Pizza Today - May2023 - 27

Look at the rise of TikTok in the
past couple years. It caught fire due to
the ability to shoot raw footage on the
fly. Instagram also has been pivoting
toward video because of the popularity
of viewers more attracted to video
than photos. Marketers who use video
content experience revenue growth
49 percent faster than those who don't.
Photos do still have a place though.
Showing a beautiful pizza shot from
your phone with portrait mode can
make your customers salivate. Showing
a smile from one of your employees
or customers can make people feel
your culture. But we are in an age of
storytelling, and everyone is tuning in
to watch, laugh and listen. Roughly
91 percent of consumers want to
see more online video content from
brands. So how do you capture that
attention? What works when shooting
video or photos to give the audience
what they want? And what are some
things you shouldn't do or worry
about.
Both photo and video play together
when thinking of a marketing strategy.
But which do you choose? A lot of
what you do depends on what you
are shooting and what the focus is.
Let's dive into the dos and don'ts with
social media when it comes to photo
and videos.
Guiding principles?
First let's cover some guiding
principles to shooting videos and
taking photos. One of the things
that all of us entrepreneurs struggle
from is trying to make it " just right " .
With video and photos, timing can be
everything and time doesn't wait for
you. Catching a moment or a popular
trend must be jumped on quickly. So,
remember " progress not perfection " .
Some content is better than missed or
no content. This is a muscle you must
develop to get good at capturing every
moment.
Try to be active on every platform.
At GAPCo most of our customer
base was on Facebook which led to
easy adoption of Instagram for us.
With the popularity of TikTok, we
have recently made the move to adding
content there as well. At GAPCo
we live by the philosophy of " always
be top of mind " . You cannot be top
of mind if you aren't everywhere.
You should do everything you can to
put your restaurant in front of your
current customers and new potential
customers as much as possible.
Ideas for content will hit you every
day, just watch and listen for the
things people are doing and talking
about. Whether it is a challenge
online or a seasonal food item **Hatch
Chili Peppers, cough cough** or even
a national gimmick. There are ideas
surrounding us day in and day out.
So, when you see and have these ideas
make it your own - put your branding
on it, include your staff in it and
have fun! Make the content exciting
and it should make you smile. Just
whatever you do, own it!
Do's and don'ts?
Do's - When shooting video be sure
to hold your phone vertical. The world
is impatient. Short videos are great at
getting quick attention. You want to
post reels as much as you can. Consider
adding in subtitles if you want
both music and messaging. When
customers tag you in a post be sure to
review that content before just hitting
repost. Also, thank that customer for
posting. **Pro Tip** When a guest
does something over the top like
shoot multiple videos of them at your
restaurant, DM them and send them
swag! This has been very powerful in
building customer loyalty to GAPCo.
If you are shooting a long video, be
sure to include audio. You want to
sound clear and crisp. YouTube and
Facebook are great outlets for longer
videos. When shooting photos, having
a high-res camera or a great phone
can get the job done. There are many
additions you can buy now for your
cell phone like stabilizers, enhanced
lenses and lighting to get the right
photo or video.
Don'ts - Remember don't get lost
in the details. There are plenty of
imperfect posts that get plenty of
likes. Don't question your judgment;
you want guests that like what you
like. Don't put off ideas for posts. Get
them out there as much as possible. At
the same time, don't feel the need to
over-post. Three to seven times a week
is ideal. Don't feel like you must have
music, a lot of video content doesn't
get heard because people are looking
for visuals and generally have the
sounds muted.
Moving forward
There are many ways you can get
your content out versus just creating
it and posting. You can consider live
streaming, which you can promote
beforehand to attract some engagement.
You can have social media
influencers come in and shoot their
videos and photos to attract their followers,
which then can become your
followers. You can also hire a company
to help you manage pushing your content
out to your social media channels.
Lastly, if you are a visionary like me
who can come up with some amazing
ideas but struggle at know-how and
execution, then grab the bull by the
horns and hire someone to do it internally.
You can really drive the creativity
to a level you couldn't do without a
team. I was fortunate enough to hire
my lovely wife Molly and long-time
friend Phil Bossart who both helped
contribute info for this article.
Between Molly taking on social media
and Phil covering the video I have
the social and video pieces covered at
GAPCo.
After reading this article I hope you
are inspired to add video to your marketing
strategy if you already haven't.
If you have already added it, I hope
you were able to take some ideas away
to ignite some new thoughts to push
your restaurant and vision forward.
SAMMY MANDELL co-owns Greenville
Avenue Pizza Company in Dallas Texas. He is
also a frequent speaker at Pizza Expo.
Pizza Today - May2023

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