Restaurant & Bar Marketing
The Restaurant & Bar Marketing podcast by Erik Shellenberger offers a no-nonsense, real-world approach to marketing for bars and restaurants. Through a series of episodes, Erik highlights practical, actionable strategies that cut through ineffective marketing techniques often promoted by so-called “experts.” He emphasizes the importance of using data-driven methods, SEO, and reputation management to drive traffic, improve customer engagement, and increase sales. Key themes in the podcast and his books include: Avoiding Social Media Pitfalls: Erik critiques the over-reliance on social media marketing, pointing out that platforms like Facebook and Instagram have become less effective for attracting new customers who haven’t heard of your brand. The Power of Google and SEO: He strongly advocates for mastering SEO, Google My Business, and review management as the best tools to attract new customers, especially for businesses in tourist-heavy areas. Erik argues that these are much more reliable than social media for driving foot traffic to restaurants. Reputation Management: Managing online reviews on Google, Yelp, and TripAdvisor is another major focus. Erik highlights the importance of responding to reviews, both positive and negative, and ensuring that flagged reviews are handled properly to maintain a high rating and attract more customers. Using AI for Marketing: In more recent episodes, Erik explores how AI tools like ChatGPT can be used for marketing and customer engagement while cautioning against using AI in ways that create barriers between customers and human interaction. Erik’s Restaurant & Bar Marketing series of books further expands on these themes, offering detailed guidance on how to practically implement these strategies to grow guest counts and revenue while avoiding costly marketing missteps. By focusing on methods that can be measured and proven, Erik equips restaurant and bar owners with the tools to stay competitive in an increasingly digital world. For more insights, you can explore Erik’s work through his Restaurant & Bar Marketing book series available now on Amazon. See his website and learn more about ＜a href=”https://barmarketingbasics.com”＞SEO for Restaurants＜/a＞ at Bar Marketing Basics
