You can never go wrong with building a strong social media presence for your business in today’s digital age. Furthermore, There are over 271 million Facebook users in Africa. So if you haven’t been utilising this channel for your business, you need to start now. Facebook Ads can be a powerful tool to reach new customers, boost brand awareness, and ultimately drive sales. But where do you start? This edition of the Vendease Digest is here to serve up some essential tips to help you conquer Facebook Ads and watch your restaurant succeed online.
The first thing you need to know about Facebook Ads for your restaurant is how to create them. Here are some tips to get you started on creating compelling ads that convert to sales:
Know your audience
This is the first thing you need to figure out before you launch any ad campaign. Define your target audience by asking yourself who you are trying to reach. Is your restaurant family-oriented? Are you a café targeting young remote workers or health-conscious foodies? Narrowing down your audience will help you tailor your messaging and visuals accordingly.
Use engaging visuals
When it comes to Facebook ads, people eat with their eyes first. Use high-quality photos of your restaurant’s food and videos that showcase your most delicious dishes and aesthetic ambiance.
Create a special offer
Nothing pushes an audience to convert like a special time-sensitive offer. It’s always a good idea to entice potential customers with special deals, discounts, or limited-time promotions. This could be anything from buying one item and getting another free, to a 20% discount on a special day of the week like Taco Tuesday.
Include a clear call to action
Every great ad ends with a clear call to action. Tell your audience exactly what you want them to do. This could be to visit your website, make a reservation, or order food online.
The work doesn’t stop here. After creating the Facebook ad visual and caption, you need to set up the ad and keep optimising it for success. Here are a few tips to guide you through achieving the best results with your ad:
Target a specific location
Unlike a lot of other types of businesses, food businesses are typically restricted to serving an audience within a specific location. That’s why it’s important to target potential customers within your delivery radius or those who live near your restaurant’s location.
For instance, if you’re a healthy salad and smoothie vendor in Accra, you can either set the target location of your ad to be just in Accra, Ghana, or narrow it down even further to a 10-15 KM radius around your restaurant.
A/B test different formats
Depending on the target audience, different types of visuals or CTAs may work better for conversion. To figure out what works best for yours, A/B test different formats and compare the results of the ads. Does your audience like videos more than pictures? Do shorter captions work better than longer ones? Do they prefer to make a reservation via WhatsApp or just order online? Information like this will help you create better-converting ads in the future.
Take advantage of seasonal opportunities
Facebook ads can be a major driver for cashing out on seasonal opportunities like Christmas, Easter, Valentines Day and so on. When such periods are coming up, it’s a good idea to create special menus or offers, and create ads for your audience who celebrate these holidays.
Target specific interest
This works hand in hand with defining your target audience. With a defined target audience, you can include interests in your ads like ‘Health & Fitness Enthusiasts’ for restaurants who focus on healthy food, ‘Tech Professionals’ for cafés with WiFi who target remote workers, or ‘Beyoncé fans’ if you’re hosting a listening party for her new album!
At Vendease we go beyond food procurement, and help your restaurant grow in many different ways. Stock up with Vendease and get ready for all the sales you’re going to get with your new Facebook ad strategy ?
Hi Koko,
I just got a job as a restaurant manager for a restaurant in Ikeja and I have an important question to ask. How often is it appropriate to conduct an audit of the restaurant? Quarterly? Yearly? Or any other option?
Hi Chiaka,
For large restaurant chains with many branches, audits can be conducted less frequently because it typically involves visiting all branches to ensure finances are aligned across board. If you work for a one-branch restaurant, we recommend conducting monthly audits to ensure information doesn’t fall through the cracks over time. The ‘invoice’ feature on Vendease e-procurement makes it very easy to track your restaurant’s procurement and inventory expenses when conducting audits.
This week in Vendease
? Our founders are proud members of the prestigious Endeavor Outliers Class of 2024! Learn more here.
✍️ Our CEO, Tunde Kara, explored the challenges and opportunities facing Africa’s food sector in a new article for the World Economic Forum. Read all about it.
? We had loads of fun supporting Vendease restaurants at the GTCO Food & Drink Festival last weekend! Here’s a recap.
