- Content
Modern marketing is not about budget allocation. It is about getting the most out of every dollar invested. In the past, success was measured by the number of people who saw an advertisement. Today, the key question is different: “How much revenue did this campaign generate after all expenses?”
Marketing that cannot be tracked and optimized in terms of return on investment is a luxury. And in 2025, no sensible restaurateur can afford it.
What will SMM be like in 2025?
The era of “food porn” — compositionally perfect, static photos of food — is over. Today, social media algorithms favor dynamic video content in a short format. Instagram Reels, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts are the undisputed leaders in engagement. With the right approach, combining content with special offers and social commerce features, SMM becomes a tool that generates sales and physical traffic.
Strategy 1: Content that converts
To be successful, you need to focus your efforts on creating content that not only entertains but also motivates action. As mentioned earlier, about 80% of your efforts should be directed toward vertical videos. They have the highest organic reach and the greatest potential for attracting new audiences.
They can be implemented in the following scenarios:
- Show how the kitchen works, introduce the team, tell the chef’s story.
- Create Reels that announce a specific promotion, such as “Burger and Beer Wednesday.”
- Actively promote special events, limited-time offers, and high-margin menu items.
- Encourage guests to create and share content about your establishment, and repost visitors’ posts.
Strategy 2: The power of local influencers
First of all, don’t chase after bloggers with millions of followers. Often their audience is too broad and will never reach your restaurant. Instead, collaborate with local food bloggers who may have 5-50 thousand followers, but all of whom are potential guests from your city.
The strategy is to find influencers whose audience best matches your target guest in terms of both demographics and geography. At the same time, this requires analyzing the local market, analyzing engagement metrics, and building honest partnerships.
How to set up Google Business Profile (GBP) correctly
Social networks, although critical for branding, are aimed at a “cold” audience. The vast majority of visitors use online resources to search for restaurants, and Google is the main channel for this. In this context, a completed and optimized GBP is an absolute necessity. It should contain:
- up-to-date, high-quality photos,
- an updated menu with prices,
- opening hours, including changes on public holidays,
- contact details: phone number, address, website link.
If an optimized profile is the foundation, then advertising on Google is the accelerator. Local Search Ads, which appear directly in Google Maps, are effective for attracting physical traffic. The average return on investment for restaurant campaigns on Google is 4:1 ($1 spent = $4 earned).
Let’s imagine a typical customer journey: they see your ad on Google Maps and go to your website. If the website loads slowly, has poor design, and is not optimized for mobile devices, the user will immediately close it. Google’s algorithm records this high bounce rate as a negative user experience and assigns your landing page a low “Quality Score.” A lower Quality Score means you’ll have to pay a higher cost per click (CPC).
Therefore, for a restaurant focused on maximizing profit from every dollar invested, the budget priority should be as follows:
- GBP optimization,
- advertising on Google Maps/Search,
- social networks.
Many restaurants do the opposite, pouring money into Instagram promotion while neglecting their Google storefront.
Direct communication channels: how to bring customers back again and again
Attracting a new customer is always more expensive than retaining an existing one. Therefore, the most profitable action for a restaurant is to turn a one-time guest into a regular. And direct communication channels are the best tool for this.
SMS and email marketing
Although these channels serve the same purpose, they work differently. They should be used for different tasks.
SMS marketing is an instant channel. Its advantages:
- Open Rate. SMS open rates reach 98%, with 90% of them being read within the first three minutes.
- ROI. Subscribers to SMS mailings visit the establishment 44% more often and spend 23% more.
Email marketing is a tool for building long-term relationships. Although open rates are lower here, email is indispensable for:
- storytelling and brand awareness,
- event and news announcements,
- sending personalized selections or offers.
Loyalty programs
According to a 2025 study, personalized offers are the most important factor in driving customer loyalty. Nearly a third of Americans say that personalized offers make them more loyal to specific restaurants.
Loyalty program members don’t just come back, they spend more. An effective program can increase the average guest check by 35%.
Traditional loyalty was anonymous. Modern programs record every transaction. They know who buys what, when, and how often. This data turns your loyalty program into your own customer data platform. It is this data that allows you to launch hyper-personalized SMS and email campaigns. This creates a self-reinforcing cycle: guests return more often and spend more.
Timing and segmentation
Timing matters. A promotional offer for lunch at 11:30 a.m. is much more effective than one at 4:00 p.m. A message saying “Planning your weekend?” on Friday evening can intercept spontaneous decisions.
Don’t send the same message to everyone. Use data from your loyalty program and POS system to segment your audience and make relevant offers to each guest.
Why individual tools don’t work without a unified strategy
Marketing doesn’t work if your channels operate in isolation. Its true power is only revealed in an integrated approach, where data is transferred between channels, creating a unified path for the customer.
The basis of modern marketing is a unified view of the guest, built on a customer data platform. It collects information from various sources: Wi-Fi in the establishment, POS systems, online orders, booking systems, reviews, etc. And the combined data allows for hyper-personalization.
The best proof of the effectiveness of a systematic approach is the Jardine Restaurant Group case study. By building a CDP based on Google Cloud, the company achieved:
- 200%+ ROAS growth in search marketing;
- 12% increase in the number of additional items in the check;
- 30% increase in the average check.
Any restaurant can make a good burger. Many can offer good service. But only a few are able to turn marketing into an automated system that collects data about each guest, analyzes their behavior, and sends personalized offers.
A restaurant that masters this will have a lower customer acquisition cost, higher lifetime value (LTV), and a more sustainable business model.
BRG expertise: from comprehensive audit to stable profit
So, you need to do more than just “run Instagram”; you need to connect all channels into a single money-making mechanism. A viral video on TikTok should lead to a reservation, and a high Google rating should lead to registration in a loyalty program.
Many restaurant owners are experts in gastronomy, service, and hospitality, but not in building marketing funnels and analyzing data. And that’s okay. However, this is where a gap arises, which we at BRG help to close. Our approach is based on four stages:
- Comprehensive audit. We thoroughly analyze your marketing channels to find weaknesses and growth points.
- Identifying growth points. Based on audit data and a deep understanding of industry trends, we identify the most promising opportunities for your establishment.
- Building a personalized strategy. You will receive a clear action plan that shows how the channels will reinforce each other and what results to expect at each stage.
- Help with implementation and analytics. We not only create a strategy, but also help to implement it, track its effectiveness, and provide clear monthly reports.
Let’s build a system together that is guaranteed to bring profit. Contact us to order an audit of your marketing and get a clear action plan for 2025.
It's important to focus on making content that not only entertains but also inspires action.