Twitter is the double-edged sword of social media. It can be a restaurant’s best friend or worst enemy.

It is not enough to simply have an account; an inactive Twitter presence can be more damaging than not having one at all.

Learning how users interact on Twitter will give restaurants the knowledge to get the most out of this powerful tool. Below are five tips to follow when establishing your restaurant’s identity on Twitter.

Engage

Restaurants should leverage their existing tools to help build their Twitter presence. Direct customers from your website, Facebook page, and even the physical menu to your account. Once you have a respectable following, the next step is to engage them.

Some brands mistakenly view Twitter as free advertising space. The truth is that it is a social medium, meaning it should be treated as a platform for social interaction. Customers will expect that a restaurant matches the instant gratification Twitter offers. This is as simple as responding to messages or tweets as quickly as possible.

Do not let a negative tweet or customer experience linger; use the opportunity to make it right. Replying to such comments will be seen publicly, and even if you fail to repair the relationship with that one customer, your other loyal patrons will see both sides of the story.

Retweet any positive responses or feedback that you receive. Not only will your followers see the good press, but retweets are highly coveted in Twitter and those users will be more likely to return the favor.

Promote

Though your tweets should be more than simply self-promotional, it’s important to highlight the special deals and events your restaurant is offering.

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Creating a “Twitter-only” special will give followers the feeling that they are “insiders” Offer a discount or free drink for anyone who mentions your restaurant on Twitter. They will feel rewarded for their loyalty, and perhaps other customers may overhear the offer and feel compelled to follow you as well.

A more aggressive promotion tactic is to offer up a prize for users who follow you and engage with a tweet outlining the contest rules. It could be as simple as “Follow us and like for a chance to win” or even require a retweet for entry into the draw. A $50 gift card is well worth the exposure a restaurant Twitter campaign like this can generate.

Humanize

Twitter users will expect more from your account than endless promotions. Between tweeting out your special exclusive deals, make sure to tweet content that humanizes your brand.

The public’s fascination with chefs, gourmet food, and hidden-gem restaurants is at an all-time high. Let your followers into the behind the scenes world of your kitchen. Things that happened in the workplace may be funny to more than just your employees. Share these moments with your Twitter followers and make sure to include quality photos so people can put faces to your brand.

Another way to break up a continuous stream of promotional tweets is by jumping on popular trends. If any “Trending Now” hashtags are relevant to your restaurant, join the global conversation. #TheNameOfMyDebutAlbum, #IfIWasACat, and #In30MinutesOrLessICould may sound silly, but if you can find a clever way to include your brand, there could be a lot of eyeballs on your restaurant’s account.

Tailor tweets

Believe it or not, there is an art to crafting successful tweets. Even the smallest details have an impact on how it is received. Studies show certain practices increase engagement on tweets.

It is most effective to tweet in the evening or on weekends when people are most active. There are many online tools that allow you to schedule tweets, so you can line up tweets to be posted at peak times. Monitor which of your tweets have had the most impressions, as each follower engages with Twitter differently.

To stand out from the crowd on your customers feed, it is important to include a high-quality photo whenever you can. This can be a new menu item or a photo of your staff. Anything that you think might be of interest to your followers.

Lastly, make sure there is a call to action in your tweets. Verbs and adverbs are more powerful than nouns and adjectives. This could be a request for customers to act on a special in-person, or to further engage on Twitter. For example, tweets containing RT or Retweet receive 12x more shares than those without the same call to action.

Monitor Twitter

When you are not engaging customers, the real power of Twitter is the gathering of information. By using this information correctly, you can learn a lot about your customers.

Start by following famous chefs and popular TV networks that cover cooking. Don’t be afraid to follow your competition or similar restaurants. See what they are doing that is successful, and put your own spin on it.

Most importantly, type your restaurant into the search bar frequently to see what others are saying about you. This is the key to following up with all tweets, good or bad and learning how to better conduct your business on and offline.

With over 300 million active users each month, the importance of establishing your brand on Twitter is undeniable. By following these guidelines, customers can stay connected to you in between their visits.

The next generation with disposable income will be Twitter-savvy, so it is important to know the proper etiquette to engage with them for years to come.

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Originally posted by Yelp WiFi