you are already working on a tight budget. Restaurant PR is not just about publicizing the food but the restaurant itself through different elements and factors. These can range from food served, a specialty item, some events, or even a restaurant’s interior design. This article discusses how restaurants in the UAE can do Public Relations for their business. 

How To Manage Public Relations For Restaurants In The UAE

To publicize your restaurant for little or no cost at all, first, you need to understand how PR for restaurants works and what media outlets you can use. Then comes understanding how to get these third party outlets to talk about your restaurant. 

1. Understanding The Media Options Available For Restaurant Publicity

Restaurant PR or restaurant publicity unlike word-of-mouth marketing is dependent upon media outlets and not upon individual customers. Even if you have impeccable service, great staff, and delicious food, you cannot guarantee that it will be able to get your restaurant the publicity it needs. Thus restaurant publicity is dependent upon a variety of media channels described below. 

1. Paid Media

Platforms that allow you to advertise your restaurant stating your USP is called Paid Media. For example, TV and outdoor advertisements, Paid SEM/SEO, paid influencers; paid content in different influential news dailies and magazines is called paid media.

2. Owned Media

Owned media are the platforms and channels owned by the restaurant. These include the restaurant’s website, social media handles such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc., and the restaurant blog. You can create a lot of engagement and awareness among your target audience through these channels.

3. Earned Media

This type of media is particularly related to articles, blog posts, Instagram photos, online reviews, or word-of-mouth. If a third party is talking about your restaurant, then it is known as earned media.

Source: Groupon

Leveraging Media And Other Third-Party Options For Your Restaurant Publicity

PR for restaurants or PR for any business essentially requires the media as well as the public to talk about a particular brand. You can get your restaurant covered in the media by following these tactics.

1. Keep a Tab on the Influencers

Follow the big influencers who can help you to attract the right audience to your restaurant.  Some of them might charge a fee for their services, while there may be some who do not charge at all.  But largely, those who have a high number of followers charge commission.

It is advisable to follow the ones who have comparatively fewer followers but not less than 10,000, with a niche audience. They can be reached through Facebook, or through a direct invitation for a sponsored lunch or dinner. 

This will help you evaluate influencers that might be relevant to your business. Ideally, one should select influencers only after proper research and understanding. Target food bloggers and influencers, who have a niche following.

2. Partnership Strategy

In this method, you need to find the right business which is not a direct competitor but caters to your target audience. For example, if you are a new takeaway joint in the newly developed market where there are different types of stores like bakeries, grocery shops, etc., you can partner with the bakery shop and offer a complimentary dessert, and in return, the bakery can distribute discount coupons on your behalf. You can also tie up together, and run combo offers. This will help in leveraging each others’ assets, which can help in expanding the customer base.

Implement these stellar tips and promote your restaurant well!