Why Restaurant Video Marketing is a Worthwhile Investment
Many restaurant owners ask why restaurants need video marketing and is it worth the investment. Making up 82% of all website traffic, online video is predicted to be the leading source of web content for 2022. It is a well-known fact that video marketing is one of the most effective ways to engage audiences and amass online traction, but how does this popular form of online marketing translate into the restaurant industry?
For years, restaurants have relied on the tantalizing visuals of food and food production to engage with the public eye. But the transition from static images or posters to refined (and highly competitive) video content leaves many restaurateurs feeling daunted and unsure of how to move forward.
Video marketing is the meeting point between evocative food visuals, trending online themes, and a foundational understanding of video technology.
These three things combined can create powerful content that draws online audiences in and compels the public to invest in your brand. Video marketing has proven to be highly effective in growing online followings, improving website traffic, attracting media attention, and gaining customer loyalty.
The statistics available on the popularity and effectiveness of video marketing means that restaurants can no longer ignore it as a method for connecting with the general public and generating high ROI.
Even though the production of video content may seem pricey or time-consuming for restauranteurs and chefs lacking experience in this area, learning the basics of video marketing opens up a world of opportunities. These opportunities can prove monumental in the building of your brand reputation.
What Makes Video Marketing So Effective?
Before we get into the technicalities of video marketing, let’s discuss its relevance to the online marketing industry and what makes it such a driving force behind customer engagement.
Video marketing uses the naturally appealing visuals of food and food preparation to tantalize viewers and generate curiosity about what the consumption experience might be like. It also uses storytelling to illustrate each step of the food production process, from original conceptualization to physical creation.
There are many different ways to go about using video marketing in the restaurant industry. Things like restaurant walkabouts, chef’s perspectives, recipe development, dish preparation, and even simple close-up shots of food all perform exceptionally well on social media platforms.
In fact, views for food and food preparation on YouTube have increased by 170% year-over-year. People eat up video content about food – and who can blame them? Food sits at the epicenter of community culture. It’s something that unites people from every corner of the globe.
If your restaurant can tap into the increasingly high demand for quality food videos, amassing a loyal, active audience both on and offline will become much easier.
What Does Great Video Marketing Look Like?
The first step is to define your marketing plan. If you don’t have a background in video content development or marketing, knowing where to start can be difficult. However, the information available on this topic is widely accessible and easier than you think. Especially with the support of online tools and tutorials.
When creating video content for your restaurant, there are four main components to keep in mind.
- Content – What kind of content do you think your current followers will like the most? You could film the preparation of a popular dish, a brief interview with the chef, a foraging expedition, or a compilation video of various whips, sizzles, splatters or drizzles that gets viewers salivating.
- Style – Your content style is the character and heart of your restaurant brand identity. Is your restaurant cute and quirky, or traditional and elegant? The brand identity of your chef or restaurant should always be represented in your video content.
- Length – The length of your videos should be dependent on where you upload them, and why. An Instagram reel is limited to 1 minute, whereas Tik Tok allows up to 3 minutes.
Facebook’s limit is 240 minutes, and YouTube doesn’t have a limit. If you’re going to post regular, bite-sized videos, let Instagram reels and Tik Toks be your guide. Longer, more episodic videos would be best uploaded to YouTube or Facebook. - Quality – The quality of your video content should be consistently high. Online consumers are spoilt for choice when it comes to food videos, so they will direct their time elsewhere if yours does not meet their quality expectations.
One of the best ways to create high-quality video marketing content is to consume it yourself. In order to create video content that is likely to perform well, you will need to develop a strong understanding of current trends, themes, and styles present within your restaurant community.
Stand Out with Creative Ideas
Restaurants that embrace unique themes and strategies for video marketing tend to perform better over time. Here is a list of creative yet easily executed video marketing ideas to make your restaurant stand out amongst the crowd:
- Tell your brand’s story
- Restaurant/kitchen tour
- “Day in the life” vlogs
- DIY popular dish instructional
- Recipe development
- Head Chef interview
- Delicious close-ups compilation
When it comes down to it, your video content should make viewers hungry, excited, and curious about your restaurant’s food. The sexier, the better!
Finding and Cultivating Talent Online
There’s no shame in admitting that you either have no interest or proficiency in the art of video marketing. There is a surplus of trained and amateur professionals out there who both understand and love the process of creating high-quality restaurant video content, and hiring them is easy.
You can find thousands of accomplished freelance video marketers for hire online. Although salaries are highly dependent on experience, the average hourly pay rate for a hired video marketer is $30, and the average monthly salary ranges between $1,500 and $4,000.
If hiring somebody else is not currently possible for your restaurant marketing budget, internal training is simpler, easier, and less expensive than you might think. Through websites like the Dan Institute and Filmora, just about anyone can learn how to make visually stunning and impactful video content. VEED also has a robust free video editing tool that also has upgrades if you are willing to pay for additional features.
Video marketing is so much more than just surface-level attraction. With the right strategy in place, this visually-focused form of marketing can turn online viewers into loyal real-life customers who understand your brand mission with newfound clarity and appreciation.
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